All Mario Kart World characters confirmed so far

Mario Kart World is sporting the biggest Mario Kart character ensemble we’ve ever had. With additions like “Cow” and “Snowman,” it seems like the real question is, “Who isn’t in Mario Kart World?” Either way, if you’re looking to see if your main made the cut or if you’re trying to see the new bizarre additions, we’ve got your back.

There are some characters that we haven’t seen in trailers that were in previous titles, like Diddy Kong and the seven Koopalings, but we’re holding out hope for them. (At the very least, they’re more likely to return than Isabelle, Link, and the other crossover characters that were in Mario Kart 8.)

Below we list every confirmed character in Mario Kart World, seen in trailers, Treehouse Live streams, and other promotional material.

All returning confirmed characters in Mario Kart World

Here’s a list of characters returning from previous console Mario Kart games that we were able to spot in various promotional media for Mario Kart World, along with some screenshot proof that we saw them, we swear. (We note “console” since we are not including characters who made their playable debuts in the mobile game Mario Kart Tour.)

New characters in Mario Kart World

This purple bunny thief made its debut in New Super Mario Bros. U as an enemy that players would have to chase down for rewards. Since then, he’s become a playable option in most modern 2D Mario games, as an “easy mode” option for players, as he’s immune to attacks.

Nabbit was playable in Mario Kart Tour, making his addition to Mario Kart World not super surprising, but still welcomed. Who can resist this little guy?

Goombas are probably the most iconic Mario enemy (though I realize I’ve thrown the word “iconic” a lot in this guide), but if you showed a picture of it to your grandma, she’d probably recognize it as a May-rio character. Since its debut in Super Mario Bros., it has appeared in countless Mario games, typically as an easy-to-defeat fodder enemy.

Even though they’ve appeared as obstacles in past Mario Kart games, this is the first time they’ll actually be playable.

HUH? This is… the cow from the Mario Kart 64 Moo Moo Farm course? (Or mayhaps the cow from the Moo Moo Meadows course from Mario Kart Wii?) Sure.

Exploding in online popularity, Cow is now an extremely hyped character for Mario Kart World. Obviously this is not its true debut, as it was born and raised in the Mario Kart franchise, but who would have ever expected we would get to play as the heffer?

Hammer Bro

Hammer Bro isn’t just any Koopa, he’s a Koopa that hucks hammers at Mario. Originally debuting in Super Mario Bros., these critters have appeared in many Mario games, though often in pairs (thus the “Bro” in “Hammer Bro”).

Hammer Bro was released as a playable character for Mario Kart Tour, so his addition to Mario Kart World is welcomed.

Coin Coffer

These frog-like coin pouches made their debut in Super Mario 3D Land as enemies that drop coins when you jump on them. Since then, they’ve appeared in a lot of 3D Mario games, including Super Mario Odyssey where Mario can actually turn into/possess one using Cappy.

This will be Coin Coffer’s Mario Kart debut, as it’s never appeared in one of the racing games before this (not even as a background character or obstacle).

Piranha Plant

This iconic enemy is finally actually playable in a Mario Kart game after being one of Mario’s most well-known enemies, debuting all the way back in Super Mario Bros. These have been in virtually every Mario game since then, whether they’re biting straight up, spitting fireballs, or even more recently singing while under the influence of a Wonder Flower or fighting as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Not to be confused with Petey Piranha, who was playable in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s DLC, Piranha Plants have been mainstays of Mario Kart, serving as chompy obstacles and even as an item you can use to bite at your enemies.

These ostrich-condors originate from Super Mario 3D World, known for slamming their beaks around the player in desert levels. It’s pretty shocking that they’re playable in Mario Kart World, since they don’t have many appearances outside of their debut, often only appearing as obstacles in Mario Party levels.

Either way, sure, why not. Let the bird drive a car, you’re certainly letting everything else in the Mario universe drive one anyway. What’s the worst that could happen?

Chargin’ Chuck

These are the charging football playing Koopas from Super Mario World. You may remember them from early levels, charging straight ahead at you and you would need to jump on them three times to actually take them out (though you could use other methods like fire balls and whatnot). There were also versions of these guys who kicked footballs and threw… baseballs? For some reason.

These guys have appeared in a lot of more modern Mario games since their debut and actually was playable in Mario Kart Tour (the mobile Mario Kart game), so it’s not super surprising that they can get a kart in this game.

The cute Snowman from Super Mario 64 (and many games after that) will be making its driving debut in Mario Kart World. They always kind of just hang out and stand there, but they are cute and pretty recognizable as a “Mario thing,” if you’ve played enough of the games.

It’s appeared in a ton of 3D Mario games and has even made appearances in other Mario Kart games as obstacles in snowy courses.

Sidestepper

This is the crab from the original Mario Bros. that would come out of the tunnels and would take two hits to defeat. (One would make it go faster, and the second would flip it over, allowing you to successfully punt it away.) Honestly, this thing is one of the first Mario enemies, so… I suppose it does deserve to be here.

Sidestepper has continued to appear in Mario games, making tons of appearances in Mario Kart titles on beach courses. At some point it gained yellow claw tips, but rest assured, this is the original crab guy from Mario Bros.

Cheep Cheep

These fish made their debut in Super Mario Bros. and has pretty much been a staple of underwater levels in Mario games ever since. It’s actually maybe more surprising if there’s a Mario game that doesn’t have these guys in it.

Just like many of the other new debuts to this game, Cheep Cheeps were also obstacles in Mario Kart games. I don’t know how it’ll drive the cart with no hands, but I guess that is a problem a lot of the characters on this list have.

Rocky Wrench

Not to be confused with Monty Mole, this is the version that usually sits under potholes with goggles and throws wrenches at you (thus the name). These things made their debut in Super Mario Bros. 3, commonly seen on the Koopa Troop’s airships and machinery, and have appeared in a pretty random assortment of Mario games after, sometimes only getting mentioned by name with no actual physical appearance, like in Mario Golf: Super Rush.

They have also appeared as obstacles on various airship-themed courses in a bunch of Mario Kart games.

Monty Mole

This is the original mole from Super Mario World that jumps out of holes in the ground and runs at you. These are also my personally favorite hard-hitters from the Super Mario Strikers soccer series. They’ve been in a ton of Mario games throughout the years, both as playable or just cheering for everyone in the background. They’ve definitely evolved over the years, originally appearing as a pointier rodent before turning more into the friend-shaped chonker we know now.

Monty Mole is another character who actually was playable in Mario Kart Tour, so now they get their chance at the big time on the Nintendo Switch 2.

Has science gone too far? No, not far enough. Fish Bones are the skeleton fish enemies from Super Mario World, pretty much serving as the scary skeleton versions of Cheep Cheeps.

That said, obviously if you have both Koopa Troopas and Dry Bones in a Mario game, and then you introduce Cheep Cheep as playable… it would only be fair to include Fish Bones, right? These things also served as obstacles in a few of the newer Mario Kart games. Once again, we don’t know how these manage to drive a cart, but that’s kind of a moot point by now.

Dolphins appeared first in Super Mario World as, like… a sentient platform that Mario could use to get further in the level. They’d jump out of the water and you’d have to time your jumps to land on a dolphin — or risk death. Since then, they haven’t appeared in too many Mario games, but it makes a cameo here and there.

While not used as obstacles in Mario Kart like the other new recruits, Dolphin did have a motorcycle based off of it in Mario Kart Wii, which has also made its return in Mario Kart World.

This is literally just a penguin. These made their iconic debuts in Super Mario 64 and most players will remember the traumatic experience of having to carry the baby penguin all the way back to its mother in one of the levels. Now you can play as it in Mario Kart! (And if you want, you can drive it off the course, just like how you probably dropped that baby penguin off the cliff.)

These have appeared in many Mario Kart games as obstacles in snowy courses, gliding around and being general nuisances.

Para-Biddybud

These newer enemies made their debut in Super Mario 3D Land, and they usually come in a variety of colors. Since their addition to the Mario universe, they haven’t showed up too much in other titles.

Shockingly enough, the Para-Biddybud is another character that’s playable in Mario Kart World. It also had a kart designed based off of it in Mario Kart 8, which is also in Mario Kart World. Now you can be a Para-Biddybud on a Para-Biddybud.

Bee confirmed. These things also made their debut in Super Mario 3D Land and are not to be confused with the cute fuzzy bees that are in Super Mario Galaxy. These ones are evil and have stingers on their faces (or eyes on their butts?).

Stingbies have appeared in Mario Kart 7 on one of the bee-themed battle courses, but otherwise has not been in a Mario Kart title (until now).

These cactus baddies have been around since Super Mario Bros. 2, though they were green in their initial debut. They were later rebranded with their iconic yellow coloring in Super Mario World, serving as the perfect, segmented treat for Yoshi. Nyam!

Pokeys have been in a good number of Mario Kart, causing trouble on desert-themed stages and sometimes bending over to form an arch for players to drive through. Now it has a driver’s license!

These ducks are possibly one of the most iconic enemies from Super Mario Sunshine, as they’ll run up to Mario and flip him high into the sky. They also made an appearance in Super Mario Galaxy serving the same purpose. Hey, these blue ducks have the potential to be helpful, allowing Mario to reach spots he wouldn’t be able to reach otherwise, so they’re not all bad.

Cataquacks were also in a few Mario Kart games, though it pretty much only showed up in the Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Peach Beach level (or the remake of it in Mario Kart Wii). Real sickos will be delighted to know that they can play as this horrible duck now.

Huh, that’s not a Boo. Peepa is a newer ghost enemy that made its debut in Super Mario 3D Land. Unlike their spherical ghost cousins, Peepas typically move in set paths so they wouldn’t chase Mario down or anything like that.

This is Peepa’s first time appearing in any Mario Kart game — it never even made a cameo as obstacles or anything like that before this. Congratulations, Peepa. This is huge for you.

Spike first made their debut in Super Mario Bros. 3, vomiting up large spiky orbs to huck at Mario. Yuck. After its initial debut, Spike didn’t appear in many more games, but there was a very bizarre Spike renaissance in around the 2010s, where Spike started showing up more commonly in modern games. He even became playable in games like Mario Tennis Aces and Mario Party 10.

This is Spike’s first appearance in any Mario Kart game, shockingly enough, considering they’re in so many other games.

These are the humanoids that live in Isle Delfino in Super Mario Sunshine. They’re pretty iconic and have appeared in the background of a ton of games since their debut, usually cheering in the crowd while watching Mario and friends race or play some sports.

While not an obstacle like some other characters, they have appeared in Mario Kart games before, though they weren’t playable as a racer until now.

These little bats have been around for a long time, originally debuting in Super Mario World literally swooping down from the tops of caves at Mario. Since then, these little guys have shown up in caves in many Mario games.

Swoops have appeared as obstacles in Mario Kart games, but now will be playable in Mario Kart World.