I love weird little guys. It’s a truism about me that crosses games, genres, and mediums. It’s the reason why, even if I didn’t realize it at the time, Toad has been my main Mario Kart racer since I was sitting cross-legged on the carpet of my living room mere inches from the glow of Mario Kart 64. And it’s one reason why Mario Kart World has me so excited: It’s a veritable treasure trove of weird lil guys.
By now we all know about Cow, the breakout star from the Switch 2 reveal presentation. Everyone loved the outside-the-box approach of plucking a background creature from one stage of Mario Kart and including her as a racer. And to hear Nintendo tell it, Cow was the eureka moment of their whole approach to racers in Mario Kart World. Once you’ve thrown Cow into the mix, nothing is off-limits.
I enjoy the novelty of Cow, but I’ve never gravitated toward heavy racers. Mario Kart has always felt best to me when I’m behind the wheel of someone light and zippy with a tight turn radius. So I can respect Cow even if I don’t expect to actually race as Cow very often. But the philosophy behind Cow has enabled a smorgasbord of other, equally unconventional racers, and I spent a recent extended hands-on session trying all that I could find. I may have even found a new main. (Sorry Toad.)