Over the last few years, Nintendo seems to have stepped away from mobile games. Indeed, whether it’s Dr Mario World or Dragalia Lost being shut down, or Super Mario Run being left in maintenance mode, it’s clear the company’s priorities have shifted back to console with the success of the Switch.
And the situation with Mario Kart Tour only seems to be continuing this pattern. Why? Because a message in the news section indicates that no new content will be added to the game after October 4th. Here’s the message about it in full:
The message from Mario Kart Tour’s news section saying no more content will be added to the game
As well as a transcript for those who need it:
From 10/04/2023 (Wed) on, tours will consist of content from tours that have appeared before.
Note: No new courses, drivers, karts or gliders will be added following the Battle Tour starting 10/04/2023 (Wed)
It’s a pretty clear sign Nintendo has moved on from the game, and that the title is now in maintenance mode. But what does it mean for the rest of the series?
Well, it’s hard to say. Dataminers have known the game would run out of content long before this point, so it’s clear the schedule was laid out long in advance. Whatever team was working on the game was probably a skeleton crew at best, with the majority of the actual modelling and programming work being ready months ago.
But we do have a few predictions regardless.
Firstly, the chances of a second Booster Course Pass are now lower than ever. That’s because there are no more city tracks or new tracks planned for the game as of this point, hence nothing that would need to be preserved in 8 Deluxe. So, while a second pack could theoretically hold various other retros with little of its own content added in, it feels like the main reason for such a pack has now been taken away here. Once Piranha Plant Cove, Piranha Plant Pipeline, Rome Avanti and Madrid Drive are added in wave 6, that’s probably it.
This will be one of the last new tracks for 8 Deluxe
Secondly, it seems like a sign that the next Mario Kart game isn’t too far in the future. Indeed, with both Tour and 8 Deluxe coming to a close and a new Nintendo console supposedly in the pipeline for next year, it only makes sense to assume the teams from the older games have now been transferred to the new one instead.
Finally, it opens the door to the game being shut down in general, at least somewhere down the line. Okay, it might not be any time soon (since games like Super Mario Run have been going on autopilot for years now), but the clock is probably ticking nonetheless. The useful content has been archived, the team has moved on, and with no new stuff being added to the game, its time in the limelight is basically over.
Regardless, what do you think about this? Are you disappointed that Tour won’t be getting any more content? What do you think this means for both Tour and the Mario Kart series as a whole?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below, or on our Discord server today!
Source:
Mario Kart Tour Will No Longer Be Adding New Content After October (ResetEra)