Mario Kart World is Being Outsold by an 8-Year-Old Racing Game

Mario Kart World was outsold by its predecessor, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, in July. The competition may not be entirely fair for Mario Kart World right now, as it is exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2, which has far fewer owners than the original Switch. Still, it is notable that a new-gen installment is facing competition from an eight-year-old game.

Mario Kart World launched on June 5, 2025, as a flagship title for the Nintendo Switch 2. It quickly reached several milestones and sold millions of copies worldwide, thanks to being one of the console’s most wishlisted games. However, it appears that sales have currently slowed down, allowing Nintendo’s other popular racing game to dominate the charts.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Outsold Mario Kart World in July 2025

According to Mat Piscatella of Circana, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe outsold the franchise’s 2025 installment in July in terms of physical copy sales. His report shows that Mario Kart World fell from first to sixth place among the bestselling Nintendo games, while its predecessor rose to fourth. Interestingly, both racing titles were still overtaken by one of the Switch 2’s most acclaimed games, Donkey Kong Bananza.

Fans should note that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has a much larger potential audience. Available on both the Switch and Switch 2, it can reach nearly 158 million users. In contrast, Mario Kart World is exclusive to the Switch 2, a console that has sold only six million units. In fact, reports suggest that Mario Kart World has sold roughly as many copies as there are Switch 2 consoles, highlighting its financial success.

The new installment in the Mario Kart franchise had a rough start with user reception. Many fans were frustrated by some of its revamped or removed features, as well as a post-launch update. Additionally, at $80 USD, it is a pricey title on a console that launched at a higher price than many anticipated. These factors may have contributed to it falling behind in sales compared to more polished and affordable games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Despite this, there is still a strong chance that Mario Kart World‘s sales will pick up as the Switch 2 user base grows, potentially selling millions more copies.

In the coming years, it will be interesting to see how the competition between the two Mario Kart games unfolds. What seems certain is that Nintendo will continue supporting both titles for a long time, and fans can expect more updates, particularly for Mario Kart World, which is being refined with each patch.