MARIO KART LIVE: HOME CIRCUIT — Gameplay Deep Dive
Ever since the reveal trailer of Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, fans have been asking for more details. Wait no more! A gameplay deep-dive video has been released to answer some of your most burning questions. There’s a lot packed into the video, so we thought we’d add a little commentary on some of the features.
One of the first things you’ll notice is that players race against Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings. This is Grand Prix mode, which can be played in single-player or 4 player local multiplayer (with separate systems and karts). There are eight circuits to play and each contains three races. Using different virtual environments/weather, gate content, and obstacles, each race is meant to feel different and unique. And of course, we have employed the most creative level designers in the world — you the players! For the first time, the player can change the course layout and replay these circuits in a virtually limitless way.
Together with Nintendo, we focused on nailing the feel of Mario Kart across speed classes ranging from 50cc to 200cc, while maintaining familiar Mario Kart controls and features — including drift! The idea of adding drift to the game seemed impossible but we knew that it is such a critical aspect of Mario Kart, especially for expert players. A late-project weekend experiment at Velan, with some suggestions from the Nintendo team, suddenly added drift, and it brought that important layer of skilled driving that players expect of Mario Kart. It was a journey of learning to overcome our own doubts that led Mario Kart Live Home Circuit to become the product that it is. From drift, to steering assist for younger or less experienced players, to Bullet Bill self-driving, we never stopped striving to deliver as close to a true classic Mario Kart experience as possible.
Drift is a technique that comes in handy in small rooms, or in courses that have tight turns. The kart and game have been designed for indoor play and the teams at Velan and Nintendo have gone to great lengths in ensuring the game can be played within a small room (minimum 12’ x 10’) or wide-open interior spaces. While hardwood floors are ideal, the karts perform pretty well on thin rugs and low-profile carpets. The exposure of the camera has been tuned so it can handle some dark areas when you drive underneath furniture or when you come out into a bright room. The kart itself connects wirelessly directly to the Nintendo Switch (no need for a home router), which helps minimize latency. The gameplay experience will be best when the kart and Nintendo Switch console are within a 5 meters of each other. If you make larger courses, standing in the middle of the course will ensure a strong wireless signal to the kart.
We also included Time Trial racing. In our office, we used to run Friday competitions to compete for our coveted golden banana trophy. These usually consisted of creating a custom course and giving each person a crack at posting the best time. This got us thinking about the value of party play and passing the Nintendo Switch around the room. We decided to add name entry and a leaderboard at the end of time trial races to give players the tools to recreate this experience. While racing against your friends with multiple karts is a great way to play, we think people will be surprised with how incredibly fun it is to compete for the best time in the room.
During development, a breakthrough on the project was course visualization. In early playtesting, it was easy for players to get lost or go the wrong way. The goal was to have the course visible wherever you are, and on a flat surface, it works great. However, if players want to create courses with lots of real-world objects to define the course, they can simply turn off the course visualization.
In a few weeks you finally be able to get your hands on the game and we are looking forward to seeing your reactions! We’ve stuffed a lot of features and content for Mario fans into the game. The kart itself is packed with so much technology, it’s like a mini console on wheels. Overall, the teams at Velan and Nintendo worked really hard to bring a new kind of experience for players and packed it with a lot of value and replayability. We hope you’ll keep playing for a long time to come. We’ll be looking forward to your feedback and simply cannot wait to see what you create!
Dan and Karthik
