You’ve been there. It’s 2:00 AM, the blue shell is screaming toward your head, and you’re screaming at a TV screen because your friend just took the shortcut on Mount Wario. It’s a rite of passage. Honestly, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe isn't just a racing game anymore; it’s basically a digital museum of Nintendo history.
With a massive 96 tracks now packed into the Switch version, the landscape has shifted. We went from a respectable 48 tracks at launch to a gargantuan list that practically doubles the game. If you’re trying to keep track of every single turn, glide ramp, and anti-gravity section, it’s a lot to swallow.
The Big Split: Base Game vs. Booster Course Pass
The sheer volume of all Mario Kart 8 Deluxe tracks is divided into two distinct eras. You have the "OG" tracks that came from the Wii U original (plus its DLC), and then you have the 48 tracks added via the Booster Course Pass.
There’s a bit of a vibe shift between them. The original tracks, like Thwomp Ruins or Sunshine Airport, were built from the ground up to showcase the Switch’s (well, originally the Wii U’s) HD power. They are dense. They have moving parts, reactive crowds, and lighting that still looks incredible in 2026.
👉 See also: Vesper's Host Loot Pool Explained (Simply)
Then you have the DLC. These tracks, mostly pulled and polished from Mario Kart Tour, have a different energy. Some purists complained early on that they looked a bit "mobile-gamey" or simplified. But once you’re drifting through Ninja Hideaway or dodging traffic in Berlin Byways, that complaint sort of melts away. The complexity isn't always in the textures; it's in the layout.
The City Tracks: A Love-Hate Relationship
The Booster Course Pass introduced "City" tracks. These are unique because they aren't traditional loops.
- Paris Promenade
- Tokyo Blur
- Singapore Speedway
- Athens Dash
In these maps, the road literally changes every lap. Arrows pop up, fences move, and suddenly you’re driving backward through a section you just finished. It’s chaotic. If you haven't played them much, it’s easy to get lost. But they bring a level of unpredictability that the older, static tracks just don't have.
The Mount Wario Factor
If you ask any group of players to name the best track in the game, someone is going to yell "Mount Wario."
It’s one of the few "point-to-point" tracks. No laps. Just one long, adrenaline-fueled descent down a mountain. You start by jumping out of a helicopter, race through a frozen cave, navigate a dam, and end with a massive slalom down a ski resort. It’s peak Nintendo design.
Other tracks try to capture this "adventure" feel—Big Blue and Rainbow Road (N64) do the same one-big-lap thing—but Mount Wario remains the gold standard for how to make a race feel like a journey.
Breaking Down the All-Stars and the Duds
When you have 96 tracks, they aren't all going to be winners. We have to be honest here.
📖 Related: Why Lillie From Pokemon Sun and Moon Still Matters
The Legends:
- Waluigi Pinball: Originally from the DS, this is a fan favorite for a reason. The sound design alone—the bells, the pings of the silver balls—is legendary.
- Coconut Mall: It’s iconic. The music will stay in your head for three days. Driving through the food court never gets old.
- Yoshi’s Island: A newer addition that feels like a love letter to the SNES era. It even has the secret "Winged Cloud" that creates a bridge if you hit it with a shell.
The "Why are these here?" Tier:
- Toad Circuit: It’s fine for a first-ever race, but it’s basically a glorified rectangle.
- Sky-High Sundae: It’s a polarizing one. Some love the physics; others find the "everything is a platform" design a bit floaty and confusing.
- Mario Circuit 3: It’s a classic SNES layout, but in a world of anti-gravity and gliding, it feels a bit... flat.
Why 200cc Changes Everything
The tracks you love on 150cc might become your worst nightmare on 200cc. Take Dragon Driftway. On 150cc, it's a technical, twisty fun time. On 200cc, it feels like trying to thread a needle while riding a rocket ship.
If you’re looking to master all Mario Kart 8 Deluxe tracks, you have to learn "brake drifting." It’s the only way to survive the tighter corners of the DLC tracks, which often weren't originally designed for the sheer speed the Switch version allows.
The Rainbow Road Gauntlet
There isn't just one Rainbow Road. There are five.
- SNES Rainbow Road (Short, flat, deadly edges)
- N64 Rainbow Road (The beautiful, starry one-lap wonder)
- 3DS Rainbow Road (Lunar driving and planet hopping)
- Wii Rainbow Road (The absolute chaos bringer from the Wii era)
- Wii U/Deluxe Rainbow Road (The space-station themed one)
Each one requires a totally different strategy. The Wii version is notoriously difficult because of its lack of guardrails, while the N64 version is more of a victory lap.
Getting Better at the 96
If you want to actually win consistently, stop just looking at the road. Look at the shortcuts. Many of the newer tracks have "off-road" paths that are only viable if you have a Mushroom.
On Mushroom Gorge, you can skip entire sections by bouncing off the right fungi. In Cheese Land, there are massive ramps hidden in the craters that can catapult you from 5th to 1st in seconds.
The beauty of having this many tracks is that there’s always something new to find. Even after years, you might notice a small detail—like the way the music underwater becomes muffled, or how the Inklings in Animal Crossing change based on the season of the track.
Your next move: Fire up Time Trials on one of the City tracks like Sydney Sprint. Since the laps change, learning the exact "line" for each variation is the quickest way to start beating your friends in local split-screen. Start with Lap 1, master the turns, and work your way through. Just don't blame me when the blue shell finds you on the final stretch.