This is a featured article! Click for more information.

Mario Kart Wii

From the Super Mario Wiki, the Mario encyclopedia
Jump to navigationJump to search
Mario Kart Wii
Mkwii.jpg
Game box art
Mario Kart Wii North American box art
Wii Wheel bundle box
For alternate box art, see the game's gallery.
Developer Nintendo EAD
Publisher Nintendo
Platform(s) Wii
Release date Wii (original release)
Japan April 10, 2008
Europe April 11, 2008
Australia April 24, 2008
USA April 27, 2008
Mexico April 27, 2008[1]
HK July 12, 2008
ROC July 12, 2008
South Korea April 30, 2009
Wii (Nintendo Selects)
Europe October 18, 2013
Australia November 7, 2013
South Korea August 28, 2014
Language(s) Deutsch
English (United Kingdom)
English (United States)
Español (España)
Español (Latinoamérica)
Français (Canada)
Français (France)
Italiano
한국어
日本語
Genre Racing
Rating(s)
ESRB:E - Everyone
PEGI:3 - Three years and older
CERO:A - All ages
ACB:G - General
Mode(s) Single Player, Multiplayer, Online Play
Media
Wii:
Optical disc
Input
Wii:

Mario Kart Wii is a multiplayer-oriented racing game from the Mario Kart series for the Wii, developed by Nintendo EAD. Mario Kart Wii retains the traditional premise of the franchise, with players selecting Super Mario franchise characters to use as drivers alongside themed vehicles. As with most racing games, the overarching goal is to place first among other competitors, achieved through the usage of item-based weaponry common to the series and taking the fastest routes to secure the lead. Several new key elements introduced to Mario Kart Wii include increasing the number of racers to 12 racers from 8 racers from previous entries in the series, as well as introducing a new type of vehicle to the franchise: bikes. The game takes advantage of features unique to the Wii, most notably its motion control capabilities. A Wii Wheel is included in most Mario Kart Wii packages, though the game is still compatible with other controllers such as a regular Wii Remote held sideways, the Wii Remote and Nunchuk, the Nintendo GameCube controller, and the Classic Controller and Classic Controller Pro. Additional game modes are also present such as the traditional Grand Prix, Versus, Battle, and Time Trial modes.

This game requires 23 blocks of storage on the player's Wii system to save game data. Also, the game data cannot be copied onto another Wii. This makes it the only game in the Mario Kart series where data cannot be transferred between consoles. The game also includes its own Wii Channel, called the Mario Kart Channel, which allows players to play in special tournaments and trade their racing profile with other players around the world. This channel uses 74 to 88 blocks (depending on the game's region), but unlike the game data, players can copy the channel onto their SD cards.

With over 37 million copies of the game sold, Mario Kart Wii is the second best-selling Wii game (after Wii Sports) and the best-selling Super Mario game for the Wii console.[2]

The game supported Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for online multiplayer play until it was terminated by Nintendo on May 20th, 2014.

Gameplay

The title screen with Mario and Luigi.
The game's main title screen. If one or more profiles have gotten first place on every cup on every class, including Mirror Mode, the title screen will change from Mario and Luigi using the Wii Wheel to individual pictures of Mario, Luigi, Peach or Bowser.
Map of the Countries registered on Mario Kart Wii and Wii's WFC.
This map shows all the countries listed in the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in Mario Kart Wii. Not all regions registered on the Wii system are registered in the game. Some countries that have lost their independence, such as Aruba, Sint Maarten, and Curaçao (Netherlands Antilles), as well as others that have disappeared or disintegrated, are still registered as separate regions in the Wii system or the game. In addition, South Sudan and Sudan are registered together as "Sudan" despite their division.[3]

Mario Kart Wii retains most of the elements from previous Mario Kart games, especially Mario Kart DS. Players select a racer from a cast of Super Mario characters, who are all divided into size categories in relation to their stats, and they need to select a vehicle from the class they belong in, all with their own stats. All races start with players at a line corresponding to their proper position, where Lakitu signals the countdown time. Once the time is finished, players race three laps around a race course in an attempt to be first of the pack. Once the third lap is completed, players are ranked points depending on how well they placed in the race. While every previous Mario Kart game allowed for a maximum of eight racers on each course, up to twelve are on the course at a time in Mario Kart Wii. In Grand Prix and VS mode, player characters always start out on the latter positions; once they finish the race, their position is saved as they move on to the next race. Like Mario Kart: Super Circuit and Mario Kart DS, Mario Kart Wii shows a rating of how well a player performed after the trophy presentation: ★★★, ★★, ★, A, B, C, D, and E (E being the lowest ranking and ★★★ being the highest).

Integral to the Mario Kart series is the usage of Super Mario-themed items to use as weapons against other racers in the track, either directly benefiting the player or hurting another player's progress. Players can receive these items at random from Item Boxes scattered around the track. The quality of the item received depends on the position of the racer: racers who are further down the line receive stronger items to help compensate their poorer performances. For examples, lower racers receive Mushrooms as speed boosts, Stars for faster invincibility, etc. while higher-placed racers receive weak items such as Green Shells and Banana Peels. When players receive an item, they can stop the item roulette faster by pressing the corresponding item button.

Several advanced techniques are retained in Mario Kart Wii from prior Mario Kart titles, although several tweaks have been made to them. Players can drift through tougher curves to maintain speed; players can perform a Mini-Turbo when players receive color-coded sparks from drifting, which depends on how long players can hold the button for drifting and the angle at which they drift. Introduced in Mario Kart Wii are two drift modes: Automatic and Manual. Automatic drifting allows players to automatically drift when turning very sharply, though players cannot perform Mini-Turbos regardless of how well they drift. Manual mode requires players hold down a button to drift, but releasing the button may release a Mini-Turbo, the strength of it depending on the color of the sparks. Players are now able to perform tricks when they driver over specific types of ramps. When drivers perform a trick and land successfully, they gain a momentary boost of speed. Tricks consist of mid-air acrobatics and are performed by shaking the Wii Wheel upward, shaking the Wii Remote in the Wii Remote + Nunchuk combo, pressing the +Control Pad on the Classic Controller, or pressing the +Control Pad on the GameCube controller.

Motorbikes are introduced in this game, alongside having a wider variety of karts to select from. Motorbikes can perform wheelies to increase top speed on straights, though motorbikes cannot perform the most powerful Mini-Turbo that karts can. Motorbikes also come in two classes: drift type and hang-on type. Drift type bikes drift in a similar way to karts, while hang-on type bikes commit to the turn instead.

Prior to discontinuation of online services, Mario Kart Wii featured a text chat in Online Multiplayer Mode when racing or battling against Friends. Users can send pre-written phrases to other users before the series of races starts. However, there is no facility for a user to type custom messages[4].

Another new change is the point system used for Grand Prix races. With twelve racers competing in each race, the point value has increased from 10/8/6/4/3/2/1/0 points for first to eighth place respectively to 15/12/10/8/7/6/5/4/3/2/1/0 points for first to twelfth place respectively. Also, 4th and 5th place are not losing positions. The following chart shows the difference of the point spreads from previous games to this installment.

Point Spread Comparisons (GP)
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th
Super Mario Kart
Mario Kart 64
Mario Kart: Super Circuit
9 6 3 1 0 0 0 0
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
Mario Kart DS
10 8 6 4 3 2 1 0
Mario Kart Wii 15 12 10 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
Grove-green bg signifies victory results (great clapping, character(s) cheering), best after-race music
Yellow-limegreen bg signifies moderate results (mild clapping, moderate character reaction), same music in Wi-Fi as winner (different in MKDS GP)
Normal bg signifies losing results, losing music; - means not available
In Super Mario Kart, and Mario Kart Super Circuit, 5th or worse forces the player to retry the race. If the racer fares this badly four times, the Grand Prix must be started over. In Mario Kart 64, 5th or worse forces the player to retry the race, but without the restrictions on how many times the player can retry a race. In Mario Kart: Double Dash and other installments after that game including this installment, the Grand Prix normally goes forth.

Controls

Controllers that can be used in Mario Kart Wii.

Mario Kart Wii takes advantage of the Wii Remote's motion-sensing ability. By tilting the remote, players can steer their karts. Since the Wii Remote is designed to be inserted into the Wii Wheel for better grip, players can also play without the Wheel if they choose to. Mario Kart Wii can also be played by connecting the Nunchuk Controller or the Classic Controller, or using the GameCube Controller. Controlling the vehicle is divided up into two sections: Basic and Advanced.

Basic controls and actions

  • Accelerate: When drivers hold down the corresponding button, the vehicle goes forward. Accelerating time depends on the type of karts: Lightweight karts have a high acceleration but low speed. Heavyweight karts tend to have a low acceleration but a high top speed. Middleweight karts tend to have an average top speed and acceleration.
  • Steer: Steering lets drivers move around corners.
  • Brake: Braking slows the vehicle to an abrupt stop.
  • Reverse: The driver's kart goes backwards if the driver continues holding the brake button after the vehicle comes to a stop. If a vehicle reaches maximum top speed, the vehicle will drift instead. If the player tries to accelerate while going in reverse, the vehicle will start to build momentum. When blue sparks start to appear, the player can release the brakes to get a small speed of boost.
  • Look Behind: Drivers can look behind their vehicles. In this way, drivers can be alert from other drivers incoming to steal their place. Drivers can also use this feature to see where they are going while backing up, or to aim a weapon at an opponent following up. This feature once appeared in Super Mario Kart.
  • Drift: Drivers drift to keep the vehicle's speed and take corners more easily, with the benefit of getting Mini-Turbos. The feature can be set to happen automatically or when a button is held, although Mini-Turbos cannot be obtained on the former setting.

Advanced control modes

Rocket Start
Koopa Troopa performing a successful Rocket Start at Koopa Cape
  • Rocket Start: Drivers can perform a speed boost when a race begins. If drivers hold down the corresponding acceleration button right after the countdown timer displays the number 2, then they will receive an extra speed boost when the word "GO!" appears on the screen. However, if drivers hold down the button for too long, when the final beep is heard, their engine bursts and they get an even worse start than a regular one and take a few seconds to recover.
  • Mini-Turbo: When drivers drift for a reasonable amount of time varying on the vehicle used, blue sparks erupt from the vehicle's rear tires. Releasing the drift button gives them a short burst of speed. In a kart, drivers can keep drifting for longer periods to get orange sparks and a longer boost. However, orange sparks cannot be created on bikes. The amount of time the player must drift also depends on the vehicle's drifting stats. Drivers can also perform a "standing Mini-Turbo" by holding the brake/drift and acceleration buttons at the same time. This is helpful for vehicles with slow acceleration, as it will get the vehicle to top speed. A Mini-Turbo cannot be performed when drifting is set to automatic, but the standing Mini-Turbo can.
  • Jumps: If players jump over ramps or mushrooms, the length of the jump can be controlled by +Control Pad up (shorter jump) and +Control Pad down (longer jump).
  • Tricks: Drivers can pull off a trick when they jump in order to gain a momentary Mini-Turbo. Drivers can perform a trick by flicking the Wii Remote, pressing +Control Pad on the Classic Controller, or pressing +Control Pad on the GameCube Controller in any direction when going off a ramp or hill. They obtain a speed boost when landing.
  • Wheelie: Wheelies can be performed only when drivers are riding bikes. Drivers can increase their speed by lifting up the fronts of their bikes. While drivers perform a wheelie, the bike cannot be easily steered. The wheelie can be ended by braking, hopping, waiting for the wheelie to end, or simply setting the Wii Wheel or Wii Remote back down or pressing +Control Pad down. If drivers are bumped into while they are performing a wheelie, they lose most of their speed. If they wheelie again right as their wheelie runs out, they can get a chain wheelie.
  • Bullet Bill: If a driver is flying as a Bullet Bill, its route can be controlled a bit with +Control Pad left and +Control Pad right. The range may differ for every part of a track.

Game modes

  • Grand Prix (1 player) In this mode, the player races against eleven other CPU players to finish in first. There are eight cups to choose from, ranging from the most to the least difficult. Drivers earn points by placing within twelve positions (see chart above). A driver with the most points at the end of the four races wins the cup. The driver will be awarded a grade for their racing performance at the end of the cup. If the character places 4th or under, the screen will say "Better Luck Next Time" as the character sits in their vehicle on a mountain far from the celebration.
  • Time Trial (1 player) Drivers race for the fastest time on a selected course. The fastest record is saved as a Ghost and can be raced against at a later time. Drivers can also race staff records, Regional Records/Champions, World Records/Champions (Wi-Fi must be used), and Friend Records (Friend must be registered and must send the Ghost for Ghost Races, and Wi-Fi also must be used.)
  • VS Race (1 to 4 players, up to 12 online) Drivers can race with their own custom settings, but it is otherwise relatively the same as Grand Prix, other than the fact that drivers can see the other racers' character's names. The driver may choose a Solo Race, where they try to win for themselves, or Team Race, where two teams, red and blue, try to win by gathering the most points and beating the other.
  • Battle (1 to 4 players, up to 12 online) Drivers team up in two teams of six in a battle for the most points within a 3 minute time limit. Items work only against the opposite team and have no effect on the team that uses them. Players can select only the Standard Kart or Bike, color-coded for the team they are on. There are two ways to battle:
    • Balloon Battle: All drivers get three balloons and must use the items to hit the opponents to pop their balloons and get one point for every hit. If drivers lose all their balloons, one point is deducted and remain out for a while to be brought back to the battle with three balloons once more. If the player uses a mushroom and bumps into a player on the other team with the boost they get a point and steal a balloon.
    • Coin Runners: The goal for drivers is to obtain more coins with their team than the other. In the top right corner of the screen, the score shows, which are the coins obtained altogether for each team. If drivers hit opponents, opponents drop their Coins. The number of Coins dropped depends on the item that hits the player and the number of coins that the player has already gathered.
  • Ghost Race (Mario Kart Channel, 1 player) A Time Trial race with Ghosts made by players around the world with relatively the same skill level to the actual player.
  • Tournament (also known as Competition) (Mario Kart Channel, 1 player) Drivers would compete in a timed competition with specific goals (see list below). This mode served as the replacement of Mission Mode from Mario Kart DS. New tournaments were posted twice a month. The tournaments were discontinued after the first tournament in May 2014 was over.

Grand Prix Mode initially allows only Karts in 50cc and only Bikes in 100cc; if all the Grand Prix's are won in a single engine class, the other vehicle type will become available for it. Mirror Mode is unlocked by scoring first place on all 150cc Grand Prix.

Other information
  • Additionally, in this game, both normal races and battles are playable online through the use of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection (WFC). This is the second game in the series to utilize the WFC, the third to support online connectivity, and the first to allow for online battles. Races and Battles will now cater up to 12 players via Wi-Fi connection.
  • Just like in Mario Kart DS, it is not possible to play Grand Prix with multiple players. Players can now only win cup trophies by playing alone.
  • In Battle Mode, the player can only play in teams. Also, the Spiny Shell makes its first appearance in Battle Mode. It chases the player of the opposite team with the most points. Also, Lightning is an item in Battle Mode. It shrinks the drivers of the opposite team and makes them lose their items, but does not take a balloon or drop coins.

Tournaments

Main article: List of Mario Kart Wii tournaments
The mission mode appearing in Mario Kart Wii
Baby Mario collecting coins in a tournament

Mario Kart Wii introduces a new mode for the Mario Kart series, entitled "Tournaments" (known as "Competitions" in the European version). Tournaments are somewhat similar to missions in Mario Kart DS. Tournaments are played on the Mario Kart Channel, as long as the Mario Kart Wii disc is in the Wii. Tournaments require an Internet connection and WiiConnect24 to be turned on before they can be played. After a while, a tournament is retired to make room for a new one. However, the rankings of older tournaments can still be viewed on the rankings table. The tournaments began in May 2008 and continued even after all WiiConnect24 services were discontinued on June 28, 2013. The tournament service itself was later discontinued on May 20, 2014, the date on which the Nintendo WFC servers shut down.

The varieties of tournaments include the following:

  • VS Race - A standard VS race; however, race courses were somewhat altered.
  • Time Trial - A standard Time Trial; however, race courses were somewhat altered.
  • Numbered Gates - The player had to drive through ordered gates as fast as possible.
  • Coin Collecting - The player had to collect the coins on the stage as fast as possible.
  • Boss Battle - The player had to fight against a special boss.

Licenses

A MKWii license.
An example of a Mario Kart Wii license.

Licenses replace normal save files. It is the first Mario Kart game to feature more than one save file.

Each license contains each player's data, their Mii, nickname, Friend Code, and a table including all categories and cups with an empty space. After a cup is won, the corresponding space is filled in with a colored square: gold for first place, silver for second, bronze for third. If at any time the Mii being used for Mario Kart Wii is deleted from the Mii Channel, the in-game Mii is also deleted.

Friend roster

A friend roster.

Players can add different people around the world on to their Mario Kart Wii Friend Roster. Two people need to add the Friend Codes on their licenses. A player can have up to 30 people on their Friend Roster.

If two people are friends on a roster, one can open a room, which allows who is ever friends with the person to join that room. In the room, the players who joined can send messages. If a player who added the person who created the room, and another person joins and the player has not added them, they have an ability to do so. The host of the room can choose a VS Race, Team VS Race, Balloon Battle, and Coin Runners.

If a player joins a race when another player is online and friends with them, the player who added the player in the race can join that race and race with the friend.

Characters

Drivers

The complete character select roster, from Mario Kart Wii.
The character select screen, with all characters unlocked.

Mario Kart Wii features 12 starting characters, while 14 (if both Mii outfits are counted as separate characters) more can be unlocked for a total of 26 playable characters. Of those characters, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Rosalina, Funky Kong, Dry Bowser, and Mii (in "Outfit A" and "Outfit B") are playable for the first time in the Mario Kart series, with Baby Daisy, Rosalina, and Dry Bowser making their first playable appearances overall, and Baby Daisy making her first appearance in any game. In addition, Dry Bones is playable in a home console Mario Kart installment for the first time, after previously being playable in Mario Kart DS. Unlike with the past Mario Kart titles, however, the characters are categorized under a size class system, instead of the usual weight class system.

The size classes are as follows:

  • Small: Small drivers will drive small vehicles. They usually have good acceleration, handling, and off-road stats, but low top speed and weight.
  • Medium: Medium drivers will drive medium-sized vehicles. Most of the karts show average weight and off-road.
  • Large: Large drivers will drive large vehicles. They mostly feature high top speed and weight, but low acceleration, handling, and off-road.

Additionally, all the characters in the game have their own set of bonuses that boost certain stats for their vehicles. Units are out of 80, so a stat bonus of 3 would make a stat three points better than normal.[5] Baby Peach and Large Miis have the most stat bonuses, with a total of 15 each. Bowser Jr. has the fewest stat bonuses, with a total of 6.

Default drivers
Character Sprite of Baby Mario
Baby Mario
Sprite of Baby Peach
Baby Peach(new)
Sprite of Toad
Toad
Sprite of Koopa Troopa
Koopa Troopa
Artwork Artwork of Baby Mario with his kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Baby Peach with her kart from Mario Kart Wii Mariokartwiitoad.jpg Artwork of Koopa Troopa with his kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Small Small Small Small
Bonuses Weight +8, Handling +6 Speed +3, Weight +6, Acceleration +3, Handling +3 Acceleration +6, Drift +6 Handling +3, Mini-Turbo +6
Character Sprite of Mario
Mario
Sprite of Luigi
Luigi
Sprite of Peach
Peach
Sprite of Yoshi
Yoshi
Artwork Mario Kart Wii promotional artwork: Mario next to his normal kart Mariokartwiiluigi.jpg Artwork of Princess Peach and her kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Yoshi with his kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Medium Medium Medium Medium
Bonuses Weight +6, Acceleration +2, Handling +2, Drift +3 Speed +2, Weight +6 Speed +2, Acceleration +5, Drift +6 Weight +3, Drift +3, Off-Road +5
Character Sprite of Wario
Wario
Sprite of Waluigi
Waluigi
Sprite of Donkey Kong in Mario Kart Wii
Donkey Kong
Sprite of Bowser
Bowser
Artwork Artwork of Wario and his standard kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Waluigi with his standard kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Donkey Kong and his kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Bowser with his Standard Kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Large Large Large Large
Bonuses Weight +3, Off-Road +3, Mini-Turbo +6 Acceleration +6, Drift +5, Off-Road +3 Weight +3, Acceleration +2, Handling +2, Mini-Turbo +3 Speed +2, Weight +5, Drift +3
Unlockable drivers
Character Sprite of Baby Luigi
Baby Luigi
Sprite of Baby Daisy
Baby Daisy(new)
Sprite of Toadette
Toadette
Sprite of Dry Bones
Dry Bones
Artwork Artwork of Baby Luigi with his kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Baby Daisy with her kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Toadette with her kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Dry Bones with his kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Small Small Small Small
Bonuses Speed +5, Weight +8 Speed +5, Weight +6, Mini-Turbo +3 Speed +3, Off-Road +6 Acceleration +3, Drift +3, Mini-Turbo +6
To unlock Unlock 8 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials
OR
Play 3,150 races
OR
Win 100 WFC Ghost races
Rank 1 Star or higher in all 50cc Wii Grand Prix Cups
OR
Play 1,950 races


Play Time Trials on all courses
OR
Play 2,550 races
OR
Win 1,000 WFC races
Win the 100cc Leaf Cup
OR
Play 1,050 races


Character Sprite of Daisy
Daisy
Sprite of Birdo
Birdo
Sprite of Diddy Kong
Diddy Kong
Sprite of Bowser Jr.
Bowser Jr.
Artwork Artwork of Princess Daisy with her standard kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Birdo from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Diddy Kong and his standard kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Bowser Jr. with his standard kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Medium Medium Medium Medium
Bonuses Speed +4, Handling +2, Mini-Turbo +3 Weight +3, Off-Road +3, Mini-Turbo +5 Acceleration +3, Drift +3, Mini-Turbo +5 Off-Road +3, Mini-Turbo +3
To unlock Win the 150cc Special Cup
OR
Play 2,850 races


Play Time Trials on 16 different courses
OR
Play 1,350 races
OR
Win 250 WFC races
Win the 50cc Lightning Cup
OR
Play 450 races


Rank 1 Star or higher in all 100cc Retro Grand Prix Cups
OR
Play 3,450 races


Character Sprite of King Boo
King Boo
Sprite of Rosalina
Rosalina(new)
Sprite of Funky Kong
Funky Kong(new)
Sprite of Dry Bowser
Dry Bowser(new)
Artwork Artwork of King Boo from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Rosalina and Luma and their kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Funky Kong and his kart from Mario Kart Wii Artwork of Dry Bowser with his Standard Kart from Mario Kart Wii
Size Large Large Large Large
Bonuses Handling +5, Off-Road +3 Speed +3, Handling +3, Mini-Turbo +3 Speed +4, Off-Road +3 Off-Road +6, Mini-Turbo +6
To unlock Win the 50cc Star Cup
OR
Play 750 races


Rank 1 Star or higher in all Mirror Cups
OR
Play 4,950 races
OR
Play 50 races with a Super Mario Galaxy save file
Unlock 4 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials
OR
Play 2,250 races
OR
Win 25 WFC Ghost races
Rank 1 Star or higher in all 150cc Wii Grand Prix Cups
OR
Play 4,350 races
Character Icon for Mii Outfit A in Mario Kart Wii
Mii Outfit A(new)
Icon for Mii Outfit B in Mario Kart Wii
Mii Outfit B(new)
Artwork The default Mii logo
Size Varies depending on Mii height and width Varies depending on Mii height and width
Bonuses Small
Speed +3, Weight +3, Drift +3, Mini-Turbo +3
Medium
Speed +3, Weight +3, Off-Road +3, Mini-Turbo +3
Large
Speed +3, Acceleration +3, Handling +3, Off-Road +3, Mini-Turbo +3
To unlock Win the 100cc Special Cup
OR
Play 1,650 races


Unlock all 32 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials
OR
Play 5,100 combined races and battles
OR
Win 5,000 WFC Ghost races

Additional enemies, obstacles, and species

These characters and features may either aid the player or act as obstacles and other intractable objects that impede racers if bumped into.

Characters and elements
Image Character/element Location Description
An Angry Sun from Mario Kart Wii Angry Sun DS Desert Hills An enemy that appears as part of the scenery and spawns Fire Snakes onto the course.
A Bob-omb Car from Mario Kart Wii Bob-omb Car Moonview Highway A car that explodes when driven into or hit by a shell. The explosion sends any driver in the vicinity flying. Any driver who runs into the latter frames of the explosion spins out.
A Bowser Statue from Mario Kart Wii Bowser Statue N64 Bowser's Castle A large statue of Bowser that burns drivers if they run into its flame.
A Boulder from Mario Kart Wii Boulder GCN DK Mountain A large ball of rock that rolls down the course and flips over any driver who runs into it.
A Cataquack from Mario Kart Wii Cataquack GCN Peach Beach An enemy that flips drivers over when touched. Players can temporarily stun Cataquacks by hitting them with shells, POW Blocks, or Lightning, or by driving through them while invincible.
A Chain Chomp from Mario Kart Wii Chain Chomp (chained) Mario Circuit, GCN Mario Circuit, DS Peach Gardens An enemy that knocks over drivers and causes them to lose their items by ramming into them. Some Chain Chomps are chained to stakes, while others roam freely. Chain Chomps that are chained to stakes lunge at nearby drivers.
A Chomp from Mario Kart Wii Chain Chomp (unchained) Chain Chomp Wheel An enemy that appears rolling around in Chain Chomp Wheel. Driving under it smashes players, while flying into its upper regions from a ramp causes players to flip over.
A Delfino Oak Tree from Mario Kart Wii Delfino Oak Tree GCN Mario Circuit A stationary obstacle that stops players when driven into, serving as a wall.
A Fire Snake from Mario Kart Wii Fire Snake Grumble Volcano, DS Desert Hills A burning snake-like enemy that spins drivers out when touched. In Grumble Volcano, Fire Snakes jump out from pipes, while in DS Desert Hills, they are spawned from the Angry Sun.
A Goomba from Mario Kart Wii Goomba Mushroom Gorge, Mario Circuit, Koopa Cape, GCN Mario Circuit A small enemy that spins drivers out when touched. If a driver defeats Goombas with a shell or while invincible, they drop Mushrooms. They can also be defeated with Lightning, although they do not leave any Mushrooms when struck.
A Koopa Zapper from Mario Kart Wii Koopa Zapper Koopa Cape A rotating current of electricity that temporarily shrinks players when touched. Koopa Zappers are similar to the effects of Lightning or a Thunder Cloud, though the duration is shorter.
Lakitu from Mario Kart Wii Lakitu All courses The referee of Mario Kart Wii and the entire Mario Kart series. He starts races, keeps track of the laps, announces the winner of a race, and pulls drivers out if they fall off the track.
A Lava Geyser from Mario Kart Wii Lava Geyser Grumble Volcano, Bowser's Castle, N64 Bowser's Castle A pillar of lava that emerges from either a pool of lava or a crack on the ground. In Bowser's Castle, drivers can perform tricks off the hills generated by the geysers. Drivers who come in contact with Lava Geysers flip over.
A Mecha Bowser from Mario Kart Wii Mecha Bowser Bowser's Castle A large Bowser-shaped machine that spits out large explosive fireballs that detonate on a blast mark in the stage. Drivers who are hit by a fireball flip over, and they are sent flying if they are caught in the explosion.
A Mecha Piranha Plant from Mario Kart Wii Mecha Piranha Plant GCN Waluigi Stadium A Piranha Plant-shaped obstacle that acts as a moving wall, emerging from the pipes and stopping any driver who runs into it.
A Mii Driver from Mario Kart Wii Mii Drivers Coconut Mall Miis from the player's system who drive cars back and forth. Driving into them flips drivers over and causes them to lose their items.
A Minecart from Wario's Gold Mine Minecart Wario's Gold Mine A four-wheeled vehicle that travels along the rails in the mine. Drivers who hit minecarts flip over.
MushroomCow.png Moo Moo Moo Moo Meadows A cow that flips drivers over if it is driven into and causes them to lose their items. Moo Moos are first found on the off-road patches of the track but wander onto the road as time goes by.
A Monty Mole from Mario Kart Wii Monty Mole Moo Moo Meadows, DS Peach Gardens An enemy that leaps out of a hole made of dirt. The holes slow drivers down, and any driver who runs into Monty Moles who leap out of these holes flips over.
An oil slick from Mario Kart Wii Oil slick SNES Mario Circuit 3 A patch of an oil spill dotted throughout the course. Drivers who go through oil slicks spin out.
A Penguin Slider from Mario Kart Wii Penguin Slider N64 Sherbet Land A small penguin that waddles and slides back and forth, causing drivers who run into it to spin out.
A Penguin Waddler from Mario Kart Wii Penguin Waddler N64 Sherbet Land A large penguin found circling a pillar in the cave segment of Sherbet Land. Players who drive into Penguin Waddlers spin out.
A Piranha Plant from Mario Kart Wii Piranha Plant N64 Mario Raceway, GCN Mario Circuit A stationary obstacle that spins drivers out when it is touched. The Piranha Plants in GCN Mario Circuit are stationed in Warp Pipes and take bites out of drivers who come nearby, causing them to flip over and lose their items.
A Podoboo from Mario Kart Wii Podoboo Bowser's Castle, GBA Bowser Castle 3 A fiery ball that emerges from lava and causes drivers to spin out.
A Podoboo Cog from Mario Kart Wii Podoboo Cog Bowser's Castle, GCN Waluigi Stadium A solid eyed cog with three Fire Bars circling it, which cause drivers who touch them to spin out.
A Pokey from Mario Kart Wii Pokey Dry Dry Ruins, DS Desert Hills A spiky, cactus-like enemy that spins drivers out when touched. Drivers can temporarily destroy Pokeys with shells or Lightning, or by running into them while invincible.
A Shy Guy Galleon from Mario Kart Wii Shy Guy Galleon GBA Shy Guy Beach A pirate ship with Shy Guys as part of the scenery that launch explosive cannonballs onto the course.
A Shy Guy Snowboarder from Mario Kart Wii Shy Guy Snowboarder DK Summit A snowboarding Shy Guy that spins out drivers when it is touched.
A Sidestepper from Mario Kart Wii Sidestepper GBA Shy Guy Beach A crab that spins out drivers when it is touched. Drivers can temporarily defeat Sidesteppers with shells, POW Blocks, or Lightning, or by running into them while invincible.
A Spiky Topman from Mario Kart Wii Spiky Topman Galaxy Colosseum An enemy that exclusively appears in Galaxy Colosseum as part of a tournament, where the goal is to knock the Spiky Topmen off the course with Mushroom boosts.
SwooperMKW.png Swooper Wario's Gold Mine, Dry Dry Ruins A bat-like enemy that slows players down when it is driven into.
A Thwomp from Mario Kart Wii Thwomp Bowser's Castle, GBA Bowser Castle 3, N64 Bowser's Castle, Thwomp Desert This enemy smashes drivers if it is directly driven under, and it acts as a wall when simply driven into. In N64 Bowser's Castle, some of the Thwomps slide back and forth. The Thwomp in Thwomp Desert causes the terrain to become uneven, though players can still get smashed by the Thwomp if they are under it when it crashes.
Vehicles from Mario Kart Wii Vehicles: cars and trucks Moonview Highway Obstacles on the highway that flip players over when they are driven into and squash players that hit them from the front. Characters who are in the Mega Mushroom form can knock cars over but not trucks, while characters under the effects of invincibility from a Star or using a Bullet Bill can knock all vehicles over.
A Wiggler from Mario Kart Wii Wiggler Maple Treeway A large enemy that wanders around the track and bounces around drivers that bump into it.
Volcanic debris from Mario Kart Wii Volcanic debris Grumble Volcano Large balls of fire that spin out any driver who comes in contact with them.

Background characters

These characters appear as part of the audience or do not affect the character, being part of the course scenery served for world-building purposes.

Vehicles

There are thirty-six total vehicles in this game. There are 18 karts, 18 bikes, each divided into the 3 size classes, making 6 and 6 available to each character, 3 and 3 to begin (thus making half of the vehicles unlockable). As with the Standard vehicles, each kart and bike varies in color scheme depending on which character drives them. Each has 7 stats, which are shown during character selection:

  • Speed: How high the top speed of the vehicle is. This does not affect off-road travel. Negatively correlated with acceleration. It is also the only stat where no vehicle goes below twenty.
  • Weight: How heavy a vehicle is. With a higher weight, the player can knock lighter characters away by ramming them. Weight also affects the angle that a vehicle goes over a jump at, with heavier vehicles jumping at a lower angle. Finally, heavier vehicles bounce less upon landing from a jump.
  • Acceleration: How quickly the vehicle's top speed is achieved from a non-moving position. Negatively correlated with speed.
  • Handling: How tight the vehicles can normally turn. Usually opposes the drift rating.
  • Drift: How tight the vehicle turns while using the drifting maneuver. Usually opposes the handling rating.
  • Off-Road: How much speed the vehicle retains when off the track. A low rating of this can slow the vehicle significantly. Also, vehicles with a high off-road stat slide less when driving on ice. There exist several types of off-road surfaces which vary in intensity.
  • Mini-Turbo: When using the manual drift option, how effective a mini-boost will be. While all vehicles can perform a blue spark mini-turbo, only karts can execute an orange spark mini-turbo. Has no effect on the standing mini-turbo.

The following table includes vehicles in order of class primarily. The last half of each of these six sub-sections is the way the vehicle turns when the player attempts to drift (Drift = the vehicle drifts; Hang-on = the vehicle commits to the turn) and the unlockable vehicles; the right-hand column describes the requirement to unlock it: if it is a single cup, it must be simply won. The stats are displayed with number values, with the units being out of 80.[5] Some names differ between American English and Commonwealth English.

Each kart comes in various colors depending on the character driving it. The time trial mode's record icons use a single color for each kart regardless of driver.

Note: Vehicles with an Off-Road value greater than 50 can drift on normal off-road terrain.

Default vehicles

Default vehicles
Small Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Toad's Standard Kart S from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Kart S
41 29 48 48 51 40 45 Drift
The model for Baby Mario's Booster Seat from Mario Kart Wii
Booster Seat Flag of USA.png
Baby Booster Flag of Europe.png
27 27 56 64 37 54 59 Drift
The model for Baby Mario's Mini Beast from Mario Kart Wii
Mini Beast Flag of USA.png
Concerto Flag of Europe.png
55 32 29 32 64 27 64 Drift
Small Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Toad's Standard Bike S from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Bike S
39 21 51 51 54 43 48 Drift
The model for Baby Mario's Bullet Bike from Mario Kart Wii
Bullet Bike
53 24 32 35 67 29 67 Hang-on
The model for Baby Mario's Bit Bike from Mario Kart Wii
Bit Bike Flag of USA.png
Nanobike Flag of Europe.png
25 18 59 67 40 56 62 Drift
Medium Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Mario's Standard Kart M from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Kart M
46 45 40 43 45 35 40 Drift
The model for Mario's Classic Dragster from Mario Kart Wii
Classic Dragster Flag of USA.png
Nostalgia 1 Flag of Europe.png
37 43 59 54 54 40 51 Drift
The model for Mario's Wild Wing from Mario Kart Wii
Wild Wing
57 51 21 29 59 24 59 Drift
Medium Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Mario's Standard Bike M from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Bike M
43 37 43 45 48 37 43 Drift
The model for Mario's Mach Bike from Mario Kart Wii
Mach Bike
55 37 24 32 62 27 62 Hang-on
The model for Princess Peach's Sugarscoot from Mario Kart Wii
Sugarscoot Flag of USA.png
Bon Bon Flag of Europe.png
32 32 54 62 35 51 56 Drift
Large Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Bowser's Standard Kart L from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Kart L
48 59 37 40 40 35 35 Drift
The model for Bowser's Offroader from Mario Kart Wii
Offroader
39 64 48 54 18 43 45 Drift
The model for Bowser's Flame Flyer from Mario Kart Wii
Flame Flyer
62 59 16 21 48 18 48 Drift
Large Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type
The model for Wario's Standard Bike L from Mario Kart Wii
Standard Bike L
46 54 40 43 43 37 37 Drift
The model for Bowser's Flame Runner from Mario Kart Wii
Flame Runner Flag of USA.png
Bowser Bike Flag of Europe.png
60 54 18 24 51 21 51 Hang-on
The model for Wario's Wario Bike from Mario Kart Wii
Wario Bike
37 59 51 56 21 45 48 Drift

Unlockable vehicles

Unlockable vehicles
Small Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Baby Mario's Cheep Charger from Mario Kart Wii
Cheep Charger
34 24 64 56 59 45 54 Drift Rank 1 Star in all 50cc Retro Grand Prix Cups Play 1,800 races
The model for Baby Mario's Tiny Titan from Mario Kart Wii
Tiny Titan Flag of USA.png
Rally Romper Flag of Europe.png
46 35 43 43 29 64 40 Drift Unlock an Expert Staff Ghost Data record in Time Trials Play 1,200 races / Win 50 WFC races
The model for Baby Mario's Blue Falcon from Mario Kart Wii
Blue Falcon
60 29 35 29 43 24 29 Drift Win the Mirror Lightning Cup Play 4,200 races
Small Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Baby Mario's Quacker from Mario Kart Wii
Quacker
32 17 67 60 62 48 57 Hang-on Win the 150cc Star Cup Play 2,400 races
The model for Baby Mario's Magikruiser from Mario Kart Wii
Magikruiser
43 24 45 45 32 67 43 Hang-on Play Time Trials on 8 different courses Play 900 races
The model for Baby Mario's Jet Bubble from Mario Kart Wii
Jet Bubble Flag of USA.png
Bubble Bike Flag of Europe.png
48 27 40 40 45 35 37 Hang-on Win the Mirror Leaf Cup Play 3,900 races
Medium Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Mario's Super Blooper from Mario Kart Wii
Super Blooper Flag of USA.png
Turbo Blooper Flag of Europe.png
50 40 35 37 21 54 35 Drift Win the 50cc Leaf Cup Play 300 races
The model for Princess Peach's Daytripper from Mario Kart Wii
Daytripper Flag of USA.png
Royal Racer Flag of Europe.png
34 45 51 59 32 48 54 Drift Win the 150cc Leaf Cup Play 2,700 races
The model for Mario's Sprinter from Mario Kart Wii
Sprinter Flag of USA.png
B Dasher Mk. 2 Flag of Europe.png
64 48 27 24 37 21 24 Drift Unlock 24 Expert Staff Ghost Data Records in Time Trials Play 4,650 races / Win 3000 WFC races
Medium Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Mario's Zip Zip from Mario Kart Wii
Zip Zip Flag of USA.png
Rapide Flag of Europe.png
41 35 45 51 29 62 45 Drift Win the 100cc Lightning Cup Play 2,100 races
The model for Mario's Sneakster from Mario Kart Wii
Sneakster Flag of USA.png
Nitrocycle Flag of Europe.png
62 40 29 27 40 24 27 Hang-on Rank 1 Star in all 100cc Wii Grand Prix Cups Play 3,300 races
The model for Mario's Dolphin Dasher from Mario Kart Wii
Dolphin Dasher
48 43 37 40 24 56 37 Hang-on Win the Mirror Star Cup Play 3,750 races
Large Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Bowser's Piranha Prowler from Mario Kart Wii
Piranha Prowler
55 67 29 35 35 29 27 Drift Win the 50cc Special Cup Play 600 races
The model for Wario's Jetsetter from Mario Kart Wii
Jetsetter Flag of USA.png
Aero Glider Flag of Europe.png
69 56 21 17 27 16 16 Drift Rank 1 Star in all 150cc Retro Grand Prix Cups Play 4,500 races
The model for Donkey Kong's Honeycoupe from Mario Kart Wii
Honeycoupe Flag of USA.png
Dragonetti Flag of Europe.png
53 62 27 29 56 24 56 Drift Win the 150cc Lightning Cup Play 3,000 races
Large Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Vehicle Type Standard unlock criteria Racing unlock criteria
The model for Waluigi's Shooting Star from Mario Kart Wii
Shooting Star Flag of USA.png
Twinkle Star Flag of Europe.png
50 48 29 32 59 27 59 Drift Win the 100cc Star Cup Play 1,500 races
The model for Waluigi's Spear from Mario Kart Wii
Spear Flag of USA.png
Torpedo Flag of Europe.png
67 56 24 18 29 18 18 Hang-on Unlock 12 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials Play 3,600 races
The model for Waluigi's Phantom from Mario Kart Wii
Phantom
43 51 43 48 17 56 40 Drift Win the Mirror Special Cup Play 4,050 races

Internal stats

The stats reported do not correspond to all the actual in-game stats.[6][7][8]

Characters' bonuses

There are 20 different kinds of bonuses, which increase a few statistics of the vehicles:

  • Weight: Increases the weight of the vehicle.
  • Speed: Increases the top speed of the vehicle.
    • While Steering: Increases the top speed of the vehicle while steering, expressed as fraction of the top speed.
  • Acceleration: Increases the acceleration.
    • Standard Acceleration: Increases the first two stage-related acceleration parameters, used when starting from a standstill without mini-turbos (S1 and S2)
    • Drift Acceleration: Increases the last two stage-related acceleration parameters, used when the vehicle is near full speed while drifting (S3 and S4)
  • Handling: Increases how fast the vehicle can turn regularly (angular velocity).
  • Drift: Increases how fast the vehicle can turn while drifting (angular velocity).
  • Mini-Turbo: Increases the duration of the Mini-Turbo boost.
  • Off-Road Speed: Increases the top speed on each kind of off-road section.
  • Off-Road Handling: Increases the Handling on each kind of off-road section.
Small characters' bonuses
Character Baby Mario Baby Luigi Baby Peach Baby Daisy Toad Toadette Koopa Troopa Dry Bones Small Mii
Weight 0.756 0.756 0.504 0.504 0 0 0 0 0
Speed Standard (km/h) 0 1.06 0.53 1.06 0 0.53 0 0 0.53
While steering 0.000474 0.000474 0.000474 0 0.000947 0 0.000474 0.000474 0.000947
Standard Acceleration S1 0 0 0.025 0 0.05 0 0 0.025 0
S2 0 0 0.035 0 0.07 0 0 0.035 0
Drift Acceleration S3 0 0 0 0 0.18 0 0 0.09 0
S4 0 0 0 0 0.02 0 0 0.01 0
Handling Manual 0.00111 0 0.000555 0 0 0 0.000555 0 0.000555
Auto 0.00058 0 0.00029 0 0 0 0.00029 0 0.00029
Drift Manual 0.000529 0 0 0 0 0 0.000265 0 0
Auto 0.000444 0 0 0 0 0 0.000222 0 0
Mini-Turbo (frames) 0 0 0 4 0 0 8 8 4
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.0342 0 0 0
Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.0368 0 0 0
Heavy Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.0226 0 0 0
Slippery Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.01283 0 0 0
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0 0 0 0 0 0.00526 0 0 0
Weak Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.00736 0 0 0
Off-road and Heavy Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.00526 0 0 0
Slippery Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0.00526 0 0 0
Medium characters' bonuses
Character Mario Luigi Peach Daisy Yoshi Birdo Diddy Kong Bowser Jr. Medium Mii
Weight 0.504 0.504 0 0 0.252 0.252 0 0 0.252
Speed Standard (km/h) 0 0.53 0.53 1.06 0 0 0 0 0.53
While steering 0 0.000474 0 0 0 0.000474 0.000474 0.000947 0
Standard Acceleration S1 0.025 0 0.05 0 0 0 0.025 0 0
S2 0.035 0 0.07 0 0 0 0.035 0 0
Drift Acceleration S3 0.09 0 0.18 0 0.09 0 0.09 0 0.09
S4 0.01 0 0.02 0 0.01 0 0.01 0 0.01
Handling Manual 0.000555 0 0 0.000555 0 0 0 0 0
Auto 0.00029 0 0 0.00029 0 0 0 0 0
Drift Manual 0.000265 0 0 0.000265 0.000265 0 0 0 0.000265
Auto 0.000222 0 0 0.000222 0.000222 0 0 0 0.000222
Mini-Turbo (frames) 0 0 0 4 0 8 8 4 4
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0 0 0 0 0.0342 0.0171 0 0.0171 0
Off-road 0 0 0 0 0.0368 0.0184 0 0.0184 0
Heavy Off-road 0 0 0 0 0.0226 0.0113 0 0.0113 0
Slippery Off-road 0 0 0 0 0.01283 0.00641 0 0.00641 0
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00263 0
Weak Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00368 0
Off-road and Heavy Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00263 0
Slippery Off-road 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.00211 0
Large characters' bonuses
Character Wario Waluigi Donkey Kong Bowser King Boo Rosalina Funky Kong Dry Bowser Large Mii
Weight 0.252 0 0.252 0.504 0 0 0 0 0.252
Speed Standard (km/h) 0 0 0 0.53 0 0.53 1.06 0 0.53
While steering 0 0 0.000474 0 0.000474 0.000947 0 0.000474 0
Standard Acceleration S1 0 0.05 0.025 0 0 0 0 0 0
S2 0 0.07 0.035 0 0 0 0 0 0
Drift Acceleration S3 0 0.18 0 0.09 0 0 0 0 0
S4 0 0.02 0 0.01 0 0 0 0 0
Handling Manual 0 0 0.000555 0 0.00111 0.000555 0 0 0
Auto 0 0 0.00029 0 0.00058 0.00029 0 0 0
Drift Manual 0.000265 0 0 0 0.000529 0 0 0 0
Auto 0.000222 0 0 0 0.000444 0 0 0 0
Mini-Turbo (frames) 8 0 4 0 0 4 0 8 4
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0.0171 0.0171 0 0 0.0171 0 0.0171 0.0342 0.0171
Off-road 0.0184 0.0184 0 0 0.0184 0 0.0184 0.0368 0.0184
Heavy Off-road 0.0113 0.0113 0 0 0.0113 0 0.0113 0.0226 0.0113
Slippery Off-road 0.00641 0.00641 0 0 0.00641 0 0.00641 0.01283 0.00641
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0 0.00263 0 0.00263 0 0 0.00526 0 0.00263
Weak Off-road 0 0.00368 0 0.00368 0 0 0.00736 0 0.00368
Off-road and Heavy Off-road 0 0.00263 0 0.00263 0 0 0.00526 0 0.00263
Slippery Off-road 0 0.00211 0 0.00211 0 0 0.00422 0 0.00211

Vehicles' stats

The vehicles have 31 stats. Acceleration is divided in four stages, presumably depending on the actual speed relative to the full speed. In each stage, acceleration is determined by two factors, a stage-specific S factor which is affected by the character bonus and a general E factor. These factors change while drifting, that itself can begin once the vehicle has reached 55% of its top speed. Finally, some stats change depending on the drifting method used (either Manual or Auto) and depending on the fact that the vehicle is steering (While Steering) or not (Standard).

  • Weight: The weight of the vehicle.
  • Speed: The top speed of the vehicle.
    • While Steering: The top speed of the vehicle while steering, expressed as fraction of the top speed.
  • Acceleration: How much the relative speed of the vehicle, i.e. the speed expressed as fraction of the top speed, increases over time.
  • Handling: How fast the vehicle changes direction over time while steering (angular velocity).
    • Range: How much the vehicle swings while steering.
  • Drift: How fast the vehicle changes direction over time while drifting (angular velocity).
    • Range: How much the vehicle swings while drifting.
  • Mini-Turbo: The duration of the Mini-Turbo boost.
  • Off-Road Speed: The relative Speed in various Off-Road sections.
  • Off-Road Handling: The relative Handling in various Off-Road sections.
  • Tilt: How much the kart tilts in various conditions.
Small vehicles' stats
Vehicle Standard Kart S Booster Seat Mini Beast Cheep Charger Tiny Titan Blue Falcon Standard Bike S Bullet Bike Bit Bike Quacker Magikruiser Jet Bubble
Weight 3.05 2.84 3.26 2.63 3.47 3.05 2.42 2.63 2.21 2 2.63 2.84
Speed Standard (km/h) 78.71 75.53 81.89 77.12 79.77 82.95 78.18 81.36 75 76.59 79.24 80.3
While steering 0.9957 0.9985 0.9938 0.9933 0.9966 0.9919 0.9962 0.9943 0.999 0.9938 0.9971 0.9947
Acceleration Not Drifting S1 0.728 0.866 0.71924 0.4795 0.89094 0.254 0.774 0.75358 0.912 0.5 0.682 0.8566
S2 0.728 0.866 0.3744 1.668 0.5764 0.766 0.774 0.4148 0.912 1.75 0.682 0.536
S3 0.5034 0.5448 0.4172 0.4418 0.5182 0.3516 0.5172 0.4374 0.5586 0.45 0.4896 0.498
S4 0.07034 0.07448 0.05172 0.04418 0.06182 0.03516 0.07172 0.05374 0.07586 0.045 0.06896 0.0598
E 0.65 0.65 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2
Drifting S1 0.85 0.85 0.8 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.85 0.8 0.85 0.9 0.85 0.8
S2 0.95 0.95 0.925 0.975 0.925 0.975 0.95 0.925 0.95 0.975 0.95 0.925
S3 1.95 1.45 2.45 2.25 1.15 1.65 2.05 2.55 1.55 2.35 1.25 1.75
S4 0.13 0.13 0.15 0.11 0.15 0.11 0.13 0.15 0.13 0.11 0.15 0.13
E 0.965 0.965 0.98 0.95 0.98 0.95 0.965 0.98 0.965 0.95 0.98 0.965
Handling Manual 0.024 0.0274 0.0205 0.0257 0.0228 0.0199 0.0269 0.0237 0.0301 0.0285 0.0258 0.0248
Auto 0.0244 0.0267 0.0222 0.0256 0.0237 0.0219 0.0217 0.0205 0.023 0.0224 0.0213 0.0209
Range 0.88 0.94 0.82 0.91 0.86 0.81 0.955 0.91 1 0.9775 0.94 0.925
Drift Manual 0.0186 0.0181 0.0198 0.0191 0.0174 0.0167 0.0135 0.0171 0.013 0.016 0.0136 0.0129
Auto 0.0209 0.0204 0.0222 0.0214 0.0196 0.0188 0.0146 0.0125 0.0142 0.0119 0.0107 0.0103
Range 0.94 0.92 0.99 0.96 0.89 0.86 0.95 1 0.93 0.97 0.9 0.88
Mini-Turbo (frames) 29 36 39 33 27 22 31 40 37 35 28 26
Traction -15 5 -8 -3 4 10 1 1 0 3 3 3
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0.7039 0.7894 0.6184 0.7381 0.8578 0.6013 0.721 0.6355 0.8065 0.7552 0.8749 0.6697
Off-road 0.4906 0.5826 0.3986 0.5274 0.6562 0.3802 0.509 0.417 0.601 0.5458 0.6746 0.4538
Heavy Off-road 0.2867 0.3432 0.2302 0.3093 0.3884 0.2189 0.298 0.2415 0.3545 0.3206 0.3997 0.2641
Slippery Off-road 0.931 0.9588 0.9032 0.9421 0.981 0.8977 0.9366 0.9088 0.9644 0.9477 0.9866 0.9199
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0.08419 0.09997 0.06841 0.08945 0.07893 0.06315 0.08156 0.06578 0.09734 0.08682 0.0763 0.07104
Weak Off-road 0.12784 0.14992 0.10576 0.1352 0.12048 0.0984 0.12416 0.10208 0.14624 0.13152 0.1168 0.10944
Off-road 0.08419 0.09997 0.06841 0.08945 0.07893 0.06315 0.08156 0.06578 0.09734 0.08682 0.0763 0.07104
Heavy Off-road 0.08419 0.09997 0.06841 0.08945 0.07893 0.06315 0.08156 0.06578 0.09734 0.08682 0.0763 0.07104
Slippery Off-road 0.05743 0.07009 0.04477 0.06165 0.05321 0.04055 0.05532 0.04266 0.06798 0.05954 0.0511 0.04688
Tilt 0.03 0.035 0.02 0.03 0.02 0.03
Medium vehicles' stats
Vehicle Standard Kart M Classic Dragster Wild Wing Super Blooper Daytripper Sprinter Standard Bike M Mach Bike Sugarscoot Zip Zip Sneakster Dolphin Dasher
Weight 4.31 4.1 4.73 3.89 4.31 4.52 3.68 3.68 3.26 3.47 3.89 4.1
Speed Standard (km/h) 79.77 77.65 82.42 80.83 77.12 84.01 79.24 81.89 76.59 78.71 83.48 80.3
While steering 0.9943 0.9924 0.9928 0.9952 0.9976 0.9909 0.9947 0.9933 0.9981 0.9966 0.9914 0.9957
Acceleration Not Drifting S1 0.59 0.4385 0.61622 0.254 0.774 0.6849 0.636 0.65056 0.82 0.92528 0.213 0.82226
S2 0.59 1.504 0.2532 0.766 0.774 0.334 0.636 0.2936 0.82 0.6168 0.602 0.4956
S3 0.462 0.4254 0.3566 0.3516 0.5172 0.397 0.4758 0.3768 0.531 0.5384 0.3352 0.4778
S4 0.0662 0.04254 0.04566 0.03516 0.07172 0.0497 0.06758 0.04768 0.0731 0.06384 0.03352 0.05778
E 0.65 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.2 0.2
Drifting S1 0.85 0.9 0.8 0.9 0.85 0.8 0.85 0.8 0.85 0.8 0.9 0.8
S2 0.95 0.975 0.925 0.975 0.95 0.925 0.95 0.925 0.95 0.925 0.975 0.925
S3 1.75 2.05 2.25 0.85 1.25 1.45 1.85 2.35 1.35 1.15 1.55 0.95
S4 0.13 0.11 0.15 0.15 0.13 0.11 0.13 0.15 0.13 0.15 0.11 0.15
E 0.965 0.95 0.98 0.98 0.965 0.95 0.965 0.98 0.965 0.98 0.95 0.98
Handling Manual 0.0228 0.0251 0.0199 0.0216 0.0263 0.0187 0.0258 0.0232 0.029 0.0269 0.0221 0.0248
Auto 0.0237 0.0252 0.0219 0.023 0.0259 0.0211 0.0213 0.0203 0.0226 0.0217 0.0198 0.0209
Range 0.86 0.9 0.81 0.84 0.92 0.79 0.94 0.9025 0.985 0.955 0.8875 0.925
Drift Manual 0.0184 0.0186 0.0193 0.0177 0.0177 0.0162 0.0127 0.0164 0.0124 0.0115 0.0119 0.014
Auto 0.0206 0.0209 0.0217 0.0198 0.0198 0.0183 0.014 0.0121 0.0138 0.0133 0.0097 0.0108
Range 0.93 0.94 0.97 0.9 0.9 0.84 0.92 0.98 0.91 0.88 0.85 0.91
Mini-Turbo (frames) 27 32 36 24 33 19 28 37 35 29 20 26
Traction 3 -5 0 5 -7 0 -2 3 -9 -4 -11 2
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0.6697 0.7039 0.6013 0.7894 0.7552 0.5842 0.6868 0.6184 0.7723 0.8407 0.6013 0.8065
Off-road 0.4538 0.4906 0.3802 0.5826 0.5458 0.3618 0.4722 0.3986 0.5642 0.6378 0.3802 0.601
Heavy Off-road 0.2641 0.2867 0.2189 0.3432 0.3206 0.2076 0.2754 0.2302 0.3319 0.3771 0.2189 0.3545
Slippery Off-road 0.9199 0.931 0.8977 0.9588 0.9477 0.8921 0.9255 0.9032 0.9532 0.9755 0.8977 0.9644
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0.07893 0.08419 0.06578 0.07367 0.09471 0.06052 0.0763 0.06315 0.09208 0.08156 0.05789 0.07104
Weak Off-road 0.12048 0.12784 0.10208 0.11312 0.14256 0.09472 0.1168 0.0984 0.13888 0.12416 0.09104 0.10944
Off-road 0.07893 0.08419 0.06578 0.07367 0.09471 0.06052 0.0763 0.06315 0.09208 0.08156 0.05789 0.07104
Heavy Off-road 0.07893 0.08419 0.06578 0.07367 0.09471 0.06052 0.0763 0.06315 0.09208 0.08156 0.05789 0.07104
Slippery Off-road 0.05321 0.05743 0.04266 0.04899 0.06587 0.03844 0.0511 0.04055 0.06376 0.05532 0.03633 0.04688
Tilt 0.03 0.02 0.015 0.02 0.035 0.015
Large vehicles' stats
Vehicle Standard Kart L Offroader Flame Flyer Piranha Prowler Jetsetter Honeycoupe Standard Bike L Flame Runner Wario Bike Shooting Star Spear Phantom
Weight 5.36 5.78 5.36 5.99 5.15 5.57 4.94 4.94 5.36 4.52 5.15 4.73
Speed Standard (km/h) 80.3 78.18 83.48 81.89 85.07 81.36 79.77 82.95 77.65 80.83 84.54 79.24
While steering 0.9943 0.9966 0.9919 0.9928 0.99 0.9938 0.9947 0.9924 0.9971 0.9943 0.9905 0.9957
Acceleration Not Drifting S1 0.544 0.728 0.54754 0.406 0.1515 0.6849 0.59 0.58188 0.774 0.71924 0.172 0.89094
S2 0.544 0.728 0.1724 0.406 0.356 0.334 0.59 0.2128 0.774 0.3744 0.438 0.5764
S3 0.4482 0.5034 0.3162 0.4068 0.3106 0.397 0.462 0.3364 0.5172 0.4172 0.3188 0.5182
S4 0.06482 0.07034 0.04162 0.06068 0.03106 0.0497 0.0662 0.04364 0.07172 0.05172 0.03188 0.06182
E 0.65 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.65 0.2 0.2 0.2
Drifting S1 0.85 0.85 0.8 0.85 0.9 0.8 0.85 0.8 0.85 0.8 0.9 0.8
S2 0.95 0.95 0.925 0.95 0.975 0.925 0.95 0.925 0.95 0.925 0.975 0.925
S3 1.55 0.75 1.85 1.35 1.05 2.15 1.65 1.95 0.85 2.25 1.15 0.65
S4 0.13 0.13 0.15 0.13 0.11 0.15 0.13 0.15 0.13 0.15 0.11 0.15
E 0.965 0.965 0.98 0.965 0.95 0.98 0.965 0.98 0.965 0.98 0.95 0.98
Handling Manual 0.0222 0.0251 0.0182 0.0211 0.017 0.0199 0.0253 0.0216 0.028 0.0232 0.0205 0.0264
Auto 0.0233 0.0252 0.0207 0.0226 0.02 0.0219 0.0211 0.0196 0.0222 0.0203 0.0192 0.0215
Range 0.85 0.9 0.78 0.83 0.76 0.81 0.9325 0.88 0.97 0.9025 0.865 0.9475
Drift Manual 0.0174 0.0167 0.0184 0.0169 0.0155 0.0191 0.0121 0.015 0.0112 0.0141 0.0108 0.0107
Auto 0.0196 0.0188 0.0206 0.0191 0.0175 0.0214 0.0137 0.0114 0.0131 0.0149 0.0092 0.0127
Range 0.89 0.86 0.93 0.87 0.81 0.96 0.9 0.94 0.87 0.97 0.82 0.85
Mini-Turbo (frames) 24 29 31 20 15 35 26 32 31 36 16 27
Traction -15 7 0 -13 30 0 0 0 5 27 3 2
Off-Road Speed Weak Off-road 0.6697 0.721 0.5671 0.6355 0.55 0.6013 0.6868 0.5842 0.7381 0.6184 0.5671 0.8065
Off-road 0.4538 0.509 0.3434 0.417 0.325 0.3802 0.4722 0.3618 0.5274 0.3986 0.3434 0.601
Heavy Off-road 0.2641 0.298 0.1963 0.2415 0.185 0.2189 0.2754 0.2076 0.3093 0.2302 0.1963 0.3545
Slippery Off-road 0.9199 0.9366 0.8866 0.9088 0.881 0.8977 0.9255 0.8921 0.9421 0.9032 0.8866 0.9644
Off-Road Handling Slippery Road 0.0763 0.08945 0.05789 0.06578 0.05263 0.06578 0.07367 0.05526 0.08682 0.06315 0.05 0.0763
Weak Off-road 0.1168 0.1352 0.09104 0.10208 0.08368 0.10208 0.11312 0.08736 0.13152 0.0984 0.08 0.1168
Off-road 0.0763 0.08945 0.05789 0.06578 0.05263 0.06578 0.07367 0.05526 0.08682 0.06315 0.05 0.0763
Heavy Off-road 0.0763 0.08945 0.05789 0.06578 0.05263 0.06578 0.07367 0.05526 0.08682 0.06315 0.05 0.0763
Slippery Off-road 0.0511 0.06165 0.03633 0.04266 0.03211 0.04266 0.04899 0.03422 0.05954 0.04055 0.03 0.0511
Tilt 0.015 0.015 0.015 0.01 0.02 0.025

Courses

Wario's Gold Mine
Wario races towards a steep downhill portion of Wario's Gold Mine.

Race courses are divided into various Cups again: Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup, and Special Cup for new courses and Shell Cup, Banana Cup, Leaf Cup, and Lightning Cup for returning courses. Notably, these are the same as in Mario Kart DS.

All thirty-two tracks have three laps, regardless of length and difficulty. At first, only two Wii and two Retro Cups are available, but clearing the former two in first place unlocks the Star Cup, while clearing the latter two in first place unlocks the Leaf Cup; likewise, clearing the Star and Leaf Cups in first place unlocks the Special and Lightning Cups, respectively. This process only applies for the difficulty level the player is in, so it must be repeated for all others to have the secret Cups available in each of them.

This is the first game in the series to have different track names between the American and PAL versions; this applies to DK Summit/DK's Snowboard Cross, Chain Chomp Wheel/Chain Chomp Roulette, and Galaxy Colosseum/Galaxy Arena.

Wii Grand Prix

There are sixteen new courses in Mario Kart Wii.

Sprite of a Mushroom
Mushroom Cup
Mario Kart Wii's Flower Cup icon
Flower Cup
Sprite of a Star
Star Cup
Special Cup
Special Cup
View of Luigi Circuit in Mario Kart Wii
Luigi Circuit
Mario Kart Wii: An overview of Mario Circuit, seeing the castle surrounded by houses as residence
Mario Circuit
Daisy Circuit
Daisy Circuit
Dry Dry Ruins (race course)
Dry Dry Ruins
View of Moo Moo Meadows in Mario Kart Wii.
Moo Moo Meadows
View of Coconut Mall in Mario Kart Wii.
Coconut Mall
Koopa Cape
Koopa Cape
Moonview Highway
Moonview Highway
View of Mushroom Gorge in Mario Kart Wii
Mushroom Gorge

DK Summit in Mario Kart Wii
DK Summit Flag of USA.png
DK's Snowboard Cross Flag of Europe.png
Overview of Maple Treeway
Maple Treeway

Bowser's Castle
Bowser's Castle

View of Toad's Factory in Mario Kart Wii
Toad's Factory
Wario's Gold Mine in Mario Kart Wii
Wario's Gold Mine
Grumble Volcano
Grumble Volcano
Rainbow Road
Rainbow Road

Retro Grand Prix

These are courses that appeared in previous Mario Kart installments, much like in Mario Kart DS. This includes two courses each from Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart: Super Circuit, and four each from Mario Kart 64, Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Mario Kart DS. These have been graphically updated and have some new details such as extra trees and ramps, new features such as jumps, pipe tricks, and even added shortcuts. These courses appear in the Shell, Banana, Leaf, and Lightning Cups. This game is tied with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (when counting the Booster Course Pass) for having the second most retro Mario Circuit courses of any Mario Kart game, with three, behind only Mario Kart Tour, which has six.

Mario Kart Wii's Shell Cup icon
Shell Cup
Mario Kart Wii's Banana Cup icon
Banana Cup
Super Leaf icon for the Leaf Cup
Leaf Cup
Sprite of Lightning
Lightning Cup
View of Peach Beach in Mario Kart Wii
GCN Peach Beach
View of N64 Sherbet Land in Mario Kart Wii
N64 Sherbet Land
Desert Hills.png
DS Desert Hills
SNES Mario Circuit 3
SNES Mario Circuit 3
View of Yoshi Falls in Mario Kart Wii
DS Yoshi Falls
View of Shy Guy Beach in Mario Kart Wii
GBA Shy Guy Beach
GBA Bowser Castle 3
GBA Bowser Castle 3
Peach Gardens
DS Peach Gardens
View of Ghost Valley 2 in Mario Kart Wii
SNES Ghost Valley 2
View of Delfino Square in Mario Kart Wii
DS Delfino Square
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway
DK Mountain
GCN DK Mountain
View of N64 Mario Raceway in Mario Kart Wii
N64 Mario Raceway
View of Waluigi Stadium in Mario Kart Wii
GCN Waluigi Stadium
MKWii GCNMario.png
GCN Mario Circuit
N64 Bowser's Castle
N64 Bowser's Castle

Battle stages

This game has the most battle courses of any Mario Kart game, with ten. Additionally, this is the first Mario Kart game with unique music for each battle course.

Icon for the Wii battle stages from Mario Kart Wii.
Wii Stages
Icon for the Retro battle stages from Mario Kart Wii.
Retro Stages
Block Plaza.png
Block Plaza
Battle Course 4 (SNES).png
SNES Battle Course 4
Delfino Pier.png
Delfino Pier
Battle Course 3 (GBA).png
GBA Battle Course 3
Funky Stadium
Funky Stadium
N64 Skyscraper, as it appears in Mario Kart Wii.
N64 Skyscraper
Chain Chomp Roulette.png
Chain Chomp Wheel Flag of USA.png
Chain Chomp Roulette Flag of Europe.png
Cookie Land.png
GCN Cookie Land

Thwomp Desert.png
Thwomp Desert
Twilight House.png
DS Twilight House

Other stages

Mario Kart Wii featured one course that was exclusive to certain online tournaments.

Online Tournament
View of Galaxy Colosseum from Mario Kart Wii
Galaxy Colosseum Flag of USA.png
Galaxy Arena Flag of Europe.png

Ghosts

In Mario Kart Wii, there are Normal Staff Ghosts and Expert Staff Ghosts. Beating the normal staff Ghosts by a certain amount of time unlocks the Expert Staff Ghosts. Unlocking Expert Staff Ghosts can help unlock certain characters and vehicles in the game. Below are two tables: the first shows the Normal Staff Ghosts, while the second shows the Expert Staff Ghosts, and also shows the character and vehicle the Ghost used.

Normal Staff Ghosts

Course Staff Name Time Character Vehicle Wii Wheel Drift
Luigi Circuit Nin★sato 01:29.670 Luigi B Dasher Mk 2/Sprinter Yes Auto
Moo Moo Meadows Nin★YuNya 01:37.856 Baby Daisy Baby Booster/Booster Seat Yes Auto
Mushroom Gorge Nin★Murak 02:16.110 Toadette Quacker Yes Manual
Toad's Factory Nin★Misa 02:22.480 Toad Bubble Bike/Jet Bubble Yes Manual
Mario Circuit Nin★==Kony 01:44.777 Mario Rapide/Zip Zip Yes Manual
Coconut Mall Nin★♪SiMO 02:30.764 Daisy Bon Bon/Sugarscoot No Manual
DK Summit Nin★mokke 02:34.693 Donkey Kong Standard Bike L Yes Manual
Wario's Gold Mine Nin★morimo 02:19.585 Wario Wario Bike Yes Manual
Daisy Circuit Nin★Toki 01:56.822 Daisy Royal Racer/Daytripper No Manual
Koopa Cape Nin★Rose 03:03.022 Koopa Troopa Cheep Charger No Manual
Maple Treeway Nin★pico 02:58.633 Diddy Kong Nostalgia 1/Classic Dragster Yes Manual
Grumble Volcano Nin★Gorin 02:28.237 Dry Bowser Offroader Yes Manual
Dry Dry Ruins Nin★Kei 02:30.949 Yoshi Nostalgia 1/Classic Dragster Yes Manual
Moonview Highway Nin★KOZ★ 02:16.802 Peach Standard Kart M Yes Manual
Bowser's Castle Nin★YABUKI 03:04.836 Bowser Piranha Prowler No Manual
Rainbow Road Nin★Konno 03:05.895 Rosalina Twinkle Star/Shooting Star No Manual
GCN Peach Beach Nin★HIRO 01:34.233 Peach Royal Racer/Daytripper No Manual
DS Yoshi Falls Nin★DoTak 01:16.461 Yoshi Rapide/Zip Zip No Manual
SNES Ghost Valley 2 Nin★YOKO 01:06.595 King Boo Standard Kart L Yes Manual
N64 Mario Raceway Nin★Ichiro 02:14.799 Baby Mario Nanobike/Bit Bike Yes Manual
N64 Sherbet Land Nin★Sakat 02:48.651 Baby Luigi Quacker Yes Auto
GBA Shy Guy Beach Nin★Kato 01:45.568 Koopa Troopa Cheep Charger Yes Manual
DS Delfino Square Nin★iwaco 02:41.807 Wario Wario Bike Yes Manual
GCN Waluigi Stadium Nin★NARI★ 02:32.882 Waluigi Standard Bike L No Manual
DS Desert Hills Nin★CHIA 02:10.233 Dry Bones Standard Bike S No Manual
GBA Bowser Castle 3 Nin★Fukuda 02:58.304 Dry Bowser Standard Kart L Yes Manual
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway Nin★Matt 02:58.264 Donkey Kong Phantom Yes Manual
GCN Mario Circuit Nin★♪Miz 01:59.771 Mario Standard Bike M Yes Manual
SNES Mario Circuit 3 Nin★iwaco 01:38.880 Baby Mario Standard Kart S Yes Manual
DS Peach Gardens Nin★Ito.y 02:34.894 Baby Peach Magikruiser Yes Manual
GCN DK Mountain Nin★♪msk 02:57.744 Funky Kong Wario Bike Yes Manual
N64 Bowser's Castle Nin★GASK2 03:19.323 Bowser Jr. Standard Kart M Yes Manual

Expert Staff Ghosts

Course Staff Name Unlock Time Time Character Vehicle Wii Wheel Drift
Luigi Circuit Nin★Uta♪ 01:26.394 01:19.419 Luigi Mach Bike Yes Manual
Moo Moo Meadows Nin★Tkym 01:34.160 01:25.909 Baby Daisy Bullet Bike No Auto
Mushroom Gorge Nin★Miki 02:10.875 02:01.011 Toadette Concerto/Mini Beast No Manual
Toad's Factory Nin★GQO 02:17.653 02:05.593 Toad Blue Falcon No Manual
Mario Circuit Nin★fuyu 01:40.528 01:33.702 Mario B Dasher Mk 2/Sprinter No Manual
Coconut Mall Nin★MUGI★ 02:25.620 02:13.333 Daisy Wild Wing Yes Manual
DK Summit Nin★KOZ★ 02:29.076 02:17.546 Donkey Kong Flame Flyer Yes Manual
Wario's Gold Mine Nin★♪Ryo 02:15.323 02:04.800 Wario Flame Flyer No Manual
Daisy Circuit Nin★Taeko 01:51.786 01:41.362 Daisy Mach Bike No Manual
Koopa Cape Nin★morimo 02:56.867 02:41.370 Koopa Troopa Bubble Bike/Jet Bubble No Manual
Maple Treeway Nin★MUGI★ 02:51.684 02:37.812 Diddy Kong Nitrocycle/Sneakster No Manual
Grumble Volcano Nin★aki 02:22.856 02:11.852 Dry Bowser Torpedo/Spear No Manual
Dry Dry Ruins Nin★Akito 02:26.064 02:14.286 Yoshi Nitrocycle/Sneakster Yes Manual
Moonview Highway Nin★Koh 02:10.509 02:04.163 Peach Mach Bike Yes Manual
Bowser's Castle Nin★Masa 02:57.382 02:42.098 Bowser Bowser Bike/Flame Runner No Manual
Rainbow Road Nin★Syun1 03:00.007 02:44.734 Rosalina Aero Glider/Jetsetter No Manual
GCN Peach Beach Nin★Taeko 01:30.909 01:23.140 Peach Dolphin Dasher Yes Manual
DS Yoshi Falls Nin★FJ 01:14.072 01:09.175 Yoshi Super Blooper/Turbo Blooper Yes Manual
SNES Ghost Valley 2 Nin★sira■ 01:04.261 00:58.907 King Boo Torpedo/Spear No Manual
N64 Mario Raceway Nin★Yuuki 02:10.069 01:59.053 Baby Mario Concerto/Mini Beast No Manual
N64 Sherbet Land Nin★FJ 02:42.536 02:28.356 Baby Luigi Blue Falcon No Manual
GBA Shy Guy Beach Nin★Matt 01:41.174 01:32.867 Koopa Troopa Magikruiser No Manual
DS Delfino Square Nin★TARO 02:36.630 02:24.169 Wario Dragonetti/Honeycoupe No Manual
GCN Waluigi Stadium Nin★♪Ryo 02:26.335 02:12.367 Waluigi Piranha Prowler No Manual
DS Desert Hills Nin★solami 02:02.358 01:52.686 Dry Bones Rally Romper/Tiny Titan Yes Manual
GBA Bowser Castle 3 Nin★A24 02:53.651 02:39.391 Dry Bowser Bowser Bike/Flame Runner No Manual
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway Nin★Syun1 02:51.693 02:37.782 Donkey Kong Flame Flyer Yes Manual
GCN Mario Circuit Nin★Dai8 01:55.907 01:49.939 Mario Wild Wing No Manual
SNES Mario Circuit 3 Nin★Shige 01:35.213 01:26.659 Baby Mario Bullet Bike No Manual
DS Peach Gardens Nin★==Kony 02:29.793 02:16.777 Baby Peach Concerto/Mini Beast Yes Manual
GCN DK Mountain Nin★Miyam 02:52.100 02:38.130 Funky Kong Flame Flyer Yes Manual
N64 Bowser's Castle Nin★Kentan 03:09.228 02:55.933 Bowser Jr. Nitrocycle/Sneakster Yes Manual

Items

For the probability of obtaining each item when an Item Box is opened in the various modes, see Mario Kart Wii item probability distributions.

Mario Kart Wii includes two new items, the Mega Mushroom and the POW Block, and brings back the Thunder Cloud from the Mario Kart Arcade GP installments (making this game its console Mario Kart debut). All three items are absent from Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8. Items can be earned by driving through Item Boxes on the courses, just like in previous games. Once a player has done so, an item will be selected via the Item Roulette. Players can use items by pressing +Control Pad left. In general, players tend to obtain a weak item such as a Banana or a Green Shell when they are in first. However, if players are in a lower place, they obtain a slightly more powerful item such as a Red Shell or Lightning. Usually, the lower the place of the player, the rarer and more powerful the item they get. Stars, Mega Mushrooms, and Bullet Bills are examples of powerful items as they provide speed boosts and invincibility. This is the only game in the Mario Kart series where the drivers do not vocally react to getting inked by a Blooper.

Image Name Description
Artwork of a Mushroom from New Super Mario Bros., also reused for the Mushroom in Mario Kart Wii Mushroom Gives players a short speed boost that ignores terrain.
Artwork of Triple Mushrooms from Mario Kart Wii. Triple Mushrooms Gives players three Mushrooms, which give separate boosts. It is the default item in Time Trial mode.
Artwork of a Golden Mushroom in Mario Kart Wii Golden Mushroom The driver gets an infinite number of Mushroom boosts for 7.5 seconds.
Artwork of a Mega Mushroom in Mario Kart Wii Mega Mushroom
New item
The driver grows bigger, which allows them to squash other racers by running over them, making them lose their items and slow down for a moment. The Mega Mushroom makes the racer invincible to all attacks except those from Stars, Bullet Bills, and Bloopers. It allows the user to destroy items and course obstacles and gives the driver a speed boost. In addition, the player can go off-road without suffering any effect of slowing down. The effect lasts for 7.5 seconds but will be ended prematurely if the player is hit by Lightning.
Artwork of a Fake Item Box, from Mario Kart Wii. Fake Item Box This item imitates an Item Box but is colored red and has an upside down question mark. At a distance, it appears a similar color to a regular item box, only revealing its true color as the player approaches. It causes opponents to flip over once hit. It cannot block item attacks, but it can be held behind the player's vehicle to block other vehicles.
Artwork of a Banana, from Mario Kart Wii. Banana When drivers run into a Banana, it causes them to slip and slow down. It can also be held behind the player's vehicle to block attacks from shells and other vehicles.
Artwork of Triple Bananas, from Mario Kart Wii. Triple Bananas This item gives the driver a trail of three Bananas.
Artwork of a Green Shell, from Mario Kart Wii. Green Shell A basic green shell that can be thrown forwards and backwards. It bounces off obstacles several times before it hits an opponent or is destroyed. With each bounce, the new direction is a little corrected to increase the probability of hitting a player.
Artwork of Triple Green Shells, from Mario Kart Wii. Triple Green Shells Three Green Shells that surround the racer until released. These can also be thrown forward or backward.
Artwork of a Red Shell, from Mario Kart Wii. Red Shell A fragile shell that tracks the nearest opponent when fired forward. It will break if it hits an obstacle.
Artwork of Triple Red Shells, from Mario Kart Wii. Triple Red Shells Three Red Shells that surround the racer until released.
Artwork of a Spiny Shell, from Mario Kart Wii. Spiny Shell A blue shell that flies directly to the racer in first place and explodes like a Bob-omb. Only one Spiny Shell can be in play at a time, and Spiny Shells are unobtainable for the first 30 seconds of a race.
Artwork of a Super Star from Mario Kart Wii Star The driver obtains total invincibility for 7.5 seconds, allowing them to knock over items, course obstacles, and other players on contact. Also, the driver receives a speed boost and the power to drive off-road with no speed loss. Racers that are hit will lose all items in their possession.
Artwork of Lightning in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (also used for Mario Kart DS and Mario Kart Wii) Lightning Lightning strikes every racer ahead of the user, causing them to spin out, drop their items, and shrink to a very small size, driving more slowly. This item takes no effect on racers with invincibility items activated. The effects wear off from lowest place to first. Any users with the Mega Mushroom in effect shrink to normal size. Only one Lightning can be in play at a time, and it has a cooldown timer both for the first 30 seconds of a race and for 30 seconds between uses.
Artwork of a Thunder Cloud from Mario Kart Wii. Thunder Cloud
New item in console Mario Kart
A thundercloud hovers over the recipient and strikes it with lightning after 10 seconds. The user shrinks to a very small size for 10 seconds, driving more slowly. Before this happens, the user has higher speed and acceleration while not losing speed when driving off-road, and may pass the cloud to an opponent by bumping into them. The Thunder Cloud can be destroyed if the driver goes into a cannon or uses a Star or Mega Mushroom. Only one Thunder Cloud can be in play at a time.
Artwork of a Bob-omb, from Mario Kart Wii. Bob-omb Blows up a racer anywhere on the track. It has the same effect as the Spiny Shell, except that it can be lobbed or tossed backwards just like a Banana.
A Blooper from New Super Mario Bros. Blooper Squirts ink on any racer ahead of the user, partially obscuring vision. It eventually wears off, but it can be immediately removed by a speed boost from a Mushroom, boost tile, etc. The higher the player's position is, the more their vision is obscured. Only one Blooper can be in play at a time, and it has a cooldown timer both for the first 15 seconds of a race and for 15 seconds between uses.
Artwork of Bullet Bill, from Mario Kart Wii. Bullet Bill Transforms the racer into a large Bullet Bill, which rockets down the entire track at very high speeds on autopilot. The Bullet Bill provides total invincibility and will knock over any item, any course hazard, and any player that is in the way, making them lose or drop all their items. Only one Bullet Bill can be in play at a time.
Artwork of a POW Block, from Mario Kart Wii. POW Block
New item
The POW Block appears above the karts as a 2D image, warning players of its arrival, and causes any racer on the ground ahead of the user to spin out and drop their items. Players who deploy the wheelie button at the moment the POW Block hits mitigate the spinout by retaining their speed. Players can also be airborne to avoid the POW Block, as the POW Block will not affect any racer that is in the air. Only one POW Block can be in play at a time, and it has a cooldown timer both for the first 20 seconds of a race and for 20 seconds between uses.

Differences in multiplayer modes

As in the previous games in the Mario Kart series, there are several small changes made to the courses in split-screen mode, most likely to preserve the frame-rate.

  • At the start of a race, Lakitu is next to the player driver, slightly facing the side of the track. In single player mode, he is in front of the player driver, facing the camera. This only counts for races, however, as Lakitu always starts next to the player when in a battle.
  • The question marks in the Item Boxes spin around with the box. They are static in single player mode.
  • Frame-rate slows to 30 frames per second if the screen is split 4 ways or is in Two Player Online.
  • The fourth screen in local three player play displays a dynamic camera that rotates between the three player drivers.
  • CPUs do not animate. In Battle Mode, their voices are also absent.
  • There are no tourists on the Sunshine cruise ship in GCN Peach Beach.
  • Boos do not animate in SNES Ghost Valley 2.
  • In GCN Waluigi Stadium, the metal Piranha Plants do not move their jaws, and the moving arrow signs and the Jumbotron are absent as in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
  • There are no Miis in the stores in Coconut Mall.
  • The crowd in Mario Circuit, Toad's Factory, Daisy Circuit, and DS Delfino Square do not animate.
  • No tourists are on the ship in N64 DK's Jungle Parkway.
  • The Jumbotron at Funky Stadium does not show the human player; instead it shows a picture of Funky Kong's face with the words "Funky Stadium".
  • Star Bits are missing in Rainbow Road.

Staff

Main article: List of Mario Kart Wii staff

Consistent with the rest of the console Mario Kart series, Mario Kart Wii is developed by Nintendo EAD. Shigeru Miyamoto is the general producer of the game, with the producer being Hideki Konno, who had been consistently involved with the Mario Kart series since the first installment, except Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, and the executive producer being Satoru Iwata. Yasuyuki Oyagi directed the game, having co-directed the series since Mario Kart 64 barring Mario Kart: Super Circuit, though Mario Kart Wii was the first installment he was the sole director of and the last installment he directed, becoming a co-producer later on. Mario Kart Wii was the debut of Kosuke Yabuki as a planner; he would later become key staff and serving a director role in later Mario Kart installments.

Reception

Critical reception

Mario Kart Wii has received positive reviews from critics. It has an average score of 82.07% from 74 reviews in GameRankings and an average of 82 based on 73 reviews on Metacritic.[9][10]

Bozon of IGN gave the game an 8.5 out of 10, praising the online play, the presentation, and the gameplay but criticizing the cheap AI in 150cc, the lack of voice chat, reliance on friend codes, and the random items. He finished off with, "Every player is going to have their own love/hate relationship with Mario Kart Wii, but in the end the game does so many things right that it'd be foolish not to give credit where due. Online seriously raises the bar for Nintendo, trumping even Smash in a big, big way. The sense of community you can get even with random racers online and ghost-supported leader boards is impressive, and the fact that you can head on to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection solo, with a friend via split-screen, or hook up with buddies across the world without worry of lag and never-ending disconnect notices makes Mario Kart Wii a pure joy to play online. It isn't the best Mario Kart in the series, but it's a must-play experience on Wii, and standard-setting offering as far as online, channel support, and connectivity are concerned. Now if you'll excuse us, we've got some online stats to obsess over."[11] Sammy Barker of Nintendo Life praised the game for its polished gameplay and being well-thought and brilliant. Though he criticized the presentation, he wrote, "Poor presentation should not be an issue in this generation of gaming, particularly with the other consoles doing it so well, but, thankfully for us (as Wii owners), this game is a living, breathing example of gameplay over graphics." He gave the game 9/10 stars.[12] Oli Welsh of Eurogamer gave the game a score of 8/10. He praised the presentation of the game, the use of the Wii Wheel, and the smooth gameplay while criticizing the Battle Mode and the single player exclusive Grand Prix mode (though this was revised after being informed by Nintendo that four sequences of races with friends is still possible). He wrote, "Ultimately, the sheer sensory pleasure of playing Mario Kart Wii - from the charming animations, to the bopping tunes, to the sugar-rush boosting, to the exquisite steering - far overcomes the few concerns we have about it. It still has to be docked a mark for the awkward structure and compromised battle modes - but it's still unreservedly recommended to anyone for whom Mario Kart is a gaming cornerstone. And really, that should be everyone."[13]

Ryan Davis of Giant Bomb criticized the game for being safe. He wrote, "Mario Kart Wii is a good game stunted by its audience's apparently insatiable appetite for the exact same thing, over and over again. The addition of online play and motion controls are good, but they're also the most predictable choices possible. Personally, I'm completely tired of getting exactly what I expect." He gave the game a 3 out of 5 stars.[14] Edge gave the game 6/10, criticizing the game's compromising local, splitscreen multiplayer for online play. They ended with "Undercutting local multiplayer to benefit the online movement is a grievous error. Of all the multiplayer franchises, we struggle to think of a title in which four friends sat side by side seemed more natural. Having sacrificed racing integrity in Double Dash to side with social silliness, Nintendo has turned 180 degrees into an awkward halfway house. It’s a residence from where it has attempted to regain time-trial credentials with the loosest racing yet, and sees the company finally find its online feet by betraying one of its great pastimes. Perhaps first place in Mario Kart Wii isn’t the least enjoyable location in gaming after all."[15]

Reviews
Reviewer, Publication Score Comment
Nintendo Power 9/10 With more features, modes and multiplayer options than ever before, fans should be revved up to get behind the wheel. [May 2008, p.86].
Official Nintendo Magazine UK 9.4/10 A fantastic racer and the best online Nintendo game ever. [Apr 2008, p.58]
Bozon, IGN 8.5/10 There are some things that feel completely out of whack though, such as the uncharacteristically cheap AI in 150cc, the lack of voice chat for an extremely social online game, reliance on friend codes, and "everyone's a winner" feeling you get when random items show up and completely turn the game upside down in an instant.
Bryn Williams, GameSpy 4.5/5 The offline and online content is extremely entertaining and the pursuit of casual and hardcore karting has never been this much fun.
Greg Leahy, Nintendo World Report 8.5/10 Mario Kart Wii is ultimately much the same game as Mario Kart DS, but this is forgivable due to its drastically improved online functionality along with some welcome gameplay additions and tweaks.
Lark Anderson, GameSpot 8.5/10 Mario Kart Wii offers varied multiplayer and thoroughly integrated online modes that will keep you coming back for more.
Oli Welsh, Eurogamer 8/10 Ultimately, the sheer sensory pleasure of playing Mario Kart Wii - from the charming animations, to the bopping tunes, to the sugar-rush boosting, to the exquisite steering - far overcomes the few concerns we have about it. It still has to be docked a mark for the awkward structure and compromised multiplayer modes - but it's still unreservedly recommended to anyone for whom Mario Kart is a gaming cornerstone.
Electronic Gaming Monthly 6.4/10 While Mario Kart Wii is predictably similar to its predecessors, something has changed with this installment. Something that makes it feel subtly unlike other Mario Karts--and not a change for the better. [June 2008, p.73]
Edge Magazine 6/10 Having sacrificed racing integrity in "Double Dash" to side with social silliness, Nintendo has turned 180 degrees into an awkward halfway house. [May 2008, p.86]
Chris Kohler, Wired 6/10 [Mario Kart Wii's Battle Mode] is no longer a last-man-standing contest: Matches now last three minutes each, and if your kart takes too much damage, don't worry! You'll just respawn. Even worse, all battles are now played in teams of two. So while you can still have four human players, they can't all face off against each other -- and what's the point of that?
Ryan Davis, Giant Bomb 6/10 Personally, I’m completely tired of getting exactly what I expect.
Aggregators
Compiler Platform / Score
Metacritic 82
GameRankings 82.07%

Awards

Mario Kart Wii won the "Favorite Video Game" award at the Nickelodeon 2010 Kids' Choice Awards, beating out The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, Wii Fit, and Wii Sports Resort. The game won the Best Online Multiplayer Game from IGN in 2008.[16] In the Guinness World Records 2010 Gamer's Edition, Mario Kart Wii won the "Best-selling racing game" accolade.[17]

Sales

In the week of May 4, 2008 in Japan, Mario Kart Wii became the best-selling game for the Wii, having sold over a million copies in Japan, less than a month after its release.[18] In the UK, Mario Kart Wii was the 8th biggest selling video game in British history and the single best-selling Nintendo game in history.[19] In the United States, at the month's release, Mario Kart Wii was the second best-seller at 1.12 million copies, being beaten out by the Xbox 360 version of Grand Theft Auto IV, but outselling the PS3 version of Grand Theft Auto IV.[20] Mario Kart Wii currently is the second best-selling game on the Wii, beaten out by Wii Sports, and in turn the best-selling Super Mario game on the system; the game has sold a total of 37.38 million units as of December 31, 2020, and was originally the best-selling Mario Kart game and the best-selling racing video game of all time, before being overtaken by Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in September 30, 2021.

Promotion

Main article: List of Mario Kart Wii trading cards

Trading cards were released to celebrate the release of Mario Kart Wii. Trading card packs additionally included tattoos called FunTats.

For the marketing of Mario Kart Wii in the United States only, Nintendo of America did a series of three commercials starring Cowboy Jed, primarily to promote their slogan for this game: "Get Behind The Wheel!". The slogan focuses on the Wii Wheel, Nintendo's targeted gameplay control, as stated earlier in this article.

Pre-release and unused content

Main article: List of Mario Kart Wii pre-release and unused content

Unused graphics have been found depicting icons for a Hammer Bro, a Koopa Paratroopa, and Petey Piranha, presumably being an extra character for each weight class. An outfit for the NPC Miis has also been found, which resembles a Toad.

Glitches

Main article: List of Mario Kart Wii glitches

Note: All names are conjectural unless otherwise specified.

Blue Fake Item Boxes in a Solo Race

The blue Fake Item Box, normally restricted to team races, can appear in solo races due to a glitch.
A glitch involving the appearance of blue Fake Item Boxes in a solo race in Mario Kart Wii.

If the player selects a team race or battle mode first and chooses the blue team, then exits and plays solo Vs. mode, the Fake Item Boxes will be blue instead of red.

Thirteen players online

Rarely, when a player finishes a race and leaves the results screen, the top left corner will say, "The next match might have 13 players", although it should say 12. It is also possible, although unlikely, to say more than 13 players (i.e. "The next match might have 14 players"). The reason is, that during matchmaking the Wiis are counted, but not the players. A Wii with 2 players uses 2 racing slots of 12 total, but is counted only as one. The next match will never have more than 12 players, though.

Grumble Volcano rock lap glitch

If the player manages to get on top of the large rock to the left of the starting line in Grumble Volcano, each time they drive around it, the game will act as if the player completed a lap, and it will count a lap for the player.

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Mario Kart Wii.

Music and sound

Technically, this is the first game before Mario Kart 8 to feature revamped music for retro courses. In this case, the SNES and GBA tracks received revamped songs, as well as some of the battle stages. Tracks from the N64 and DS had their songs slightly enhanced in sound quality. The GCN tracks, however, remained relatively the same. This trait is also kept in Mario Kart 7 as well. It is also the first and currently only game that cuts off the tracks' intros in the final lap.

The soundtrack was created using Best Service's Advanced Orchestra and Gigapack, EastWest's Stormdrum and Quantum Leap Brass, E-MU Systems' Proteus/3, Korg Triton Le, ILIO's Synclavier Essential Percussion and World & Orchestra, Roland's D-550, Fantom X7 and Sound Canvas SC-8850, Spectrasonics' Distorted Reality and Supreme Beats, Ueberschall's House Essentials and Zero-G's Jungle Warfare.[21]

Soundtrack

Main article: Mario Kart Wii Platinum Soundtrack

An official soundtrack was released in 2011 by Club Nintendo as a Platinum reward featuring 43 songs from the game itself.

Media

For a complete list of media for this subject, see List of Mario Kart Wii media.
Audio.svg Title Screen - The music for the Title Screen
File infoMedia:MKW-Title.oga
0:30
Audio.svg Mario Circuit and Luigi Circuit - The music for Mario Circuit and Luigi Circuit
File infoMedia:MKW Mario and Luigi Circuit Theme.oga
0:30
Audio.svg Rainbow Road - The music for Rainbow Road
File infoMedia:MKW Rainbow Road Theme.oga
0:30
Audio.svg Credits Pt. 1 - The theme for the first part of the credits
File infoMedia:MKW Credits Part 1.oga
0:30
Help:MediaHaving trouble playing?

References to other games

Star Bits in Rainbow Road
  • All past Mario Kart games: Half of the courses are taken from those games in the Retro Grand Prix, while half of the Battle courses are taken from those games under Retro Battle Course.
  • Mario Bros.: The POW Block's logo appears in some of the cars in Moonview Highway. It also returns as an item.
  • Super Mario Bros.: Various items from said game appear in the background of the Battle course Block Plaza, Super Mario Bros.-style. Additionally, the first seconds of the course Bowser's Castle theme resemble the music played in that game by its instruments. Also, the tune that plays in the award ceremony is a cover version of the tune that plays when Mario/Luigi beats a castle. When bumped into, a racer's vehicle makes one of several beeping noises, one of which is the first six notes of the Ground Theme, and another is the power-up sound effect.
  • Super Mario Bros. 3: The license plates on some of the trucks read "SMB3", the abbreviation of Super Mario Bros. 3. They also say "POW" as a reference to the item that causes earthquakes.
  • Famicom Grand Prix II: 3D Hot Rally: The Tiny Titan was inspired by the Monster.
  • Super Mario Kart: Ghost Valley 2 and Mario Circuit 3 return as retro courses, and Battle Course 4 returns as a playable battle course. Also, part of the music that plays during the Award Ceremony (if drivers win a Trophy) is the same as in the same scenario in Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
  • Super Mario 64: Unagi appear in the background of Koopa Cape and Chain Chomp Wheel.
  • Mario Kart 64: Mario Raceway, Sherbet Land, DK's Jungle Parkway, and Bowser's Castle return as retro courses, and Skyscraper returns as a playable battle course. Also, the course Moo Moo Meadows is based on Moo Moo Farm, and Block Plaza has parts of Block Fort. Also, part of the music that plays during the Award Ceremony (if drivers win a Trophy) is the same as in the same scenario in Mario Kart 64, Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart: Super Circuit.
  • Mario Kart: Super Circuit: Shy Guy Beach and Bowser Castle 3 return as retro courses, and Battle Course 3 returns as a playable battle course. Also, the Yoshi Sphinx from the background of Yoshi Desert returns as a part of the race course Dry Dry Ruins. Part of the music that plays during the Award Ceremony (if drivers win a Trophy) is the same as in the same scenario in Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64.
  • Super Mario Sunshine: The battle stage Delfino Pier is based on Delfino Plaza. Also, the course Coconut Mall is seemingly located on Isle Delfino.
  • WarioWare series: The Wario Bike appears as a selectable vehicle.
  • Mario Kart: Double Dash!!: Peach Beach, Waluigi Stadium, Mario Circuit, and DK Mountain return as retro courses, and Cookie Land returns as a playable battle course, and all of these courses retain their intros as retro tracks. Also, Daisy Cruiser cameos in the background of Daisy Circuit, Block Plaza has parts of Block City, the course Dry Dry Ruins has the same starting point as Dry Dry Desert, and finally, the character icons and the starting race jingle for Grand Prix races was also recycled from that game for VS. and Grand Prix races in this game, along with the 3-2-1 starting countdown, but with "GO!" at the end instead of "START". Some of the animations seen for the driver selection process (excluding the new drivers introduced for this game) are ported character models from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, with only a few characters receiving noticeable changes. On the save file/driver's license screen, the Star Cup uses the same icon.
  • Mario Party 7: Dry Bones and Boo's artwork can be seen in Bowser's Castle on the Showtime billboard. Some of Birdo's voice clips are reused from this game.
  • Mario Kart DS: Yoshi Falls, Delfino Square, Desert Hills, and Peach Gardens return as retro courses, and Twilight House returns as a playable battle course, and just like Double Dash!!, all of the courses' intros return in this game as well. Also, the course DK Summit has derived many elements from DK Pass, and the course Dry Dry Ruins has similar music to that of Desert Hills, and finally, the countdown sound effect for starting races and battles are recycled from that game to signal the start of the race in Grand Prix, Time Trial, and VS mode. The Zipper is a bike that relates to the Shooting Star and the ROB-LGS acts like the Standard Bikes in the game. The opening portion of the theme for Rainbow Road is taken from Rainbow Road's music from this game.
  • New Super Mario Bros.: Various features in the game are derived from their New Super Mario Bros.-look, such as the hills and outcrops of Luigi Circuit and the flowers and mushrooms of Moo Moo Meadows. The Mega Mushroom is an item in the game. The mushroom platforms in Mushroom Gorge is based on the mushroom platforms in said game, with the red ones being "bouncy", and the green ones more like solid platforms. Grumble Volcano is similar to World 8 of New Super Mario Bros. Also, Dry Bowser, who first appears in New Super Mario Bros., returns to Mario Kart Wii as his second appearance.
  • Mario Kart Arcade GP 2: Princess Peach's profile artwork is reused.
  • Mario Strikers Charged: Several voice clips are reused from this game.
  • Mario Party 8: Several voice clips are reused from this game. Daisy's artwork from this game is also reused, but with her kart added to it.
  • Donkey Kong Barrel Blast: Several of Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Funky Kong's voice clips are reused from this game.
  • Super Mario Galaxy: Rainbow Road has several elements from said game, such as Star Bits or a section based on Launch Stars, and portions of the Good Egg Galaxy's music is heard for the course's music. Maple Treeway resembles the Gold Leaf Galaxy. The battle course Galaxy Colosseum is also heavily based on Super Mario Galaxy. Additionally, Spiky Topmen are the enemies in the June 2008 1st Competition. Also, Rosalina, who first appears in Super Mario Galaxy, returns to Mario Kart Wii as her second appearance.

References in later games

Toad + Quacker trophy from Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
The Quacker trophy from Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Names in other languages

Language Name Meaning
Japanese マリオカートWii
Mario Kāto Wī
Mario Kart Wii

Chinese (simplified) 马力欧卡丁车Wii[22]
Mǎlìōu Kǎdīngchē Wii
Mario Kart Wii

Chinese (traditional) 瑪利歐賽車 Wii[23]
Mǎlìōu Sàichē Wii
Mario Racing Wii

Korean 마리오 카트 Wii
Mario Kateu Wii
Mario Kart Wii

Trivia

  • The save data description is "Race for first!" in the NTSC version and "Race for 1st place!" in the PAL version.
  • In the opening cutscene, Peach can be seen racing with her hair untied. She always wears a ponytail in-game.

References

  1. ^ Club Nintendo (MX) issue 198, page 76.
  2. ^ IR Information : Sales Data - Top Selling Software Sales Unites - Wii Software (as of September 30, 2023)
  3. ^ Wii - Mario Kart Wii - Country Flags - The Spriters Resource
  4. ^ IGN: Update: Mario Kart Wii Text Chat Details
  5. ^ a b Mario Kart Wii Stat Table
  6. ^ A direct transcription of the content of the driverparam.bin and kartParam.bin files in the /Race/Common.szs archive of the filesystem of Mario Kart Wii.
  7. ^ driverParam.bin. Custom Mario Kart Wiiki. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  8. ^ kartParam.bin. Custom Mario Kart Wiiki. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  9. ^ GameRankings score for Mario Kart Wii. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  10. ^ Metacritic score for Mario Kart Wii. Metacritic. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  11. ^ Bozon (Apr 20, 2008) Mario Kart Wii Review. IGN. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  12. ^ Barker, Sammy (April 14, 2008) Review: Mario Kart Wii. Nintendo Life. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  13. ^ Welsh, Oli. (March 20, 2008) Mario Kart Wii Review. Eurogamer. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  14. ^ Davis, Ryan (May 7, 2008) Mario Kart Wii review. Giant Bomb. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  15. ^ Mario Kart Wii review. Edge. Retrieved December 11, 2013.
  16. ^ IGN Wii: Best Online Multiplayer Game. IGN. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  17. ^ Funk, John (May 21, 2010) Mario's Ten Best Guinness World Records. The Escapist. Retrieved March 7, 2018.
  18. ^ McWhertor, Michael. (March 8, 2008). Ain't No Stopping Mario Kart Wii In Japan. Kotaku. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  19. ^ Sales Charts British Sales Charts. Kotaku. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  20. ^ Sinclair, Brendan. (June 5, 2008) NPD: US April game revs spike on GTAIV. GameSpot. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  21. ^ https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JJBlHHDc65fhZmKUGLrDTLCm6rfUU83-kbuD8Y0zU0o/edit?pli=1#gid=717751203
  22. ^ https://weibo.com/6154885380/GsVVdcTql
  23. ^ https://www.nintendo.com.hk/wii/wii_software.html

External links