Throughout at the moment’s Mario Kart World Direct, we received a better take a look at a lot of new tracks, options, and racers, together with Penguin. We have recognized Penguin was within the recreation since its reveal final week, however at the moment’s Direct determined to function this blue cutie in a really meme-specific means…by repeatedly throwing him off cliffs.
This occurred not as soon as, however twice through the Direct, as followers have identified on social media. On one event, Penguin merely misjudges a curve and sails neatly off over an icy panorama:
Even Nintendo is intentionally dropping blue penguins off of icy ledges.#MarioKartWorld #MarioKartWorldDirect #Nintendo #Switch2 pic.twitter.com/0eMsUE24Jz
— Jonathan Leung (@VGMaps) April 17, 2025
However in a second, much more on the nostril transfer, a Penguin in Free Roam drives straight off a cliff into the ocean under whereas music from Tremendous Mario 64 toodles away within the background:
29 years later and we nonetheless chucking penguins off of cliffs like in Mario 64#MarioKartWorld pic.twitter.com/7klPg5rZkM
— 🔥FireShadow64🔥(DROP THE PRICE) (@FireShadow64) April 17, 2025
In case you’re confused as to why that is noteworthy, enable me to attract your consideration to a long-standing neighborhood meme of Penguin from Tremendous Mario 64. In Tremendous Mario 64, gamers found years in the past that it was attainable to gather a Energy Star from Mom Penguin by returning Child Penguin to her, then to take Child Penguin after the star seems and take them away once more…and even drop them off a cliff:
This bit has been memed into fame for over a decade by the Mario neighborhood, so it is extraordinarily humorous to see Nintendo acknowledge it even when it is in a considerably delicate, plausible-deniability sort of means. Is that this a horrendous factor to do? Society nonetheless hasn’t come down cleanly on one facet or one other of the Penguin-cliff debate. At the least Mario Kart World offers Penguin a pleasant little water automobile to allow them to simply preserve going as soon as they’ve landed.
At the moment’s Mario Kart Nintendo Direct wasn’t precisely the font of latest data many had been hoping it might be, however we nonetheless received phrase on some attention-grabbing new stuff: extra new characters, courses, items, and features, in addition to a detailed look (courtesy of Penguin and others) of the new open world Free Roam mode, which is able to let gamers drive round wherever on this planet with out restraint.
You possibly can compensate for everything announced right here.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You’ll find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Bought a narrative tip? Ship it to [email protected].
