"I cannot believe how lucky of a person I am": Mario voice actor says "hearing myself" in Mario Kart World "is truly an unbelievable experience"

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Mario Kart was "an absolute pillar" of Kevin Afghani's childhood

Mario Kart World
(Image credit: Nintendo)

Nearly two weeks have passed since both the Switch 2 and Mario Kart World released, which means fans have had plenty of time to experience them firsthand – including the voice actor behind Mario himself, Kevin Afghani.

Afghani succeeded longtime Mario voice actor Charles Martinet in the role, debuting as the iconic Nintendo character in 2023 with Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Since then, he's played as Mario in subsequent releases like WarioWare: Move It! and Mario & Luigi: Brothership – and most recently, Mario Kart World. It's safe to say he loves what he does, too, judging by a new online post in which he shares his thoughts on his role.

Reacting to his voice as Mario in Mario Kart World, Afghani describes how hearing it makes him feel. "Hearing myself in Mario Kart is truly an unbelievable experience," he says. "Mario Kart was an absolute pillar of my childhood. I cannot believe how lucky of a person I am to be able to be a part of games that mean so much to me."

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The actor concludes his statement, writing, "I hope you all are having an incredible time with the game."

It's certainly a wholesome admission from Afghani, and it looks like fans are just as thrilled to hear him as Mario in Mario Kart World as he is himself. "Your voice work is amazing," exclaims one supportive player in the comments. Others relate to the actor's own childhood experience with the Mario Kart series: "It was a pillar in my childhood, too, and you voicing Mario is so good and cool! You are doing a good job."

Afghani's post comes after the suspension of SAG-AFTRA's strike against game companies after almost a year of negotiations, with the actor saying as "the video game VO strike is over, I CAN TWEET ABOUT VIDEO GAMES AGAIN WOO."

Read our Mario Kart World review to learn more about the new racing game, or check out some of these other exciting upcoming Switch 2 games.

Anna Koselke
Anna Koselke
Staff Writer

After spending years with her head in various fantastical realms' clouds, Anna studied English Literature and then Medieval History at the University of Edinburgh, going on to specialize in narrative design and video game journalism as a writer. She has written for various publications since her postgraduate studies, including Dexerto, Fanbyte, GameSpot, IGN, PCGamesN, and more. When she's not frantically trying to form words into coherent sentences, she's probably daydreaming about becoming a fairy druid and befriending every animal or she's spending a thousand (more) hours traversing the Underdark in Baldur's Gate 3. If you spot her away from her PC, you'll always find Anna with a fantasy book, a handheld video game console of some sort, and a Tamagotchi or two on hand.

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