Glider
A glider is a customization feature used in Mario Kart 7, Mario Kart Arcade GP DX, Mario Kart 8, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Mario Kart Tour. After a racer drives over a Glide Ramp, their selected glider automatically deploys overhead, allowing them to float across gaps or over a portion of the track. The selected glider slightly affects the weight and acceleration stats, as well as the hidden air speed and air handling stats.
In Mario Kart World, gliders are replaced by wings that eject from the sides of the kart, but their function is largely the same.[1]
History[edit]
Mario Kart series[edit]
Mario Kart 7[edit]
Gliders first appear in Mario Kart 7. They may affect the weight or acceleration, or even the air speed and air handling. If players brake or get hit with an item while gliding, the glider retracts and the player falls to the ground.
The glider is utilized in the majority of racecourses in the game.
Beast Glider (Ghastly Glider)
Swooper (Swoop)
Paraglider (Parafoil)
Mario Kart Arcade GP DX[edit]
In the Mario Kart Arcade GP series, gliders first appear in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX. They serve the same purpose as in Mario Kart 7. The glider is decided depending on the Kart chosen.
Half of the courses make use of the glider in this game.
The glider in action on Peach Castle
Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe[edit]
Gliding returns in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and functions exactly like it did in Mario Kart 7, though the glider can no longer be retracted. All gliders from Mario Kart 7 return except the Beast Glider and the Swooper.
Much like in Mario Kart 7, the majority of racecourses in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe utilize the glider. There is also a sponsor in the game called Dream Gliders, which presumably provides the Gliders for the racers.
Returning[edit]
New[edit]
Paraglider (Deluxe only)
Mario Kart Tour[edit]
Gliders reappear in Mario Kart Tour, functioning similarly to how they worked in Mario Kart 7. Gliders are acquired randomly through Pipes, which cost rubies. In addition, like karts and drivers, gliders are sorted into three rarities: Normal, Super, and High-End. Super gliders are rarer than Normal gliders, and High-End gliders are rarer than Super gliders. Also like karts and drivers, gliders have base points which that are immediately granted to the player's score at the start of each race. Rarer gliders have more base points. Using gliders in races or using Point-boost tickets on them will cause them to gain experience points that will at certain breakpoints increase the glider's base points. Gliders can be leveled up by obtaining additional copies of the glider or by using Level-boost tickets to increase the time available after performing an action to start or continue a combo, with Super gliders starting with a small boost to that time and High-End gliders starting with a slightly longer one.
While gliders do not have different stats, they each have a different special skill that increases the chance that the player gets a specific item from Item Boxes and the points earned for using that item. (None of the items that have an associated special skill are the items that are special skills of drivers.) Super gliders provide more points for using the specified item, and High-End gliders provide even more points than Super gliders for that same action. Further, each glider has some amount of favored and favorite courses, with rarer karts having more such courses. When a glider is used on one of its favored courses, the player gets two times the combo bonus points earned for maintaining a combo and also gets additional time available after performing an action to start or continue a combo. On a favorite course, they instead get three times the combo bonus points and even more additional time available after performing an action to start or continue a combo.
Returning[edit]
Normal[edit]
Super Glider
Mushroom Plus
Parafoil
Green Shell Plus
Super[edit]
Flower Glider
Banana Plus
High-End[edit]
Gold Glider
Coin Plus
New[edit]
Normal[edit]
BBIA Parafoil
Banana Plus
Super[edit]
High-End[edit]
Fare Flier
Super Horn Plus
Le Tricolore
Mushroom Plus
Gift Glider
Coin Plus
New Year's Kite
Coin Plus
Bright Glider
Banana Plus
Safety Glider
Bob-omb Plus
Gold Crane
Coin Plus
Manta Glider
Bob-omb Plus
Great Sail
Banana Plus
8-Bit Star
Lightning Plus
Spider Glider
Bob-omb Plus
Jolly Bells
Coin Plus
Surf Master
Banana Plus
Glinting Glider
Coin Plus
Flying Easel
Blooper Plus
Yukata Ribbon
Banana Plus
Magic Parasol
Banana Plus
Flybrary Book
Blooper Plus
Para-Panini
Banana Plus
Fuzzy Kite
Bob-omb Plus
Gold Meteors
Coin Plus
Stealth Glider
Banana Plus
Gold Umbrella
Coin Plus
8-Bit Goomba
Bob-omb Plus
Gold Tulips
Coin Plus
Gold Bells
Coin Plus
Jellychute
Super Horn Plus
Gold Swooper
Coin Plus
Banana Wingtip
Banana Plus
Golden Wings
Coin Plus
Lava Rocks
Lightning Plus
Gold Boo Masks
Coin Plus
Super Mario Maker[edit]
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In Super Mario Maker, the Kart Mario costume deploys a glider when jumping.
Paper Mario: The Origami King[edit]
In Paper Mario: The Origami King, Luigi uses his glider to reach Peach's Castle at the top of the volcano in his kart after Mario, Olivia, and Bowser discover the front door is locked. The glider can also be seen in the kart's Collectible Treasure.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie[edit]
In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, karts have gliders and they are used in two scenes. In both instances, the Super Glider is used, and activation is not prompted by a Glide Ramp. In the first, the driver's kart activates its glider afting jumping off a ramp in the Jungle Kingdom, enabling the driver to take Mario, Princess Peach, and Toad into the temple where Cranky Kong resides and drop them off.[2] The driver glides back out of the temple afterward. In the second, when Toad drives his kart off of Rainbow Road due to the path ahead breaking, Peach drops her Mach Bike from a higher area so that she can grab Toad before activating her glider to slow their fall and safely land on another portion of Rainbow Road.
Appearances in non-Super Mario media[edit]
In Animal Crossing: New Leaf, when the Kart item is interacted with, a glider comes out.
Profiles[edit]
Mario Kart 7[edit]
- North American website bio: This all-new addition to the Mario Kart arsenal utilizes blue boost ramps to activate your kart's glider and send you flying sky high. Steering in mid-air is vital to ensure a smooth landing.
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| German | Gleiter[?] | Glider | |
| Hungarian | Szárnyak[3] Glide |
Wings - |
2020 Mario Kart Kinder Surprise promotion, Hungarian and Romanian labels |
| Italian | Deltaplano[?] | Hang-glider | |
| Romanian | Motodeltaplan[?] | Moto-hang-glider | 2020 Mario Kart Kinder Surprise promotion, Hungarian and Romanian labels |
| Spanish | Ala[?] | Wing |
References[edit]
- ^ Nintendo of America (April 2, 2025). Mario Kart World – Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch 2. YouTube. Retrieved April 4, 2025.
- ^ https://youtu.be/gHR-C_WIPXU?t=46
- ^ Mario Kart 7. nintendo.hu. Retrieved March 11, 2020. (Archived September 30, 2022, 23:49:20 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
