After three decades of peacefully grazing the pastures of Moo Moo Farm and Moo Moo Meadows, Cow has officially become the standout surprise in Mario Kart World's expansive character lineup. When we had the opportunity to join a roundtable discussion with Mario Kart World producer Kosuke Yabuki, we made sure to ask about everyone's favorite bovine.
“Thank you for asking about Cow,” Yabuki began—one of the most memorable interview openings we’ve ever heard. “We chose to include Cow because we believed it would make players genuinely happy. And we were right. But honestly, the public’s reaction exceeded anything we imagined. It was a wonderful surprise. Thank you.”
Yabuki’s astonishment at Cow's popularity echoes comments from Nintendo of America’s Bill Trinen, who told us the team’s internal expectations for Cow “may not have matched the phenomenon she's become.”
Cow’s origin story makes her inclusion even more memorable. In last month’s Ask the Developer series for Mario Kart World, Yabuki confirmed that a developer’s playful sketch of Cow driving a truck ultimately convinced the entire team to add her as a playable character. During our chat, we asked Yabuki about the rise of what they now call “NPC Drivers,” a concept that later expanded to include Snowman, Penguin, Swooper, and others.
“Introducing Cow really opened the creative floodgates for us,” Yabuki continued. “Once a character like that is in the game, you start thinking, ‘Why not include others too?’ That's when the designers truly got excited. Once they realized all sorts of characters could be considered, you saw Penguin, Pokey, and so many others come into the mix—one after another. The rush of new character designs was so fast and enthusiastic, it’s honestly hard for me to recall which character came right after Cow. My apologies! I vividly remember approving Cow, and then it felt like the next day I had ten new character proposals on my desk.”
... adding Cow really opened the floodgates for us.
There's also a somewhat darker side to this story. One of Mario Kart World’s new features is Dash Food, collectible items picked up from Yoshi’s drive-thrus scattered throughout the open world. Shortly after the game was unveiled, IGN’s Brian Altano noticed during a preview event that Cow could consume items like steak kabobs and hamburgers—foods typically made from beef. So we had to ask Yabuki the big question: Are those veggie burgers, or is something else going on?
Yes, Cow CAN eat steak in Mario Kart World. pic.twitter.com/qN5PZ9IIM4
— IGN (@IGN) April 4, 2025
“Sorry, that’s classified information,” Yabuki laughed. “I can't reveal that.”
So the mystery continues—just like the question of whether Diddy Kong, sporting his fresh redesign, will appear in Mario Kart World. Yabuki’s only response was, “I’m afraid I can’t share anything about that right now.” Fortunately, we won't have to wait much longer for answers. Nintendo Switch 2 and its flagship launch title are just two days away from release. For more, check out our final hands-on preview of Mario Kart World, where we came away impressed with the racing, though Free Roam still left us skeptical. Also, take a look at our preview of the $10 launch title, Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour.
