Nintendo Rules Out Zelda, Animal Crossing in Mario Kart

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Nintendo appears committed to keeping Mario Kart World strictly focused on the Mushroom Kingdom — meaning fans shouldn't anticipate appearances from Zelda, Splatoon or Animal Crossing characters.

No Guest Characters This Time

While Mario Kart 8 featured crossover characters like Link, Zelda, Isabelle and Inklings, the expanded roster in Mario Kart World exclusively features Mario universe characters. Notably absent is even the Mii racer option, a series staple since Mario Kart Wii.

Nintendo has explicitly addressed this decision, stating it intentionally avoided including characters that might feel out of place in Mario's world.

"As developers, it would have felt inconsistent to include characters from other game universes," explained Mario Kart World producer Kosuke Yabuki to Ouest-France. "The Mario universe offers more than enough content without needing external additions."

When specifically questioned about including characters from his previous project Arms, Yabuki responded definitively: "Absolutely not!"

The Mushroom Kingdom Experience

The decision to exclude crossover characters aligns with Mario Kart World's core identity as an open-world exploration of the Mushroom Kingdom. The game's expansive map – spanning from Peach's Castle to Bowser's Fortress – aims to fully immerse players in Mario's universe without external elements breaking the cohesive experience.

This approach echoes Nintendo's broader strategy with Mario-related media. Both the Super Nintendo World theme parks and the successful Super Mario Bros. Movie reinforce Mario as a standalone franchise separate from Nintendo's other properties.

Future Crossover Possibilities

Fans hoping for major Nintendo universe crossovers might need to look toward potential future Super Smash Bros. installments, though series creator Masahiro Sakurai is currently focused on developing a new Kirby game.

For those exploring Mario Kart World, we've compiled guides on unlocking all secret characters, understanding the Kamek Unlock system for NPC drivers, and locating all collectible food items that grant permanent costumes.