Ex-Nintendo PR Managers Question Whether Switch 2’s Mario Kart 9 Is the ‘Slam Dunk’ People Think It Is

Ahead of the hotly anticipated Switch 2 Nintendo Direct, two former employees of the company have expressed concern about Mario Kart 9's ability to convince people to upgrade to Switch 2.

Nintendo revealed the Switch 2 with a brief look at the new Mario Kart game, which gave us an idea of what to expect from what is likely a launch title.

There’s a huge deal of excitement around Mario Kart 9 and the Switch 2, but in a video published to their YouTube channel, former Nintendo PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang questioned Nintendo’s ability to out-d the all-conquering Mario Kart 8.

“Everybody has the expectation, ‘oh my gosh Mario Kart it's a slam dunk, it's a system seller, this is definitely the right game to put in front of this new system,’ but I think you're right because if you look at the situation of Mario Kart up to this point, it's a little bit different than what has been in the past and I'm not sure that transition for Nintendo or for the people who have been playing Mario Kart, I'm not sure that's the slam dunk that people think it is.”

Ellis and Yang’s point here is that Mario Kart 8 and the Switch version, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, have been so successful for so long, that Nintendo faces an uphill battle convincing the mainstream Nintendo audience to upgrade, especially if they’re having to hand over at least $400 on a Switch 2 to do so.

Nintendo is, they believe, a victim of its own success here. Mario Kart 8 has sold an incredible 67.35 million copies on Nintendo Switch, which itself is the second best-selling console of all time with 150.86 units shifted. Pretty much everyone with a Switch has Mario Kart 8 at this point, and while it isn’t part of the video game zeitgeist, it is about as perfect a Mario Kart game as can be expected.

How does Nintendo top Mario Kart 8 and 67 million sales, then? Ellis and Yang believe Nintendo may struggle to do so, which is bad news for a company that always wants to see the numbers go up.

“It's a bit unconventional to have a game coming out that's probably going to be the premier launch title for your new console to have this kind of history,” Yang said.

“This is very unlike Nintendo. Usually when they have a launch title, like Breath of the Wild for example, it's like this new game-breaking, genre-bending thing that's never been seen before, and that's what's going to make you want to buy the new hardware.

“But we're kind of in a bit of a different situation with Mario Kart and honestly it's because of how successful Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has been for Nintendo.”

The question now is whether Nintendo has done enough with Mario Kart 9 to convince existing Switch owners to upgrade. While there are plenty of familiar vehicles and faces in the Mario Kart 9 footage we’ve seen so far, there’s also a new track and some interesting details that suggest a new twist on the established formula. The most prominent theory posed by the community so far is that this may be the Mario Kart entry that finally takes the series open world.

Undoubtedly, the pressure is on Nintendo to deliver. “How is Nintendo going to convince me that I want to get the new Mario Kart?” Yang wondered. “That I need a Switch 2 to get the new Mario Kart?”

Ellis added: “I do think there are going to be some people who ask themselves, ‘I'm pretty happy with the Mario Kart I've been playing,’ and… Mom: ‘hey kids, we have Mario Kart at home…’ like, looking at this box and be like, ‘hmm, I'm not sure we need this Timmy.’

“I have no doubt this is going to be an incredible game. I have no doubt that every Mario Kart sells well. But in terms of the hill that this one in particular has to get over… This is Nintendo's goal. This is always their goal: ‘we have to do better than the last one.’

“It's like, well are you really going to do better than 75 million? And it's the same question with the Switch 2. It's like, ‘oh you just did the best-selling console ever.’ It's just these goals that they have for themselves are going to be incredibly hard to match.”

Ellis said that because of how extensive Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is already with the sheer number of tracks and characters already available, Nintendo can’t use the same messaging with Mario Kart 9 that it did with Mario Kart 8. Nintendo needs, according to Ellis, find a new angle to differentiate Mario Kart this time around.

The pair also called into question Mario Kart 9’s visuals as being significantly improved on Mario Kart 8, saying that in graphics terms “it’s not really blowing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe away.”

“I could probably play that for another 10 years and still think it looks okay,” Ellis said of Mario Kart 8.

“Its positives is also its downfall,” Yang added.

We’ll find out hat Nintendo has up its sleeve for Mario Kart 9 soon enough, of course, during the Nintendo Direct on April 2. In the shorter term, Nintendo is set to host a Nintendo Direct focused entirely on the existing Nintendo Switch today, March 27.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.