Mario Kart 9 looks set to be Nintendo’s premier launch title for the Switch 2 but will it be enough to convince millions of existing Switch owners around the world they absolutely need this new hybrid system right away? Former Nintendo employees Kit and Krysta, who now run their own YouTube channel, aren’t so sure.
In a new video titled “The problem with the new Mario game on Switch 2”, the Nintendo of America alumni discussed how this next iteration of Mario Kart could end up being a tough sell at first after the evergreen success of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe throughout the Switch generation.
The fact Mario Kart 8 has also had ongoing content updates, and fans have kept returning to it year after year – apparently means there’s a huge “hill” for Mario Kart 9 to climb. This also has the ex-Nintendo Minute hosts thinking a follow up might not initially be enough of a selling point for more casual Switch fans who already have Mario Kart (and a Switch) “at home”:
Krysta: “If you want to play the new one, Timmy also has to buy a $400 new console, I’m not sure Mom’s convinced about that”
Kit: “Exactly, again – I have no doubt this is going to be an incredible game, I have no doubt that every Mario Kart sells well, but in terms of just the hill that this one in particular has to get over…this is Nintendo’s goal… we have to do better than the last one – well are you really going do better than 75 million?”
To date, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has now shifted more than 67 million units according to official Nintendo data, and this figure is closer to 75 million factoring in the Wii U game sales.
If you look back on the Switch generation and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, it was considered by fans and critics alike to be a “must-have” launch title and was also an easy one to recommend for this platform after Nintendo’s troubled Wii U generation.
In the same video, Kit and Krysta claim Nintendo wasn’t even aware Mario Kart 8 was going to be such a “juggernaut” – adding the Switch port was an “afterthought” following the game’s limited success on the Wii U. Regardless of how things pan out though, it seems Nintendo wants to get the jump this time with Mario Kart’s next-generation release, and hey – we’ve technically been waiting over a decade now for a proper new console entry.
