Like many other smartphone games, Nintendo’s Mario Kart Tour for iOS and Android platforms had a gacha system powered by a premium currency “rubies”. The luck-based system encouraged players to fire a Mushroom Kingdom style pipe to acquire a random kart, glider or driver to use in-game, with rarer items having considerably lower rates of appearing. While nothing unusual for mobile games, something about the Mario Kart series being a family-oriented franchise and a flagship for Nintendo, saw it never sit well with some including myself.
This is all set to change however. As part of the game’s late-September 2022 update, Nintendo’s approach to monetization is changing – replacing the Pipe Firing gacha mechanic with the ‘Starlight Shop’ – where players can trade in rubies for drivers, karts and gliders. The roster of drivers, karts and gliders on offer will be rotated on a regular basis, although exact pricing of rubies to each unlockable (and their real-world value) is not yet confirmed.
In addition to the ‘Starlight Shop’, this update will also bring a new Battle Mode, a flagship mode of the console Mario Kart titles.
