‘Mario Kart Tour’ rewards Gold Pass subscribers with multiplayer beta

We knew it was coming, and now the multiplayer mode for Mario Kart Tour has arrived just in time for the holidays -- but it's only in beta and it's only available to Gold Pass holders.

Mario Kart Tour was released for iOS and Android in September, but unusually for a Nintendo game it was purely a single-player experience. Last month Nintendo confirmed it would be launching a real-time multiplayer mode, but only for paid Gold Pass subscribers. A Gold Pass costs $4.99 per month to unlock extra content as well as the multiplayer mode.

This falls in line with much of the Mario Kart Tour experience, which is beset by free-to-play systems including multiple currencies and loot boxes. That said, multiplayer Mario Kart is always a fun experience and players are sure to be entertained in the run-up to Christmas.

The multiplayer beta test will run from now until December 26th. Nintendo warns on its website that gameplay may be unstable during the beta period, and that players could experience freezing, crashing or lag. Additionally, changes to the multiplayer during the beta means that multiplayer beta save data won't be available when the full release arrives.