Mario Kart World is the first new Mario Kart instalment in almost a decade, and while completing Grand Prix and racing with friends largely remains the same, there are a couple new mechanics players will want to adjust to. There’s charged jumps, for a start, and even the ability to drive on walls.
On top of that, there’s new karts and characters to mess around with, and even an open-world to go and practice tricks or complete missions in. To help you get to grips with it all, here’s our Mario Kart World tips, tricks, and guides.
Mario Kart World tips and tricks
Start using charged jumps
If you press ‘R’ while racing in Mario Kart World, you’ll do a little bunny hop in your kart. Did you know, however, that if you hold ‘R’ down while accelerating in a relatively straight line, you’ll begin charging a jump?
That might not seem like ground-breaking information, but it will give you an advantage over other racers if you learn to use your charged jumps effectively. Charged jumps can not only be used to reach otherwise inaccessible areas or hop on railings, but they also provide speed boosts once you contact the ground again.
If you want to speed past your opponents, you’ll want to drift round corners and use charged jumps during long stretches of road to take advantage of the boosts they provide.
Hop onto railings when you can
Charged jumps can be used to hop onto various railings found throughout Mario Kart World. These can be quite literally railings along a staircase or the side of a road to grind on, but they can also include train tracks, electrical wires between pylons, and fences.
Grinding along railings where possible and performing tricks by tapping ‘R’ is a little faster than driving along the road beside these railings, so take advantage of them where possible if you want a better chance of coming 1st during your next race.
Dash Food is useful for more than just costumes
Dash Food’s primary use in Mario Kart World is to unlock fancy costumes for the main roster of characters, but that doesn’t mean you should begin neglecting these snacks after you’ve unlocked everything.
Dash Food also gives you a small speed boost upon consumption, much like a Mushroom would. So, if you’re about to drive past a Dash Food stall and could use the boost, go get it! Just be mindful of other racers also speeding for the item and don’t go too out of your way for these snacks.
Remember that characters and karts have different stats
All of Mario Kart World’s characters belong to different weight classes, with heavyweight characters being faster, and lightweight characters being slower, but having improved acceleration and handling. If you’re looking to maximise how quickly you can race around a track and beat other players, you ideally want to opt for a lightweight character. With better acceleration, these characters can recover from obstacles – be it Red Shells, Bombs, or other items – much more easily.
On top of that, it’s important to check the stats of your kart too, and whether this complements the character you’re playing. For example, current fan-favourite, the Baby Blooper has impressive handling and acceleration when paired with a light character, and a much more even spread of stats when on a heavy character.
You can rewind
The Rewind function does exactly what it says on the tin in Mario Kart World. If you press down on the D-pad, you’ll be able to rewind time by about 30 seconds. Now, during a race, time will only be rewound for yourself while other players will keep on moving, so this isn’t the best time to be using it unless you’ve fallen off the track.
If you’re trying to complete P Switch missions or gather Peach Medallions and Hidden Question Panels in free roam, however, the Rewind function is very useful. Slightly missed a jump? Rewind. Drove straight past a collectible by accident? Rewind. You get the idea, and it can save a lot of time!
Turn off smart steering
I’m ashamed to admit it, but in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, I was quite the fan of smart steering at times. There’s nothing worse than mistiming a drift and veering off course, and smart steering prevents that! That said, it actually feels like a major setback to use in Mario Kart World.
With smart-steering turned on, accessing hidden shortcuts or jumping onto rails becomes troubling, and you really want to make the most of these where you can; not only might they help you gain speed on opponents and win, but they’re good fun to discover.