Super Nintendo World's Mario Kart Attraction Criticized For Waist Size Restrictions

Ahead of its public opening on February 17, Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood has opened for previews and testing. Despite generally good reviews overall, the park's first big attraction, VR-based Mario Kart: Bowser’s Challenge ride has been criticized for surprisingly restrictive size requirements, as reported by Nintendo Wire.

Influencer Rocco Botte, who was able to check out the park ahead of its opening, tweeted about his discomfort squeezing into the surprisingly small seats for the Mario Kart Ride. Botte stressed that he enjoyed his time at the park overall, but added that "the body size limitations on the Mario Kart ride are absolutely ridiculous," especially when the ride is relatively slow and low-risk.

The ride's guidelines state that it is unsuitable for riders with waistlines over 40 inches, which may prove to be an issue in the USA, where the CDC reports that the average waist circumference for men over 20 is 40.5 inches.

In the replies to Botte's tweet, others shared their issues with fitting into various theme park rides, including other attractions offered at Universal that operate at low speed. One commenter pointed out that Disney's Rise of the Resistance ride is higher intensity than the Mario Kart attraction, and only needs a seatbelt for safety.

In a statement provided to Insider on the issue, a Universal spokesperson said: "We are always listening to our guests and seek to balance their needs against our strong focus on the safety of our attractions. We have a company-wide task force actively working with this community to make changes that can help them safely increase access to our experiences."