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Tracks (also called Races or Courses) are selections in the Mario Kart series, on which races are held. Since the release of Mario Kart DS, most courses have been revamped and featured in Retro Cups.

Themes

Throughout the series, tracks come in many different forms, but often fall into commonly seen themes:

Circuit

Basic racetracks with very little to no gimmicks, obstacles, and especially stage hazards. The main road is almost always asphalt flanked by a guardrail or off-road. There are very few instances of pits where a player is rescued by Lakitu - and where there are, they are often very miniscule portions of the track and/or are heavily padded by off-road.

The large majority of circuits are featured in the Mushroom and Flower Cups. The exceptions to this rule include the following (Listed by cup then chronological appearance):

In all games, the new circuit tracks share a single theme music. The only exceptions to this rule are Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, conditionally Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart Wii. In Mario Kart 8, Mario Kart Stadium (Which is themed as a circuit track) & Wii U Mario Circuit are not the same song but are arrangements of the same melody and Hyrule Circuit was still paid DLC. However, when the game was rereleased onto the Nintendo Switch as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, all paid DLC from Mario Kart 8 was included in the game as free content - making Hyrule Circuit available to any players. In Mario Kart Wii, Daisy Circuit does not share music with Mario and Luigi Circuits.

Stadium

These courses take place inside enclosed arenas and are almost always dirt tracks. Stadiums often have excessive amounts of ramps and other elevation changes, some stage hazards, and are almost always named after Wario or Waluigi.

The exception to this theming is Mario Kart Stadium, which is more in line with circuits in its design and acts as its game's opening track. For reference, all seven other mainline Mario Kart games' Mushroom Cups opened with a track explicitly referred to as a circuit (In Mario Kart 64, circuits are instead referred to as raceways in the English localization).

Snow

Snow-themed tracks' main gimmick is oftentimes the racetrack itself. The main road is often snowpack or on a frozen lake and oftentimes made slippery to make driving more difficult and/or coded as off-road to slow down racers. Even when the main road is asphalt, it will still sometimes have the slippery effect added on.

Jungle

Appearing in several of the games, these tracks are typically set deep in a forest and are most often themed after Donkey Kong.

Fire

These tracks are usually associated with Bowser, normally set around lava pits. Some notable exceptions, however, includes the track Grumble Volcano and the battle course Big Donut.

Water

Water-themed courses have appeared since the first game of the series. As its name implies, they take place on a shore, near a coast, inside water-themed places, or sometimes take place underwater. The water usually serves as a hazard where racers could fall into. However, in Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, and its port, racers can drive underwater in some courses up to a point.

City-themed

These courses are usually set right in the middle of a city, which may use cars, trucks, and other vehicles as hazards to players. Examples include, but are not limited to, Mushroom City, Toad's Turnpike, Moonview Highway, and Neo Bowser City/Koopa City.

City Tracks

Tracks based on a respective real-life location. They are notable for having dynamic track layouts.

Crossover

There are other tracks whose themes include non-Mario courses, borrowing themes from other series, including the Legend of Zelda, Animal Crossing, F-Zero, and Yoshi's Island series.

Courses

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Asterisk image - Course is officially considered "new" in two or more Mario Kart games.

Super Mario Kart (1992)

640px-SMK BoxCover2

Tracks

SNES Mario Circuit 1 map
Mario Circuit 1

Appearances:
Super Circuit
DS
Tour
SNES Donut Plains 1
Donut Plains 1

Appearances:
Super Circuit
DS
Tour
SNES Ghost Valley 1
Ghost Valley 1

Appearances:
Super Circuit
Tour
SNES Bowser Castle 1
Bowser Castle 1

Appearances:
Super Circuit
SNES Mario Circuit 2
Mario Circuit 2

Appearances:
Super Circuit
7
Tour
SNES Choco Island 1
Choco Island 1

Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Ghost Valley 2
Ghost Valley 2

Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart Tour
SNES Donut Plains 2
Donut Plains 2

Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Bowser Castle 2 map
Bowser Castle 2

Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

SNES Mario Circuit 3 map
Mario Circuit 3

Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart Tour

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (DLC)
SNES Koopa Beach 1
Koopa Beach 1
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

SNES Choco Island 2
Choco Island 2
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart DS

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Vanilla Lake 1
Vanilla Lake 1
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Bowser Castle 3 map
Bowser Castle 3
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Tour

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (DLC)

SNES Mario Circuit 4
Mario Circuit 4
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

SNES Donut Plains 3
Donut Plains 3
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Koopa Beach 2
Koopa Beach 2
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart DS

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Ghost Valley 3
Ghost Valley 3
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

SNES Vanilla Lake 2
Vanilla Lake 2
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart Tour

SNES Rainbow Road
Rainbow Road
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart: Super Circuit

Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart 8 (DLC)

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart Tour

Battle Courses

SNES Battle Course 1
Battle Course 1
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

BC2SNES
Battle Course 2
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

BC3SNES
Battle Course 3
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

BC4SNES
Battle Course 4
Appearances:
Super Mario Kart

Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart 64 (1996)

Mk64cover

Tracks

Luigi Raceway Icon MK64
Luigi Raceway
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart Tour

Moo Moo Farm Icon MK64
Moo Moo Farm
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart DS

Koopa Troopa Beach Icon MK64
Koopa Troopa Beach
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart Tour

Kalimari Desert Icon MK64
Kalimari Desert
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart Tour

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (DLC)

Toad's Turnpike Icon MK64
Toad's Turnpike
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Frappe Snowland Icon MK64
Frappe Snowland
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart DS

Mario Kart Tour

Choco Mountain Icon MK64
Choco Mountain
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart DS

Mario Kart Tour

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (DLC)

Mario Raceway Icon MK64
Mario Raceway
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart Wii

Mario Kart Tour

Wario Stadium Icon MK64
Wario Stadium
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Sherbet Land Icon MK64
Sherbet Land
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart Wii

Royal Raceway Icon MK64
Royal Raceway
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart Tour

Bowser's Castle Icon MK64
Bowser's Castle
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart Wii

DK's Jungle Parkway Icon MK64
D.K.'s Jungle Parkway
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart Wii

Yoshi Valley Icon MK64
Yoshi Valley
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart Tour

Banshee Boardwalk Icon MK64
Banshee Boardwalk
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart DS

Rainbow Road Icon MK64
Rainbow Road
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Battle Courses

Big Donut Icon MK64
Big Donut

Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 7
Block Fort Icon MK64
Block Fort
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart DS

Double Deck Icon MK64
Double Deck
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Skyscraper Icon MK64
Skyscraper
Appearances:
Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart Wii
300px-MKSC

Mario Kart: Super Circuit
(2001)

Tracks

Battle Courses

Mario Kart Double Dash!! Boxart

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
(2003)

Tracks

Battle Courses

Mario Kart Arcade GP Logo

Mario Kart Arcade GP
(2005)

MKDS

Mario Kart DS
(2005)

Tracks

Battle Courses

MKAGP2Logo

Mario Kart Arcade GP 2
(2007)

560px-Mkwiimm

Mario Kart Wii
(2008)

Tracks

Battle Courses

MarioKart7Box

Mario Kart 7
(2011)

Tracks

Battle Courses

MARIOKARTARCADEGPDX

Mario Kart Arcade GP DX
(2013)

Box NA - Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8
(2014)

Tracks

Battle Courses

MK8 Deluxe - Box NA

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
(2017)

Tracks

Battle Courses

Mario Kart Arcade GP VR English Logo

Mario Kart Arcade GP VR
(2017)

Unlike other Mario Kart games, there is only one single-lap course present in this game, of which goes unnamed. Many portions of this course are primarily based on the tracks seen in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX.

Mario Kart Tour Cover

Mario Kart Tour
(2019)

City Tracks

Non-City Tracks

RMX Tracks

Battle Courses

Download (13)

Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
(2020)

Rather than courses in a traditional sense, the tracks in this Mario Kart game are merely course themes overlaid on a pre-built layout.

Overview

Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart Super Circuit have 20 Nitro Courses (And Super Circuit has Every Course from Super Mario Kart). Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart Double Dash have 16 Courses. Every Game between Mario Kart DS and Mario Kart 7 has around 32 Courses. Mario Kart 8 has 48 Courses (16 are DLC) and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has 96 Courses (48 are DLC).

New Cups

Every game after Mario Kart 64 (except Mario Kart: Super Circuit) has four cups with new tracks. Beginning with Mario Kart DS, these are known as Nitro Cups; this is due to "Nitro" being the codename for the Nintendo DS during its development. In Mario Kart Wii, however, they were retitled to Wii Cups. In Mario Kart 7, they were once again called Nitro Cups. However, in Mario Kart 8 (Deluxe), they were renamed to New Cups.

Mushroom

Mushroom Cup is the the simplest Grand Prix cup, with the easiest tracks to complete. It is the first cup in every game. The courses of this cup consist only of a simple layout without a lot of gimmicks.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
Mario Circuit 1 Luigi Raceway Peach Circuit Luigi Circuit Figure-8 Circuit Luigi Circuit Toad Circuit Mario Kart Stadium
Donut Plains 1 Moo Moo Farm Shy Guy Beach Peach Beach Yoshi Falls Moo Moo Meadows Daisy Hills Water Park
Ghost Valley 1 Koopa Troopa Beach Riverside Park Baby Park Cheep Cheep Beach Mushroom Gorge Cheep Cheep Lagoon / Cheep Cheep Cape Sweet Sweet Canyon
Bowser Castle 1 Kalimari Desert Bowser Castle 1 Dry Dry Desert Luigi's Mansion Toad's Factory Shy Guy Bazaar Thwomp Ruins
Mario Circuit 2 N/A

Flower

The Flower Cup is the second cup in every Mario Kart game. The courses are a little harder than those of the Mushroom Cup and feature more gimmicks and challenges. All games feature a Mario Circuit in this cup except for Mario Kart DS, which had its Mario Circuit in the Star Cup instead.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
Choco Island 1 Toad's Turnpike Mario Circuit Mushroom Bridge Desert Hills Mario Circuit Wuhu Loop / Wuhu Island Loop Mario Circuit
Ghost Valley 2 Frappe Snowland Boo Lake Mario Circuit Delfino Square Coconut Mall Mario Circuit Toad Harbor
Donut Plains 2 Choco Mountain Cheese Land Daisy Cruiser Waluigi Pinball DK Summit / DK's Snowboard Cross Music Park / Melody Motorway Twisted Mansion
Bowser Castle 2 Mario Raceway Bowser Castle 2 Waluigi Stadium Shroom Ridge Wario's Gold Mine Rock Rock Mountain / Alpine Pass Shy Guy Falls
Mario Circuit 3 N/A

Lightning (Nitro)

The Lightning Cup was only used as an original cup in Mario Kart: Super Circuit, in addition to the standard four. It is the third cup out of the five in the game. Since the release of Mario Kart DS onwards, all games reuse the Lightning Cup as the final cup of the Retro Grand Prix instead.

This is the only cup in Super Circuit to not feature a Bowser Castle track, as well as one of two cups to not end with one, instead ending with Sunset Wilds, the other being the Special Cup.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
N/A Luigi Circuit N/A
Sky Garden
Cheep Cheep Island
Sunset Wilds

Star

The Star Cup is the second to the last cup in all Mario Kart games. It contains more gimmicks, obstacles, and challenges than the previous two. Most games feature an ice or snow-themed course in this cup. In Mario Kart 7, this is the only cup to have all four of its courses to have a PAL name.

Most notably, Wario Stadium, Yoshi Desert, Mushroom City, DS Mario Circuit, and Daisy Circuit are the only courses from their games' cups to not be remade.

This is the only Mario Circuit track that is in the star cup not counting the SNES versions.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
Koopa Beach 1 Wario Stadium Snow Land Sherbet Land DK Pass Daisy Circuit Piranha Plant Slide / Piranha Plant Pipeway Sunshine Airport
Choco Island 2 Sherbet Land Ribbon Road Mushroom City Tick-Tock Clock Koopa Cape Wario Shipyard / Wario's Galleon Dolphin Shoals
Vanilla Lake 1 Royal Raceway Yoshi Desert Yoshi Circuit Mario Circuit Maple Treeway Neo Bowser City / Koopa City Electrodrome
Bowser Castle 3 Bowser's Castle Bowser Castle 3 DK Mountain Airship Fortress Grumble Volcano Maka Wuhu / Wuhu Mountain Loop Mount Wario
Mario Circuit 4 N/A

Special

The Special Cup, before the introduction of retro cups, was the final cup in all Mario Kart games, featuring, unique, long, and challenging courses with lots of gimmicks. In all but the first two games, the second to last course is Bowser's Castle. In all games, the final track is the Rainbow Road, the track to end all races.

Mario Kart 64 and 8 Deluxe are the only games in the series in which the Special Cup is unlocked at the start of the game.

This is the second cup in Super Circuit to not have a Bowser Castle track as the final track, instead being the Penultimate track with Rainbow road being the final track instead, the first being the Lightning Cup.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
Donut Plains 3 D.K.'s Jungle Parkway Lakeside Park Wario Colosseum Wario Stadium Dry Dry Ruins DK Jungle Cloudtop Cruise
Koopa Beach 2 Yoshi Valley Broken Pier Dino Dino Jungle Peach Gardens Moonview Highway Rosalina's Ice World Bone-Dry Dunes
Ghost Valley 3 Banshee Boardwalk Bowser('s) Castle
Vanilla Lake 2 Rainbow Road
Rainbow Road N/A

Original Battle Stages

The original battle stages are arenas filled with certain obstacles, such as off-road sections, walls, and hazards like crabs. These can lead to being hit by items. Mario Kart: Double Dash!! is the only game to have unlockable battle courses. Mario Kart 8 is the only game to have tracks as battle courses.

SNES N64 GBA GCN DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
Battle Course 1 Big Donut Battle Course 1 Cookie Land Nintendo DS Block Plaza Honeybee Hive Mario Circuit * Battle Stadium
Battle Course 2 Block Fort Battle Course 2 Block City Twilight House Delfino Pier Sherbet Rink Toad Harbor * Sweet Sweet Kingdom
Battle Course 3 Double Deck Battle Course 3 Nintendo Gamecube Palm Shore Funky Stadium Wuhu Town N/A Dragon Palace
Battle Course 4 Skyscraper Battle Course 4 Pipe Plaza Tart Top Chain Chomp Wheel N/A Lunar Colony
N/A Luigi's Mansion N/A Thwomp Desert Urchin Underpass
Tilt-A-Kart Galaxy Colosseum ** N/A
* - Grand Prix track playable in battle mode
** - only available on tournaments

Retro Cups

Games from Mario Kart DS onwards feature four retro cups and at least one retro battle course in battle mode. Retro courses and arenas are recreations of those found in older games. Colored squares indicate the original game in which the course first appeared for each course and arena in this section. One must note that the Lightning Cup was 1st and only used as an normal cup for Mario Kart: Super Circuit.

The structure for the tracks used in each retro cup, based on the originating game, is the following:

  • Mario Kart DS: As the fifth installment in the Mario Kart series, each retro cup in this game features tracks from the four previous titles in chronological order: Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, and Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Retro battle courses, however, are limited to one stage from Mario Kart 64 and another from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
  • Mario Kart Wii: Each retro cup features one track from Mario Kart 64, one from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, and another from Mario Kart DS. The Shell Cup and Lightning Cup each feature a track from Super Mario Kart, while the Banana Cup and Leaf Cup each feature a track from Mario Kart: Super Circuit. Contrary to the Mario Kart DS retro cups, the track order for each Mario Kart Wii retro cup varies instead of being in chronological order (the only constant pattern is that any cup with a Mario Kart: Super Circuit course has it second). For battle stages, one from each of the five previous games is available.
  • Mario Kart 7: Each retro cup features one track from Mario Kart DS and another from Mario Kart Wii. Every cup except the Lightning Cup features a Mario Kart 64 track. The only Mario Kart: Super Circuit retro track appears in the Shell Cup. The Banana Cup and Lightning Cup each feature a Super Mario Kart track. Finally, the Leaf Cup and Lightning Cup each feature a Mario Kart: Double Dash!! track. Cups with a Mario Kart 64 track always start with that. The order varies for the others. Battle stages are from Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart DS respectively.
  • Mario Kart 8: Every cup features an Mario Kart 64 course. All cups have a course from Mario Kart 7 except the Shell Cup, which instead has the only course from Mario Kart: Super Circuit in the game, excluding downloadable content. All cups have a Mario Kart DS course except the Banana Cup, which instead has the only course from Super Mario Kart in the game. The Shell and Lightning Cups each have a Mario Kart Wii course and the Banana and Leaf Cups each have a Mario Kart: Double Dash!! course. The course order once again is random, however all the cups have their Mario Kart 64 course last except the Banana Cup which has it third instead. Retro battle courses are not actually courses initially used for battle; however, retro Grand-Prix courses in the game have been slightly adjusted are the ones used for Balloon Battle. The course from Super Mario Kart, both the courses from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, one of the two courses from Mario Kart Wii, and two of the four courses from Mario Kart 64 appear as playable battle courses in this game.
    • Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: A large part of its retro format has been reused again from Mario Kart 8. However, a notable change includes the complete scrapping of the retro Grand-Prix courses slightly tweaked as battle courses, favoring instead the usage of genuine retro courses originally used as battle courses.

Shell

All tracks in the Shell Cup originated in the Mushroom Cup, with the exception of Ghost Valley 2, Mario Circuit, Toad's Turnpike, and Mario Raceway, originating instead from the Flower Cup.

DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
 SNES
Mario Circuit 1
 GCN
Peach Beach
 N64
Luigi Raceway
 Wii
Moo Moo Meadows
 N64
Moo Moo Farm
 DS
Yoshi Falls
 GBA
Bowser Castle 1
 GBA
Mario Circuit
 GBA
Peach Circuit
 SNES
Ghost Valley 2
 Wii
Mushroom Gorge
 DS
Cheep Cheep Beach
 GCN
Luigi Circuit
 N64
Mario Raceway
 DS
Luigi's Mansion
 N64
Toad's Turnpike

Banana

Most tracks in the Banana Cup debuted in the Flower Cup. Many, however, originated in the Mushroom Cup: the first track in Mario Kart DS, 7, and 8 (Deluxe), the second track in Mario Kart Wii and Mario Kart 7, and the last track in Mario Kart DS. Sherbet Land and Royal Raceway come from the Star Cup. DK Jungle and Donut Plains 3 come from the Special Cup, due to how easy both of these tracks are.

DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
 SNES
Donut Plains 1
 N64
Sherbet Land
 N64
Koopa Troopa Beach
 GCN
Dry Dry Desert
 N64
Frappe Snowland
 GBA
Shy Guy Beach
 SNES
Mario Circuit 2
 SNES
Donut Plains 3
 GBA
Bowser Castle 2
 DS
Delfino Square
 Wii
Coconut Mall
 N64
Royal Raceway
 GCN
Baby Park
 GCN
Waluigi Stadium
 DS
Waluigi Pinball
 3DS
DK Jungle

Leaf

The Leaf Cup also gets most of its courses from the Flower Cup. However, the 2nd course in Mario Kart Wii, 7, and 8 (Deluxe), and as well as the last course in Mario Kart 7 come from the Star Cup of their game. Another pattern is that the first course in Mario Kart DS and 8 (Deluxe), the third course in Mario Kart Wii, and as well as the last course in Mario Kart 8 (Deluxe) come from the Special Cup.

The only course that originated from the Mushroom Cup to appear in this cup is Kalimari Desert.

DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
 SNES
Koopa Beach 2
 DS
Desert Hills
 N64
Kalimari Desert
 DS
Wario Stadium
 N64
Choco Mountain
 GBA
Bowser Castle 3
 DS
DK Pass
 GCN
Sherbet Land
 GBA
Luigi Circuit
 N64
DK's Jungle Parkway
 GCN
Daisy Cruiser
 3DS
Music Park / Melody Motorway
 GCN
Mushroom Bridge
 GCN
Mario Circuit
 Wii
Maple Treeway
 N64
Yoshi Valley

Lightning (Classic)

From Mario Kart DS onwards, the Lightning Cup is used as the last retro cup. The majority of tracks were originally featured in the Star Cup. However, the second track in Mario Kart DS, Mario Kart Wii, Mario Kart 7, and the last in Mario Kart 7, and 8 (Deluxe) originate from the Special Cup. The third track in Mario Kart DS originates from Super Circuit's Lightning Cup and the first track in Mario Kart Wii originates from the Flower Cup. Another pattern is that the final track from the Star Cup from the game two games prior reappears as the third track of the cup.

DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
 SNES
Choco Island 2
 SNES
Mario Circuit 3
 Wii
Koopa Cape
 DS
Tick-Tock Clock
 N64
Banshee Boardwalk
 DS
Peach Gardens
 GCN
Dino Dino Jungle
 3DS
Piranha Plant Slide
 GBA
Sky Garden
 GCN
DK Mountain
 DS
Airship Fortress
 Wii
Grumble Volcano
 GCN
Yoshi Circuit
 N64
Bowser's Castle
 SNES
Rainbow Road
 N64
Rainbow Road

Retro Battle Stages

Nineteen battle stages have been remade throughout Mario Kart DS, Wii, 7, and 8 (Deluxe). In Mario Kart 8, six retro tracks were adjusted to be more suitable for Balloon Battle. The retro battle courses are no different from last time they appeared, having the same course layout as before.

DS Wii 3DS Wii U Switch
 N64
Block Fort
 SNES
Battle Course 4
 GBA
Battle Course 1
 Wii
Moo Moo Meadows *
 3DS
Wuhu Town
 GCN
Pipe Plaza
 GBA
Battle Course 3
 N64
Big Donut
 GCN
Dry Dry Desert *
 GCN
Luigi's Mansion
N/A  N64
Skyscraper
 DS
Palm Shore
 SNES
Donut Plains 3 *
 SNES
Battle Course 1
 GCN
Cookie Land
N/A  N64
Toad's Turnpike *
N/A
 DS
Twilight House
 GCN
Sherbet Land *
N/A  N64
Yoshi Valley *
* - Grand Prix track playable in battle mode

DLC Cups

In Mario Kart 8, the DLC cups are 16 more tracks combined into two packs that are available for purchase. Over half of the DLC courses borrow themes from other game series, such as the Legend of Zelda, F-Zero, and Animal Crossing series. It also brings back some retro courses, making them the first cups in the entire Mario Kart series to combine both retro and new courses into one.

In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the DLC Cups are no longer presented as DLC content but are instead refered to as "Bonus Cups" and are merged into the core game.

Interestingly, none of the Egg Cup or Triforce Cup tracks feature any water sections and all four DLC cups do not have any specifically underwater sections (excluding rivers).

Egg

Triforce

Crossing

Bell

The Legend of Zelda × Mario Kart 8 DLC Animal Crossing × Mario Kart 8 DLC
Mario Kart 8 (Deluxe)
GCN Yoshi Circuit
also in Mario Kart DS
Wii Wario's Gold Mine GCN Baby Park
also in Mario Kart DS
3DS Neo Bowser City
Excitebike Arena SNES Rainbow Road
also in Mario Kart: Super Circuit and 7
GBA Cheese Land GBA Ribbon Road
Dragon Driftway Ice Ice Outpost Wild Woods Super Bell Subway
Mute City Hyrule Circuit Animal Crossing Big Blue

1st & 2nd Waves

Golden Dash

Lucky Cat

Turnip

Propeller

Wave 1 Wave 2
Tour Paris Promenade Tour Tokyo Blur Tour New York Minute Tour Sydney Sprint
3DS Toad Circuit
also in Mario Kart Tour
DS Shroom Ridge SNES Mario Circuit 3
also in Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Wii and Tour
GBA Snow Land
N64 Choco Mountain
also in Mario Kart DS and Tour
GBA Sky Garden
also in Mario Kart DS and Tour
N64 Kalimari Desert
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
Wii Mushroom Gorge
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
Wii Coconut Mall
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
Tour Ninja Hideaway DS Waluigi Pinball
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
Sky-High Sundae

3rd & 4th Waves

Rock

Moon

Fruit

Boomerang

Wave 3 Wave 4
Tour London Loop Tour Berlin Byways Tour Amsterdam Drift Tour Bangkok Rush
GBA Boo Lake
also in Mario Kart Tour
DS Peach Gardens
also in Mario Kart Wii and Tour
GBA Riverside Park
also in Mario Kart Tour
DS Mario Circuit
also in Mario Kart Tour
3DS Rock Rock Mountain
also in Mario Kart Tour
Tour Merry Mountain Wii DK Summit
also in Mario Kart Tour
GCN Waluigi Stadium
also in Mario Kart Wii
Wii Maple Treeway
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
3DS Rainbow Road
also in Mario Kart Tour
Yoshi's Island Tour Singapore Speedway

5th & 6th Waves

Feather

Cherry

Acorn

Spiny

Wave 5 Wave 6
Tour Athens Dash Tour Los Angeles Laps Tour Rome Avanti Tour Madrid Drive
GCN Daisy Cruiser
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
GBA Sunset Wilds
also in Mario Kart Tour
GCN DK Mountain
also in Mario Kart Wii and Tour
3DS Rosalina's Ice World
also in Mario Kart Tour
Wii Moonview Highway
also in Mario Kart Tour
Wii Koopa Cape
also in Mario Kart 7 and Tour
Wii Daisy Circuit
also in Mario Kart Tour
SNES Bowser Castle 3
also in Mario Kart: Super Circuit and Tour
Squeaky Clean Sprint Tour Vancouver Velocity Tour Piranha Plant Cove Wii Rainbow Road
also in Mario Kart Tour

Extra Cups

Extra Cups are ports of Super Mario Kart tracks that appeared in Mario Kart: Super Circuit. They are unlocked by having the gold trophy of the Special Cup of an engine class, playing any cup again, and getting 100 coins in the respective cup. For example, after completing the Special Cup, if a player goes back and plays the Mushroom Cup and collects more than 100 coins, they will unlock the Extra Mushroom Cup.

Each extra track has not been scaled up from Super Mario Kart, remaining the same relative size; this results in the old system of five laps instead of three. Additionally, most hazards have been removed from the tracks, most likely because of game size limitations.

The extra tracks all have the Super Circuit backgrounds (such as the Sunset Wilds background in Choco Island tracks and the Shy Guy Beach background in Koopa Beach tracks).

Mushroom

Flower

Lightning

Star

Special

Mario Circuit 1 Mario Circuit 2 Bowser Castle 2 Vanilla Lake 1 Koopa Beach 2
Donut Plains 1 Choco Island 1 Mario Circuit 3 Bowser Castle 3 Ghost Valley 3
Ghost Valley 1 Ghost Valley 2 Koopa Beach 1 Mario Circuit 4 Vanilla Lake 2
Bowser Castle 1 Donut Plains 2 Choco Island 2 Donut Plains 3 Rainbow Road

In Single-Pak Link mode, only the Extra Mushroom Cup is available.


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