Mario Kart World Update 1.8.0: Here's What the New Patch Notes Bring

Mario Kart World has received a new update: Version 1.8.0 is here, bringing several old favorites back to the tracks. Nintendo has released the full patch notes, and we've summarized the most important points for you.

What New Tracks Does Update 1.8.0 Introduce?

The core of the update consists of ten SNES-style tracks that can be explored as part of the open world, including classics like Vanilla Lake, Koopa Beach, Ghost Valley, and Mario Circuit. Additionally, there are two brand-new routes exclusive to the Knockout Tour mode.

How Do You Access the New Retro Tracks in the Game?

Unlike classic Mario Kart titles, you don't simply select tracks from a cup menu in Mario Kart World. Instead, the entire game world is freely traversable, and individual courses are scattered as fixed locations within this world. Therefore, the ten new SNES tracks are not a separate playlist; you must first find them in the open world before you can use them in races or time trials. This aligns with the fundamental concept of Mario Kart World, which from the outset has focused more on free exploration rather than traditional track selection.

What Else Changes with the Update?

In addition to the new tracks, Version 1.8.0 brings the following changes:

Ten SNES-inspired classic tracks are now directly accessible within the open game world
Two new tracks exclusive to the Knockout Tour mode
Online and LAN lobbies now support up to 26 players simultaneously
Lap times in Time Trials are now displayed individually instead of just the total time
Various bug fixes and minor balance adjustments according to the official patch notes document

For fans of the series, this is not a new phenomenon: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe also received a significant boost of retro tracks with Update 4.0.0, as we previously reported. Nintendo now supports its Kart spin-offs with post-launch content much longer and more intensively than just a few years ago – a trend from which the community visibly benefits, even if it further raises expectations for future updates.