Nintendo Announces Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit

As part of today's surprise Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary Direct, which you can check out in full above, Nintendo today announced Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, a new Nintendo Switch title made in partnership with Velan Studios that sees players race actual, physical Karts around a track of their own creation. Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit is set to launch on October 16th, is playable with up to four players in local multiplayer, and folks can purchase either a Mario Set of a Luigi Set.

Notably, and as the trailer shows below, this looks to essentially be an official RC Kart for the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite. There's a little camera on it that shows what the Kart sees, and players create courses by lining up various markers which then creates a digital overlay to race on. In addition to being about to play against other physical Karts, it would appear that digital Koopalings also race along the track, and the physical Kart responds to in-game boosts and items. In one example, a player hits another with a Red Shell, and the second Kart gets an appropriate animation on the screen while it physically stops moving for a second.

Here's how Nintendo official describes Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit in today's press release:

"Created in partnership with Velan Studios, Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit brings the fun of the Mario Kart series into the real world by using a Nintendo Switch or Nintendo Switch Lite** system to race against opponents using a physical Kart. The physical Kart responds to boosts in-game and in the real world, stops when hit with an item and can be affected in different ways depending on the race. Players place gates to create a custom course layout in their home, where the only limit is their imagination. Race against Koopalings in Grand Prix, unlock a variety of course customizations and costumes for Mario or Luigi, and play with up to four players in local multiplayer mode."

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit is set to launch for the Nintendo Switch on October 16th with both a Mario and Luigi Set. Either set will run interested folks $99.99. A listing was live here at Best Buy but not active at the time of writing. That should change soon. You can check out all of our previous coverage of Nintendo right here.

What do you think of what we've seen of Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit so far? Are you excited to check it out when it releases? Let us know in the comments, or hit me up directly on Twitter at @rollinbishop to talk all things gaming!

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