Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit - Release date, AR, gameplay, news, & more


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Mario Kart is one of the most beloved racing franchises ever.

It has also been an age since Mario Kart 8 was released, which is where Mario Kart Live comes in.

Welcome to your favourite racing game, in your own home!

What is Mario Kart Live?

The game uses a camera on a real-world Mario (or Luigi) Kart to race on a map of your own design. The trailer demonstrates how the user simply has to lay four gates down in order from 1 to 4, and drive through them.

NOW WATCH BELOW - MARIO KART LIVE TRAILER

Each kart has a camera mounted cleverly behind Mario or Luigi’s head, sending the footage to the player’s Nintendo Switch from which they control the kart.

PRE-ORDER MARIO HERE.

PRE-ORDER LUIGI HERE.

Nintendo's AR turns your room and marked out course into the classic Mario Kart experience that we all love!

Mario Kart Live release date

Announced by Nintendo in September, Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, lets the player transform their living room, kitchen, and more into a track for the game.

The game itself is set to launch on 16 October.

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FAMILIAR FACES, NEW SETTING: Take a tour of your home!

Each pack costs £99.99. This includes the necessary real-world kart, four gates, and two Mario kart signboards, as well as the USB cable to charge your very own Mario or Luigi.

The recommended room size for use is 10ft x 12ft. So bear that in mind when you are planning your course!

Will it feel like Mario Kart 8?

The gameplay will feature a number of fan-favourites from the Mario Kart franchise.

The game still features a number of tracks, with visual effects modifying the appearance of your room of choice; Ember Island applies a fire-theme to the track whilst Boo Fortress puts you in a spooky version of your lounge or bedroom.

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BOX IT UP: All the essentials come with your mini Mario

Many items also make a return. Both Red Shells and Bananas will be available to the player, as well as infamous Bullet Bill, with the real-world kart temporarily provided with a speed boost and the ability to steer itself!

As in previous iterations of the game, there are a numbered of featured classes, from 50cc to 200cc. Excitingly, the higher the selected class, the faster the kart!

New features

Mario Kart Live includes a number of new features that take the experience to the next level.

A course editor allows players to customise everything from the course’s appearance to the music and an assist mode which stops the real world kart from leaving the track.

As well as this, Nintendo has added new cosmetic items and Mirror mode, which flips the real-world setting of the game!

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LEWIS WHO?: Mario is the true racing GOAT

So, whilst the game features a host of new and existing features, will it race like Mario Kart 8? The answer is we’ll have to wait and see!

With the return of many known items and gameplay features, the only unknown is the feel of the kart itself. The real-world element of the game will change the impact of drifting in the game, and it remains to be seen how this will affect the player.

One thing that is certain is that we can’t wait to get our hands on the AR banana-dropping, red shell-throwing, Bullet Bill-using extravaganza!

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