Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is a racing game in the Mario Kart series released worldwide for the Nintendo Switch on April 28, 2017. It is an enhanced port of Mario Kart 8 for the Wii U and is the first Super Mario game overall to be released for the Nintendo Switch. The base game contains additional content such as several new characters and an overhauled Battle mode with new courses and modes. First teased in the Nintendo Switch’s announcement video on October 20, 2016, the game was formally announced as part of the Nintendo Switch presentation on January 13, 2017.

The game would go on to become the highest-selling Super Mario game of all time. It includes all the original content and its DLC alongside new features, including a revised Battle Mode much similar to past games, minor gameplay changes, some new items, and several new characters like the Inkling from Splatoon. Characters can now carry up to two items at once, even if they do not drag the first item, and the game features the return of the Double Item Box from Mario Kart: Double Dash!! In addition, two returning items have been added to the game, with one exclusively for the new “Battle Mode” (see below), which includes the Feather from Super Mario Kart and Boo.

In the menu, there are now options for Smart Steering and Auto-Acceleration. The former helps prevent the player from falling off the edge and the latter keeps the acceleration always on, though not very fast. Smart Steering also disables Purple Sparks, which means the player cannot do an Ultra Mini-Turbo. There is an additional level of Mini-Turbo, called Ultra Mini-Turbo, denoted by purple (pink in the British English version) sparks that appear after the orange sparks. This new level of Mini-Turbo can only be obtained if Smart Steering is off.

Excluding character variants, there are a total of 48 playable characters in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, including 40 in the base game and eight as DLC. All base and DLC characters from Mario Kart 8 are present in the base roster of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and are now available from the start, while more characters that were not present in Mario Kart 8 are also added. The base game includes returning characters Bowser Jr., King Boo, and Dry Bones, who last appeared in the series as playable characters in Mario Kart Wii, and Gold Mario (as a variant of Metal Mario), who was previously playable in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX.

It also introduces a new non-Super Mario character, being the Inkling from Splatoon. Both the Inkling Girl and Inkling Boy are playable, and they have three selectable colors each. At the game’s launch, Inkling Girl and Inkling Boy took up separate slots on the character selection screen, as did the two Villagers, who were originally present in the same character slot (with the female Villager being a variant of the male one) in Mario Kart 8. However, as of the version 3.0.0 update, Inkling Boy and female Villager are now considered variants of Inkling Girl and male Villager respectively.

Eight additional characters were added as downloadable content via the Booster Course Pass, starting with its fourth wave. Characters added include Birdo, who was added in Wave 4 with nine selectable colors, Petey Piranha, Wiggler, and Kamek, who were added in Wave 5, and Diddy Kong, Funky Kong, Pauline, and Peachette, who were added in Wave 6. Wiggler, Gold Mario, Kamek, Pauline, Peachette, and all Birdo variants are playable for the first time in a home console Mario Kart installment. Kamek, Pauline, Peachette, and almost all Birdo variants were originally introduced in Mario Kart Tour, which released after Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

With Birdo’s inclusion in Wave 4 and Diddy Kong and Funky Kong’s inclusion in Wave 6, all playable characters from Mario Kart Wii are now included in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. All the 48 tracks (including DLC courses) from Mario Kart 8 return as courses, maintaining their cups and orders. Some of the vehicle parts that are exclusive to downloadable content in the original (i.e. parts included within the Mercedes-Benz × Mario Kart 8, The Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8, and the Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 add-on packs) are now randomly unlocked in-game by collecting Coins during gameplay.