Why is a farm animal replacing a Hylian hero? We’ve dug into developer interviews and fan speculation to unpack the choices behind Mario Kart World's new character direction.
Nintendo fans are buzzing with questions since the grand reveal of Mario Kart World on the newly released Switch 2. Chief among them: “Where’s Link?” and, more perplexingly, “Why is there a Cow?”
The newly announced game marks a shift in character philosophy from the all-inclusive party that was Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Gone are crossover icons like Link from The Legend of Zelda and Isabelle from Animal Crossing.
From Hyrule To Nowhere
In the previous title Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, crossover characters were a fan-favorite feature.
Fans could race as Link, the Villager, Isabelle, and Inkling Girl (or Boy) –fan-favorite characters from other Nintendo franchises.
These additions came as part of DLC packs originally released for Mario Kart 8 on the Wii U, which included themed tracks like Hyrule Circuit and Animal Crossing's seasonal route and were just taken over from the previous game in Deluxe.
At the time, the move was celebrated – or at least accepted – by most fans, some noting it edged Mario Kart closer to Smash Bros. territory.
Yet now, with Mario Kart World, these familiar faces are conspicuously absent, and there’s a very deliberate reason behind that.
A Return To The Mushroom Kingdom
In a recent interview with Ouest-France, producer Kosuke Yabuki explained the development team’s rationale. Via machine translation, Yabuki said:
“As developers, it would have seemed incongruous to add characters from other games to this universe. And it didn’t seem necessary, given everything we could already do with Mario.”
In other words: Why should we? A surprisingly blunt answer.
“We inevitably wonder how players will perceive this cast,”
Yabuki continued,
“But there are so many characters and so many costumes that there’s sure to be something for everyone.”
Why The Change?
Part of the reason for dropping crossover characters may come down to lore and design limitations.
With Mario Kart World aiming for a more interconnected Mario universe, both in terms of map design and in terms of characters.
Outside characters like Link or the Inklings might feel out of place in this world.
This approach also explains why maps like Hyrule Castle and the Animal Crossing village haven’t returned. With no crossover characters, their associated environments were also cut – reinforcing the game's tighter, Mario-centric worldbuilding.
So... Why A Cow?
The most surprising addition to the character roster (and also a fan-favorite of both players and developers) is undoubtedly the Cow – a full-blown racer based on a background NPC from Moo Moo Meadows.It turns out, the oddball choice was the catalyst for a major design shift.
Developer Ryunosuke Ishikawa revealed the Cow’s origin story in the "Ask the Developer" Interview:
“Each new Mario Kart game features new characters to race with, but since we added so many to the previous game, we wondered where we could go from there. One of the designers came up with a silly sketch of Cow cruising along, and I thought to myself, ‘This is it!’” (Laughs)
The Cow reportedly led the way for a new roster philosophy: pulling from the Mario universe’s vast pool of environmental and background characters – “NPC drivers.”
Cheep Cheep, Pokey and others soon followed.
It was thanks to the introduction of various “NPC drivers” that the idea to have Kamek appear as an item was born. When Kamek casts a spell, the racers are transformed into playable NPCs, so one by one they might all turn into Cow mid-race. I think it turned out to be a unique item that has never been seen before. In fact, Cow is a character who's inspired a lot of different ideas, including obstacle characters like Camel and Giraffe",
Shintaro Jikumaru, leader the planning team and responsible for the general gameplay design, concluded.
Emotion, Engines, And Expression
Giving a previously mute cow a full racing personality wasn’t without its challenges.
Voice lead Haruka Asahi said the team worked hard to give NPC drivers personalities that “don’t look inferior” to classic characters like Mario.
The sound team experimented with everything from croaking frogs to beating drums to capture unique vehicle sounds that matched each character’s design.
“Smash Bros.” No More – But Hope Remains
It’s worth noting that the developers haven’t completely shut the door on future additions. In Mario Kart 8, Link and others were added via DLC.
Fans speculate that similar expansions could arrive later – especially if Nintendo wants to tie in new entries from its other franchises.
One popular theory?
That Link’s appearance may hinge on his next design in an upcoming Zelda game, and Nintendo isn’t ready to reveal it yet.
In other words: his absence now doesn’t rule out a triumphant return later.
While some fans may miss the wild crossover spirit of MK8 Deluxe, Nintendo is betting on a different kind of magic this time: a deeply interconnected world where even a background cow can become a star.
And honestly? That’s pretty Moo-ving.