Mario Kart World's first post-launch patch suggests we somehow weren't getting hit with enough items as it fixes an "an issue where items were no longer able to be used"

Mario Kart World
(Image credit: Nintendo)

Mario Kart World's first post-launch patch is here, and although there are no drastic changes, Nintendo has rolled out a number of fixes for various bugs and issues, including one that suggests we're about to start getting hit with even more items. Oh no.

It's fair to say that Mario Kart World has had a largely bug-free launch – in fact, after one player discovered an out-of-bounds glitch, some remarked that it was the first bug like that they'd seen in the Switch 2 racing game. Curiously, that specific bug on Dry Bones Burnout doesn't appear to be one of the things fixed here, although as outlined in the patch notes, Nintendo has "fixed an issue where you sometimes slipped through the wall before the finish line of DK Spaceport."

Elsewhere, an "issue where you sometimes couldn’t return to [the] correct position after falling off the course between Airship Fortress and Bowser’s Castle while gliding" has been ironed out, as well as "an issue where items were no longer able to be used." I've got to say I genuinely have no idea where or when that latter one has been happening – the amount of explosions and chaos you see, especially when you're a bit further behind in a race, certainly wouldn't suggest that anyone has been struggling to use their items. Perhaps we can expect even more destruction now.

The racing game has apparently been struggling with a couple of crashes, too, as issues "where sometimes the game shut down" either after an online race or after watching a post-race replay have been fixed. Up to this point, it's also been "easy for a communication error to occur when trying to join Friends playing VS Race or Battle" online, but that should no longer be a problem.

Finally, if you ever found your controls were "inoperable when selecting a character and trying to start Free Roam from the Free Roam map," fear not, because that's now been fixed. What's more, "an issue where rate fluctuations were sometimes displayed incorrectly in Knockout Tour and Online Play" has been banished, hopefully meaning you should get an accurate look at your personal rating and how much it increases (or decreases) each online race.

"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."

Catherine Lewis
Deputy News Editor

I'm GamesRadar+'s Deputy News Editor, working alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

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