'Mario Kart Live' Lets You Turn Your Home Into A Racetrack

I love Mario Kart, and I love my home. But never in a million years did I think that the two would be combined in a video game that allows me to build actual Mario Kart race tracks in my living room and then race through them on my Nintendo Switch. Announced last night during a Mario presentation full of surprises, Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit is fulfilling a dream I didn't even know I had.

Before we move on, take a look at in action below.

The tech behind it is simple enough, but simultaneously so inspired that a small part of me believes it might be magic. You'll use your Nintendo Switch to steer a physical, real-life kart around your house that has an Augmented Reality camera attached to it. You can place various gate markers around your kitchen/bathroom/bedroom/wherever to create a course, and then hop onto your Switch to enjoy classic Mario Kart races.

The camera attached to your IRL racer will present you with a course to follow based on the markers you've set down, and even throw other AI characters in for you to race with. All the while, you're actually controlling the physical kart as it moves through your house. If your kart bumps into an object, the in-game racer simply stops in its tracks. I'm incredibly excited to turn my cat into a makeshift Mario Kart obstacle.

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit will also support four-player local multiplayer... unfortunately, each player needs their own system and kart to get in on the fun, which seems needlessly complicated. Playing together can never be a spur of the moment thing, unless you just so happen to have your Switch and kart packed away in your bag at all times, which I doubt will be the case for many. Still, pre-planned sessions could be a lot of fun, especially with four karts all driving through the house together.

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit is coming to Nintendo Switch on October 16th priced at $99.99, and will be available with either a physical Mario or Luigi kart racer to zoom around the house. I'm definitely going for Luigi.