Mario Kart World may look too similar to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe when you first boot it up, but on top of all the new content it packs, there are more new mechanics than ever before to master in order to become the best driver on the road. Mario Kart World items and top drifting skills will only get you so far, so you should know how to properly execute Mario Kart World rail-grinding and wall-jumping too.
Don’t be afraid though. Mario Kart World’s controls remain as simple as ever, and the new moves are tied to the drift/boost buttons (R/ZR). By the way, both buttons work the same; just use whichever one feels more comfortable to you. When it comes to how to grind rails in Mario Kart World, there are two options:
1. Simply riding rails that appear at the ground level: If you drive straight into rails that start (or go on for a while) at the base race track level, the character just rides it until it ends, an object hits them, or you just decide to jump off.
2. Charge-jumping on to rails: Most of the time, you’ll want to get on rails after you’ve driven past their start points, and you can do so by charging a jump by holding down and releasing (R/ZR) without steering left or right (as that would cause the kart to drift instead). Once you notice the kart is charged, like when it drifts, let go and it’ll jump. With the right timing and position, you can jump onto rails this way (or dodge incoming attack items).
You can also perform tricks while grinding rails by pressing (R/ZR) again; this will make the character/kart jump and increase the movement speed while grinding. It feels both great and useful, so give it a go as often as you can. This also allows you to jump off the rails if you use a side directional input during the trick.
