Nintendo has certain got plenty of mileage of Mario Kart 8. The gravity-defying racer was originally released back in 2014 on the humble Wii U, then got a “Deluxe” Switch re-release in 2017, ultimately selling a slightly ridiculous 65 million copies (and counting) in its near-decade on the market.
More recently, Nintendo has tried to give Mario Kart 8 Deluxe an extra shot in the arm with the release of the Booster Course Pass, a collection of 48 additional tracks released piecemeal in six waves throughout 2022 and 2023. The final wave of Booster Course Pass content recently dropped, so now seems like a good time to look back at the DLC in its entirety. Is it a trophy-worthy addition or as much fun as a red shell up the tailpipe? Drift on down for my thoughts…
Note: This is an opinion piece and, thus, not as detailed as a full, scored review would be.
The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass draws from the franchise’s entire history, offering remade and remastered tracks from every Mario Kart to date, along with six all-new originals. It also includes a few other bits and bobs, like new characters and Mii outfits, but that’s not really the expansion’s focus. While it’s nice to see a wide array of content, playing through all the courses, you pretty quickly get a feel for which Mario Karts were the best and which maybe weren’t quite to snuff.
While tracks that come from, say, the SNES, Gamecube, and 3DS entries are reliably entertaining, those lifted from Mario Kart Tour, the recent mobile entry in the series, don’t fare nearly as well. Unfortunately, there are more tracks from Mario Kart Tour packed into the Booster Course Pass than from any other individual game. Don’t get me wrong, most of these tracks aren’t bad, but perhaps fittingly given the platform they began on, they feel a bit small, cramped, and unambitious.
Thankfully, the rest of the revived courses fare better. Some of the oldest tracks, like the original SNES Bowser’s Castle and the GBA’s Boo Lake, receive the most significant updates, adding antigravity sections, underwater bits, and other twists to bring their original flat designs to life. Some other tracks are a bit less ambitious, translating the original layouts more-or-less straight without adding much in the way of unique Mario-Kart-8-flavored touches. The Tour tracks in particular feel like fairly straight remasters of what we previously got on mobile.
Not to harp on the Tour tracks too much, but they’re also the least visually impressive of the bunch. There was a bit of a tempest in a tea kettle when the Booster Course Pass first kicked off, with players complaining the visual quality of the tracks wasn’t quite up to the same standard as the base Mario Kart 8 tracks. The reality is, the Booster Course Pass tracks are a mixed bag visually – some look quite nice, others are a bit threadbare. It’s on the Tour tracks you’re most likely to see the simple textures and low-poly objects you may have seen held up for scorn online.
Ultimately, most of the Booster Course Pass’ remakes pale in comparison to the expansion’s few original tracks. Whether it be the delightful Christmas-themed Merry Mountain or the visually-dazzling Yoshi’s Island, almost all the original tracks make full use of the Mario Kart 8 toolbox, serving up big, bombastic, original challenges. These tracks really serve as a reminder of how good, and frankly, superior to pretty much any other entry in the series, Mario Kart 8 really is.
Filling, but Not Entirely Satisfying
The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass is one of the most worthwhile pieces of DLC Nintendo has ever delivered. Yes, the MK Tour tracks degrade the overall quality of the collection a bit, but at only $25 (or “free” with an active Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription) this is an appealing value featuring a ton of revamped classics and a handful of all-new gems.
Speaking of those new tracks, as good as they are, playing them is slightly bittersweet. Clearly the Mario Kart team haven’t lost their touch in the near-decade since the launch of Mario Kart 8 and as solid as this DLC is, I really want to see what’s next. The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass is a no-brainer for fans of the franchise, but I hope Nintendo is counting down to a new race.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe can be played on Nintendo Switch.
