With Mario Kart 8 Deluxe continuing to sell like hotcakes on Nintendo Switch three years after its release, it’s not like we necessarily needed a new game in the franchise. However, Nintendo being the innovators that they are, decided to give us one anyway – and it implements the real world into the action.
Introduced this morning during a special Nintendo Direct aimed at Mario’s 35th anniversary, Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit enables players to build their own course within their house and then race around with AR-rigged karts on their Nintendo Switch.
Set to release on October 16th , the game will come packed with little Mario-themed RC cars, which players can control with their Nintendo Switch systems. They’re neat little videos with cameras built into them, so you can actually see what’s happening in real time during the race.
Meanwhile, using an AR interface, items are then dropped into the world, including obstacles and item boxes that can help you with achieving a first place victory.
How the Race Comes Together
So how do you build your own race track within the game? Well, first off, you’ll need to make sure it’s all on the same floor, unless you feel like throwing in a ramp or something. (Do so at your own peril.) Then you set up race markers that are included with the game, so you can set up the perimeters of the track as you go along.
From there, you can select either one or two racers, depending on whether you use both of the cars that are included with the package, and you’re off to the virtual races. It’s a bit different from Deluxe, as it requires you to do a little bit of creative building on your part. Still, considering COVID being the way it is, this gives the kids something to do when they’re bored around the house on the weekends.
How It Came Together
Instead of developing the game internally as it does with most of its Mario Kart efforts, Home Circuit is actually developed by a team called Velan Studios. One of its co founders is Karthik Bala, who actually brought Vicarious Visions to life back in the 90’s. (Side note: that studio’s latest game, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2 Remastered, drops in just a few hours.)
As you can see, the design is very different from what you’d expect from a Mario Kart game. But it appears to work rather smoothly – and there’s no telling what you can throw into it to make it interesting. Someone get that puppy off the track!
The whole package sells for about $99, which is higher than the usual Nintendo Switch fare.
Still, you get two little cars with cameras built in, the game, and the ability to pretty much create your own dream or nightmare course, depending how devious you are. Think you can make the next Rainbow Road on your kitchen floor…?
Check out the trailer below and prepare to race on your Switch starting this October!
