Mario Kart Tour Shutting Down September 2026 After Seven Years, No Offline Version Planned

Nintendo will shut down Mario Kart Tour on 30 September 2026 at 3pm Japan time, ending seven years of service for the smartphone racer on iOS and Android. The announcement, posted to the game’s official Japanese account on 8 July, confirms the app closes at 11pm Pacific time on 29 September, and that no offline version is planned to replace it. Mario Kart Tour launched in September 2019 and is one of the last Nintendo mobile games still running.

いつもスマートフォン向けアプリ『マリオカート ツアー』を遊んでいただき、ありがとうございます。

このたび誠に勝手ながら、『マリオカート ツアー』は、2026年9月30日(水) 15:00 (日本時間)をもちまして終了させていただくことになりました。…

— マリオカート ツアー (@mariokarttourJP) July 8, 2026

Nintendo thanked players for their support since launch, writing that the team is grateful for the patronage the game has received over its lifespan. Alongside the shutdown notice, Nintendo has already begun winding down the game’s paid systems, suspending Ruby sales and Gold Pass renewals as of the same day.

Mario Kart Tour End of Service Date Confirmed

The game ceases operation on 30 September 2026 at 3pm JST, which converts to 11pm Pacific time on 29 September. Mario Kart Tour ran biweekly themed tours, each rotating in new cups and downloadable content, a cadence that kept the game stocked with fresh races across its seven years.

Nintendo has shut down several of its smartphone titles over the years, but Mario Kart Tour outlasted most of them. The game also fed directly into console development, supplying tracks that were later added to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe through the Switch expansion pass.

Rubies Sales End and Refunds for Unused Balances

The sale of Rubies, the game’s premium currency, ended on 8 July at 3pm JST. Players who already hold Rubies can still spend them in the Pickup Shop, Mii Suit Shop, and Coin Rush right up until the servers close.

Unused paid Rubies purchased in Japanese yen are eligible for a refund after the service ends, in line with Japan’s Payment Services Act. Nintendo will post the refund application process on the official Mario Kart Tour site once the game closes, and players will need to apply through an in-app form for identity verification. Anyone holding unused paid Rubies has been advised not to uninstall the app until their refund is complete. Bonus Rubies awarded as a “service” portion at the point of purchase count as free Rubies and are not covered by the refund.

Gold Pass Goes Free Until the Servers Close

New Gold Pass sign-ups and automatic renewals were suspended during the maintenance on 8 July at 3pm JST. Players whose Gold Pass was still active at that point keep the subscription’s benefits, excluding continuation rewards, free of charge through to 30 September at 2.59pm JST. Players without an active subscription at the cutoff gain free access to those same benefits from the start of the Vacation Tour on 5 August, running through to the game’s end of service.

No sign-up steps are required to use Gold Pass for free during this window. The freed benefits include Gold Gifts, Gold Challenges, the 200cc Open class, doubled daily caps on base points and coins, a doubled Frenzy gauge increase in multiplayer, and a raised multiplayer rank ceiling of S+9. Continuation rewards stop being issued after the 8 July maintenance, and past subscribers who lapsed before the cutoff cannot access the free window until 5 August.

No Offline Version Planned for Mario Kart Tour

Unlike the closure of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, Nintendo is not preparing a standalone offline edition of Mario Kart Tour for players to switch to after the servers shut down. A brief FAQ on the matter states that an offline version is not scheduled for release, which will leave several tracks unique to the game unplayable once the service ends.

The financial history of Mario Kart Tour was marked by controversy at launch, when the game leaned on gacha-style mechanics to unlock karts and characters. After significant backlash, Nintendo replaced that system with a standard item shop in 2022, alongside a subscription service.

Nintendo’s Shrinking Smartphone Catalogue

With Mario Kart Tour closing, Nintendo’s mobile lineup shrinks further. Fire Emblem Heroes and the newer Fire Emblem Shadows remain operational, as does Super Mario Run, while Pikmin Bloom continues largely under Pokemon Go developer Niantic. Nintendo has not walked away from smartphones entirely, having launched Pictonico earlier this year, an app that turns camera roll images into WarioWare-style minigames.

Mario Kart Tour’s final scheduled event, the Vacation Tour, begins on 5 August, giving players a final stretch of new content before the servers close on 30 September.