Quarter pipe
| Quarter pipe | |
|---|---|
 A half-pipe on Wii Maple Treeway in Mario Kart Tour | |
| First appearance | Mario Kart Wii (2008) |
| Latest appearance | Mario Kart World (2025) |
Quarter pipes,[1] formerly half-pipes[2][3] and halfpipe-style boost ramps,[4] are structures often signaled by vertical dash panels[5] (also known as half-pipe boost pads)[6] that appear in the Mario Kart series, first appearing in Mario Kart Wii. They allow players to jump off the side of a course and perform a Jump Boost to gain a speed boost upon landing. Their panels are cyan, blue, and purple with scrolling white arrows on them and stripes across them, resembling those of a Glide Ramp; despite their alternate North American name, the panels only have a signaling function, not giving any speed boost when touched, which instead happens when the player lands after the jump, regardless of whether the vehicle landed on the quarter pipe or not. Quarter pipes may sometimes cause the player to be sent backwards.
Although formerly referred to as "half-pipes," most of them since their debut have been quarter pipes, with few being true half-pipes (two ramps on opposite sides of the track), like in DK Summit, Waluigi Stadium, and Rosalina's Ice World.
History[edit]
Mario Kart Wii[edit]
In Mario Kart Wii, half-pipes first appear in DK Summit. When a player jumps off one of these ramps, it is possible to perform a trick to receive a longer speed boost. The trick performed is the same one that is performed when the player jumps off a Dash Panel.
Mario Kart Tour[edit]
After being absent from Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, half-pipes return in Mario Kart Tour, first appearing on Wii Maple Treeway. In this game, their mechanics are slightly altered in that the Jump Boost is automatically performed as soon as the vertical jump starts, but if the jump is high enough, a second trick, called a special trick, is performed. When this happens, the speed boost received upon landing is longer.
A different type of half-pipe, known as a super half-pipe,[2] is introduced in this game and appears only on Merry Mountain. It visually differs from a regular half-pipe with its magenta color. Compared to a regular half-pipe, a super half-pipe leads to a longer boost upon a player landing without the need of a special trick, which cannot be performed when a player jumps from a super half-pipe. The super half-pipe also has a unique sound effect.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe[edit]
In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, half-pipes appear exclusively in courses added in the Booster Course Pass DLC. Rather than using arrows, they take on the appearance of Antigravity Panels, and briefly enable anti-gravity while the player is airborne. On Merry Mountain, a normal half-pipe replaces the super half-pipe present in the Mario Kart Tour version.
Mario Kart World[edit]
Quarter pipes, now correctly referred to as such, make sporadic appearances in Mario Kart World. In races, they appear in the ending section of DK Pass, in Peach Beach, Crown City's Shell Cup and VS Race routeless variants, on the sides of Mario Circuit, and most commonly on certain routes. They also appear in some courses in areas accessible by Free Roam only, such as Dino Dino Jungle and Dry Bones Burnout. On some occasions, quarter pipes appear on both sides of the road to form a proper half-pipe.
Unlike previous appearances, quarter pipes are no longer marked by a specific type of panel. The player does not gain a speed boost upon landing unless they perform a trick, and the speed boost does not stop the player from being slowed down by off-road. As with normal ramps in the game, players can continually trick in mid-air.[7]
Courses with quarter pipes[edit]
Courses with required quarter pipes are marked with an asterisk (*), and battle courses are marked with a caret (^). A dash (–) indicates that the course cannot appear as a classic course in a previous game, due to it being present as a new course in its respective game.
| Course | Original game | Mario Kart Wii | Mario Kart Tour | Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass | Mario Kart World |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yoshi Valley | Mario Kart 64 | 
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| Waluigi Stadium | Mario Kart: Double Dash!! |
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| Peach Beach | Mario Kart: Double Dash!! |
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| DK Mountain | Mario Kart: Double Dash!! |
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| DK Pass | Mario Kart DS |
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| DK Summit | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Wario's Gold Mine | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Koopa Cape | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Maple Treeway | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Dry Dry Ruins | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Bowser's Castle | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Rainbow Road* | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Funky Stadium^ | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Chain Chomp Wheel^ | Mario Kart Wii |
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| Rosalina's Ice World | Mario Kart 7 | – |
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| Los Angeles Laps | Mario Kart Tour | – |
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| Merry Mountain | Mario Kart Tour | – | a
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| Athens Dash | Mario Kart Tour | – |
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| Squeaky Clean Sprint | Mario Kart 8 Deluxe / Mario Kart Tour | – |
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| Piranha Plant Pipeline | Mario Kart Tour | – |
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| Crown City | Mario Kart World | – | – | – | b
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| Mario Circuit | Mario Kart World | – | – | – |
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a - The course uses a super half-pipe.
b - Shell Cup and VS Race routeless variants only
Gallery[edit]
The half-pipe on DK Summit in Mario Kart Wii
The super half-pipe on Merry Mountain in Mario Kart Tour
The half-pipe on Merry Mountain in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Names in other languages[edit]
Quarter pipe[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | クオーターパイプ[2][8] Kuōtā paipu |
Quarter-pipe | |
| Chinese | 四分之一水管[9][10] Sì fēnzhī yī shuǐguǎn (Mandarin) |
Quarter-pipe |
Half-pipe[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | ハーフパイプ[2] Hāfu paipu |
Half-pipe | |
| Chinese | U池[2] U-chí (Mandarin) |
Vert ramp | |
| 半管[?] Bànguǎn (Mandarin) |
Half-pipe | ||
| French | Rampe en U[2] | U shaped ramp | |
| Half-pipe[11] | - | ||
| German | Halfpipe[2] | Half-pipe | |
| Italian | Rampa a U[2] | U shaped ramp | |
| Korean | 하프 파이프[2] Hapeu paipeu |
Half-pipe | |
| Portuguese | Rampa em U[2] | U shaped ramp | |
| Spanish | Rampa en U[2] | U shaped ramp |
Super half-pipe[edit]
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | スーパーハーフパイプ[2] Sūpā hāfu paipu |
Super half-pipe | |
| Chinese (simplified) | 超级U池[2] Chāojí U-chí (Mandarin) |
Super half-pipe | |
| Chinese (traditional) | 超級U池[2] Chāojí U-chí (Mandarin) |
Super half-pipe | |
| French | Super rampe en U[2] | Super half-pipe | |
| German | Super-Halfpipe[2] | Super half-pipe | |
| Italian | Super rampa a U[2] | Super half-pipe | |
| Korean | 슈퍼 하프 파이프[2] Syupeo hapeu paipeu |
Super half-pipe | |
| Portuguese | Super-rampa em U[2] | Super half-pipe | |
| Spanish | Superrampa en U[2] | Super half-pipe |
References[edit]
- ^ "Launch off the quarter pipe and get massive air!" – Mission in Mario Circuit. Mario Kart World. Nintendo of America.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Displayed as an action in Mario Kart Tour
- ^ "The giant cannon that fires you to the mountaintop is just the first part of an incredible trip on this snow-covered track. Avoid the deepest drifts and look out for snowboarders as you pull off stunts on the half-pipe!" – Official Mario Kart Wii European website, DK Summit description.
- ^ "A challenging downhill course with a long series of halfpipe-style boost ramps for tricking over heavy snow banks." – Official Mario Kart Wii North American website, DK Summit description.
- ^ Hodgson, David S. J. (April 27, 2008). Mario Kart Wii PRIMA Official Game Guide. Prima Games (American English). ISBN 978-0-7615-5970-2. Page 60, 64, 72, 76, 84, 92, 96, 128, and 156.
- ^ "The plentiful bumps and hills - plus new half-pipe boost pads - make this the best track for tricks." – GCN Waluigi Stadium description. Official Mario Kart Wii North American website (American English).
- ^ https://youtu.be/xGRS9A3-JRU?si=GPS6HiRMYIL3mlAm
- ^ 「いっぱいしょうぶ！クオーターパイプジャンプ」("One shot decides win or loss! Quarter pipe jump") – Mission in Mario Circuit. Mario Kart World. Nintendo Co. (Japanese).
- ^ "一次定胜负！四分之一水管跳跃" ("One shot decides win or loss! Quarter pipe jump") – Mission in Mario Circuit. Mario Kart World. Nintendo (Hong Kong) (Simplified Chinese).
- ^ 「一次定勝負！四分之一水管跳躍」("One shot decides win or loss! Quarter pipe jump") – Mission in Mario Circuit. Mario Kart World. Nintendo (Hong Kong) (Traditional Chinese).
- ^ NintendoFrance (March 6, 2023). Foncez à travers la neige et lancez-vous sur les half-pipes du Pic DK, qui fait son arrivée dans la vague 4 du Pass circuits additionnels de #MarioKart 8 Deluxe !. Twitter. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
