Is Chocobo GP free to play?

Chocobo GP will be racing to the Nintendo eShop on March 10, but does this kart racer come with a free to play version? We’re seeing competition like Disney Speedstorm implementing this option, but does Square Enix’s title follow that trend?

Chocobo GP will have both a full version and a Lite version when the game releases early in March, the latter indeed being free. The full version will come with all the base characters and the entirety of the story mode, but the lite alternative has less content.

On the Nintendo eShop, Square Enix clarifies that the number of characters that are available to play in the Lite edition will differ “from the number available in the full game.” Perhaps, like the MOBA genre (League of Legends, Smite), there will be a rotation of free characters every few weeks.

The Lite version will also only have one online mode called Chocobo GP, which has up to 64 people entering into a tournament of four rounds that leads to eight finalists in one final race. For local multiplayer matches, you can also join an existing lobby and can’t create one yourself. Similar to Mario Kart DS, it seems like the host has to own the game and then others can join in the action with a limited roster of characters.

Hopefully, the free-to-play Lite version of Chocobo GP will help build the player base of the game. Square Enix is likely hoping its players will stay invested as Cloud and Leon will be available in the first paid season pass.