Unless you’ve been living under a rock (a very, very big rock), Nintendo finally held its first direct of the year and confirmed a bit of a surprise in the form of a planned year-long DLC campaign for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Sure, not the Mario Kart 9 we may have been expecting, but given the incredible sales results the perennial kart racer has had over the years, it’s not at all surprising Nintendo wanted to keep that ball rolling just a little longer.
The Booster Course Pass, as it’s being dubbed, will add 48 courses across a staggered release schedule through to 2023, which is a massive amount of tracks all things considered. The wording of the announcement suggests the vast majority will be remastered tracks from across the history of the series but, knowing Nintendo, there may be some wiggle room and a surprise or two down the track.
There’s already a vast number of tracks in Mario Kart 8, many of which are remasters of some classics, but given how many tracks are being added you can be forgiven for thinking that just about every existing circuit will make the cut. There’s every chance that’s true, but just in case there’s more to this than meets the eye, let’s go over a couple of the best tracks that should most definitely make the cut.
There are already a couple of ghostly related locations across the history of Mario Kart, with MK8 playing host to Twisted Mansion, but going all the way back to Super Mario Kart there was a humble little haunted track called Ghost Valley, based on the ghost houses of Super Mario World. Featuring slippery corners, barriers that would vanish when bumped into and a bottomless pit of darkness, Ghost Valley would be a vastly different experience to the trap-filled modern mansions and would look ace in a higher resolution.
Speaking of Super Nintendo tracks, Vanilla Lake is a similarly slippery, iced over track full of water hazards and giant ice blocks that can impede your progress. Though future entries in the series have eased up on the difficulty when it comes to track design, those early SNES tracks were devilish and in many ways would be a welcome addition to the fold.
Tracks from the mobile edition will be joining in on the fun
One track that’s still surprising in its absence, given how entertaining it is, is Waluigi Pinball. The neon-drenched environment made its debut back in Mario Kart DS and was last seen as a remaster of sorts in Mario Kart 7 on the 3DS. Its title pretty much explains its design, a giant pinball machine with the usual assortment of flippers and bumpers getting in your way as you progress. Also, let’s be fair to Waluigi for once, yeah? He’s already been through enough with the whole Smash Bros. snub.
Remember Mario Kart Double Dash, the GameCube entry in the series that changed things up with two racers per kart? It’s arguably the most divisive title of the entire franchise. Anyway, one of its longest tracks was Wario Colosseum, a massive twisting structure of obstacles that was a sequel (of sorts) to Wario Stadium. It hasn’t been seen since Double Dash, so now’s a better time than any to give it another run.
Something a little different for this next suggestion. We already know that the free-to-play Mario Kart Live will be joining the console family for the first time with a handful of tracks based on its course selection. Tokyo Blur, Paris Promenade and Ninja Hideaway are already marked for inclusion, but it wouldn’t be right if Sydney Sprint missed out. Okay, fine, maybe that’s some hometown favouritism, but it would be cool nonetheless.
A little New Donk City perhaps?
The potential of there being brand new tracks seems minimal, but anything is possible, so to that end how about a course based on Super Mario Odyssey. We’ve already seen other titles hark back to Mario’s Switch adventure (we see you, Mario Golf), but Mario Kart hasn’t had the opportunity to drive around New Donk City yet. Hearing that sweet, sweet musical score again while flying around Pauline’s town would be a blast, though all bets are on that we won’t see this until Mario Kart 9. If, of course, that even exists.
And then, of course, there’s Rainbow Road. The most familiar, famed and enjoyable series of tracks across the history of Mario Kart, there’s already a few editions of Rainbow Road that make an appearance in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as it stands, but there’s plenty of other opportunities to incorporate more of them. Take the Nintendo Wii edition, hanging high above the surface of the Earth and featuring holes in the middle of the track. Or there’s the excellent edition from Mario Kart 7 that partly takes place on a moon and has you driving across the rings of a planet.
There’s one other Rainbow Road option, one that’s been a crime against all Rainbow Roads since its inclusion in Mario Kart 8. Yes, the Nintendo 64 edition was dramatically chopped and changed from its original three laps of epicness to a single lap split into three sections. Those changes reduced one of Mario Kart 64’s best tracks into a much easier, less grand experience which Nintendo could so easily change back to its original form if they so chose. They won’t, because why would they, but could you imagine?
That’s just a small handful of potential suitors for the Booster Course Pass, honestly the possibilities are endless. But what do you think? Are there any classic tracks you’d like to see get the remaster treatment for Mario kart 8 Deluxe? Hit up the comments below and maybe we’ll come back to this in a commentator’s edition in the future. The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass opens its doors on Nintendo Switch with its first lot of tracks on March 18.
