PETA urges Nintendo to remove cow’s nose ring from ‘Mario Kart World’

Animal rights advocacy group PETA is requesting that Nintendo redesign an animal character in its new game, “Mario Kart World,” due to a nose ring.

Released in June, “Mario Kart World” for the Nintendo Switch 2 console features a cow character with a brass nose ring. On Friday, PETA shared an image of the anthropomorphic cow character on its social media channels, accompanied by a message directed at Nintendo.

“Hey Nintendo. Let the cow race free — remove the nose ring!” the graphic read. “It’s not a style choice — it’s a cruel tool used to control and hurt cows in the meat and dairy industries, which causes lasting pain and discomfort.”

According to a news release from PETA, Joel Bartlett, the group’s Senior Vice President of Marketing Engagement, also wrote to Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa regarding this issue. “The brass ring in Cow’s nose glosses over real-world violence and cruelty to animals. That’s why we’re asking you to give this beloved bovine a small but meaningful upgrade: Remove the nose ring and let Cow race freely — without any painful reminders of the industries that treat animals like profit-making machines,” he wrote.

Nintendo has not yet publicly responded to PETA’s request.

“Mario Kart World” for the Nintendo Switch 2 has been a top-selling game since its release. The company reported that by June 30, it had sold 5.63 million copies, making it the best-selling title for the Switch 2. In the game, 24 players compete against each other to see who can race through open-world tracks the fastest.

On PETA’s Instagram page, followers reacted to the group challenging the game’s cow character. One person commented, “Care about live animals, not some Nintendo character.”

Another asked: “What if they just got a piercing of their own free will?”