From *Super Mario Kart* (1992) to the latest installment, *Mario Kart World* (releasing in June 2025), the *Mario Kart* series has enjoyed a long-running legacy spanning more than 30 years.While the characters and logos visible on screen fall under copyright and trademark law, the experience itself—where “every race is a close contest” and “even beginners can play”—is driven by programmatic control technology that parameterizes “game states” such as rankings, times, and physics. This falls within the realm of patents.In this article, from the perspective of a patent attorney, I will analyze Nintendo’s racing game patent portfolio based solely on verified published patent applications. For another analysis of Nintendo’s game patents, please also see the overview of the Splatoon patent series.
Notation conventions for this article: We strictly distinguish between registered rights, denoted as “Patent No. X” or “US X B2,” and unregistered applications in the published stage, denoted as “JP ○-○○” or “US2025/○ A1.”Applications in the published stage cannot be enforced. Additionally, since product names are not listed in the patent publications, all correlations with game features will be uniformly expressed using speculative phrasing such as “is believed to correspond to ~.”
Table of Contents
As a standard format for this blog, I’ll provide explanations in a three-part structure: ① In-game functions (player experience), ② Direct quotation of Claim 1, and ③ Key points of the scope of protection (how broadly it can be interpreted, and which limitations are effective).The focus is on five groups: Drift and Driving Controls; Rail and Wall Riding; Items and Reversal Assistance; Course Generation; and Physical Toys.
Key Research Finding: Within the scope of the published applications examined in this analysis, we found no claims containing the terms “drift,” “drift,” or “mini-turbo.” Nintendo’s drafting style involves thorough abstraction into terms such as “first driving state” and “advantageous driving state,” and this serves as the analytical framework throughout this article.
Registered in 2021; term of protection is scheduled to expire on May 22, 2037. This one-handed UI switches between normal driving and drifting depending on whether the touch start position is inside or outside a predetermined area, and is believed to correspond to the drift controls in *Mario Kart Tour*.
Patent No. 6921193, Claim 1 (Source: Google Patents)
A method for an information processing device comprising: an acquisition step of repeatedly acquiring an input position corresponding to a position on a display screen, which is detected by a pointing device; and, at least on the condition that the input position is outside a predetermined area when a movement operation input for said pointing device is initiated,a first reference position setting step of setting a first reference position based on the input position at the time the movement operation input is initiated; a first movement processing step of moving an object in a virtual game space via a first movement process based on the first reference position and the input positions of inputs continuously performed after the movement operation input is initiated; anda second reference position setting step of setting a second reference position based on the input position at the start of the movement operation input for the pointing device, provided at least that the input position at the start of the movement operation input is within the predetermined area; anda second movement processing step of moving the object within the virtual game space using a second movement process different from the first movement process, based on the second reference position and the input positions of inputs made continuously after the movement operation input begins; and in the first movement process,in the first movement process, the movement direction of the object in the virtual game space is changed based on the distance between the first reference position and the input position; and in the second movement process, the movement direction of the object in the virtual game space is changed based on the distance between the second reference position and the input position;when said distances are the same, the amount of change in the object’s movement direction in the first movement process differs from the amount of change in the movement direction in the second movement process; a game program.
Key Points of the Scope of Protection: (1) Claim 1 merely stipulates that the amount of change in the direction of movement is “different”; the limitation that “sharper turns occur during drift” is placed in dependent claim 2. This is a typical example of defining the independent claim broadly and specifying the embodiments in the dependent claims.② The term “drift” does not appear in the claims at all; instead, it is abstracted as “second movement process.”③ There is a divisional application (Japanese Patent Application 2021-122597 → Patent No. 7150108) based on this application, confirming the continued formation of a patent portfolio through division. This technique is explained in detail in the section on divisional application strategies for game patents.
Registered in 2022, derived from PCT/JP2017/019056 (corresponding to US11117048B2, etc.). This is a one-handed UI that switches between handle operation and special operation based on a second input performed within a first time window after the completion of the first input.Claim 1 specifies that “the distance between the position of a predetermined input and the position of a second movement input is less than or equal to a predetermined value” as the condition for executing the second movement process, illustrating a type of UI invention that prevents malfunctions by using two conditions: a time window and positional proximity (directional control based on the distance between the reference position and the input position is covered by dependent claim 2).Both applications were filed as PCT applications (international filing date: May 22, 2017) and have been filed in various countries (Patent No. 7083822 has been filed in the U.S., Europe, and China; Patent No. 6921193 has been filed in the U.S. as US11071911B2),and are characterized by the fact that they control driving mechanics at the “input method” layer—specifically, the touch UI for smartphones.
Filed November 17, 2023; published May 29, 2025; not yet registered (application in the published stage) (corresponding U.S. application: US2025/0161804 A1).This control system branches between drift and charge states based on whether an input is present upon landing from a charge jump, and generates a temporary boost (third driving state) by increasing a continuity parameter; it is believed to support the new controls in *Mario Kart World*.
JP Open 2025-82375 Claim 1 (Source: Google Patents)
A game program that causes a computer to execute a racing game within a virtual space using a player object controlled in response to the player’s control inputs, wherein, when a first control input is received upon the player object’s landing on the racetrack, and a predetermined turning control input was received at a predetermined timing prior to said landing,first driving control means for causing the player object to drive in a first driving state; and when the first control input occurs upon the player object landing on the driving course, and there was no turning control input at the predetermined timing,second driving control means for causing the player object to drive in a second driving state different from the first driving state; and a game program that causes the computer to function as follows: based on a parameter that increases as the second driving state continues, temporarily,temporarily cause the player object to move in a third driving state that is advantageous in the racing game, based on a parameter that increases as the second driving state continues; and a game program that causes the computer to function as described.
Key points of the scope of rights: (1) The terms “drift,” “charge,” and “turbo” are all generalized as “first/second/third driving states” (specified in claim 2 as the third driving state = higher speed than normal, and in claims 3 and 4 as the second driving state = disadvantageous/low speed).② The structure of “a parameter that increases as the second driving state continues → a temporarily advantageous driving state” is phrased in a way that can broadly encompass racing game implementations featuring “charge” → “boost.”③ The mini-turbo (drift → spark → boost) itself is a classic mechanic that has been well-known since *Super Mario Kart* in 1992. That is precisely why this application places the new element—"branching based on whether input is given upon landing"—at the core of the independent claims, while positioning the classic mini-turbo in the dependent claims.This is a practical example of drafting techniques used to formulate claims while avoiding prior art.
Note: Since this application has not yet been registered, rights cannot be enforced at this time; whether it is registered and the scope of the registered claims may change depending on future examination (the deadline for requesting examination is three years from the filing date, i.e., November 2026).
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2025-82376, a sister application filed on the same day(unregistered; application in the published stage) defines in Claim 1 a configuration in which the vehicle travels according to directional inputs on normal roads, travels along a predetermined object when on it, performs a jump to leave the object upon a first control input, and travels in an “advantageous driving state” (equivalent to a boost) after landing.This is believed to correspond to the rail driving and wall riding mechanics in *Mario Kart World*.In the corresponding U.S. application US2025/0161805 A1 (19 claims in total), “boost” is described as an “advantageous moving state,” and the consistency in this abstract style across languages is an interesting point to note in the Japanese-English side-by-side comparison.
Key points regarding the scope of protection: (1) The independent claim is defined only as a “predetermined object,” while walls (Claims 11 and 16) and rails (Claims 14 and 17) are specified in the dependent claims—a textbook example of a generic concept claim.② The dependent claims even cover detachment due to a rear-end collision on the rail (Claim 8) and attack items moving along the object (Claims 9 and 10), demonstrating a comprehensive approach that captures peripheral functional behaviors at the filing stage.③ The timing of this “pre-launch filing and publication just before launch”—filed in November 2023 and published approximately one week before the release (June 5, 2025)—represents a filing strategy that appears to have become more prominent following the Colopl and Palworld lawsuits.For more on this context, please refer to the explanatory article on the Palworld patent litigation.
Filed in 2004, registered in 2007 (Priority: Japanese Patent Application 2003-374795).This patent for a comeback support system dynamically adjusts the driving performance of a CPU (NPC) kart based on its target ranking; it is important to note that this involves controlling the NPC’s driving performance values rather than item randomization. Its term of protection, including the PTA, is believed to have expired around April 2025.
US7,278,913 B2 Claim 1 (Source: Google Patents)
1. A computer-readable recording medium storing a racing game program for playing a racing game in which a player-controlled moving object and a plurality of non-player moving objects automatically controlled based on a predetermined algorithm race together on a course in a virtual space, wherein the racing game program instructs a computer to function as: a target rank setter for setting different target ranks for at least two of the plurality of non-player moving objects, the target ranks being set irrespective of a current rank associated with any of the non-player moving objects in the race; a driving performance value changer for changing a driving performance value preset for each of the non-player moving objects according to the target rank set for it by the target rank setter; and an automatic controller for automatically controlling each of the non-player moving objects according to its driving performance value, which has been changed by the driving performance value changer.
Key Points of the Scope of Rights: ① Claim 1 consists of three elements: “setting mutually different target ranks for at least two NPCs” + “changing driving performance values according to the target ranks” + “automatic control based on the changed performance values.”② The fact that the target rank is set “irrespective of a current rank” is a characteristic of the independent claim, while control based on the current rank is a limitation of dependent claim 3. ③ Specification of maximum speed and acceleration is placed in dependent claim 2; here as well, the independent claim is broadly defined in terms of performance values in general.
On the other hand, contrary to readers’ expectations, we were unable to identify, within the scope of this verification, any Nintendo patents or patent applications that specifically claimed the item lottery table itself—where “the lower the rank, the stronger the item.”Rank-linked item selection has been a well-known mechanic since 1992, and it appears that the specific probability table values are maintained as trade secrets rather than being patented. This is a prime example of an “intellectual property mix”—the strategic distinction between “what is patented” and “what is protected as a trade secret.”
US11,103,784 B2 (filed in 2019, registered in 2021; adjusted expiration date: August 21, 2039; priority:Japanese Patent Application 2018-088783) claims a mechanism in which powerful effects are triggered consecutively when identical items are aligned in item slots (based on the wording of Claim 1, the combination condition is “at least two matching values,” so it is not limited to three aligned slots).This is believed to correspond to the item slots and Fever mode in *Mario Kart Tour* (this correspondence is based on secondary sources such as Mario Wiki; the product name is not mentioned in the specification).Claim 1 is a concrete example of abstraction that describes the slot UI as a parameter operation, taking the form of “a parameter indicating possession,” “a combinatorial condition of at least two matching values,” and “a second effect = the first effect occurring a number of times greater than a predetermined number.”
The highlight of this article is the dependent claims. Claim 8 states, “the probability that the at least two of the values … satisfy the combinational condition is changed, depending on game progression” (changing the probability of a match based on game progression),Claim 9 stipulates “increased as the game is closer to an end thereof,” and within the scope of this verification, it is positioned as the existing right most closely resembling “dynamic modification of the item probability table.”The Japanese patent family consists of Patent No. 6935361 (Japanese Patent Application No. 2018-088783,registered in 2021), and Claim 1 defines parameter settings for each inventory slot, as well as a second effect that causes the first effect to occur a number of times exceeding a predetermined number when a predetermined number of parameters—excluding specific parameters—match(Note that the text on Google Patents may be missing the phrase “information processing” at the beginning of Claim 1; verification on J-PlatPat is required for an accurate citation).Since this 2018 priority family may remain in force until around May 2038 in Japan and, due to term adjustments, until August 21, 2039, in the U.S., it could be a practical reference point for businesses implementing comeback support and item slot UIs in racing games.
Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2025-82801 (filed July 31, 2024,domestic priority November 17, 2023, not yet registered) claims a configuration that dynamically sets courses for each race by combining routes within and between multiple base areas on a field. It is believed to be compatible with the Knockout Tour mode in *Mario Kart World*(The product name is not mentioned in the official gazette; this is speculation based on external media reports). The key points are the conditional claims based on “determining the race type” (dynamic course configuration operates only for races of a specified type) and the approach of securing rights to the core element of the game—level design—as “combination processing of route data.”The timeline—filing a concentrated series of applications for World-related mechanics in November 2023 and adding expanded versions the following year using domestic priority—is also a practical filing strategy worth noting.
Patent No. 7016901 (filed in 2020, registered in 2022; corresponding U.S. patent US11291923B2) is a patent for the hardware configuration of an actual camera-equipped RC kart.Claim 1 begins with “A ride-on toy comprising a vehicle body and…,” and specifies that the vehicle comprises a vehicle body, wheels, a battery, a motor, an imaging device that captures the forward view, a control unit, and a charging port;and is a claim that includes limitations at the component placement level, such as “the control unit and the charging port being on the same side relative to the centerline of the vehicle” and “being positioned between the front and rear wheels.” While narrow and specific—in contrast to software patents—this is a type of claim that can effectively function as a countermeasure against counterfeit products.US Claim 1 includes the functional phrase “the control unit indicates the position of the charging port to the user,” and the differences in drafting between Japan and the U.S. are also worth noting. Furthermore, the live video streaming configuration is not included in Claim 1. Additionally, Japanese Design Registration No. 1693203 andUSD984547S1 protects the appearance of the RC kart (designs do not have claims; the scope is defined by drawings and the article itself), serving as a practical example of building a portfolio that comprehensively protects a single product through “control software patents + hardware patents + design.”
Looking across the cases discussed so far, three analytical axes emerge. ① Ranking: As seen in “Target Ranking → Modification of NPC Performance Values” (US7,278,913 B2), control systems that use the abstract quantity “ranking” as an input parameter are easy to describe as technical configurations and represent a core category of racing game patents.② Time/Duration: As seen in “a parameter that increases in accordance with the continuation of a second driving state” (JP 2025-82375) or “a second input within a first time period” (Patent No. 7083822), when time windows or accumulated quantities are used as conditions, the game’s strategic dynamics become the claim requirements themselves.③ Physical Behavior and Space: As seen in examples such as “on a normal road or on a specified object” (JP 2025-82376) or “inside or outside the area of the touch start position” (Patent No. 6921193), case distinctions based on “where and in what state” form the backbone of independent claims.
Rubber banding and “fever” modes are implementations of the design philosophy of “helping lower-ranked players = ensuring fairness and creating the illusion of a close match.” While the philosophy itself cannot be patented, the specific parameter controls that realize it can be patented.In the context of assisting beginners, driving assistance (steering assist) is also important; however, since it is not included in the verified list for this analysis, we will limit our discussion to the confirmed fact that “Nintendo itself cited its own steering assist patent application as prior art in its 2023 application.”
Pattern 1: Thorough Abstraction of Terms: “Drift” and “Mini-Turbo” do not appear in the claims even once; instead, they are generalized to “first driving state” and “advantageous moving state.” This drafting style is similar to the abstraction of “ink” in the Splatoon patent family.Pattern 2: Independent Claims Define Higher-Level Concepts; Product Implementation Is Covered by Dependent Claims: Walls/rails, sharp turns, top speed, and acceleration are all placed in dependent claims, striking a balance between the breadth of the independent claims and the risk of invalidation.The formation of a patent portfolio through a divisional application (Patent No. 7150108) of Patent No. 6921193 follows the same logic. Type ③: Strategy of filing before launch and publishing immediately before launch: This case was also published one week before launch, serving as a practical example of filing timing with an eye toward enforcement.Type ④: Differentiated Use of Patents and Trade Secrets: A strategic decision can be inferred here to keep the specific values in the probability table confidential while securing rights for the “mechanism” that varies the probabilities under dependent claims 8 and 9 of US11,103,784 B2.
Perspectives on FTO Checks for Kart Racing Game Developers (as of July 2026): (a) No registered “drift/mini-turbo patents” that would constitute a definite risk have been identified at this time.(b) However, the JP 2025-82375/82376 patent family (Japan and U.S.) is currently under examination; if granted, implementations featuring “charge continuation parameters → temporary high-speed driving states” could be broadly interpreted as falling within its scope.(c) There is room to consider continued monitoring of the application status and providing information (submitting publications) as necessary. (d) The older Mini-Turbo models dating back to 1992 constitute strong prior art.(e) The “Tour” family of applications with a 2018 priority date could remain in force until around 2038.
Regarding trends at other companies, Tencent has also filed a patent application for a drift control method (Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2021-531133), and the Mario Kart series was cited as prior art during its examination. Patenting drift technology has become a common theme among companies in the kart racing field.
① The “fun and fairness” of Mario Kart are supported by a group of control patents that parameterize ranking, time, and space. ② Nintendo’s claims are characterized by thorough abstraction of terminology and a hierarchical design of independent and dependent claims.③ The latest drift-rail system is an unregistered application currently under examination; monitoring whether it will be granted and the final scope of the claims will be the focus moving forward.
Related Articles: Overview of the Splatoon Patent Series / Division Application Strategies for Game Patents / Analysis of the Nintendo vs. Palworld Patent Litigation
If you are considering filing a patent application for game mechanics, or if you wish to conduct FTO searches or monitor the filing status of other companies’ game patents, please contact the intellectual property firm EVORIX.
*This article is a general explanation based on publicly available information as of July 2026 (Google Patents, USPTO, and various official gazettes) and does not constitute an individual infringement determination or legal advice.The mapping of game features to published applications involves some speculation, as product names are not listed in the published applications. Unregistered applications in the published stage cannot be enforced, and the scope of registered claims may vary depending on examination results.