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The Super Mario Bros. Movie Appears to Have Influenced a Major Mario Kart 9 Character's Redesign

by Hunter Mar 18,2025

Nintendo’s recent unveiling of the Nintendo Switch 2 and Mario Kart 9 has sparked excitement, but one character’s redesign has captured fans’ attention: Donkey Kong. While most characters in the Mario Kart 9 trailer looked familiar, Donkey Kong’s appearance is noticeably different, seemingly inspired by his design in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

For years, Donkey Kong’s design remained consistent across various titles like Mario Kart 8, Mario Tennis, and Donkey Kong Country Returns. However, The Super Mario Bros. Movie introduced a revamped look, and Nintendo appears to be integrating this updated design into its games.

The brief glimpse of Donkey Kong in the Mario Kart 9 trailer, though not entirely clear, already reveals a distinct difference from his previous iterations. A more detailed comparison will likely be possible after the April Nintendo Direct for the Nintendo Switch 2. This event, while focusing primarily on the console's aesthetics, offered glimpses of backward compatibility, new Joy-Con buttons, and confirmation of theories regarding controller-as-mouse functionality.

Despite a 2025 release window, the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch is anticipated to be no earlier than June, due to various global hands-on events with registration opening shortly.