According to an industry analyst, Mario Kart 9 is currently in "active development", will have a new racing twist, and could be teased this year.
The speculation surrounding the game comes from Tokyo-based industry analyst Dr. Serkan Toto, who when writing his predictions for the upcoming year for Gamesindustry.biz, said that a new entry in the beloved racing series is on the way.
"I am aware Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is still selling very well on the Nintendo Switch, but Mario Kart 9 is in active development," he said before saying that Nintendo "could tease" their next entry of the franchise this year.
What's more, Toto also stated that Mario Kart 9 may launch with a "new twist". New Mario Kart games regularly include twists on the karting formula, from Double Dash's two-character karts, to Mario Kart 8's anti-gravity sections.
While the analyst refrained from adding further, that hasn't stopped fans on social media from speculating as to what the twist might be. From theories suggesting that the next installment could bring in a range of stars from other franchises to others routing for an F1-centric take to the popular series, the community has done a good job so far at offering up its suggestions toward a potential upcoming reveal.
The twist is that it borrows a load of mechanics from F1 Race Stars - including the damage system. Enjoy hitting those pit lanes every time one comes up.
— Christopher Searle (@DarkRulaMedia) January 7, 2022
In addition to Toto's predictions surrounding Mario Kart 9, the analyst also suggested that 2022 could be the year that Nintendo brings another one of its series to mobile devices. "On mobile, Nintendo has been very silent since Mario Kart Tour's launch in 2019, but I think 2022 is when we will see an established IP arriving on smart devices again," he said.
Last year, Mario Kart 8 officially became the best-selling racing game in US history. The title, which combines sales for both the Wii U version and the Nintendo Switch's Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, surpassed Mario Kart Wii back in April after selling over 40 million combined units and taking pole position.
For more from the world of Nintendo, make sure to check out this piece detailing our roundup of the top 25 Nintendo Switch games.
Jared Moore is a freelance writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.