Super Bell Subway
- This article is about the race course from Mario Kart 8. For its musical theme, see Super Bell Subway (theme).
| Super Bell Subway | |||||||||||||||
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| Appears in | Mario Kart 8 (DLC Pack 2) (2015) Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017) | ||||||||||||||
| Cup | Bell Cup | ||||||||||||||
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Super Bell Subway is the third race course of the Bell Cup. The course is included with the Animal Crossing × Mario Kart 8 downloadable content in Mario Kart 8 as well as the base content of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The course is located in the Golden Bell, a subway station,[1] going through both the station and the tunnels. Similarly to Dolphin Shoals, this course has two music themes that change mid-race depending on whether the highest-placed human player is in the station segment or the subway proper. Highlight Reels instead use an extended version of the station theme for the whole course.
Course layout[edit]
The track starts in the station with a hairpin turn going to the left. This leads into automatic barriers that open to let the players through to stairs that lead down into the subway.
The subway has trains running along the tracks and has a winding layout. There are three raised platforms can be reached. Each path to the raised platform features two Item Boxes, with one always being a Double Item Box. The first path can be reached near the second row of Item Boxes, to the left of the main road. The second is reached on the following turn, this time it is on the right side of the main road with the subway tracks. The third and final raised platform is reached to the left of the third row of Item Boxes. This path ends in a Glide Ramp while the other two end in an ordinary ramp. Each path can be used to drop down on top of and ride the trains, though it is easiest to do so from the second path. Each train has a Dash Panel on top of its locomotive car and its caboose that also act as ramps that can be tricked off of.
A right turn is taken to exit the subway where the train tracks split up. This short straightaway features two Dash Panels on the rails that deactivate if a train is going across them. On each side of these Dash Panels, are stairs that lead to a ramp. This all leads to a short set of stairs with the final row of Item Boxes and that lead up back into the station with another set of stairs taking the players to the last bend before the final straighaway to the finish line. There are also various spectators consisting of Yoshis, Toads, Shy Guys, and Piantas sitting, standing, jumping and waving.
Shortcuts[edit]
- Throughout the underground section of the course, a Dash Mushroom or a Super Star can be used over gravel sections cutting off turns in the track. There are five of these gravel sections and they are as follows:
- The turn before the second row of Item Boxes
- The turn following the second row of Item Boxes
- The turn before the third row of Item Boxes
- The turn with the third row of Item Boxes (this patch is much larger than the other four and requires a minimum of two Dash Mushrooms to fully execute)
- The turn prior to exiting the subway section of the course.
- On the final turn of the course, a shortcut can be performed through a grass patch next to the Golden Bell Fountain with a Dash Mushroom or a Super Star.
References to other Super Mario games[edit]
This course features several references to other courses in the game and other games in the Super Mario franchise.
- Several shops appear along the sides of the raceway that make appearances elsewhere in Mario Kart 8, such as Yoshi's Egg Market.
- The map at the starting line of the track appears to connect nearly all of the raceways that appear in Mario Kart 8.[1] Several other detailed maps by the subway lines also include the names of playable courses and the in-game business advertisements.[2] Much like an actual subway, there are exits for different stations written on signs above the track stating the names of various courses.[1]
- On a related note, the city map is the only place in the original Mario Kart 8 where Wendy O. Koopa's company, Wendy's Car Interiors, is mentioned, though in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Wii Coconut Mall features banners advertising the company.
- The station is shown as having the station numbers "O4", "B6" and "R4"; in several places these icons are arranged on signs to spell "64", referencing Mario Kart 64.[3]
- When in the subway, this track's music contains pieces of "Underground BGM" from Super Mario Bros., much like 3DS Piranha Plant Slide.
- World 1-2 from Super Mario Bros. is shown on the graffiti found in the underground section.[4]
- The graffiti also references Bullet Bills, Warp Pipes, Koopa Troopas, and a Piranha Plant; this is located before the World 1-2 graffiti under the ramp. The graffiti near the World 1-2 graffiti references the Koopalings.[4]
- The Toads in the ticket booth use feather pens designed after Cape Feathers, just like in Sunshine Airport.
Sponsors[edit]
- 1-Up Fuel (Local information map (Exit C, D3), posters)
- 1-Up Mushroom Car Insurance Group (Local information map (Exit A, A3/B2/B3/C4), posters)
- 100% Organic Antifreeze (Local information map (Exit A, B2), posters)
- BaNaNa Boy (Cans, local information map (Exit A, B3/C3))
- Bob-omb Plugs (Graffiti)
- Boomerang Bros. International Airlines (Local information map (Exit A, B3/B4/C3))
- Bowser Oil (Local information map (Exit A, B3/C3))
- Bullet Bill Speed Trial (Cans, local information map (Exit B, D3))
- Burning DK (Bottles, local information map (Exit A, B4), vending machines)
- Chain Chomp Racing Chains (Local information map (Exit C, D2))
- Coconut Cafe (Shop)
- Dream Gliders (Local information map (Exit A, A4))
- Fountain Cafe (Bottles, posters)
- Fun Flower (Shop)
- Galaxy Air (Posters)
- Green Service (Local information map (Exit A, B4))
- Green Shell Taxi (Local information map (Exit C, D3))
- Lemmy's Tire Service (Local information map (Exit B, C2))
- Ludwig Painting (Graffiti, local information map (Exit A, A4)
- Luigi Gusters (Local information map (Exit A, B3))
- Mario Super Motor Team (Local information map (Exit A, A2/A3))
- Mario Kart TV (Posters)
- Moo Moo Meadows Milk (Cartons, menus, stickers, vending machines)
- Morton Construction (Local information map (Exit B, D2))
- Mushroom Piston (Local information map (Exit B, A3/C2))
- Paratroopa Airlines (Local information map (Exit A, A3))
- Peach & Daisy Royal Patisserie (Bottles, menus, posters)
- Princess Orange (Bottles, local information map (Exit A, C4), menus, posters, trackside banners)
- Rainbow Exploration Agency (Local information map (Exit A, B4), posters)
- Red Shell Strike Equipment (Local information map (Exit B, D2))
- Roy Smooth Sounds (Bottles)
- Sunshine Parts (Local information map (Exit A, A3))
- Tropical Bakery (Bottles, shop)
- Undead Motors (Cans, local information map (Exit C, D2))
- Wario Billionaires (Local information map (Exit A, C2/C4))
- Wendy's Car Interiors (Local information map (Exit C, D3))
- Yoshi's Egg Market (Bottles, local information map (Exit A, A4), posters)
Courses[edit]
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Gallery[edit]
The course icon
The full course icon
Results screen
Toad performing a trick towards the train section
Wario driving through the tunnel section of the track
The portion of the track referencing World 1-2 from Super Mario Bros.
Dry Bowser gliding on the track
Princess Daisy and Baby Rosalina racing on the track
Donkey Kong and Rosalina racing on the track
Various signs found across the subway
The map of the city found in the subway
The graffiti found across the subway
Naming[edit]
Internal names[edit]
| Game | File | Name | Meaning
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|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Kart 8/Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | Du_Metro | DLC U Metro |
Names in other languages[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Note(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | リンリンメトロ Rinrin Metoro |
Literally "Ring-Ring Metro"; officially "Ring-a-Ling Metro"[5] | [6] | |
| Chinese (Simplified) | 铃铃地铁 Línglíng Dìtiě (Mandarin) Lìhnglíng Deihtit (Cantonese) |
Bell Bell Metro | [6] | |
| Chinese (Traditional) | 鈴鈴地鐵 Línglíng Dìtiě (Mandarin) Lìhnglíng Deihtit (Cantonese) |
Bell Bell Metro | [6] | |
| Dutch | Mario's Metro | - | [6] | |
| French | Métro Turbo | Turbo Metro | [6] | |
| German | Marios Metro | Mario's Metro | [6] | |
| Italian | Mariopolitana | Portmanteau of "Mario" and metropolitana ("subway") | [6] | |
| Korean | 슈퍼 벨 메트로 Syupeo Bel Meteuro |
Super Bell Metro | [6] | |
| Polish | Dzwoneczkowe Metro | Bell Metro | [7] | |
| Portuguese | Metro Mario | Mario Metro | [6] | |
| Russian | Метро Марио Metro Mario |
Mario Metro | [6] | |
| Spanish (Latin America) | Metro Campana | Bell Metro | [6] | |
| Spanish (Europe) | Estación Tilín-Tolón | Ding-Dong Station | [6] | |
| Thai | รถไฟใต้ดินซูเปอร์เบลล์ Rótfaidtâidin Suubpə̂ə Beel |
Super Bell Metro | [7] |
Notes[edit]
- Similarly to Sunshine Airport, Super Bell Subway features a PA voice in the background that can be heard faintly. The female intercom speaks German and says general things often heard in German train stations; however, there are several grammatical errors in the speech.[8]
- Super Bell Subway is one of three new courses in Mario Kart 8 to not feature anti-gravity, the other two being Excitebike Arena and Animal Crossing; it is the only one of these to not be based on another franchise.
- It is revealed in a "Local information" map seen in the course that the subway system is beneath what seems to be the same town as the one seen below N64 Rainbow Road.
- The map has a key showing the location of several sponsors advertised throughout the game, but Morton Construction is listed with a typo as "Moton Construction". This map was the first mention of Wendy's Car Interiors, advertisements for which later appeared in Mario Kart Tour and the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass.
- The sound played when passing through the ticket gate is reused in Mario Kart Tour in Tokyo Blur 3, Tokyo Blur 4, Wii DK Summit, and Wii Moonview Highway.
- Although Super Bell Subway is not present in Mario Kart Tour, the emblem seen on the banners in the course is used for a badge that was released in the 2nd Anniversary Tour (and was present in the game's internal files beforehand). It was also used as the badge representing the 2022 Cat Tour.
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Signs including the Super Bell Subway Rail Map, showing that the station is called Golden Bell
- ^ The City Map found in Super Bell Subway.
- ^ Signage found in Super Bell Subway.
- ^ a b The graffiti found in Super Bell Subway.
- ^ "The name of this course ('Ring-a-Ling Metro' in Japanese) gave me a really strong image, and I worked to create a song that you could imagine singing that title to. We wanted it to have a European metro feel, and so used vintage-sounding tones." —Liner notes in the Mario Kart 8 Original Soundtrack
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l String 1495 in file UI/<language>/message.sarc/Common.msbt. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017). Nintendo EPD et al.
- ^ a b Mario Kart World Pause Menu (Ver 1.5.0, 1.7.0)
- ^ Ray Koopa. (May 10, 2015). Mario Kart 8 - Super Bell Subway Intercom is German (kinda). YouTube. Retrieved: May 11, 2015; After YouTube removed annotations as a feature, a German speaker provided this translation in the comments: "40. Attention. The 5:14 ICE runs through (not understandable). 5 to 10 minutes less delay when the train arrives. We ask for your understanding."
