Mario Kart World’s free roam mode is a delightful experience, especially if you can ignore the constant complaints about it being “empty” or “lacking.” Since its release alongside the Nintendo Switch 2, this latest installment in the beloved kart racing series has seen more ups and downs than expected. While it has received high praise—GameSpot’s Steve Watts gave it a 9—it has also faced criticism, particularly targeting the free roam mode and its open world as being barren and filled with uninspiring activities.
For those unfamiliar, Mario Kart World’s free roam mode places players in a vast, newly connected highway network within the game. Players can drive from the northernmost Acorn Heights all the way down to the southern Dino Dino Jungle. Along the highways connecting various tracks, players encounter mushroom drivers, buses, and trucks speeding by. There are P switches to toggle challenges and races, warp pipes leading to hidden rooms, collectible Peach medals tucked away in remote corners, and stickers to decorate player profiles. It’s simple, straightforward, and comfortable. This mode delivers exactly what it promises, and it’s puzzling why it has drawn so much criticism.
While I enjoy everything free roam offers, I admit there isn’t much extra content. Challenges can be mindless or frustrating but usually end quickly. Collecting Peach medals and question block panels feels trivial in the grand scheme of the game. Sometimes, free roam feels like “empty calories” in the game, which clashes with 2025 players’ expectations for massive game worlds. However, I believe Mario Kart World’s free roam mode intentionally avoids excess and flashiness—that’s its core appeal. The problem is some players can’t accept it because they want something else. This isn’t the next Forza Horizon, filled with countless side activities and missions. This is Mario Kart World, with its own unique gameplay.
The free roam mode also features elements like Rosalina’s tour bus company.
I see a clear distinction between “free roam” and “open world” games. Mario Kart World offers the former, and Nintendo explicitly avoided calling it “open world” during development. Open world games are like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or Cyberpunk 2077, which also run on the Switch 2. Even comparing Mario Kart World to true open world racing games like Forza Horizon 5 doesn’t change the core point: Mario Kart World is not an open world game, and we should accept it for what it is rather than argue it should be something it never intended to be.
I say this because I enjoy the peaceful nights spent in Mario Kart World’s free roam mode. I’ve never been on a real road trip, but I imagine this is what it feels like—making space for tranquility and comfort. I often drive aimlessly, wandering freely and capturing Nintendo’s charming little world crafted from this historic series. Here, I can play as a cow, buy a burger from Yoshi’s fast food stand, and sit next to a shy character on a bench. There are hitchhiking mushrooms, random campsites, and a tour bus company run by Rosalina. Some say you can find UFOs in free roam, and others drive semi-trucks crashing into the game’s Area 51 gate. Sometimes, enjoying a game means accepting it as it is, appreciating the smallest moments and details, or creating your own fun rather than expecting groundbreaking innovations.
Moreover, free roam lets me escape Mario Kart World’s intense competitive atmosphere—which is fiercer than ever due to new advanced techniques—and explore stunning sights I’ve never seen before. Visit the “Big Question Block Ruins” in free roam and truly feel the massive, dilapidated skyscraper-sized block. Try to understand it, and if you can’t, just enjoy it. I know I do.
Sometimes, free roam mode is perfect for a relaxed late-night drive.
Some might call me a Nintendo fanboy or defender, but the truth is simple: Mario Kart World perfectly delivers an atmosphere-based free roam experience that I prefer over any overly content-packed open world game on the market. Honestly, I enjoy those games too, but taking a break is refreshing. Those big titles may start grand and adventurous but often become burdensome. When every game is an open world RPG, nothing feels special. Having a major company like Nintendo release a straightforward, no-frills title like Mario Kart World is a breath of fresh air—even if it carries the scent of exhaust and Yoshi burgers.
Besides, what else can you get from Mario Kart World’s big package that open world Mario Kart games don’t offer? Want to race? Join Grand Prix or Knockout Tour. Want challenges? Free roam has them, plus traditional time trials. Want competition? Go online. Want collectibles? They’re in the game!
Think carefully—what practical features could truly enrich Mario Kart’s free roam experience? Side quests? Interactions with roaming NPCs? One-on-one races with rivals? I can imagine these in the game, but overall, I don’t think they’d be a magic fix for free roam’s controversy. I believe dissatisfied players just want a different type of game.
So yes, Mario Kart World’s free roam mode isn’t the richest. If you expect it to be the next great open world game, you might be disappointed. But what you get is better—freedom. In a market flooded with overstuffed and overstimulating games, I’m grateful Mario Kart World chose its own path, allowing it (and me) to remain unscathed.
