Nintendo explains lack of guest characters in Mario Kart World

"There are so many characters and so many costumes that every player is sure to find something they like."

It's hard to complain about the range of characters in Mario Kart World (although we still haven't recovered from the fact that Pauline only has two costumes...), which is the largest ensemble of the series to date. But despite this, some have voiced concerns.

This is because, unlike in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, guests from other Nintendo series such as Link, Isabelle from Animal Crossing, and Splatoon characters are missing. So why were they left out? Producer Kosuke Yabuki answers this question in an interview with Ouest-France (thanks Nintendo Everything) and says, translated by Bing:

"As developers, it would have seemed out of place to add characters from other games into this universe. And it didn't seem necessary, given everything we could already do with Mario."

That said, he seems open to changing this, and says they will keep an eye on how players behave:

"We can't help but wonder how players will perceive this cast. But there are so many characters and so many costumes that every player is sure to find something they like."

And it appears that they have, as Yabuki says the reception has been overwhelming, before revealing that his own new favorite is the cow - a driver he's definitely not alone in liking:

"We were of course hoping that the addition of these new drivers would be a pleasant surprise for players. But the response has been so warm that we were surprised ourselves! It's clearly exceeded our expectations."

What do you think, are you hoping for guest appearances in the future or is it good that the developers are staying in the Mushroom Kingdom?