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See the full story · 2 sourceson Google Preferred Source Google News Link copied to clipboard By Michael McWhertor Published Sep 1, 2026, 10:03 PM EDT News Nine years after launch, Nintendo can't stop updating Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Sign in to your Polygon.com account Nintendo just dropped a surprise update for the 71 million players of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe , bringing brand-new Switch 2 support to the 2017 kart-racing game. The new Mario Kart 8 Deluxe update brings some expected features, including "clearer visuals" for the Nintendo Switch 2 display and high-resolution TVs, as well as faster loading times.
But Nintendo went above and beyond for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe 's Switch 2 upgrade, bringing expanded split-screen multiplayer and something new for Booster Course Pass owners.
According to Nintendo's official patch notes , Mario Kart 8 Deluxe now supports up to eight players on a single screen on Switch 2, doubling the number of players possible in split-screen on the original Nintendo Switch. Switch 2 owners can now connect up to seven Nintendo Switch controllers — either Joy-Cons or Switch Pro Controllers — to play eight-player split-screen. At least one Joy-Con 2 controller or a Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller is required for eight-player play.
Suffice it to say, having eight players on a single screen looks like absolute chaos.
To add to that eight-player madness, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe now supports CameraPlay on Switch 2.
Elsewhere in the update, Nintendo has also made Mario Kart 8 Deluxe faster. Player speed during races has increased by the equivalent of one coin . Time to revisit your time trials, Mario Kart 8 sickos.
And while eight-player split-screen sounds like a wild number, Nintendo's update has an even bigger digit to boast about: 96. Players who have access to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe 's Booster Course Pass can now play a “96 Races” endurance challenge in the game's “VS Race” rule settings. That spans all 96 courses available in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and its six-part, 48-course DLC. Wild stuff.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was released for the original Nintendo Switch in April 2017, a month after the Switch launched. MK8 Deluxe is an updated version of Mario Kart 8 , which was originally released for Wii U in 2014. Hopefully, Switch 2 owners can expect a similar decade's worth of support for Mario Kart World , which could really use some new content of its own.
Read on for the official patch notes for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe 's new update.
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