I played the £75 Mario Kart World on Switch 2 - was it worth it?

Yahoo

03-04-2025

After months of speculation, Nintendo has confirmed the successor to its wildly popular Switch console will be released on 5 June, when it will cost £395.99 to buy in the UK.
But it's not so much of the price of the Switch 2 but its games that have been raising eyebrows, with the new Mario Kart World that is being released alongside it coming in at a whopping £74.99 for a physical copy.
Fans will have to wait weeks before seeing what the new console and game are like - and whether they are worth that sort of money - but here's what I found when Nintendo gave me a chance to try them both out.
When I first got my hands on the Switch 2, one thing became very clear to me - like the name suggests, Nintendo wants you to know this is a direct sequel to the Switch.
This isn't like the jump from the Wii to the confusingly named Wii U, swapping motion controllers for a tablet that looked dated even back when the console released.
Instead, the Switch 2 looks and feels just like its predecessor, with buttons in the places you'd expect - and a much larger (and nicer) screen.
It's fair to say Mario Kart World makes a fantastic first impression, thanks to the console having more power under the hood.
It looks spectacular compared to previous Switch titles, though we're still talking about cartoony graphics - make no mistake, the console is more powerful but it's no match for the higher spec PlayStation 5, let alone PS5 Pro.
And in my three races the standout feature wasn't the swishy new graphics or the controller, it was a trick that is becoming Nintendo's hallmark: making the new feel familiar.
Despite having never picked up a Switch 2, I stormed my way to consecutive first place finishes, much to the chagrin of those around me.
But it doesn't come cheap.
The digital version of the game costs £66.99, it's another £8 on top of that for a physical copy - or pay an an extra £34.99 for a version of the Switch 2 with it built-in, something which pushes the console price to £429.99.
According to industry expert Christopher Dring, these wallet-emptying prices are down to the costs involved in manufacturing - and President Donald Trump's tariff blitz.
'These cartridges are exclusively made in Japan, which is a country that's just been hit with a 24% tariff from the US Government, and the threat of those tariffs may have impacted Nintendo's pricing decisions globally,' he said.
But there's more to the Switch 2 than Mario Kart.
Fans will no doubt have been excited to see the hotly anticipated Metroid Prime 4, the first game in the series in 18 years.
But while they will be familiar with the typical way of playing - moving and aiming with joysticks and shooting with the "A" button - there's a significant new feature too.
At any point in the game you can rotate the controller, put it on a surface and use it like a mouse. Fans of PC games will immediately feel at home with this, and it's a neat bit of engineering to be able to switch up on-the-fly without having to enter any menus.
The optical mouse controls pop up elsewhere too, with PC strategy game Civilization VII a game that massively benefits.
But in both cases, I do wonder how long you can play with the controller like this before the ergonomics become an issue. I have to admit I found myself wondering why I wasn't just playing on my PC with mouse controls and a comfortable resting position.
Still, the fact that this is built in to the hardware means we may see the Switch 2 as the obvious home of future PC ports to home consoles.
And there is another trick up Nintendo's sleeve - both controllers can be held like this and used as mice, opening up some interesting possibilities. In particular, futuristic wheelchair basketball game Drag x Drive, where both "mice" are pushed to mimic moving wheels.
Elsewhere, Donkey Kong Bananza will be the first time the ape mascot has had a 3D platforming game of his own in 25 years, so there was some pressure on Nintendo to deliver a game which justified the wait.
For lack of a better term it's a destruct-em-up - you can destroy much of the floor and scenery in each level.
But there's that dreaded price news again. A digital copy will cost £58.99, while a physical copy retails at £66.99.
It seems Nintendo has a lot to offer Switch fans - but it will be taking a fair bit from them too.
Some other titles I got to see in action were updated versions of Cyberpunk 2077 and Yakuza 0 - both of which big hitters on rival consoles which were deemed too complex to run on the original Switch.
Like the other Switch 2 games, they looked good - and of course they will benefit as the new console, like the original, can play games on the go.
The original Switch created the genre of the hybrid console - one which works on a TV and as a portable system.
But since that launch in 2017, things have changed a bit.
Now, it has a rival in the Steam Deck, a hybrid machine with the power to play most PC games.
Nintendo would say something its rivals don't have is that long list of exclusive titles.
But there is a bit of a theme here: Nintendo has consciously gone for continuity.
The console is the Switch 2, rather than having a completely new name. Many of those exclusives Nintendo is so proud of are new games in established series, while others are remasters of modern classics.
I had great experiences with these games in the 20 minutes I had with them.
But for fans to get value for those high prices they will want something that holds up over weeks and months of gameplay.
Will the Switch 2's slick nostalgia hit provide that? We'll start to find out in June.