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Mario

All The Mario Kart Hot Wheels Cars & Tracks Available Now

by admin June 3, 2025

If you’re interested in bringing the adrenaline-pumping antics of Mario Kart off the screen and into your home, you’ll be glad to know there’s a long list of Hot Wheels products inspired by the hit Nintendo series. Not only can you snag a bunch of die-cast karts, but several tracks are up for grabs, too. Whether you’re interested in displaying a single Hot Wheels Mario Kart on your desk or building up a playset for a young kart racing fan, there’s bound to be something in the collection that catches your eye.

These products have proven to be quite popular, and not all of them remain in stock. Below you’ll find a roundup of all the best Hot Wheels Mario Kart products that are still available for purchase. Keep in mind pricing and inventory will fluctuate–so check them out soon if you’re eager to add one to your collection.

$24

Sold only at Amazon, this 4-pack gets you die-cast racers for Mario, Luigi, Bowser, and an Amazon-exclusive Black Yoshi. All four are 1:64 scale figures.

$54

Target also offers an exclusive Mario Kart Hot Wheels pack that includes Mario, Bowser, Red Yoshi, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Toad, and Shy Guy racers. The Mario, Bowser, and Red Yoshi figures also feature glider attachments.

$17.59 (was $22)

This 4-pack includes 1:64 scale diecast vehicles, though the models you get may vary. Some of the characters advertised include Mario, Luigi, Donkey Kong, Dry Bones, Bowser, and Shy Guy, so there are plenty of cool options up for grabs.

$27.11

Diddy Kong is the main attraction here, as this set marks is first appearance in the Mach-8 vehicle. You’ll also get the lovable Toad and Waluigi, plus a Blue Yoshi in a matching blue kart.

$25

Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Rosalina make up this 4-pack. The first two are equipped with pastel-colored karts, while Mario sits in a flashy red and black kart. Luigi, meanwhile, gets a cool white and red model.

$23.60

Split down the middle between good guys and bad guys, this 4-pack offers some pretty cool karts. Bowser Jr is racing in his Flame Flyer vehicle, featuring yellow flames and a bright green coat of paint. The Luigi model looks pretty great, too, in his standard green kart.

$25

Snag the flashy Orange Shy Guy with this 4-pack, which also comes bundled with Yoshi, Peach, and Mario. Shy Guy is paired with a standard kart in a matching orange, while the three others get specialty karts that are a bit more eye-catching.

$25

This is one of the most unique 4-packs, as it gets you the hilarious Tanooki Mario and Cat Peach drivers. There’s also karts for Toad and Toadette–so if you’re a fan of the little mushroom-shaped heroes, it’s a fun pack to pick up.

$29

Inspired by The Super Mario Bros. Movie, this set gets you Donkey Kong, Toad, and Mario karts. Peach, meanwhile, is sporting a white and pink motorcycle.

$33

Catch some air with this 3-pack featuring Tanooki Mario, Peach, and Bowser. This pack is a bit more expensive than most of the 4-packs, but if you like the idea of having gliders for your karts, it’s one of the few options on the market.

$150

It’s not cheap–but this might be one of the coolest Hot Wheels tracks you can buy. Stretching for eight feet and featuring five lanes, you can send your karts down the iconic (and horribly difficult) Rainbow Road. It can be configured in two different ways for added versatility, and it’s paired with karts for King Boo and Mario. It’s also equipped with a finish line that depicts the winning lane and is built with additional sound effects and functioning lights. This set is exclusive to Target.

$65

Another Target exclusive, this time a bit more affordable. Featuring two loops and a wind-up Bowser statue that slams down his fists, it’s a unique course for racers. Slam launchers mean you can send your Hot Wheels flying down their loops at ultra-fast speeds, and it’s bundled with Blue Yoshi Hot Wheels.

$99

Featuring slam launchers, loops that send your karts into an upside-down spiral, and an included Mario Hot Wheels, it’s a fun choice for young fans. You’ll find a bunch of other bonuses throughout the track, including décor for coins, Goombas, and mushrooms.

$28

Inspired by The Super Mario Bros. Movie, this set lets you send karts soaring through a “waterfall.” There’s also a broken loop and a few twists and turns, making it a pretty acrobatic track for just $28. It’s bundled with a Mario Hot Wheels.

$24

Send your Hot Wheels flying toward Thwomp–time it right, and you’ll loop around the course. Along with the small track, you’ll get a bonus Luigi Kart. It’s one of the most affordable Mario Kart tracks, so be sure to give it a look.

$23

This small loop has you navigating a large Piranha Plant that dives down toward passing karts. It’s a pretty simple track, but with a bundled Yoshi Kart and a great low price, it’s a nice option for frugal shoppers.

$30

Featuring a mushroom slam launcher, a spinning chain chomp, and a track with a massive jump, this is a pretty cool course that doesn’t take up much space. Time the launch right, and you’ll loop around the course. Time it wrong, and Chain Chomp will send your kart sailing. A Donkey Kong Kart is included.

$29

Boo is haunting this course, and you’ll have to jump over them to successful complete the circuit. After winding up the obstacle with a built-in handle, Boo will automatically move around the course, making this a fun interactive set. A Shy Guy Kart is included.

Just want to pick up a single Mario Kart? There are plenty to choose from–here’s a look at our favorites.

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June 3, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

Waluigi Hits Coin Blocks In Mario Kart World In The Weirdest Way

by admin June 2, 2025

Mario sports and racing games bring out the weirdest behaviors from the Mushroom Kingdom’s zany characters, and Waluigi is a prime example of this. The animation team for Mario Kart World must have had a field day with Luigi’s lanky nemesis, as displayed by video footage of a Mario Kart World demo capturing something that might be easy to miss during gameplay.

In a video on X posted by user Mr. Duby, Waluigi gets a Coin Block item, which grants the player coins upon hitting it. But as seen in the video, Waluigi makes the unconventional decision to kick the Coin Block upwards.

It’s a rather impractical, yet impressively flexible move. Say anything you want about Waluigi, but he’s anything but boring. Traditionally, Mario and friends hit coin blocks with their fists, but Waluigi seems to want to go out of his way to showcase his impressive limberness.

And it’s not just Waluigi who mines coins from blocks using an unexpected body part — his buddy Wario straight up uses his derrière to hit blocks. One has to wonder how Wario and Waluigi would approach the fairly standard action of hitting blocks if they were in a traditional Super Mario platformer.

Waluigi has always been characterized by quirky and expressive animations in the Mario spin-off games, from his romantic rose pose in Mario Party 8 to his shockingly crude celebration in the Mario Strikers series. He might have missed the cut for Super Smash Bros., but at least the Mario sports games are blessed with his chaotic unpredictability.

Mario Kart World, poised as the killer app launch game for Nintendo Switch 2, has a wild cast that features background characters, like Penguin from Super Mario 64, and limbless enemies that have no business of driving karts, such as Pokey. We’ll have to see how they approach the challenge of hitting a coin block, and the internet will surely get a lot of fun GIFs out of those.

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June 2, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Mario Kart World reverse mode spotted for the first time

by admin May 28, 2025

It looks like Switch 2 launch game Mario Kart World will have a reverse mode for the first time.

Previous games in the series have included Mirror Mode as an unlockable extra, which flips tracks horizontally for a new challenge.

However, characters have been spotted racing in reverse in a Japan-only advert for the new game, suggesting a reverse mode will finally be included.

Mario Kart World – Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch 2Watch on YouTube

The advert includes footage of characters racing around the Mario Bros. Circuit in the opposite direction, when compared to footage from Nintendo’s Treehouse Live stream (thanks NintendoSoup).

It’s unknown yet how racing in reverse will be included in the game – perhaps as a separate option following completion of 150cc – but the footage appears to show a Grand Prix race rather than Knockout Tour, judging by the UI.

Of course, with Mario Kart World being an open world game, players will be able to drive in all directions in Free Roam, so it would make sense Nintendo would make use of this for its Grand Prix.

It’s not long to wait now until we’ll be able to play Mario Kart World for ourselves. It launches alongside the Switch 2 on 5th June – that’s next week!

Last week, Nintendo shared an interview with Mario Kart World’s developers. They confirmed the game was originally in development for the original Switch, but the open world design was better suited to the new console running at 60fps.

Switch 2 consoles are reportedly already out in the hands of players, but it requires a day one update to function.

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May 28, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

Nintendo Says Mario Kart World Has Over 100 Courses If You Include All Possible Variations

by admin May 25, 2025

Mario Kart World is just two weeks away, launching alongside the Nintendo Switch on June 5. In the lead-up to the game’s release, Nintendo released a four-part interview series with the team behind Mario Kart World, including producer Kosuke Yabuki. In this interview series, Yabuki is asked how many courses are in the game, to which he responds that there are more than 100.

Yabuki explained that because Mario Kart World is designed as an open world racing game with lots of terrain and more to explore en route and between designed race tracks, it’s tough to quantify the number of courses. However, if you add up all the possible variations, the number exceeds 100, according to Yabuki.

“In this game, you don’t just race on the courses,” he said in the interview. “The areas between courses are also used for racing. So it’s as if there are courses spread out all over the world, and if you were to add up all the possible variations, it would easily exceed 100.”

The interviewer then joked that Yabuki said earlier that Mario Kart World’s design philosophy wasn’t about increasing the amount of content, despite the game doing just that. Yabuki added, “Since it’s now a single, interconnected world, it’s hard to do a direct comparison with the last game, but in the pursuit of approachability and fun in this new, vast world, the volume of content we had to create in terms of visual design, programming, and audio increased dramatically.

“And as a result, the gameplay is more varied than ever before.”

We’ll all discover how varied the gameplay is in two weeks when Mario Kart World launches exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5.

In the meantime, read Game Informer’s hands-on preview of Mario Kart World, and then read about how Nintendo considered dropping the resolution and frame rate of Mario Kart World before changing development to the Switch 2. After that, check out Game Informer’s 2025 Switch 2 release schedule list.

Are you excited about Mario Kart World’s open world design? Let us know in the comments below!

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May 25, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

Mario Kart World Features Over 200 Songs, And They’re All ‘Brand-New Arrangements’

by admin May 25, 2025

With Mario Kart World launching in just two weeks on Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5, Nintendo has released a four-part interview series diving deep into the game’s development. In the series, music lead Atsuko Asahi discusses the game’s score, developing tracks, and even the fact that more than 200 songs are featured in the Mario Kart World jukebox.

These 200 songs are all new arrangements, and they were recorded live, too, according to Asahi, and if they’re anywhere near as delightful on the ears as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s excellent jazz-infused score, we’re in for a treat.

“Altogether, over 200 for the ‘jukebox,’” Asahi said when asked about the total number of musical pieces in Mario Kart World. “These are all brand-new arrangements, and we also did live recordings. We prepared pieces from quite a wide variety of musical genres. I believe those who are well-versed in video game music, as well as those who aren’t, will enjoy listening to them.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Asahi is asked about the challenge of crafting background music and integrating tracks into Mario Kart World’s open world design. Asahi explained music for the designated courses came first, then the open world parts of the game.

“First, we created music for the courses like we’ve always done before and then thought about what to do for the roads outside the courses,” Asahi said. “We decided to have two different kinds of music depending on how you’re playing. For the Knockout Tour mode, we started off by simply trying to connect the course themes. But that approach didn’t work well. It ended up sounding weird because the tracks have different tempos and beats. So, we decided to find a way to end each of the course themes, even though they’re connected by the route.

“Video game music often plays on a loop, and in this game, too, the same music keeps playing if you’re driving laps around a course. But for Knockout Tour, as you get closer to the next course, the music transitions to the outro, so the theme ends nicely. We also created a new intro for each course theme, which starts to play shortly before you reach the gate, building excitement. Then, as you actually pass through the gate, it changes to the theme of the course you’ve entered. By repeating this, it feels like a medley is playing along to you live, creating a sense of immersion.”

For other modes in Mario Kart World, like the open world Free Roam, Asahi said the team prepared lots of music in addition to the course tracks, and that the game automatically selects the right track depending on the situation. During development, the team referred to this carousel of music as the “jukebox,” and that’s how the jukebox feature made it into Mario Kart World.

Mario Kart World launches exclusively for the Nintendo Switch 2 on June 5.

For more, read about how Nintendo considered dropping the resolution and frame rate of Mario Kart World before changing development to Switch 2. After that, read about how Nintendo says there are more than 100 courses in Mario Kart World, and then check out Game Informer’s 2025 Switch 2 video game release schedule list.

What genre of music do you hope to hear in Mario Kart World? Let us know in the comments below!

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May 25, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

You’re right: Mario Kart 8’s 200cc speed is way, way off

by admin May 23, 2025

The first time anyone jumps into Mario Kart 8’s 200cc mode can be a shock. The engine class is meant to be the hardest challenge in the game, but even so, racing in 200cc can sometimes feel egregiously punishing. There’s a reason for that: Apparently, the number does not accurately represent the jump in speed that Mario Kart 8 really throws at you.

As highlighted by the ever-great Supper Mario Broth, players have crunched the numbers behind all the engine classes only to find that 200cc is a misnomer. If 200cc feels way faster than, say, 150cc, you aren’t imagining it. 200cc is apparently 38% faster than it should be, at least compared to the speed ratio established by slower modes. Here are a couple of graphs breaking it all down. The kicker? What’s called 200cc is really 415cc, relatively speaking.

What makes this so funny, though, is that players have intuited that something was off since the release of the original Mario Kart 8 for Wii U, in 2014. For a decade now, the internet has been full of discussions where fans call 200cc “ridiculous” and “too fast,” only to be met with responses telling them to get good at the game. Some people might commiserate, but it’s also typical to see dismissive replies that tell complainers “you need to get used to it.”

Left with no other choice but to endure it, players will also typically share strategies for surviving 200cc. The most common suggestion? Learn to love braking, maybe even learn how to “brake drift,” which refers to the practice of slowing down slightly before boosting yourself. This way, players can manage corners more easily than they might at full speed. Fans also encourage one another to pick up lighter characters, which handle with more ease.

So far, it’s unclear if follow-up Mario Kart World will include 200cc, or whether or not the mode will accurately represent the speed that the game is supposed to run at. For now, players are mostly celebrating that the woes of Mario Kart 8’s 200cc wasn’t just in their heads.

“This is very vindicating,” reads the top reply to Supper Mario Broth’s X post. “Aaaaaah I knew it!!!” another exclaims.

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

Product Reviews

The Switch 2’s most important launch game isn’t Mario Kart World

by admin May 23, 2025

On June 5, the Nintendo Switch 2 will finally grace us with its presence. Nintendo is rolling out the big guns for the big day too, as it will launch the system with Mario Kart World. The racing game is all but assured to be a hit, giving the console a Breath of the Wild-like water cooler game that everyone will be playing at the same time. A lot is riding on that one game, as it has the burden of being the Switch 2’s all-important killer app. If it fails to move millions of units in its first month, Nintendo might have to rethink its whole strategy for its new generation. While those are some high stakes, they’re ones that Mario Kart World will realistically clear without issue.

With that in mind, there’s another Switch 2 launch game coming on June 5 that’s just as important, if not more so, from my perspective. That would be Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition. While it won’t be crucial to Nintendo’s bottom line, it’s the first real test of the hardware, which looks to make a name for itself in a much more crowded portable landscape than the one the original Switch launched in.

Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition is essentially a “game of the year” version for the 2020 game, one that played an instrumental tole in the PS5 and Xbox Series X’s launch that same year. It doesn’t just contain the base game and its critically beloved Phantom Liberty DLC, but it also adds some mouse and motion control support built to take advantage of the newly redesigned Joy-cons. It is a key benchmark game for a device like the Nintendo Switch 2 in every conceivable way.

First, there’s the new control features. Ever since the Wii era, Nintendo has struggled to get third-party developers to embrace its wackiest ideas. Games like Red Steel gave the Wiimote the old college try in that era, but it was ultimately up to Nintendo to support motion controls. The Switch faced similar challenges, as few third-party studios played around with the Joy-cons’ IR sensors during the console’s eight year lifespan. CD Projekt Red is going all out for Cyberpunk 2077 and that makes it a perfect guinea pig. Will those features excite players enough to convince others to follow suit? Or will they quickly reveal the controls to be another gimmick that’s best left to Nintendo? Considering that Mario Kart World has fairly straightforward controls, this will be the launch day game to prove Nintendo’s sales pitch.

That’s a small test compared to the much bigger one Nintendo faces here. Cyberpunk 2077 is a very technically demanding game. It famously launched in a disaster state on PS4 and Xbox One in 2020, killing its reputation for years before CD Projekt Red could retake the narrative. It has since accomplished just that with regular updates that have stabilized the sprawling RPG and made it easier to appreciate the density of detail in it. It runs great on PC and current-gen consoles, but the Switch 2 is a big test. How well it runs there is going to give us our first taste of how capable the hardware is. We already know that CD Projekt Red is making some concessions to make it work, as its expected to run at about 40 frames per second even in performance mode, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be able to impress. This is the game that feels like it’ll show off features like the 4K dock and VRR-supporting display the most.

That’s crucial for Nintendo even if this isn’t it’s own game. Were the Switch 2 the only portable device of its kind, it would have a lot of flexibility. Getting Cyberpunk 2077 to run at all would feel like a miracle, even at 30fps. Of course, the elephant hanging around launch day is that it isn’t the only handheld console out there. Devices like the Steam Deck and ROG Ally now exist and are capable of running high-end PC games. I’ve played Cyberpunk 2077 on my Steam Deck plenty of times. It struggled to hit a consistent framerate, but I could get it to a playable state with enough system-level tweaking.

For Nintendo, it won’t be enough to prove that big games can run on its hardware; it has to prove that they run better on Switch 2 than its competitors. Being able to output Cyberpunk 2077 to a TV in 4K without buying a third-party dock already gives the console a leg up, as does its unique controls, but it will need to pass some basic performance tests to convince gaming audiences who don’t care as much about Nintendo’s first party output that the Switch 2 is a viable alternative to something like the Steam Deck. If it can’t, it’s going to reinforce the idea that Nintendo’s system still isn’t a welcoming home base for hardcore players.

The good news is that Cyberpunk 2077 on Switch 2 doesn’t seem like it will disappoint. When I demoed it in April, I was astounded that it ran so well on the hardware while retaining such a high density of detail. It held up significantly better than Split Fiction, which suffers from very compressed visuals. I only experienced Cyberpunk on a big TV screen too. I imagine it will look far superior on a small screen where any flaws will be less noticeable. If the final version can stick the landing, Nintendo will have the kind of launch game that gets YouTube populated with impressive comparison videos that will sell the system to those who are on the fence about picking one up instead of a portable PC. That’s the exact win Nintendo needs on day one. Its future may just be in Projekt CD Red’s hands now.

The Nintendo Switch 2 and Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition launch on June 5.

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May 23, 2025 0 comments

Game Updates

Mario Kart World was first developed for the original Switch, but 60fps only possible on Switch 2

by admin May 22, 2025

Mario Kart World was originally in development for the original Switch, but Switch 2 has allowed the developers to realise their vision of an inter-connected world.

Nintendo began prototyping for the new Mario Kart game back in 2017, even during development of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Development then began at the end of that year.

“I felt that in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, we were able to perfect the formula that we’d been following in the series up to that point, where players race on individual courses,” explained Mario Kart World producer Kosuke Yabuki in a new interview from Nintendo. “That’s why, this time, we wanted the gameplay to involve players driving around a large world, and we began creating a world map like this.”

Mario Kart World – Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch 2Watch on YouTube

Programming director Kenta Sato continued: “When we were developing for Nintendo Switch, we often worried whether we could find the right balance between planning and performance. Of course, the Switch system’s performance is sufficient for developing different kinds of games, but if we had included everything we wanted to in this game’s vast world, then it wouldn’t have run at 60 fps and would have suffered from constant framerate drops.

“I think there were a lot of people on the team who were worried about whether we could really manage it. But once we decided to release this game on Switch 2, we expected our worries to evaporate all at once. I remember being overjoyed when I discovered we could express even more than we’d originally set out to.”

Yabuki noted that had the idea for the game just been more courses it would’ve been called Mario Kart 9, but the new approach led to the name Mario Kart World. In fact, that name was added to concept art in the early stages of development.

“In previous Mario Kart games, after finishing a course, you’d move on to the next course,” said Yabuki. “However, I thought that with modern technology, being able to seamlessly transition between courses and realise a single, vast world wasn’t beyond the realm of possibility. So, with this in mind, we set out to create a new kind of Mario Kart…And that’s when all our troubles began.”

Image credit: Nintendo

Sato had heard of difficulties in creating open world games and felt pressure to achieve this with Mario Kart, especially as Nintendo considers 60fps to be important for the series, as well as split-screen multiplayer. It seems the power of the Switch 2 allowed for this to happen.

The move to an open world also led to the increase of 24 players instead of 12, which was decided fairly early in development.

“By creating long routes in a vast world, you could end up with players spread out in various places, which could diminish the sense that they’re racing against each other,” said Yabuki. “So, we figured that by increasing the number of racers, you’d be sure to see some competitive action here and there.”

Added art director Masaaki Ishikawa: “I felt like the 12 players we had previously was a lot, but as Yabuki-san said, once players spread out, the course starts to look sparse, and the visuals give off a sort of lonely feel. So, I thought that 24 players would be better because there’d be more interaction between various players. That said, it was quite challenging once we got going and the volume of design work increased. But it was worth it.”

Speaking of art, the team wanted to recapture the “lively, bustling atmosphere” of Super Mario Kart on the SNES, with a key phrase being “playfulness”. This led to the more rounded, cartoonish designs of Mario Kart World.

“The characters in the Super Mario series have a rounded look, so we wanted to give the vehicles a rounded design too, to match their appearance,” said Ishikawa. “We also wanted to give the characters a livelier look even while they’re in their vehicles, so we put everything together in a way that gives off a sense of playfulness through the combination of the characters’ rounded designs, soft facial expressions, and rich movements.”

The open world design means courses are now inter-connected across the world, but Yabuki said adding up all the possible variations would “easily exceed 100”.

Image credit: Nintendo

Lastly, the developers discussed the creation of Mario Kart World’s meme-worthy new character, Cow.

“Each new Mario Kart game features new characters to race with, but since we added so many to the previous game, we wondered where we could go from there,” said Ishikawa. “And then one of the designers came up with that silly sketch of Cow cruising along, and I thought to myself, ‘This is it!’ So that’s when we realised the course surroundings actually contained a lot of untapped resources.

“The character designer quickly put together a prototype of Cow that could race, and surprisingly it didn’t feel out of place at all. So we thought maybe we could include other obstacle characters, and decided to add Cheep Cheep and Pokey as racers. As a result, the idea of taking obstacle characters, usually found in courses in past games, and having them participate in races made sense to me in terms of an interconnected world.”

Mario Kart World will launch alongside Nintendo’s Switch 2 on 5th June as a key game in the launch lineup.

Earlier this month Nintendo responded to the suggestion it had used AI-generated images in the game.

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Super Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto explains Donkey Kong’s recent makeover

by admin May 22, 2025

Donkey Kong – Nintendo’s mighty monkey with a penchant for bananas – received a bit of a makeover recently, and now we know why.

We originally got a look at DK’s new in-game look back in January, when the gorilla starred in the first brief teaser for Mario Kart World. At this time, fans noticed he looked much closer to his Super Mario Bros. film design than before. Since then, this look has been featured in plenty of Nintendo advertising, and of course the main monkey is set to star in his own Switch 2 game – Donkey Kong Bananza – later this year.

Now, Donkey Kong designer and Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto has shed some light as to why the company chose to redesign his iconic character for this generation.

Donkey Kong Bananza Hands-On Preview: Is It Good? Watch on YouTube

Speaking with IGN, Miyamoto said “when it comes to character creation and working with characters”, he still has an active role in what goes on.

“Looking back to the first generation Donkey Kong Country, we worked with Rare to create Donkey Kong Country,” Miyamoto continued. “When we were talking about trying to create new versions, evolving Donkey Kong, we created the game called Jungle Beat. We worked together with the team that made 3D Mario. With the technology that was available at the time, we were able to make Donkey Kong more expressive.”

The creator furthered that “going back to the design that Rare came up with, we reevaluated”, with the team wanting to come up with something to make DK’s design “more expressive” than before.

“And then when it comes to the movie, we decided to move forward with this new generation Donkey Kong design,” Miyamoto concluded.

DK’s new in-game look is closer to his character in the Super Mario Bros. film (pictured here). | Image credit: Nintendo/Universal

Soon after Donkey Kong’s redesign was first revealed, former Rare artist Kevin Bayliss shared his thoughts on the new look, stating: “You can take the KONG out of the Country, but you can’t take the Country out of the Kong! (I love it – this is really funny! – Everything changes! – Change is good!).”

As for the monkey’s upcoming game, Eurogamer’s former EIC Tom Phillips has already had some time with Donkey Kong Bananza, which is set to launch on Switch 2 on 17th July.

“Yes, everyone might have been expecting Mario, but Bananza’s brawny obliteration is far better suited to his one-time enemy,” he wrote after going hands-on with Donkey Kong Bananza.

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May 22, 2025 0 comments

Game Reviews

Rayman isn’t dead: against all odds, Ubisoft has started hiring for a “triple-A Rayman game” at the same studio that made Mario + Rabbids

by admin May 21, 2025

It looks as though, against all odds, Rayman is still alive after all. Job postings spotted for a “AAA Rayman game” have been hastily taken down, but not before they were archived by eagle-eyed Reddit users.

The roles advertised include a job as a senior game designer and a 3D gameplay animator, that last role asking for someone to be “involved in the production of a prestigious AAA title for the Rayman brand”. You can still see these posts on Reddit, where they have been saved for all eternity despite Ubisoft’s best efforts to take them down.

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Last year, Ubisoft publically announced it was musing a revival of the Rayman IP, after he showed up as a cameo in a weird NFT game the company had pushed out to the joy of like five bozos. It looks like these musings weren’t just talk, as the job listings look to indicate some Rayman-related movement is happening. Good news for fans of one of Ubi’s most beloved characters, a guy who desperately needs some more attention.

Ubisoft Milan, for those who don’t know, was resposible for the brilliant Mario + Rabbids games, so Rayman is likely in good hands as far as the upcoming big project he’ll be featured in. This news also comes following Ubisoft and Tencent’s big collaboration in a new subsidiary company which will act as the home for Ubi’s biggest IPs. Now, Rayman doesn’t exactly fit into that category any more, but it does mean that he’ll probably be showing up at a less dire time for the Frnech video game giant.

Are you excited for more Rayman? Let us know below, as well as what sort of game you’d like to see him show up in. Something classic? Or a totally new approach?

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May 21, 2025 0 comments