Nintendo brings ‘Mario Kart’ to the real world with ‘Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit’
One of Nintendo’s best-known franchises is jumping from the virtual world to the real world with “Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit.” Available Oct. 16 for $99.99, “Mario Kart Live,” which was developed by Velan Studios, is a mixed reality version of Mario Kart that lets you race Mario and Luigi kart figures around custom-built virtual tracks in your own home.
“Mario Kart Live” is another example of how Nintendo (NTDOY) is using its intellectual property to generate revenue outside of traditional game and console sales. Prior to “Mario Kart Live” the company teamed up with Lego to produce its Lego Super Mario line of construction sets complete with a classic Nintendo console and CRT TV.
How Mario Kart Live works
The game works like this: You install the software on your Switch, either the full-size version or the Switch Lite, and place your Mario or Luigi kart along with four cardboard racing gates included in the box on the floor where you want to set up your track.
A camera on the kart will stream what it sees to your Switch with an augmented reality overlay complete with tracks and opponents. On your Switch, franchise mainstay Latiku, the flag-waving turtle in a cloud, will paint your virtual kart’s tires. You’ll then drive the kart around your room as the painted tires create your virtual track.
The game offers a number of modes including classic Grand Prix and multiplayer. Nintendo says Mario Kart Live supports up to four players, though each box only comes with a single Mario or Luigi figure.
Beyond that, the game is essentially like playing “Mario Kart 8 Deluxe” with the real world serving as your track. You’ll be able to race through different weather effects and environments including rain, snow, and underwater, which change how your physical kart moves.
Those cardboard gates, meanwhile, serve as points where you can collect mystery boxes to pick up items like turtle shells to toss as your opponents.
You can even choose your kart’s speed — whether you prefer 50cc, 100cc, 150cc, or 200cc races. Speed will also impact how long the kart’s battery lasts, with Nintendo saying you can expect to get about 90 minutes of play time when running at 150ccs.
Of course, Nintendo, like its rivals Sony and Microsoft, has benefited from the pandemic and lockdowns that it caused, with bored consumers buying up the company’s Switch consoles at such astonishing rates that, at one point, they were sold out at all major retailers.
The company has since increased production, and there’s no telling what kind of pull forward effects the pandemic will have on the normally robust holiday shopping season. But Nintendo is certainly positioning itself for success beyond its usual offerings.
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