There’s no doubt that Mario Kart World is the most important launch game for the Nintendo Switch 2. Not only is it the only new game (no, the Welcome Tour definitely doesn’t count) made by Nintendo for the launch lineup, it’s also the sequel to one of the best-selling games ever. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, at last count, has sold nearly 70 million units on the original Switch.

Whether Mario Kart World can match it with similar success remains to be seen over a long period of time. Still, the early reception is promising. In Wccftech’s review, the game earned an 8.5 out of 10 score from Nathan Birch, who wrote:

Mario Kart World is a bold and ambitious new entry in the world’s most popular racing franchise, delivering smartly updated mechanics, a collection of gorgeous courses, and an open world that impresses with its scope and variety. Admittedly, the game doesn’t quite manage to eclipse the giant that is Mario Kart 8 and some classic modes don’t mesh perfectly with the new sandbox approach, but there’s no denying Mario Kart World gets the Switch 2 off to a peppy start.

Making the new open world-style game required a much larger workforce, though. Japanese analyst Papen (via Automaton) has looked into the headcount, discovering that around 300 developers worked on Mario Kart World, compared to 163 on MK8 Deluxe. That shows how Nintendo is following the market trend in this regard, with larger and inevitably more expensive teams making bigger games.

The biggest increase was in the art department, which tripled in size from one game to another. Furthermore, like most of the gaming industry nowadays, Nintendo leveraged several development teams beyond Nintendo EPD, such as Monolith Soft, Bandai Namco, Imagica Geeq, and 1-Up Studio. This could go some way to explaining why Mario Kart World was infamously priced at $80.

Did you purchase the game alongside the Nintendo Switch 2? If so, please comment below with your impressions.