If you’re a Nintendo gamer, you can’t get around the fact that Mario Kart games are pure system sellers and every system gets its own unique Mario Kart game. For the release of the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo changed their traditional approach and brought us the Deluxe version of Mario Kart 8, a game released on Nintendo Wii U. It’s a great Mario Kart game, and perhaps even the best to date, but it might also mean that Mario Kart 9 might not come to the Nintendo Switch at all. Let me try to explain this.
Take a look at the sales
First things first, we should take a look at the actual sales of the franchise. Over the years, Mario Kart has been in the top-selling software charts of every dedicated Nintendo console. Even Mario Kart 8 managed to pull in an impressive total of 8.42 million pieces on a console that only sold 13.56 units worldwide. Needless to say, these are impressive numbers, so it won’t come as a surprise that Mario Kart was the best-selling game on the console.
Moving over to April 2017 where Nintendo decided to port Mario Kart 8 to their new hybrid console, the Nintendo Switch. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe released and was instantly loved by the press and gamers worldwide. I named it the best Mario Kart to date and gave it an impressive score of 95% in my review. Since the Nintendo Switch proved to be a more successful console than its predecessor; Mario Kart 8 was destined to reach new heights. Today, we can confirm that the game did manage to sell more copies on Nintendo Switch. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe sold 10.35 million copies on a console that’s near to a total of 20 million units sold. It might look strange that a port actually managed to sell more than the original but if you compare the amount of sold consoles, it makes a lot of sense. At the moment of writing this, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the second best-selling game on the Switch, only Super Mario Odyssey performed better.
What do these numbers mean?
As we take a look at these numbers, there’s no way around it. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is a big hit on Nintendo Switch and I think Nintendo doesn’t want to end this momentum. For a lot of gamers, this is their first experience with Mario Kart 8 and veteran players got everything they wished for with the included DLC and new modes. If we look at the numbers, it’s easy to forget that this was a port in the first place and the game also helped to sell a lot of Nintendo Switch systems. So why would you change that? Why would you launch Mario Kart 9 on a console that already has the best possible installment in the franchise? I think it won’t happen for a couple of reasons.
The first one is mentioned above, I simply don’t think Nintendo wants to divide the market and attention of gamers over two different Mario Kart games on just one system. Will people buy Mario Kart 9 on Switch if they already have Mario Kart 8 Deluxe? It’s the first time in the history of the franchise that this dilemma appears but it’s simply too important to ignore. Nintendo understands the importance of the franchise and I’m pretty sure they won’t bring a Mario Kart 9 to the console if it simply adds new tracks and characters to the deal. What seems more likely is some paid Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC in the future. Instead of spending a lot of money on a new game, Nintendo could easily please the fans with cheaper DLC building on the solid foundation of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Since Nintendo also confirmed they’ll add more DLC to the game, I’m pretty sure Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will remain the main entry of the franchise on Nintendo Switch. So what will happen on Nintendo Switch? I think it can go two ways.
A different Nintendo racer on Nintendo Switch
The first option is releasing a new Nintendo racer instead of a new Mario Kart game. The reason why I think this might happen is because I’m certain Nintendo doesn’t like to publish games if they don’t offer big differences compared to the older titles. Mario Kart 9 wouldn’t be that different, so it might be a better idea to bring an entirely new Nintendo racer instead. One of the biggest rumors is a Star Fox racer that combines F-Zero mechanics with Mario Kart mechanics. Personally, I think this might be the perfect solution. It gives the fans who are asking for F-Zero for years a solution and Mario Kart fans will be happy to try this new Nintendo racer. In my opinion, this might be a very clever way to tackle the F-Zero problem without having to divide the Mario Kart market on Nintendo Switch. What better Nintendo character to do so other than Fox? I would love if this would actually be the solution Nintendo is thinking of, but of course, nothing is confirmed at this point.
Super Mario Kart Maker lands on Nintendo Switch
The second option, in my opinion, is to bring Mario Kart to Switch once more but in a different form. The game I’m thinking of is a Super Mario Kart Maker, the more I think about it, the more I actually want the game to be real. Imagine a Mario Kart game where you could create and share custom tracks with people all over the world. It would include some of the most popular characters as drivers but gives you the freedom to create your own tracks. Of course, I know this would be a lot harder than a Super Mario Maker to actually achieve, but if one company can make it happen, it’s Nintendo. Besides a Super Mario Kart Maker, we might see another spin-off game in the franchise eventually releasing on Nintendo Switch; perhaps even a ‘bigger’ version of the mobile Mario Kart Tour game that’s releasing in the near future.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, I would like to point out that everything here is based on my personal opinion and rumors on the internet. I don’t know if Mario Kart 9 will release on Nintendo Switch but if I take a look at how well Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is performing, I really doubt it if Nintendo is willing to divide their audience with a second main Mario Kart. Instead, I think the chances of a new Nintendo racer or some kind of spin-off like Super Mario Kart Maker are a bit more likely to happen. As for now, it’s nothing to really worry about since Mario Kart 8 Deluxe offers everything you need at this point.
