Wii Koopa Cape

Koopa Cape is the second racecourse of the Star Cup in Mario Kart Wii and the first course of the Lightning Cup in Mario Kart 7. The course takes place on an isle of sort, where racers begin the race near to a cliff. The isle in this course also contains a river cutting through a forest and an underwater tunnel for racers to dive into, with a Warp Pipe at both ends. This course is owned by Koopa Troopa, as signs of him and the name of the course itself reveal.

Mario Kart Wii
According to tiny advertising signs on the island, Koopa Cape seems to be located on Shell Island. In the beginning of the course, there is a Dash Panel that will launch the racer to a cliff area, where the racer has to avoid the Goombas walking around. After a sharp turn, the racer will arrive at a river that is rushing forward. This river acts as a pathway for the player and also provides a small speed boost. At the end of the river, there is a waterfall that the player must drive down. Afterwards, the racer will enter a pipe with a glass tunnel inside. The river continues here, and the player has to drive to the Dash Panel ramp at the end of the pipe while avoiding Koopa Zappers. After the ramp, the racer will find a halfpipe and a water current that tries to push the racer off the cliff. The starting/finish line is located past this area. In Mario Kart Wii, the Koopa head at the start of the small cave is replaced by a random Mii's head when there is a Mii in the race. The body is also changed to be a diver outfit.

The music for Koopa Cape comes in four versions in this game alone. The cliff part of the course has a Tropical-sounding tone, the brook part has Country-styled remix, and the submerged glass tunnel part is ambient-sounding. A fourth version is played alongside the cliff and brook parts. The second version of the song is not used in Mario Kart 7.

This is the only unlockable race course in the game to appear in the title screen demo.

Course layout
The player first starts out on a cliff. To the right is a place where the player can fall off and into the water while the left side contains a cliff wall. The player proceeds to the ramp with two Dash Panels on them, plus a row of floating Item Boxes. After driving off the ramp, the player lands on a bigger cliff with some wooden ramps and grass. This area is the area where the player can drive off-road and fall off if they are not careful. Goombas act as obstacles in this area. They simply just spin the player out if the player runs into them and they cough up a Mushroom if the player attacks it with a shell or ram into it while a Star, Mega Mushroom, or Bullet Bill is in effect.

Then, drivers go into a forest involved of trees and Koopa Shell-like stones, featuring a brook where drivers use this as a road to pass the forest. A Koopa Paratroopa billboard can be seen at the brook section of the course. The artwork originated from the game New Super Mario Bros.. The river speeds up the player and there are some item boxes that go with the current of the river. Here, there are two paths. One is through the river while the other is on ramp to perform a stunt through the road with no current at all. On the very right is a red shell tunnel that has item boxes inside of it. On the left turn is an archway. On the left is another ramp to perform tricks on while the other is closer to turning and down the river with no ramps. The player then turns around a buried red shell and into the water via a pipe, following the river as a waterfall through the pipe.

Inside, players run through a glass tunnel where it can be seen some aquatic creatures as Unagi and Cheep Cheeps, while the players must dodge certain obstacles inside the tunnel. Drivers must avoid Koopa Zappers, which shrink any drivers that hit it for a short time, similar to Lightning or Thunder Cloud. The first parts of the tunnel are relatively straight until a turn to the left which makes the player go into the river inside it and Koopa Zappers. It goes straight until a U turn to the right where the river current continues running straight and more Koopa Zappers. After the river ends, there is a ramp directly after a row of item boxes and out of the tunnel via a large pipe. The player comes back to the cliff area. There is a turn right. Two paths can be taken, but one is covered by waterfall, which pushes the player into the water. A half-pipe ramp is to the left of this curve. After the curve is the road to the finish line again, which starts the course again and another lap.

Shortcuts

 * There is a small patch of grass on the left of the ramp (Glide Ramp in Mario Kart 7) which can be cut through with a Mushroom for a minor time save.
 * In the rushing water section there is a tree at the left turn, and behind the tree another patch of grass that can be cut across using a Mushroom, although it can be done without a Mushroom by releasing the Mini-Turbo just before and then hopping.
 * There is grass behind the giant Green Shell stone just before the pipe, which can be cut across with a Mushroom.
 * After the pipe, the waterfall just before the finish line can be cut across with a Mushroom.

Tournaments
The second tournament of August 2008 required players to pass through a total of 25 gates. It was later repeated as the second tournament of August 2010 and January 2012, and the first tournament of April 2013.

Mario Kart 7
In Mario Kart 7, Koopa Cape returns as a retro course. Most of the course remains unchanged. However, there has been an added wall on the right at the starting line. The ramp into the brook has become a glider ramp. The most significant change is that the underwater glass tunnel has had its top removed and is now a true underwater halfpipe. Cheep Cheeps now serve as obstacles in this area, replacing the Koopa Zappers. The "Turn Left" sign does not have a flag in the Koopa's hand, as it uses its New Super Mario Bros. artwork instead. The sign at the beginning of the track now says Lightning Cup instead of Star Cup, due to the course being in the Lightning Cup, and the large Koopa Shell in the background has also been removed.

When playing either locally or online, the Cheep Cheeps and the Unagi in the tunnel are absent. This is also the only Lightning Cup course in the game not to reappear in Mario Kart Tour.

Glitches

 * If the player is to drive up to the top of one the walls at the start of the underwater pipe at a turn then hop at the very moment they reach the top, they would spring high into the air, just high enough to jump out of the water.
 * A difficult glitch shortcut can be performed at the end of the rushing water section in order to skip the pipe entirely. By driving towards the entrance of the pipe, drifting left and using a Mushroom early, it is possible to clip through the fence to the left and land by the finish line. The player must then go backwards to around the beginning of the waterfall to hit the last key checkpoint of the course, and therefore make the lap count. If done fast enough, this glitch saves approximately three seconds.
 * A respawn shortcut can be performed near the beginning of the course by using a Mushroom to gain air time off of the edge of the fence on the right, after the first Dash Panel. If the player gets enough distance, they will activate the out-of-bounds plain for the next key checkpoint and respawn before the Glide Ramp, saving about two seconds.

Mario Kart Wii

 * European website bio: "From the initial ascent up a steep mountain path to the moment you plunge below the ocean into a glass tunnel, your speedy passage round Koopa Cape will leave you breathless."