Toad Circuit
- This article is about the race course from Mario Kart 7. For its musical theme, see Toad Circuit (theme).
- “…Then there's Toad Circuit. Look how pumped Toad is! I'd be pretty happy too if there was a giant 'me' floating around.”
- —Jordan, Play Nintendo[1]
Toad Circuit is the introductory course of Mario Kart 7, serving as the first race of the Mushroom Cup. It takes place at a basic circuit where giant balloons of various Toads are seen floating throughout it. This course appears on the cover art of Mario Kart 7, and the award ceremony also takes place on this course at the end of a Grand Prix. It shares its music with Mario Circuit.
Toad Circuit reappears in Mario Kart Tour, debuting in the New York Tour alongside the rest of Mario Kart 7's Mushroom Cup, and in the Booster Course Pass DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as the second course of the Golden Dash Cup.
Mario Kart 7[edit]
Course layout[edit]
The course is a simple circuit with few obstacles, as it is the first course in the game and is thus comparable to Luigi Circuit in previous installments (except for Mario Kart: Super Circuit). Giant mushrooms are seen throughout the track in different sizes and three large balloons of Toads (red, blue, and yellow) are floating along the track as well. Banners of Toad himself can be seen throughout the course with the accompanying Mario Kart logo. The track begins on a long straightaway that is partially suspended over another part of the track and leading to the first row of Item Boxes. It is followed by a 270° right turn, before straightening out and crossing under the first part of the track. There is a brief split around the poles holding up the bridge, with Dash Panels along each side and traffic cones positioned between them. After 40 seconds pass, a Glide Ramp rises from the ground in front of the overpass, allowing the player to use their glider and glide over it. Players are counted out of bounds and will be rescued by Lakitu if they land on the overpass. What follows is a tunnel with the second row of Item Boxes at its mouth. The tunnel itself is a left turn. To end the course, there is one right turn and then one small left towards the third and final row of Item Boxes and then one final left turn to the ending straighaway and the finish line.
There is a pair of toadstools displayed on the touch screen map that are not present in the actual course itself; these were restored when the course was remade for Mario Kart Tour.
Shortcuts[edit]
- The first 270° turn features and off-road patch that may be taken using boosting items. To fully take the shortcut, a minimum of three Dash Mushrooms are required.
- After the tunnel, there is a ramp in a sand pit to the left. A Dash Mushroom or other boosting item may be used to cross.
- If the player is using a vehicle with sufficient off-road, they may access this ramp completely itemless.
- The final turn features a large off-road patch with pipes that can be passed with a Dash Mushroom or other boosting item.
Glitches[edit]
There is an Item Box glitch in this course in Mario Kart 7. It involves using the Glide Ramp which is accessible on laps 2 and 3. The player should glide to the right, where there is a row of Item Boxes on the bridge, and swoop down to collect one without going too close to the road and being counted out of bounds. When the player does this, the game will assume for a fraction of a second that the player is all the way back at the bridge and thus momentarily changes their placement to last (unless another player is even further behind). By quickly returning to the track after the bridge, and not flying towards the Toad balloon on the right (which will also count the player out of bounds), a player in any position can therefore hold very good items.[2]
Mario Kart Tour[edit]
Toad Circuit makes its classic course debut in Mario Kart Tour, starting with the New York Tour. The course is played for the tutorial, and when an update is being downloaded. This effectively makes Toad Circuit the flagship course of the game, as players can drive around it in every tour, even when it does not appear in one. In the version that can be played when downloading updates, there are ramps before the tunnel. Other than graphical improvements, the course remains almost the same as its original appearance.
The course also appears as Toad Circuit R (reversed), Toad Circuit T (with ramps), and Toad Circuit R/T (reversed with ramps). The former two debuted alongside the base variant in the New York Tour, while the latter debuted in the 2020 New Year's Tour. In the R variant, two Goombas and many dash panels appear on the track. In the T and R/T variants, many small pipes appear along the track as ramps.
Appearances[edit]
For this course's tour appearances, see List of 3DS Toad Circuit tour appearances in Mario Kart Tour.
Top-tier and middle-tier items[edit]
Select "show" to reveal the drivers, karts, and gliders for which 3DS Toad Circuit and its variants are always favored or favorite courses. For instances in which additional drivers, karts, and gliders temporarily had this course and its variants as favored or favorite courses, see List of 3DS Toad Circuit tour appearances in Mario Kart Tour.
