App Store Editors’ Notes

Mario kart tour has many problems

I’ll start simple. Paywalls, this game is not just an app, it’s a filthy cash grab that blocks every necessity behind a paywall. Sure you can play the game for free but as a Nintendo fan my whole life I don’t think this is what they SHOULD be doing. I’m all for calling out a company when they really need and now is definitely a good time too. The only reason this game is popular now is because everyone has a phone and no one wants to waste money on a system just to play Mariokart on it. Online play isn’t even online play, it just randomly generates names and puts you up against them. And I love the Mario franchise and would love to see it expanded even more than it is now, but this game didn’t do that for me. Also, Luigi isn’t playable yet(this might be outdated in a couple updates but I still wanted to mention it)? The starting roster has FOUR Marios, it has three peaches and two bowsers, six characters that could’ve been used on Luigi or any other character that hasn’t had a Mariokart debut yet. And finally, I want to mention that giving Nintendo support on this game is giving them reason to make more of these games where everything is blocked via paywalls and that is not how I would expect Nintendo to do things with a Mariokart game on the phone, though dr Mario did the same exact thing and Mario run was average. So Mario kart tour was a disappointment.

Great Game, but could improve a little.

Honestly, with much of the effort into the game, the quality is quite excellent. But there’s a few things I want to share that could make this game better. One, Controller Support. I don’t understand why this game doesn’t support controllers. Mario Kart has mainly been made in Official Nintendo Products (like Nintendo Switch, Nintendo 3DS, etc.)! Why not on mobile? It can literally be as easy as using D-Pad or L-Stick to move cursor, A to select, B to go back, and during gameplay, it can be something like tilting controller or use L-Stick to move, A to use hold item (can use R-Stick for direction of item throws if selected), B to open menu, X to use Item Ticket, R to look behind, and L to Drift (and maybe Y to do the animation while waiting for the race to start). Which does lead me to… Number 2, Tilt Problems. Some users prefer tilting to turn, but in the new iPadOS 26 update, app windows can be resized, but the issue actually comes with tilting itself. It literally makes the device switch orientation even when the game tries to lock to the orientation. We need this fixed. And 3, Online Multiplayer. Often I get “Connection Problem” error when waiting for races to start, and I’m not sure why. I have a Wi-Fi connection at excellent strength, why error? That’s all I have, and otherwise, the game is good.

FUN. BUT, WAY TOO EXPENSIVE AND REPETITIVE.

My feelings towards this game are sort of a love and hate type of thing. In the beginning I loved it more for nostalgic reason than anything else, but that only lasted but so long. I eventually developed a hate for game bc I realized in order to stay competitive I’d have to spend real money something I was not willing to do, so I stopped playing all together. Fast forward some months later I began playing again, and I dreadfully decided to get the gold pass, and even made a few random purchases on ruby’s, and a couple other small bundles which I admit it got me excited to keep playing again, but eventually it felt stagnant once again only this time it cost me money. I get it they have to make money that’s not really my problem with the game. My problems are one being the whole raffle based spending of your rubies (which you more than likely paid for) the odds you get anything useful are super slim. Two I don’t like how you can’t level up off racing alone, the whole needing point tickets (which are super hard to get) to level up karts,glider’s, and characters that you’ve already earned (or paid for) is just a bit ridiculous. Last the cups are all the same maps just randomized with one new themed course ran again and again paired with the same characters in new outfits. I wish they offered different elements and actual modes of gameplay instead.

This could have been much better

I was pretty excited for this game to come out. Mario Kart is one of my favorite Nintendo series. Unfortunately, it’s hard to enjoy. I really only have fun with it one or two days every two weeks, since other than that cups only release once per day. I’m really not a fan of ranked cups, it’s a bit unfair when you’re against people who do the in-app purchases (which are WAY too overpriced). It’s always so hard and repetitive since you’re only playing three tracks over and over. And if you don’t get top row for everything, you’re kind of screwed. It’s especially annoying when you get to higher tiers and it’s way harder to progress, not to mention you go down if you get bottom 10 (which is way too many people, bottom 5 would make more sense). Unfortunately, it’s really the only practical way to get rubies. Tour gifts are way too slow and buying them is way too expensive. (Why the heck does the gold pass cost more than NSO?) To say something positive, it is pretty fun playing new cups and I like how we continuously get new tours. I also think bonus challenges are fun (except maybe smash small Dry bones and mega battles). I’ve been wanting them back in Mario Kart, and it’s cool to see them here. All in all, I feel like this app mostly just wastes my time and I kind of wish I’d never downloaded it. It also really makes me want Mario Kart 9. And it better be on the switch.

Fun at first, but now

Compared to when I first started playing, seems like the number of cups in each tour have gone down; and it takes forever for the next tour to come out, so it gets boring playing the same cups over and over. In the latest tour, the last cup, the only way to get 4 or 5 stars is to have high end drivers/karts/gliders...that’s BS. I’ve fired the pipe at least 30 times during this latest tour and I’ve only ever gotten 1 high end and 1 super. So you either pay for more rubies to fire the pipe again or you just don’t get the stars. Trash. Multiplayer is cool, but I’ve been booted out of so many multiplayer races which causes my ranking to lower, I didn’t choose to quit the race, I’m always connected to WiFi, so why should my ranking be affected, it wasn’t my fault. Also, in multiplayer, I just can’t believe some of the things that happen..like how am I getting hit by something every 3 seconds, or how was I way ahead of the group one second, then last the next second. I don’t think this game matches you up with players who are on or close to the same ranking as you, even though it’ll say we’re all the same ranking. Always feels like there’s something off about multiplayer. Shady. Definitely not getting any more of my actual money (canceled Gold Pass, spent max $40 for rubies). Just thinking about trying to level up makes my blood boil now, might just have to delete this app, no longer fun like it used to be.

Unable to play because of update

Don’t waste your money or your time with this app. I tried to update for the new Princess Tour and the update is so slow that it freezes and crashes the app. I’ve done everything from uninstalling then reinstalling the app, turning off cellular data then turning it on, turning on airplane mode then turning it back off, and shutting off and restarting my phone itself. I have a lot of storage space so that isn’t the issue. I’ve battled with this for the last 4 hours and the app will reinstall but it’s extremely slow. When the app finally is installed I try to download the current tour only for me to just get a “communication error” and the update is extremely slow and will go up only to the 27% and it will not download at all, resulting me in having to do all of the above again. I’ve invested so much progress and a lot of my hard earned money into this game only for me not being able to play it at all let alone access it and get my progress back. Because of an update the app is useless and will not install at all and I got ripped off and scammed. This app is a scam. I’ll never install any app that comes from this company because now I can’t install and play the game at all anymore plus all my progress is gone and my money spent is wasted because of ONE UPDATE. This is ridiculous and I want all of my money I’ve spent on this worthless app refunded on my card. Pure utter trash. Don’t bother. Waste of time and money.

Rant

Game doesn’t want you to win and even if you get first place, the game will base you off of your performance. This game will do anything in its power to help make the “other real players” win. Why quote on quote? Well because in the tour mode you are not actually playing with real player, they are just computer players generated with real player names and load outs. As I was playing this game I noticed something that was very annoying, I would click the button that allows me to view behind me and when I would let go, it would change my controls from Manuel drift to standard driving. Also, in a race when I was right next to a computer player, I was focused in on trying to get ahead of this computer BUT the computer player just TELEPORTS? Ahead of me? Haha wow if that’s how this game is going to be, I am better of playing a Mario kart game that is actually fair. Two more things, the prices and the gold pass. The prices to purchase rubies are just wow. You mean to tell me that I have to pay two dollars for 3 rubies, not even enough for a ONE SHOT PIPE. Now the Gold pass. Seriously? I have to pay 5 dollars A MONTH for: 200cc and bonus awards and display badges? And that’s basically it, 200 cc which will probably have the computer players act impossible to beat with the way they are programmed unless you have the top load out for the race, the bonus awards aren’t too bad but golden display badges? Really? They don’t even look that good.

Disgusting cashgrab.

Avoid at all costs. For what you would think would be a children’s game, it is definitely not. Premium items are ridiculously priced. It costs a fortune to even attempt to get some of the better items. Worst yet, controls are atrocious. Everything being connected to the touch screen causes so many issues. It is supposed to be that you swipe up or down to use items but the majority of the time you’ll use them just by simply turning left or right. The controls also lack precision. It is next to impossible to make a slight adjustment to your movement as opposed to a proper control stick. Beyond this, the gameplay is repetitive. All you basically do is race against CPUs that will continuously cheat, outspeed and prioritize attacking the player. Yes, they’re flat out faster than you. The items also heavily favor them as it is 7 vs. 1. And the worst part of this is that YOU GET PUNISHED FOR LOSING! Yes, you have a player rank that goes up based on your position. Why would you PUNISH someone playing your game for something that is often out of their control? And they also expect you to also drive perfectly, get combos to complete missions, without them interfering! (Better get a lot of $$$$$ to increase the better items you can get while racing!!!!) As someone who enjoyed the previous entries on the consoles, this is disgusting to see what has become of this franchise. My biggest regret is giving this game any sort of money.

Nintendo Co. can finally claim a mega-hit smartphone game with its new Mario Kart Tour, which has been downloaded 123.9 million times in its...

Bloomberg.com Sat Dec 28 2019

Gather your friends and get ready to put the pedal to the metal! Mario Kart Tour, Nintendo's first-ever Mario Kart game for iOS and Android...

Business Wire Thu May 28 2020

Mario Kart Tour is company's biggest mobile game release to date.

Financial Times Thu Nov 28 2019

At the tail end of August we learned that Mario Kart Tour would land on Android on September 25th, and early this morning, the racer was...

Android Police Thu Nov 28 2019

Explore the performance of the top 5 racing games on the Android platform in Panama during Q4 2022, including weekly downloads, revenue, and active user...

Sensor Tower Mon Oct 28 2024

Nintendo is forming a joint venture company with DeNA - the developer behind Mario Kart Tour and Super Mario Run - in a bid to expand its mobile business.

Pocket-lint Sat Jan 28 2023

Last November, Nintendo and DeNA announced that they would be forming a new, joint endeavour to focus on researching and developing digital...

PocketGamer.biz Wed Jun 28 2023

Nintendo Co. is taking concrete steps toward the release of highly anticipated mobile game Mario Kart Tour, and it's sending shares of...

Bloomberg.com Fri Jun 28 2019

DeNA has been behind most of Nintendo's mobile games including Mario Run and Fire Emblem Heroes…

Video Games Chronicle Sat Jan 28 2023

Those of you looking for a quick fix of Nintendo magic have to look no further than Mario Kart Tour, which is now racing onto mobile.

TechRadar Thu Nov 28 2019