The series was launched in 1992 withSuper Mario Kart on theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), to critical and commercial success.[1] TheMario Kart series totals seventeen games, with eight on home consoles, three on handheld-only consoles, five arcade games co-developed withNamco, and one for mobile phones. Over 189 million copies of the series have been sold worldwide.
In theMario Kart series, players compete ingo-kart races, controlling one of a selection ofMario characters. Up to 24 characters can compete in each race (varying per game). Players can perform driving techniques during the race such as rocket starts,slipstreaming,drifting and mini-turbos.
Gameplay is enhanced bypower-up items obtained by driving into item boxes laid out on the course. These power-ups vary across games in the series, but generally includeMushrooms to give players a speed boost, Red/Green Shells to be thrown at opponents, Banana Peels and hazards such as Fake Item Boxes. The game selects an item based on the player's current position in the race, utilising a mechanism known asrubber banding. For example, players lagging far behind may receive more powerful items such asBullet Bills, which give the player invincibility while auto-piloting them forward at great speed, while the leader of a race may only receive small defensive items, such as Shells or Bananas. This gameplay mechanism allows other racers a realistic chance to catch up to the leading racer. In the original game,Super Mario Kart, the player takes control one of the eightMario series characters, each with differing capabilities. In single player mode, players can race against computer-controlled characters in 4 multi-race cups consisting of 20 tracks (5 in each cup) over three difficulty levels (50cc, 100cc and 150cc). Alternatively, players can race against the clock in a Time Trial mode. In multiplayer mode, two players can simultaneously take part in the cups or can race against each other one-on-one in Match Race mode. In a third multiplayer mode – Battle Mode – the aim is to defeat the other players by attacking them with power-ups, destroying balloons which surround each kart.
Each new game has introduced new gameplay elements, such as new circuits, items, modes, and playable characters.
Mario Kart 64 introduced3D graphics, 4-player racing, mini turbos to more easily execute drift boosts,[2] slipstreaming,[3] and item dangling (the ability to hold bananas and shells to defend against projectiles and hold a reserve item as well), alongside the removal of coins. It introduced several items, including the Fake Item Box, the Golden Mushroom, and theSpiny Shell. In addition to the three Grand Prix engine classes, Extra Mode (known in later games as Mirror Mode) was introduced, in which all tracks are flipped laterally. When playing Battle Mode with three or more players, when a player is defeated they turn into a "Mini Bomb Kart", where they can try and pop another player's balloons.[citation needed]
Mario Kart: Super Circuit returns to the Mode 7 gameplay style found inSuper Mario Kart. Multiplayer in Super Circuit is done viaGBA Link Cable. The game allows multiplayer with only oneGame Pak, although if played this way the game includes various restrictions, such as a limited course count and players only being allowed to play asYoshis.Super Circuit introduces a new mode calledFree Run, which allows the player to play any course with CPU. Battle mode appears as it did in64, with Mini Bomb Karts being replaced by Bob-ombs that respawn once exploded.[citation needed]
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! returns to the 3D format that originated inMario Kart 64. New feature to the game include double-occupied karts, a 2-playerCo-op mode where one player drives while the other uses items, and alsoLAN play, which allows up to 16 people to play. It introduced a revamped Spiny Shell that leaves an area of effect explosion, and character exclusive items (known in the game as Special Items). It also introduced new alternate battle modes: "Shine Thief", where players fight over obtaining a Shine Sprite fromSuper Mario Sunshine (2002) before a timer runs out, and "Bob-omb Blast" where players throw Bob-ombs to collect or steal points from each other. In Balloon battle, players no longer turn into Bob-ombs when defeated.[citation needed]
Mario Kart DS featureddual-screen play to take advantage of the system's capabilities. It introduced custom emblems, as well as Online play via the now defunctNintendo Wi-Fi Connection, a mission mode, and returning courses as a main feature. It also returned to the single item and racer format. New playable characters includedDry Bones,R.O.B., andShy Guy (who was exclusive toDS Download Play). It also introduced a new battle mode in "Shine Runners" (not to be confused with the aforementioned "Shine Thief") where players try to collect enough Shine Sprites before a timer runs out to avoid being eliminated.[citation needed]
Mario Kart Wii introduced motion controls as a headlining new feature alongside theWii Wheel accessory. It also introduced the ability to perform mid-air tricks, andbikes as a second vehicle type. The amount of racers that could be in a race was raised from 8 to 12.[4] It introduced three new items: theMega Mushroom, the Thundercloud, and thePOW Block. It also introduced a new battle mode titled "Coin Runners" (not to be confused with "Shine Runners"), where players try to collect as many coins as they can before time runs up. The rules of Balloon Battle are now changed, with the focus now being on getting points by popping other player's balloons before a time limit expires, with players now respawning once they run out of balloons.[citation needed]
Mario Kart 7 featuredstereoscopic 3D graphics and the return of dual screen functionality. It introducedgliders andsubmersible karts, afirst-person perspective, and full kart customization. It also re-introduced Coins in regular races for a small speed boost, though they are also now used to unlock kart parts.[citation needed]
Mario Kart 8 introduced the 200cc engine class,[b]anti-gravity racing, a third vehicle type inATVs,downloadable content,HD graphics, and Mii costumes unlocked viaamiibo. Also introduced isMario Kart TV (abbreviated asMKTV), a mode that gives players the ability to save up to six video replays of races. These replays can be customized based on length and various aspects of focus.MKTV was able to upload replays on toYouTube via the now defunct social media platformMiiverse.[5] Battle mode only features balloon battle, with it taking place on a handful of race courses.[citation needed]
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe added a revamped battle mode, which included the new "Renegade Roundup". Overall gameplay additions include the reintroduction of having two item slots (absent from the series sinceDouble Dash), a third tier of mini-turbo, and added the returning Boo and Feather items (the latter being exclusive to battle mode). It also added 6 characters that were absent from the original game, includingKing Boo,Dry Bones, Gold Mario,Bowser Jr, and the male and femaleInklings fromSplatoon, in addition to giving the female Villager her own character slot.[6][7] From 2022 to the end of 2023, the "Booster Course Pass" DLC expansion pack doubled the amount of courses in the game.[8] It also added new characters,[9] the ability to customize items in VS mode, and a music player.[citation needed]
Mario Kart Tour was the firstMario Kart title onmobile devices, and introduced a points-based system for certain racing actions.[10] It introduced Frenzy Mode,gacha, andloot box mechanics that were later removed in 2022[11]. It reintroduced character-specific items and new items such as Ice Flower, Coin Box, and Dash Ring. Multiple new tracks were introduced in this game and later added toMario Kart 8 Deluxe via the DLC Booster Course Pass.[citation needed]
Mario Kart World features 24-player races[12] andoff-roading mechanics, as well as anopen-world driving format.[13] A new mode is introduced, called "Knockout Tour", where 24 players will race between 6 different checkpoints located on the open world, with the last 4 players being eliminated each time a checkpoint is passed. Most of the new characters inWorld have previously appeared as course hazards. Missions fromDS return in the form of P-Switches found around the open world. As of its launch,World does not include a 200cc speed option. It is expected to be added in a futureupdate.[14][15]
Each game has a variety of modes. The following five modes recur most often in the series:
Grand Prix – Players compete in various "cups" of four courses each (five inSuper Mario Kart) withdifficulty levels based on the size of the engine, larger engines meaning faster speeds. BeforeMario Kart 8 there were four difficulties: 50cc, 100cc, 150cc, and Mirror Mode, where all tracks were flipped horizontally. InMario Kart 8, a fifth difficulty level, 200cc, was added.[b][16] Players earn points according to their finishing position in each race and the placement order gets carried over to the next race as the new starting grid. At the end of the cup, the top three players with the most points overall will receive atrophy in bronze, silver, and gold. InMario Kart: Super Circuit and every game fromMario Kart DS onward, players are also ranked based on how well they raced (three to one stars, A, B, C, D, and E). Three stars is the best rank, while E is the worst.
Time Trials – The player races alone in order to finish any course in the fastest time possible.[17] The best time is then saved as aghost, which the player can race against in later trials.Mario Kart: Double Dash!! introduced Staff Ghosts, which are ghosts set by members of the Nintendo development team.[18]
VS Race – Multiple human players race on any course with customized rules such as team racing and item frequency.
Battle – Multiple human players use in-game offensive items (shells, etc.) to battle each other in a closed arena. In the most common battle type, balloon battle, each player starts with threeballoons and loses one per hit; the last player with at least one balloon wins. Various battle types have been added to the series, and single-player battles with CPU controlled players.[19][20][21]
Online Multiplayer – Players compete in races and battles through online services, such asNintendo Wi-Fi Connection,Nintendo Network, andNintendo Switch Online. Players can share Time Trial ghosts, and participate intournaments. In races and battles, players are matched by VR (VS Rating) and BR (Battle Rating) respectively, which is a number between 0 and 99,999 (9,999 inMario Kart Wii). Players gain or lose points based on performance in a race or battle. The game attempts to match players with a similar rating.[citation needed]
Knockout Tour – Introduced inMario Kart World, Knockout Tour presents players the challenge of finishing a race above a specific placement. If players are unable to meet said placement, they are "knocked out", or have failed the tournament.[21]
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The debut game in theMario Kart series wasSuper Mario Kart released for theSuper Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) in 1992. Its development was overseen byMario creatorShigeru Miyamoto, the Japanese designer of many successful Nintendo games includingSuper Mario Bros. Darran Jones ofNowGamer suggests that the success ofSuper Mario Kart resulted from theSuper Mario characters, and being a new type of racing game.[22]
VB Mario Kart was scheduled for theVirtual Boy in 1995. It was revealed in a 2000 issue of German gaming magazineThe Big N, but was canceled early in development prior to its official announcement due to the Virtual Boy's commercial failure.[28][29]
Mario Kart XXL is an unreleasedGame Boy Advance tech demo developed by Denaris Entertainment Software for Nintendo in 2004. It was originally created as a non-Mario demo known as R3D-Demo before being repurposed.[30] In 2022, A rom of the tech demo resurfaced online.[31][32]
Mario Motors was a planned spin-off of theMario Kart series for theNintendo DS. It was revealed for the first time at the Reboot Development Conference 2018.[33] The game was going to be co-developed byYoot Saito. The concept of the game was to allow players to build their own karts.[34]
This sectionneeds expansion with: Incomplete; does not talk about recent games, with the latest one being Double Dash.. You can help byadding to it.(June 2025)
TheMario Kart series is critically acclaimed.Nintendo Power named it one of the greatest multiplayer experiences, citing the diversity in game modes and the entertainment value.[43] The first game in the series,Super Mario Kart, received critical acclaim and proved to be a commercial success; it received aPlayer's Choice release after selling one million copies and went on to sell 8.76 million copies worldwide, becoming the fourthbest-selling game ever for the SNES.[44][45][46] In Japan, it was the top-selling game in September 1992[47][48][49] and became a multi-million seller in 1992,[50] eventually selling a total of3.82 million in Japan.[51] In Europe, it was the top-selling game during the first quarter of 1993, above theSega Mega Drive titlesSonic the Hedgehog 2 andStreets of Rage 2 during the same period.[52] In the United Kingdom,Super Mario Kart was the top-selling Super NES game in February 1993,[53] and it went on to be the seventh best-selling game of 1993 with more than 250,000 sales in the country.[54]
The second game in the series,Mario Kart 64, received "generally favorable" reviews according to thereview aggregator websiteMetacritic. The game was commercially successful, selling 9.87 million copies worldwide—the second-bestselling game on the N64.[55] It was the highest selling game in the United States over the first three months of 1997, and reached over one million sales within two months of its release in the region.[56] By 1999,Mario Kart 64 had sold 6.23 million copies in the United States and 2.06 million units in Japan, the highest and third-highest selling N64 game in those regions respectively.[57]
AlthoughSuper Circuit received critical acclaim upon launch, retrospectively,Super Circuit ranks low on retrospective critics' lists of the bestMario Kart games,[58][59][60] andNintendo World Report said it was theMario Kart game with the "fewest innovations".[61] Critics blamed this on the hardware limitations of the GBA;GamesRadar said that the scarcity of the Link Cable madeSuper Circuit's multiplayer experience less memorable than otherMario Kart games.[58]Kotaku describedSuper Circuit as "lost", unable to live up to the technically pioneering releases ofSuper Mario Kart and64 because of the GBA's hardware.[60] Nonetheless, critics rankSuper Circuit among the best GBA games.[62][63][64]
The fourth game in the series,Mario Kart: Double Dash, received "generally favorable" reviews from critics according toreview aggregator websiteMetacritic.Nintendo Power gave the game a perfect score, and said the graphics were of "3-D perfection" and the controls and game mechanics "rival those of any [GameCube] racing game". Although the initial positive reviews,Double Dash has received criticism from the media. Considering the 7-year gap sinceMario Kart 64, Davis from GameSpot stated that he was "a little disappointed with the limited scope [ofDouble Dash"].[65] Mirabella of IGN was critical towardsDouble Dash for not progressing beyond its predecessor, calling the game a "mediocre effort".[66] G-Wok ofGameRevolution criticized the game's single-player mode for lacking substance and the track design for being "bland".[67]
Guinness World Records listed six records set by theMario Kart series, including "First Console Kart Racing Game", "Best Selling Racing Game", and "Longest Running Kart Racing Franchise".Guinness World Records rankedSuper Mario Kart number 1 of the top 50 console games of all time based on initial impact and lasting legacy.[68]Super Mario Kart was inducted into theWorld Video Game Hall of Fame in 2019.[69]
Like theSuper Mario series, theMario Kart series is a commercial success with 196 million copies sold in total. It is currently themost successful racing game franchise of all time.Super Mario Kart is the fourth-best-sellingSuper Nintendo Entertainment System game with 8.76 million copies sold.[35]Mario Kart 64 is the second-best-selling game for theNintendo 64 (behindSuper Mario 64), at 9.87 million copies.[35]Mario Kart: Double Dash is the second-best-sellingGameCube game (next toSuper Smash Bros. Melee) with 6.96 million copies sold.[35]Mario Kart Wii is the second-best-selling in the series and is the second-best-sellingWii game (next toWii Sports) at 37.38 million copies.[37]Mario Kart 8 is the best-selling Wii U game at 8.46 million total copies sold.[39] It was the fastest-sellingWii U game with 1.2 million copies shipped inNorth America andEurope combined on its first few days since launch, untilSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U.[70][71] The enhanced port for theNintendo Switch,Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, is the fastest-selling game in the series with 459,000 units sold in the United States in one day of its launch.[72] It is the highest-sellingNintendo Switch game with a total of 69.56 million copies worldwide, outperforming the Wii U version. Both versions have a combined total of 78.02 million copies sold, making it the best-selling game in the series across regular and handheld consoles, and also the best sellingMario game as a whole.[73] Additionally, the game holds the title of being the highest selling Nintendo game, excludingWii Sports due to being bundled with the Wii.[74] Upon its release on theNintendo Switch 2,Mario Kart World became the fastest-selling game in the series in Japan, as well as the best-selling game on the Switch 2 in Japan, selling 782,566 physical units within the first four days.[75] As of September 30, 2025, the game sold 9.57 million copies worldwide.
The handheld games were commercial successes too:Mario Kart: Super Circuit is the fourth-best-sellingGame Boy Advance game at 5.9 million copies.[35] The second portable game,Mario Kart DS, is the third-best-sellingNintendo DS game and the best-selling portable game in the series with a total of 23.6 million copies.[36]Mario Kart 7 is the best-sellingNintendo 3DS game as of March 2023 at 18.98 million copies.[38]
TheMario Kart series has had a range of merchandise. This includes aslot car racer series based onMario Kart DS: one set of which comes with Mario and Donkey Kong figures, with Wario and Luigi available separately. A line ofradio-controlled karts are controlled byGame Boy Advance-shaped controllers, and feature Mario, Donkey Kong, and Yoshi. There are additional, larger karts which are radio-controlled by aGameCube-shape controller. Many racer figurines have been made. Sound Drops were inspired byMario Kart Wii with eight sounds including theSpiny Shell and the race start countdown. Alandline telephone features Mario holding alightning bolt while seated in his kart.K'Nex releasedMario Kart Wii,Mario Kart 7, andMario Kart 8 sets.Line released an animated sticker set with 24 stickers based onMario Kart 8 andMario Kart 8 Deluxe. Nintendo's customer rewards program,Club Nintendo, released aMario Kart 8 soundtrack, aMario Kart Wii-themedstopwatch, and three gold trophies modeled after those inMario Kart 7. Before Club Nintendo, aMario Kart 64 soundtrack was offered by mail. In 2014,McDonald's releasedMario Kart 8 toys withHappy Meals. In 2018,Monopoly Gamer features aMario Kart themed board game with courses fromMario Kart 8 serving as properties, ten playable characters as tokens (Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, Donkey Kong, Shy Guy, Metal Mario, Rosalina, Bowser, and Yoshi) and a special die with power-ups. In 2019,Hot Wheels releasedMario Kart sets of cars and tracks. In commemoration of Mario Day celebrations for March 10, 2021, Hot Wheels also released aMario Kart track set based onRainbow Road on June 24, 2021.[76] In 2020, for theSuper Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary,Cold Stone Creamery released Mario themed desserts including a Rainbow Road themedice cream cake, from September 30 to December 15.[77]
Go-karters dressed as Nintendo characters inHarajuku, Tokyo
In September 2016, Nintendo filed an objection against the Japanese company MariCar, which rentsgo-karts modified for use on public roads inTokyo along with costumes resembling Nintendo characters.[78] MariCar's English website warned customers not to throw "banana peels" or "red turtle shells".[79] The service is popular with tourists.[78]
Nintendo argued that the MariCar name was "intended to be mistaken for or confused with"Mario Kart, citing games commonly known by abbreviations in Japan, such asPokémon (forPocket Monsters) and Sumabura (Super Smash Bros.). In January 2017, theJapan Patent Office dismissed the objection, ruling that MariCar was not widely recognized as an abbreviation ofMario Kart.[78]
In February 2017, Nintendo sued MariCar overcopyright infringement for renting unauthorized costumes of Nintendo characters and using their images to promote its business.[78] In September 2018, MariCar was ordered to stop using the characters and pay Nintendo ¥10 million in damages.[79]
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