List of Mario Kart Tour pre-release and unused content

This is a list of pre-release and unused content for Mario Kart Tour.

Closed beta
On April 23, 2019, Nintendo opened applications for participating in a closed beta test of Mario Kart Tour to users in North America and Japan, which began on May 22, 2019 and ended on June 4, 2019. The following lists the features included in the beta version of the game. Several of the characters, karts, and gliders listed were not made available in the final game at launch.

General

 * Rubies were originally emeralds.
 * An element seen in other free-to-play games that was included in the closed beta was a stamina bar consisting of five hearts total. One heart would be consumed every time a player raced, and once the stamina was depleted, players would not be able to play until it recharged. Players would replenish hearts when they leveled up, if they waited out the timer, or if they purchased hearts with emeralds. This element was removed in the final game at launch, with players instead being able to play indefinitely.
 * Originally, there was no way to speed up the unlocking process for the cups restricted by timers. In the final game, this can be done using quick tickets.
 * The classes "Common", "Rare", and "Super Rare" were renamed to "Normal", "Super", and "High-End", respectively.
 * The names of the four bonus challenges "Rocket Start!", "Race through the rings", "Don't crash", and "Beat Up Goombas" were changed to "Ready, Set, Rocket Start", "Ring Race", "Steer Clear of Obstacles", and "Goomba Takedown" respectively.
 * The Daily Selects Shop had only six items, as opposed to nine.
 * Players could receive Metal Mario, the B Dasher, and the Gold Glider in the final tour gift, which was the first spotlight pipe.
 * Combo bonuses were not implemented.
 * Higher tier karts originally increased speed, while higher tier gliders only increased item luck.
 * The items on the character selection were Mushrooms. In the final game, they are Green Shells instead.
 * The maximum level for each driver, kart, and glider was 10, while in the final game, it was decreased to 6 (later increased to 7 in the Snow Tour, and more later to 8 in the Mii Tour).
 * Music and sound effects were different from the final game.
 * The menu music had a different arrangement.
 * The jingle when acquiring a Normal item or a Grand Star was different. In the final game, that said jingle is used in the ranked cup results when the player places 4th or lower.
 * The countdown sound effect was taken from Mario Kart DS (this was also the sound effect used in Mario Kart Wii and Mario Kart 7). In the final game, the sound effect is instead taken from Mario Kart 8.
 * The text signifying the last lap originally read "FINAL LAP!"; in the final version, it instead reads "2/2" ("3/3" for 3DS Rainbow Road and GCN Baby Park T, and "5/5" for every other GCN Baby Park variant).
 * The rearview button was placed in the top right corner, below the options button.
 * In the Coin Rush menu, the description read "Speed through a course containing over 400 Coins! Gold Mario can really rake them in."; in the final version, it instead reads "Over 300 coins are waiting for you on this course! Gold Mario will draw them in as he gets near."
 * Completing a bonus challenge originally rewarded three Grand Stars immediately, and reaching certain requirements granted bonus coins.
 * Tour gifts are immediately claimed when it reaches the amount of Grand Stars required.
 * In the beta, each challenge from the Tour Challenges set gave out three to five Grand Stars when completed. In the final version, each challenge from the Tour Challenges set only gives out one or two Grand Stars when completed.
 * Shortcut ramps were reflected on the minimap in all courses that had them. In the final game, these were all removed.

Drivers
Most of the drivers retain their special items in the final game; however, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Baby Rosalina, and Lemmy's special items are replaced by the Bubble, Morton's special item is replaced by the Giant Banana, Larry's special item is replaced by the Boomerang Flower, King Boo's special item is replaced by the Lucky 7, and Ludwig's and Rosalina's special items are replaced by the Dash Ring. Additionally, in the beta, both Rosalina and King Boo were classified as High-End drivers, whereas in the final version, they are classified as Super drivers instead. The Triple Bananas, which were Larry and Lemmy's special item, went unused until the London Tour, where they were properly introduced as Waluigi (Bus Driver)'s special item. Additionally, Daisy's artwork used in the beta is taken directly from Mario Kart 7, whereas in the final version, she uses new artwork that resembles her artwork from said game, but with darker hair and different shading.

Karts
Most of the karts retain their rarities in the final; however, in the beta, the Soda Jet, Super Blooper, and Bolt Buggy were all classified as Normal karts, and the Blue Seven was classified as a High-End kart, whereas in the final, they are all classified as Super karts. The Koopa Dasher had a sprite used in the beta with Pipe Frame tires equipped instead of the tires the Turbo Yoshi had. In the beta, the Gold Standard was a selectable kart to race with, whereas in the final, it is only used when playing the Coin Rush mode up until the 2022 Mario vs. Luigi Tour when it became an unlockable kart for all players to use outside of Coin Rush.

Gliders
None of the gliders' rarities changed from the beta to the final game.

Tour
The beta only featured one tour, named Beta Test (Beta Test Tour in the news section). There were no T variant or R/T variant courses featured in the beta and only four of the thirteen courses in the beta had R variants.

Cups

 * Names in other languages

Multiplayer betas
Nintendo held two multiplayer beta tests: one exclusive to Gold Pass members from December 18, 2019, 11:00 p.m. (PT) to December 26, 2019, 9:59 p.m. (PT), and one for all players from January 22, 2020, 11:00 p.m. (PT) to January 28, 2020, 9:59 p.m. (PT), the latter of which allowed players to play with each other in their immediate vicinity based on their device's location data. The player could either join a random lobby or create their own to play with friends. The cup played rotated every 30 minutes instead of 15.

The music playing in the multiplayer's menu was the same music as the game's menu in the two betas. The icon was also different, being a globe instead of Toads.

Drivers
After Red Koopa (Freerunning) was added in the London Tour, there was an additional texture set for a green version of the driver, the name of which could be assumed to be Koopa (Freerunning) based on filenames. IDs relating to the rest of the Yoshi, Birdo, Shy Guy and Toad (Pit Crew) colors are also in the files.

Karts
Some karts have specific files for their positions on certain karts. Most of these karts are in the game, but there are references to several unused karts, including the Mario Kart 8 appearance of the Blue Falcon (BFalcon8). Several models can be found in the game's files, including a light-blue Comet Tail with a yellow stripe in the middle, which was added in the Vancouver Tour along with the Comet Tail itself. Textures for a gold variant of the Apple Kart, files relating to a yellow variant of the Cheep Charger and the rest of the Turbo Yoshi colors can also be found. An icon for a light-blue variant of the Crawly Kart was added in 2023 Winter Tour.

Gliders
Files relating to recolors of the Peach Parasol, and a Valentine's-themed variant of the Glitter Glider can be found in the game.

Courses
Several text strings referencing objects of courses not yet in the game can be found in the files, though some of these objects have been used in courses other than the ones they were originally created for, such as the Skating Shy Guys (HeyhoSkateRed and HeyhoSkateBlue), which are used in Vancouver Velocity 2 but originate from GCN Sherbet Land. Note that while several other courses, both new and returning, are also hinted at in the files, whether or not they actually pertain to the returning courses in question and the themes of the new courses is up to speculation, and thus, these are not listed.

Additionally, GCN Waluigi Stadium and DS Shroom Ridge appear in a banner for the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass found in the base game's files, which is comprised of artwork from Mario Kart Tour. An environmental file for SNES Ghost Valley 3 was also found in the files during the Wario vs. Waluigi Tour, though it was later removed. Additionally, there are numerous strings in the files tied to brand-new courses; the unique fence and fence arrow objects for Mobmd and Mobor indicate that they will be city courses (potentially Madrid, Spain, and Orlando, Florida, US), while the objects and filename for Mobyi (such as FlowerRingMobyi) imply that it is based on Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.

The gaps between track IDs in the game's files also suggest the addition of several courses, as the gaps are sorted alphabetically, though the course variants are sorted by the original course first, then the R variant, then the R/T variant, and finally the T variant. For example, DS Luigi's Mansion T's course ID is Classic_Gds_Luigi_MansionX_sub (1011224), while DS Peach Gardens' BG course ID is Classic_Gds_PeachGarden_BG (1011242). If there is a gap between these numbers of these IDs, it indicates a course with a name that fits between these two courses may be coming soon. If the course is getting closer to release, the ID gap may be expanded. An example is if the gap between Luigi's Mansion T and Peach Gardens' BG gets their number gap expanded from (1011224 to 1011242) to (1011224 to 1011250). Course ID gaps also exist for new courses, such as the gap between Amsterdam Drift 3 and Bangkok Rush, which could be for Amsterdam Drift 4 or Mobat. Track IDs are also altered leading up to a course's return, meaning that tours and their themes can be predicted in advance. Over the course of the 2023 New Year's Tour and the 2023 Space Tour, it was discovered that every Mario Circuit in the game and both Luigi themed courses had their track IDs altered.

List of text strings and textures related to unreleased courses

 * GBA Luigi Circuit - AirShipLC and PuddleLC
 * GBA Yoshi Desert - PillarAgbyd and PillarAgbydBase
 * GBA Bowser's Castle 4/RMX Bowser's Castle 2 - PortalPropeller (previously labeled as PotalPropellerAgbbc); object is not used in any current GBA Bowser's Castle-style track
 * GCN Mushroom Bridge and/or GCN Mushroom City - CarBomb, CarHanachan and CarMushroom
 * GCN Waluigi Stadium - PakkunWall, WallDokan
 * DS Mario Circuit - Fire Piranha Plant textures, PackunFlowerFire
 * Wii Grumble Volcano - RoadGuraGuraTest and RockVolcano
 * Wii Dry Dry Ruins - PillarWiiddr, PillarWiiddrBase, and SandHillWiiddr
 * 3DS Music Park - BlockNote
 * 3DS Wuhu Loop - ClownWuhu
 * 3DS Maka Wuhu - RockWuhu
 * 3DS DK Jungle - GoldenBanana, AirShipDK, BarrelDK

List of ID gaps for courses
An (*) asterisk means that the course is already in the Booster Course Pass or had the text strings for its course elements found. The (*number*) sign is for the number of slots in the gap.
 * Between GBA Bowser's Castle 3 and GBA Cheep-Cheep Island (10) - GBA Bowser's Castle 4* or GBA Broken Pier
 * Between GBA Cheep-Cheep Island and GBA Riverside Park (35) - GBA Cheese Land, GBA Lakeside Park, GBA Luigi Circuit*, GBA Mario Circuit, GBA Peach Circuit, GBA Rainbow Road, GBA Ribbon Road
 * Between GBA Sunset Wilds and DS DK Pass (22) - GBA Yoshi Desert*, DS Bowser's Castle, DS Cheep Cheep Beach, DS Delfino Square, DS Desert Hills
 * Between DS Luigi's Mansion and DS Peach Gardens (38) - DS Mario Circuit* or DS Shroom Ridge* (possibly Mushroom Ridge in the files)
 * Between GCN DK Mountain and GCN Yoshi Circuit (24) - GCN Dry Dry Desert, GCN Luigi Circuit, GCN Mario Circuit, GCN Mushroom Bridge*, GCN Mushroom City*, GCN Peach Beach, GCN Rainbow Road, GCN Sherbet Land, GCN Waluigi Stadium*, GCN Wario Colosseum
 * Between N64 LuigiCircuit (Luigi Raceway) and N64 PeachCircuit (Royal Raceway) (10) - N64 Mario Raceway or N64 Moo Moo Farm
 * Between N64 Yoshi Valley and SNES Choco Island 1 (9) - Any SNES Bowser Castle course
 * Between Wii Coconut Mall and Wii DK Summit (11) - Wii Daisy Circuit
 * Between Wii DK Summit and Wii Koopa Cape (21) - Wii Dry Dry Ruins* or Wii Grumble Volcano*
 * Between Wii Maple Treeway and Wii Mushroom Gorge (16) - Wii Mario Circuit, Wii Moo Moo Meadows, Wii Moonview Highway
 * Possibly after Wii Rainbow Road - Wii Toad's Factory, Wii Wario's Gold Mine
 * Between Amsterdam Drift 3 and Bangkok Rush (34) - Amsterdam Drift 4 or "Mobat"
 * Between Bangkok Rush 3 and Berlin Byways (10) - Bangkok Rush 4
 * Between Berlin Byways 3 and HillClimb (Merry Mountain) (10) - Berlin Byways 4, "Mobbr", "Mobdk"
 * Between Los Angeles Laps 3 and New York Minute (28) - Los Angeles Laps 4, "Mobmd", "Mobmu"
 * Between NinjaMansion (Ninja Hideaway) and Paris Promenade (50) - "Mobnu", "Mobor"
 * Between Paris Promenade 3 and Singapore Speedway (29) - Presumably Paris Promenade 4
 * Possibly after Vancouver Velocity 3 - Vancouver Velocity 4, "Mobyi"
 * Possibly after GCN Cookie Land - Any Mario Kart 64, Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart Wii battle course

Additionally, prior to the 1st Anniversary Tour, a size-4 gap existed that could've fit either or. It is unknown why this gap vanished and has never resurfaced in the files.

Items
Despite Gold Mario being playable only in Coin Rush, he has an unused special skill item known as "Coin Vacuum" with the description "Vacuum up nearby coins while racing on favorite courses." When hacking Gold Mario to be playable in the normal game, the item can only be used on favorite courses and acts similarly to when attracting coins in Coin Rush but with a smaller radius. The Frenzy for the item is similar to a coin Frenzy but with the coins being attracted. The item's icon is missing from the item roulette and it uses the coin icon during a Frenzy.

Tires
The StdR_Red tires can be found in the game's files, but are currently unused.

Sprites
When the Para-Wing was added in the London Tour, a sprite was added in the files which appears to be identical to the kart, except it has the Pipe Frame's tires on it, which are also used by the Koopa Dasher. Starting with the Super Mario Kart Tour, sprites of every colored variation of the Pipe Frame with the Gold Blooper's tires equipped can be found in the files.

Icons
Some unused icons known as BoostItem, ItemExchange, PartsScoreUp and PartsSkillUp can be found in the game's files. The BoostItem icons also have icons of them on a ticket.

Sounds and music
Several unused voice clips exist for when a driver finishes 5th or below, indicating that drivers were originally going to have voice clips for losing. Some drivers from Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe retain their losing voice clips from said games, while Peachette and Pauline have newly recorded losing voice clips. Later non-Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe drivers added in the game lack unused losing voice clips.

An alternate version of the Singapore Speedway theme that lacks synth and percussion can be found in the files, but it is currently unused.

Battle course sound files related to Paris Promenade have been found in the game.

Event token obtaining method
In the in-game news for version 2.10.0, Nintendo announced that the player could obtain event tokens by keeping combo bonuses. This method has yet to be used in the game.

Course icons
Several in-game course icons have been altered, either to reposition the character depicted in them or to change the screenshot shown to be accurate to what is really in the game. The table below documents the differences between previous and updated versions of these icons.