LEGO 2K Drive revealed as open-world Mario Kart rival

Following several leaks this week, 2K Games has revealed Lego 2K Drive, a new Mario Kart-style racer combining an open world, customisation, and a story mode.

The first licensed Lego racer in over 20 years since 2002’s Drome Racers (unless you count the Forza Horizon 4 Lego Speed Champions expansion), LEGO 2K Drive is billed as an “AAA driving adventure game,” and is in development by Visual Concepts, best known for the NBA 2K and WWE 2K sports franchises.

Lego Racing goes open-world

LEGO 2K Drive takes place in a vast open world known as Bricklandia. With multiple bioome regions, the world is filled with minigames, challenges, collectables, and destructible environments.

The story sees you take on rivals to win the coveted Sky Cup Trophy. As well as the single-player story, two-player split screen and online multiplayer will be available.

Over 1,000 customisation parts

Like the classic Lego Racers games, there’s a strong focus on customisation. With over 1,000 unique Lego pieces, players can build any vehicle they like, with a wealth of colour designs, stickers, and flairs among other customisation items.

As for vehicles, the roster includes a wide range of cars from Lego City, Creator, and Speed Champions cars including the McLaren Solus GT and F1 LM. Outlandish powerups let you switch between multiple vehicle types on the fly from sports cars to boats and chicken cars.

“With the history the LEGO brand holds, we were very conscious of the responsibility we had to both our partners and longtime fans of LEGO play, while still thinking about how we can bring something new and unique to a LEGO title,” said Greg Thomas, President of Visual Concepts.

“For LEGO 2K Drive, we assembled a best-in-class team of game makers who poured their hearts into an unforgettable experience we can’t wait to share with fans.”

Release date

LEGO 2K Drive launches on 19 May for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store. Pre-ordering the Awesome Edition and Awesome Rivals Edition gives you early access from 16 May.

From the trailer, LEGO 2K Drive looks like a lot of fun. With the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass concluding as well as the releases of Disney Speedstorm and KartRider Drift, family-friendly kart racers are enjoying a welcome resurgence this year.