Sky-High Sundae

Sky-High Sundae is a race course released as part of Wave 2 of the Booster Course Pass in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, appearing as the fourth and final course of the Propeller Cup, and in Mario Kart Tour debuting as the featured course of the Sundae Tour. It is set in a large area made entirely of ice cream and other candy-related food high in the sky. It is the first course in the series to be announced for two games simultaneously, and is also the first course to be labeled as a new course for multiple games (later followed by Yoshi's Island and Squeaky Clean Sprint). Sky-High Sundae was one of two courses whose music was used for the reveal trailer for Wave 2 of the Booster Course Pass, alongside, not including Mario Kart 8's Rainbow Road, whose music was also used in promotional material for other waves.

Part of the Mario Kart Tour icon of Sky-High Sundae is in an unused  for the Booster Course Pass located in the game's files as of version 2.0.0, released four months prior to the course's official announcement. Furthermore, the filename for the course in the internal data for Mario Kart Tour features the "mob" platform code, an indicator used exclusively for new courses that were introduced in Mario Kart Tour. While Sky-High Sundae was first released in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe a few days prior to its Mario Kart Tour release, it is labeled and marketed in both games as a new course instead of a classic course.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
The course takes place entirely in anti-gravity, making it the fourth course to have this trait after Mute City,, and Big Blue, as well as the only Booster Course Pass course to have this trait. It is also the first Booster Course Pass course to make its first appearance in the series within the pass. The track starts off in an ice cream parlor that is inside of a giant freezer, after which the racers use Glide Ramps to fly either into or around a giant ice cream cone. Flying into the hole in the cone rewards players with Item Boxes. After that, they land on a helipad resembling a chocolate-covered ice cream cone with a giant H on it. Upon landing, they begin traveling down a light-blue staircase, and at the bottom the path begins curving to the left while proceeding to go up a staircase. At both staircases, there are railings that grant Spin Boosts when driven through. After the upward staircase, the player begins to ascend a slope which splits off into two paths. At the top of those paths, they begin jumping down onto some platforms, which can be landed on both above and below. After the two paths join back together, a path made out of giant ice cream cones circles around an even larger piece of ice cream inside a cup. After turning around, the player jumps between three giant pieces of ice, which lead to a giant ice tray that leads back into the giant freezer where the finish line is.

During the race, various advertisements can be seen on giant waffle pieces. At the staircase segment, there are numerous ice cream shops to the right of the path. In the sky, a helicopter modeled after an ice cream cone can be seen, complimenting the helipad seen at the beginning.

Prior to the course's official announcement for the Booster Course Pass, a screenshot of the Mario Kart Tour iteration of Sky-High Sundae was included among the many pictures used in an, located within Mario Kart 8 Deluxe's internal data present in version 2.0.0 of the game.

Mario Kart Tour
Sky-High Sundae appears in Mario Kart Tour, debuting in the Sundae Tour. The trailer for Wave 2 of the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass, which revealed Sky-High Sundae, also features a note which revealed that the course would be added to Mario Kart Tour as well. The course was later teased by the official Mario Kart Tour Twitter account one day after its release in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, which revealed its inclusion in the following tour. It was released in Mario Kart Tour less than a week after its debut in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

The course does not feature anti-gravity, and there is a penguin bartender in the freezer in place of a Yoshi. While the handrails do not provide Spin Boosts, the player can perform tricks by hitting the top of the handrails. Additionally, the rotating Item Boxes on the helipad are completely static (with the H being yellow instead of pink). The lining on the glass platforms is white instead of gold. The dark windows of the Ice Café are light. The red icing dabs at the base of the building and other ice shops are pink. Ridges on the pink ice cream scoops allow for tricks to be performed in two spots, unlike in 8 Deluxe. The yellow ice cream scoops are found in place of the red ones. The opaque pieces of ice are translucent. The minimap also features the ice cream cone at the beginning of the track.

Sky-High Sundae is the course that has been absent from Mario Kart Tour for the longest time. It is the only course to debut before 2023 that is yet to return, and as such it is currently the only course in the game to not appear during the game's fourth year, not including course re-routes.

The course also appears as Sky-High Sundae R (reversed), Sky-High Sundae T (with ramps), and Sky-High Sundae R/T (reversed with ramps). In the T variant, the player goes up to the top of the freezer in the final lap instead of inside it, and Glide Ramps also open up in the area where the paths branch. In the R/T variant, a wind propeller changes the route on the final lap: instead of going to the lower route with a Dash Panel, the player reaches a higher route with a Glide Ramp. Sky-High Sundae is the first non-city course in the game to debut all four variants simultaneously.

Appearances
For this course's tour appearances, see List of Sky-High Sundae tour appearances in Mario Kart Tour.

Sponsors

 * Coconut Café (signs)
 * Fountain Café (signs)
 * Ice Cream (logos)
 * Moo Moo Meadows Milk (signs)
 * Yoshi Ice Cream (signs)

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

 * Nintendo Switch News app (US):
 * This course first appeared in the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - Booster Course Pass.
 * Mmm...ice cream―wait, no! Try not to get distracted by the delicious-looking ice cream buildings stacked throughout the course.
 * The entire course is antigravity, so use this to your advantage to pull off as many sweet Spin Boosts as you can.
 * Nintendo Switch News app (UK): High-speed thrills and chills await - it's Sky-High Sundae! This track is a brand new addition to the Mario Kart series, and it has plenty of fresh sights for you to enjoy, with its fluffy ice cream piled building-high... But don't let that distract you! Keep your eyes on the road! And while you may be tempted to slow down and savour the view, the entire course is an antigravity zone, making it really fun to build up a lot of speed by utilising Spin Boosts. Just mind you don't get dizzy!
 * Nintendo Magazine 2022 Winter: A new course to the Mario series Mouth-watering ice cream line up like skyscrapers, but don't let them distract you while racing! The entire course is an anti-gravity area, so you'll be able to enjoy an exhilarating race using the Spin Turbo.