Mario Kart Worldis on its way, and with it comes a new crop of playable characters. The first truly new, mainlineMario Kartgame in over a decade,Mario Kart Worldfollows the now-ubiquitousMario Kart 8. It brings a variety of new features to the series, including dynamic weather, new game modes, and the ability to drive freely off the racetrack.Mario Kart Worldwill launch alongside the Nintendo Switch 2on July 04, 2025.
But perhaps even more excitingly,a newMario Kartmeans new characters. The trailer showed off many familiar faces, plus a handful of new surprises. For now, here’s everyMario Kart Worldcharacter we know of for certain, although more are almost certainly on the way.
Mario Kart World Roster Explained
The Who’s Who Of MK World
Mario Kart World’s roster draws on over 30 years ofMario Karthistory, incorporating characters both old and new. Most playable characters come from the coreMarioseries, including the brothers themselves and some of their perennial allies and rivals. But it’s a bit bigger than that, also incorporating characters fromMariospinoffs, as well as Nintendo’s other flagship series likeZeldaandAnimal Crossing.Mario Kart 8also introduced the opportunity to play as a custom character for the first time ever in the series, by allowing players to import their own Miis.
Every Mario Kart World Course Confirmed (So Far)
We just got our first extended look at Mario Kart World, some of the new courses in the game, and some old favorites that have been fully remade.
Mario Kart Worldtakes things a step further, though, byintroducing multiple different outfits for certain characters. Invoking herstarring role inPrincess Peach Showtime, Peach demonstrates that feature in the trailer, sporting four different costumes: a pink jumpsuit with matching cap, a Boo-themed set of motorcycle armor, a vintage ensemble of aviator goggles and a bomber jacket, and a sunhat perfect for a nice, long, Sunday drive.
Many other characters are shown in different variant outfits, and even Yoshi comes in different colors. These choices are made during character selection, andmay even allow multiple players to select the same racer.
Which Racers Are Confirmed For MK World (So Far)
Mario Kart World’s Roster
The following list includesevery character already confirmed forMario Kart World. Keep in mind that this is probably far from the final list - Nintendo probably hasn’t shown off the whole roster yet, and these are just the ones we’ve been able to see and identify in the first trailer.
And the following areall the variant costumes we’ve seen forMario Kart World. These racers' normal versions are already listed above, but they’ll be able to choose alternate outfits on the character select screen.
It’s a pretty impressive list already - the usual suspects are all here, in both their regular and their baby forms. Pauline makes herMario Kartconsole debut, after playing a major role inOdysseyand appearing in the mobile gameMario Kart Tour. Birdo returns from her debut as part ofMario Kart 8’s Booster Pass.
What’s truly impressive here, though, isjust how manyMarioenemies appear on theMK Worldroster. Sure, Bowser and the Koopas are back, but Nintendo really seems to have pulled out all the stops when it comes to bringing back classic baddies. Stingby and Sidestepper are big surprises - this is the first time characters like these have ever been playable anywhere in theMariofranchise.
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Many of these characters are brought over directly fromMario Kart Tour. Besides Pauline, Monty Mole, Chargin' Chuck, and Nabbit were all first playable as characters in the mobile game. Stillothers come directly out ofMario Kartcourses. Penguins and Moo Moos are typically obstacles on various tracks, but here, they’re actually playable.
For now, those are all the racers we’ve seen in promotional materials. More may be announced between now and launch. With a release date of June 5, however, we won’t have to wait long to get a complete look atMario Kart World’s roster.
