Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s New Tracks Could Have Been So Much Better
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s Booster Pack has begun rolling out, with this past week seeing eight new courses arrive for the beloved kart racer. The coming months will see even more classic courses brought into the fold from 64, Double Dash, Wii, 7, Tour, and probably some other games I’ve forgotten to list. But one thing is clear, Nintendo is aware of the karting legacy it has built up over the years and seems determined to revisit it.
On the surface that’s a great idea. Deluxe has sold over 40 million copies and shows no signs of slowing, it’s one of those games that every new Switch owner will purchase because, well, it’s Mario Kart. There are few better games to play with friends, especially on a console where local multiplayer is built into its very design.
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You just hand someone a Joy-Con and within minutes you’re both tumbling off Rainbow Road. It’s infinitely approachable and an excellent game to boot, so Nintendo is right to introduce downloadable content instead of an entirely new entry that risks splintering its massive audience. But so far it all feels a bit bland.
Mario Kart 8 felt like a new high for the series because it took the competitive kart racing action of previous games and injected it with a slew of new mechanics. Drifting was more important than ever, while anti-gravity allowed tracks to soar into the sky before delving underground, creating a sense of perspective that was constantly shifting before your very eyes. It’s the best in the series for so many reasons, and aside from the lacking roster of characters you’d be unable to convince me otherwise.
This is where the Booster Pack, at least thus far, falls short. It seeks to introduce a
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