One of Nintendo’s longest-running Mario games is officially coming to an end. Mario Kart Tour will permanently shut down later this year, giving players just a few more months to race before the game’s online service goes offline for good. And unfortunately, it does not appear there will be any new ways to play Mario Kart Tour after that.
Originally released in 2019, Mario Kart Tour brought Nintendo’s racing franchise to iOS and Android with touch controls, rotating Tours, collectible drivers, karts, and gliders, plus tracks inspired by real-world cities and classic Mario Kart courses. Major content updates ended some time ago, but the game remained playable and continued to support its online features, making this the true end of the mobile-exclusive racer.
Mario Kart Tour is on its Last Race
After a short period of speculation, Nintendo has now officially announced and confirmed that Mario Kart Tour will end service on September 29 at 11:00 p.m. PT (September 30 in some regions). Ahead of that shutdown, the company has already begun winding down the game’s premium services, listing them all out in a FAQ for fans:
- Ruby sales have ended immediately.
- Existing Rubies can still be spent until the servers close.
- New Gold Pass subscriptions and automatic renewals have been discontinued.
- Players with an active Gold Pass will keep most benefits for free through the end of service, while players without a subscription will receive most Gold Pass benefits for free beginning with the Vacation Tour on August 4.
Who’s That Character?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Nintendo also confirmed that eligible players who purchased unused paid Rubies will be able to request refunds after the service ends, though free Rubies and any paid currency already spent are not eligible. The company says additional details regarding refunds and account handling will be shared closer to the shutdown. Unlike Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, which eventually received an offline replacement in the form of Pocket Camp Complete, Nintendo has not announced any offline version or successor for Mario Kart Tour. Once the servers go offline, the game will no longer be playable in its current form.
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Video game shutdowns have become an increasingly common reality, especially for live-service and mobile games that rely on online servers to function. While Mario Kart Tour enjoyed a much longer lifespan than many games in the genre, its closure is another reminder that even successful releases eventually reach an endpoint. For longtime players, it marks the loss of years of progress, collections, and memories, not to mention any other form of personal investment. And for anyone who never got around to trying it, the opportunity to experience Nintendo’s mobile racer is quickly running out.
Scratch & Peek
Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as
possible.
After nearly seven years on mobile devices, Mario Kart Tour is preparing to cross the finish line. While players still have until the end of September to spend their Rubies, claim Gold Pass benefits, and race through its collection of Mario Kart tracks, Nintendo has now confirmed that the countdown to the game’s permanent shutdown has officially begun.
- Released
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September 25, 2019
- ESRB
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e
- Developer(s)
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Nintendo EPD
- Publisher(s)
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Nintendo
- Engine
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Unity
