Square Enix’s Final Fantasy-flavored take on the kart racer, Chocobo GP, is coming to Nintendo Switch on March 10, 2022, the publisher announced Tuesday. The release of Chocobo GP will end a two-decade-long drought of racing as Final Fantasy’s famous bird species.
Chocobo GP will let players race as familiar faces from Final Fantasy (and the Chocobo spinoff games), including a Chocobo wearing inline skates, Cid, Terra Branford, Vivi, and Steiner, as well as summons Shiva, Titan, Gilgamesh, and Ifrit. Racers will use Magicite — famous Final Fantasy spells like Aero, Blizzard, Fire, and Thunder — to battle opponents in races that, yes, sure do look a lot like Mario Kart. Chocobo GP will feature a time attack mode and custom races, as well as a tournament-style contest for up to 64 players.
Kart-curious Final Fantasy fans can try out the experience for free with Chocobo GP Lite, a free-to-download version of the game that will include Chocobo GP’s story mode prologue and access to local and online multiplayer races — that is, if they’re playing with a friend who has the full version of the game. Square Enix assures Lite players that progress in that trial version of the game will carry over the full Chocobo GP.
Square Enix’s Chocobo kart racing series kicked off with Chocobo Racing for the original PlayStation in 1999. A Nintendo 3DS sequel was planned, but ultimately canceled, leading to a more than 20-year gap between the two main entries.
