Back on March 10 (Mario Day), the LEGO Group teased next year’s release of LEGO Mario Kart sets. Today, at the gamescom event in Cologne, six new Mario Kart sets were revealed. The new sets will bring a new look to the Super Mario range when they launch on January 1 2025 and will bring some of the relatively under-represented characters from Super Mario to LEGO Form. We will also see the classic Mario Kart course features: ‘?’ block, wheels and banapeels, to name a few.

To add a layer of digital play, fans can also add a LEGO® Mario™, LEGO® Luigi™ or LEGO® Peach™ (figures not included) to the new Mario Kart sets which takes the interactive experience into high gear when putting one of the figures into the driver’s seat. This includes iconic Mario Kart audio and visual effects for race-starting, horn-honking, kart-drifting and gliding sounds from the game. Players can also use these characters to scan Item Boxes, allowing them to collect extra coins and help boost their score as they finish the race!

Lets take a closer look.

LEGO Mario Kart Sets

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Yoshi Bike (72031) is the perfect build for fans who enjoy drifting between traffic cones or launching shells. Builders ages 7 and up can look forward to a Light-Blue Yoshi toy figure, a shell item, and a brick-built bike in this 133-piece play set.

• Age: 7+
• Price: €14,99/ $14.99 / £12,99
• Pieces: 133
• Product No.: 72031
• Dimensions: Measures over 2.5 in. (6 cm) high, 3.5 in. (9 cm) long and 1.5 in. (4 cm) wide
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Standard Kart (72032) is for all the original players, ready to race and drive the classic Standard Kart. The 174-piece set for ages 7+ includes a buildable model of the standard edition Mario Kart, a workstation, a Toad toy figure in his red pit crew uniform, plus a detachable Super Glider!

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Standard Kart

• Age: 7+
• Price: €19,99/ $19.99 / £17,99
• Pieces: 174
• Product No.: 72032
• Dimensions: Measures over 1.5 in. (4 cm) high, 5.5 in. (14 cm) long and 3 in. (8 cm) wide
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Donkey Kong & DK Jumbo (72033) is a set that features one of Donkey Kong’s signature karts – the DK Jumbo. Launch items such as shells and a banana on the course to slow down other players! The 387-piece set is for fans aged 8+.

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Donkey Kong & DK Jumbo

• Age: 8+
• Price: €34,99/ $34.99 / £29,99
• Pieces: 387
• Product No.: 72033
• Dimensions: Measures over 3.5 in. (8 cm) high, 6 in. (15 cm) long and 3 in. (7 cm)
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Baby Mario vs. Baby Luigi (72034) is for ages 8 and up. The set features Baby Mario in his Biddybuggy and Baby Luigi in his Tri-Speeder, ready to launch shells for a Balloon Battle. There are 6 buildable balloons in this 321-piece set.

• Age: 8+
• Price: €29,99/ $29.99 / £24,99
• Pieces: 321
• Product No.: 72034
• Dimensions: Measures over 2 in. (5 cm) high, 4 in. (10 cm) long and 3 in. (7 cm) wide
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Toad’s Garage (72035) includes two Blue Toads (Pit Crew), ready to tune up karts in his garage. The Blue Toads are in the garage and all-focused on getting the B Dasher kart ready to race. Players aged 8 and up can use this 390-piece build to customize their very own kart.

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Toad’s Garage

• Age: 8+
• Price: €39,99/ $39.99 / £34,99
• Pieces: 390
• Product No.: 72035
• Dimensions: Measures over 4 in. (11 cm) high, 12 in. (31 cm) wide and 8 in. (20 cm) deep
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Baby Peach & Grand Prix Set (72036) is for ages 8 and up, showing Baby Peach in her Wild Wiggler kart alongside Lemmy in the Landship kart and Toad on the standard bike. Choose your character, drift around an obstacle-filled course and race to victory in this 823-piece set including a starting gate and more.

LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ – Baby Peach & Grand Prix Set

• Age: 8+
• Price: €79,99/ $79.99 / £69,99
• Pieces: 823
• Product No.: 72036
• Dimensions: Measures over 7 in. (18 cm) high, 12 in. (33 cm) wide and 1.5 in. (4 cm) deep
• Available: January 1, 2025

Simon Kent, Design Director at the LEGO Group, Group says: “We are beyond excited to turbo-charge our LEGO Super Mario universe with the reveal of these latest Mario Kart sets, that we know fans have been eagerly waiting for. We can’t wait for builders of all ages to put their pedal to the metal and bring Mario Kart races to brick-built reality at home with friends and family. The brand-new LEGO Super Mario: Mario Kart sets provide an immersive building experience and capture the heart-pounding action of the beloved video game series – showing fans that the world is your track like never before!”

Thoughts on LEGO MARIO KART

[Added the morning after…]

On closer inspection, while the Standard Kart does not come with a brick built character to race in it, every vehicle appears to have a drivers seat at least 4×3 studs: the right size for our interactive brick. In many of the images, the ‘action tag’ is also visible.

In less encouraging news, in some other pictures, we see stickers used for some decorations. This is a disappointment, as the part 4 years of LEGO Super MArio have avoided stickers at all costs. On the plus side, we have some new wheels/tires, in different colours, and maybe some printed hubcaps.

I also like the way that stud shooters are being employed to launch shells at your opponents, as well as the presence of targets around the course, and of course the ubiquitous ‘?’ block and banana!

Not going to lie: looking at these again, I feel excited for the future of the LSM franchise, and wonder if the bowser car released last year might be compatible with the theme? Time will Tell.

Three new LEGO Animal Crossing sets join the party!

This wasn’t the only exciting announcement to come from the two brands at gamescom, with the addition of three new LEGO Animal Crossing sets also being announced:

LEGO® Animal Crossing ™ Stargazing with Celeste

• Age: 6+
• Price: €9,99/ $9.99 / £8,99
• Pieces: 78
• Product No.: 77053
• Dimensions: Measures over 2.5 in (6 cm) high, 5 in (12cm) wide and 3.5 inches (9cm) deep
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Animal Crossing ™ Leif’s Caravan & Garden Shop

• Age: 7+
• Price: €29,99/ $29.99 / £24,99
• Pieces: 263
• Product No.: 77054
• Dimensions: Includes car and travel trailer toys that measure over 3 in. (8 cm) high, 7.5 in. (19 cm) long and 2.5 in. (6 cm) wide when attached to each other.
• Available: January 1, 2025

LEGO® Animal Crossing ™ Able Sisters Clothing Shop

• Available: January 1, 2025
• Age: 6+
• Price: €39,99/ $39.99 / £34,99
• Pieces: 322
• Product No.: 77055
• Dimensions: Measures over 5.5 in. (14 cm) high, 10.5 in. (27 cm) wide and 5.5 in. (14 cm) deep

This charming expansion allows fans to continue creating and exploring their own Animal Crossing villages and fun in brick play, bringing even more characters from the video game series into the LEGO play realm.

The new LEGO® Super Mario™: Mario Kart™ sets and LEGO® Animal Crossing™ sets will be available via LEGO.com, LEGO stores, and from select leading retailers around the world from January 1st, 2025.

While LEGO Super Mario has been fun to get to know, Mario Kart Wii was my first regular introduction to the Super Mario Universe, with the entire family crowded around the TV, controllers in hand.

Some fans will continue to be frustrated by the lack of Super Mario Minifigures, but I have to admit, having them brick-built makes it possible to have the details in the vehicles at the appropriate scale: for me, it’s a win. I do feel that there has been a certain level of ‘sameness’ with LEGO Super Mario this year, but given that the theme is now entering the 5th year, I shouldn’t be surprised. That said, I am glad to see the Mario Kart. For me, it’s my Mario game!

As for Animal Crossing: I enjoy seeing the theme trickle out, just a few sets at a time: it makes for a collection to be achievable, amongst a slew of block buster releases.

Which is you favorite of these sets? Animal Crossing or Mario Kart (and yes, you can have both!) Leave your comments below.

Stay tuned for more information coming on: www.lego.com/themes/super-mario/mario-kart/about and www.lego.com/themes/animal-crossing/about

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Until Next Time,

Play Well!