The developers of “Mario Kart World” have broken their own rules about who drives

Conkdor, like an ostrich The enemy that debuted Super Mario 3D Worldyou shouldn’t be able to drive. First of all, it’s a bird. Secondly, there is no hand in it. but, Mario Kart WorldConkdor, like everyone else, can race with Mario on bicycles, cars and magical carpets.

This new ability for dozens of new characters to compete in the game is the first time in the series, and a change that requires rethinking how developers approached playable characters.

“I have to say that in the previous Mario Kart titles, the character had to consider whether he could drive or not,” producer Yabuki told Wired in a translated interview. “My old way of thinking is, certainly they needed hands and feet to be able to drive.”

Switch 2 launch title: Mario Kart World He announces the next generation of series and does so with a huge cast of playable racers. At least 50 characters It has been confirmed so far, and many variations of those characters are present in costume changes. Yabuki says when deciding on the cast of the game, the team had to first consider whether players wanted new characters and, more importantly, whether they would use them. Nintendo hopes players will be surprised by who can play, but that’s not the only thing. “If you’re playing a match, it’s fun to see that character with you,” says Yabuki.

That might explain many of the new cast of the game. This includes several characters who lack feet, hands, or both. Yabuki mentions GOOMBAthe iconic and gross fanged enemy of the series, or Porkya cactus character made from stacked spike balls: “Okay, certainly, they can drive,” says Yabuki.

“Perhaps we won’t even be able to explain how they drive in this setting,” adds Yabuki. Game’s Cow Character It has already been a huge hit with players since she revealed. Yabuki hopes other new characters will also be popular.

“I’m sure there are a lot of players who choose to race as cows and penguins,” Yabuki says.

Mario Kart WorldThe race now accommodates up to 24 players, so you need a huge cast. The latest switch version of the game, Mario Map 8only 12 players allowed per round. Yabuki says the team decided early to double the number of racers in the game. “We knew that in a vast world connected and covered by all these different routes, we needed a large number of simultaneous players to give that big space a sense of populous pleasure,” he says.

This required an additional balance. Racing with 24 people will quickly get off the rails. “If we don’t adjust anything else, we’re under so much attack and the gameplay experience will be too stressful,” Yabuki says. The same applies to crashes and spinouts. This is adjusted, so it depends on the event when the player loses speed. “It’s true, we also have to think about the elements of chaos,” Yabuki says. “It’s a really fun experience for everyone, even if it’s free.”