It’s the day we’ve all been waiting for: Mario Kart is finally going mobile. The developer/publisher just announced that the game, Mario Kart Tour, is in development now and will soon be available to Android and iOS devices. Though the actual release date has yet to be released, it has been confirmed that the game will hit smartphones and tablets in the next financial year. Nintendo’s president, Tatsumi Kimishima released an announcement, “We plan to release a smart-device application from the ‘Mario Kart’ franchise, ‘Mario Kart Tour,’ during the next financial year (from April 2018 to March 2019). We will announce further details at a later date,” giving it’s fans a more specific date for its release.
Smartphones are powerful enough to run many console games. In many cases, though, games are built for use with a handheld controller. Smartphones have the horsepower, but not the hardware, for games that require intricate controls like those that a wii or nintendo would have. The main controls of Mario Kart involve racing, and the accelerating, braking, drifting, and jumping that goes along with the race. There’s also the use of power ups during the race to help boost you ahead of your competitors. It’s possible that Nintendo will require players to hold down a virtual button on-screen for gas/brake/etc., but it’s more likely that the game handles acceleration while players focus on steering, gathering power-ups, and beating the mighty opponent.
To add more excitement to all the good news, there have been rumors that there is a Legend of Zelda smartphone game in the works too, but that has not yet been confirmed by Nintendo.