******************************************************************************* ----------------------------- M A R I O K A R T W I I ----------------------------- Nintendo Wii FAQ/Walkthrough, Version 1.1 Last Updated - 16/04/2008 By Crazyreyn ([email protected]) Copyright (c)2008 Matthew Reynolds. All rights reserved. ******************************************************************************* +--------------+ | Legal Notice | +--------------+ The ONLY sites that may have this FAQ and all my other FAQs are the following.. http://www.gamefaqs.com http://www.neoseeker.com http://faqs.ign.com/ http://www.cheats.de http://www.cheathappens.com http://www.gamerhelp.com http://www.cube-europe.com http://www.computersnstuff.co.uk You will find the latest versions here. If you want to host my FAQ then give me an email and I'll most probably agree, as long as you don't alter anything, and if keep it in it's original format and give me full credit for creating the document. +-----------------+ | Contact Details | +-----------------+ If you see a fault of ANY kind or you want to contribute some data to me, then either email me at [email protected]. Please have the subject title as 'Mario Kart Wii' or something similar, otherwise it will not be opened. Full credit will be given in due course. Or feel free to ask me any questions you wish, comment on this FAQ, ask if you want this posted on your site etc. then do that same as above. If you could, rate this FAQ so I can get some feedback. Thank You. =============================================================================== ---------------- INTRODUCTION ---------------- =============================================================================== Hello and welcome to the Mario Kart Wii FAQ/Walkthrough. This guide will give you the complete low down about the latest Mario Kart offering for Nintendo's latest console, the Wii. As well as in-depth walkthroughs, short cuts and tips for each of the new and retro tracks, unlockables, a detailed look into the various control styles and battle mode strategies await you. The latest edition of Mario Kart does what it does best - offer frantic, exciting and often frustrating gameplay, unbeatable multiplayer and a surprisingly fleshed out online experience - it feels more like a Greatest Hits than the earth shattering Mario Kart DS before it. The Wheel really works, the trick system is fantastic, and there are a couple of sublime new tracks - this Mario Kart is well up there as one of the best. See you online! - Matt (Crazyreyn) =============================================================================== --------------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS --------------------- =============================================================================== 1. Version History 2. Game Overview 2.01. Mario Kart Wii - What's New? 2.02. Control Schemes 2.03. Drifting and Snaking Explained 2.04. Driving Techniques and Tips 2.05. Items 2.06. Characters and Karts 3. Courses 3.01. Mushroom Cup 3.02. Flower Cup 3.03. Star Cup 3.04. Special Cup 3.05. Shell Cup 3.06. Banana Cup 3.07. Leaf Cup 3.08. Lightning Cup 4. Battle Mode 5. Online 6. Unlockables and Secrets 7. Conclusion and Special Thanks Searching - Simply copy and paste the section you want to go to into the Find box (to open it, press CTRL+F). Now press enter twice and you will be taken to your selected section. =============================================================================== ---------------------- 1. VERSION HISTORY ---------------------- =============================================================================== +--------------------------+ | Version 1.1 - 16/04/2008 | +--------------------------+ The third revamp covers a bit of everything - new strategies and pointers for the items, more unlockable and character details, and most importantly, a LOT more information for each and every track, including videos. Phew! Thanks to everyone who has emailed in with tips and comments far, keep them coming! +--------------------------+ | Version 1.0 - 11/04/2008 | +--------------------------+ The second version of the FAQ, everything is complete! The guide will be updated very frequently the more I play it, but everything is here. Enjoy. Additions - - Added Characters, Karts and Bikes lists - Added shortcuts to Wario's Gold Mine, Daisy Circuit - Added Online Mode details - Added Battle Mode details and stage strategies - Updated Unlockables and Secrets (unlockables list, staff ghosts, Mii appearances) +--------------------------+ | Version 0.7 - 10/04/2008 | +--------------------------+ The first version of the FAQ - course walkthroughs, item strategies and control descriptions complete. Unlockables list practically complete. Character, kart and bike lists incomplete. Battle Mode strategies and Online sections incomplete. =============================================================================== -------------------- 2. GAME OVERVIEW -------------------- =============================================================================== This section provides you with an overview to playing the game, with tips, kart and character data and how to use the items more efficiently. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.01. Mario Kart Wii - What's New? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= The sixth Mario Kart (apart from the Arcade versions) on a new console can only mean a few new additions and changes have been bought into the fore. Here is a quick list of what is what, and note here be SPOILERS! - 32 tracks; 16 new, 16 old, including - SUPER MARIO KART Ghost Valley 2 Mario Circuit 3 MARIO KART 64 Bowsers Castle DK's Jungle Parkway Mario Raceway Sherbet Land MARIO KART SUPER CIRCUIT Bowser's Castle 3 Shy Guy Beach MARIO KART: DOUBLE DASH!! DK Mountain Mario Circuit Peach Beach Waluigi Stadium MARIO KART DS Delfino Square Desert Hills Peach Gardens Yoshi Falls - Motorbikes - Tricks from jumps and ramps to gain speed boosts - Four control schemes - Wii Wheel (included), Wiimote, Wiimote & Nunchuk, Classic Controller and GameCube Controller support - Automatic and Manual drifting options - New characters - Rosalina and Mii Racer included - Mii cameos (as a character and track side appearances) - Two types of Staff Ghost in Time Trial - Three New Items - POW Block, Big Mushroom and Thundercloud - Boo Ghost Item removed (what!?) - Fake Item Blocks no longer block shells (still draggable) - Online - First console Mario Kart to support internet play - Up to 12 Players - Two players playing online on one console - Dedicated Wii Channel for Time Trials and Challenges(optional download) - Battle Mode now playable online - All tracks playable - Able to drag items =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.02. Control Schemes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Thanks to the Swiss army offerings of the Wii, there are no fewer than four possible control schemes available for you to use. Which one do you pick? You can change at any time in the menu screens and it'll change automatically, however you cannot change mid-race or tournament. Wii Wheel --------- Turn - Steer Flick Up - Trick / Wheelie (Bike Only) 2 Button - Accelerate 1 Button - Brake / Reverse B Button - Drift (Manual), Item (Auto) A Button - Reverse look D-Pad Up - Throw Item D-Pad Left / Right - Hold Item D-Pad Down - Drop item + Button - Pause VERDICT - This is for casual play, pure and simple. - The Wii Wheel works, and works really well - there is no doubt about that. At least on Automatic Drift. The steering feels subtle and natural, and the buttons seem to be in all the right places. It is worth starting the first few cups with it just to see how it plays, you'd be surprised. - The D-Pad presents very specific options to do with items, which is great as you know exactly what you want to do with them, instead of accidentally throwing something instead of dragging it. - The B button is a bit spongy, and the 2 button feels too low (for my big hands, anyway). - Although you can play it with the Wheel pointing down slightly resting your arms, they will get tired after a while. - On Automatic, you cannot drift boost nor jump, which hinders you very slightly. - On Manual, the steering feels restricted as you cannot drift when you just turn, and attempting to snake is rather difficult. Wiimote and Nunchuk ------------------- Analog Stick - Steer / Throw Items Backward or Forward A Button - Accelerate B Button - Drift (Manual), Item (Auto) Z Button - Use Item C Button - Reverse Look Flick Wiimote Up - Trick / Wheelie (Bike Only) + Button - Pause VERDICT - Not as good as the proper controllers, but better than the Wheel - however this is probably down to personal preference. - Everything is available, especially drifting and snaking. There is nothing wrong here. - I am a fan of the freedom of your hands being apart or where they want to be with this set up, instead of being constrained to holding a bit of plastic mold as per the others. Classic Controller ------------------ Analog Stick - Steer / Throw Items Backward or Forward A Button - Accelerate B Button - Brake / Reverse X /ZR Button - Reverse Look L Button - Use Item R Button - Drift (Manual), Item (Auto) D-Pad Up - Trick / Wheelie (Bike Only) START/PAUSE Button - Pause VERDICT - Unknown, but can do what the others can do and again, is down to personal preference. GameCube Controller ------------------- Analog Stick - Steer / Throw Items Backward or Forward A Button - Accelerate B Button - Brake / Reverse X /Z Button - Reverse Look L Button - Use Item R Button - Drift (Manual), Item (Auto) D-Pad Up - Trick / Wheelie (Bike Only) START/PAUSE Button - Pause VERDICT - Arguably the best option - if you have it, try and use it. - Analog control and steering feels much more responsive than the Wheel or Nunchuk variants. - Feels like you are playing with a proper controller, simply because you are. - No sound; Z Button kinda sucks. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.03. Drifting and Snaking Explained =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Although I'd normally put this in the below section, but considering the changes to how these are executed, it is worth separating them. You may have heard Nintendo has changed how this all works, and you would say that is right. Automatic and Manual Drift -------------------------- Before racing you have to decide between Automatic and Manual drift. AUTOMATIC is where drift occurs when you steer at a certain degree so you don't have to, however you cannot drift boost as a result. MANUAL is where steering is restricted (or shall we say normal) and you have to press a button to begin drifting. For all intents and purposes, pick MANUAL if you are playing with anything other than the Wheel so you can decide to drift. AUTOMATIC is ideal for the Wheel as drifting is rather difficult to manage, and is more fun to play. So there you have it, AUTOMATIC equals no boost, MANUAL has it enabled if you can perform it. Drift ----- On AUTOMATIC, this occurs after turning at a certain threshold. Don't have to worry about it. On MANUAL, you have to hold down the R Button when going round corners. You can drift by holding down the R button when going around corners. It allows you to take sharper corners without loss of speed, so is good for many of the game's courses. To start it, turn and press R to set the direction, and you can also adjust the direction of the drift slightly by using the analog stick as you go anyway. Mini-Turbo ---------- On AUTOMATIC, this is disabled. On MANUAL, after drifting and tapping to the sides, the sparks behind the vehicle will turn blue. This takes around from one to two seconds to perform, and letting go gives you a boost. If you hold on for longer, another few seconds longer, the sparks will go red and you will get a longer boost. The boost amounts also depend on the cart you are driving. It should also be noted that on BIKES you can only blue drift. Snaking ------- IS SNAKING POSSIBLE? Well, kinda. Yes, it is, but it is harder. As getting mini-turbos takes longer than before, you cannot really snake from left to right. On wide tracks you can, but most of the time you cannot. However as I am a proficient semi-snaker, I can perform semi-snaking in Mario Kart Wii - I can take a corner, exit it and do another boost before going straight proper. I'm sure depending on the correct kart and character combination you can snake, but for all intents and purposes, snaking is reduced, but possible. ERM, WHAT IS SNAKING? A very advanced technique, you perform mini-turbo over and over again in a snake like fashion. So say you are on a straight, and you are on the left; drift to the right, and boost ahead so you're on the right. Now drift to the left and boost so you end up on the left. Keep repeating this to create a snake like movement down the track, giving you a huge advantage if done correctly. SHOULD I BOTHER PRACTISING? Yes. There is great debate since Mario Kart DS on whether snaking is 'cheating', but personally I disagree, and consider snaking is not as effective this time, it is worth trying. It makes single player easier, and if you even considering to get winning in the long term online, it is what the professionals use. Use Time Trial as a place of practice! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.04. Driving Techniques and Tips =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ------------------ Driving Techniques ------------------ Rocket Start ------------ This performs a boost as the race starts, very handy for getting the advantage straight away. To do it, at the opening count down (3, 2, 1, GO!) press and hold Accelerate as the hand is pointing at 11 o'clock on the SECOND COUNT. If done right, you'll get an awesome boost start. Takes a bit of practice (the margin between a Rocket Start and a Dud Start is quite thin) but once you've got it it's an invaluable technique. Throwing Items -------------- When you are using certain items, such as shells and bananas, you can throw them in front or behind you by pressing up and down respectively. You can launch green and red shells behind you and throw Bob-Ombs, Fake Item Boxes and Bananas ahead of you. Dangling Items -------------- You can drag items behind you by holding the item button. This enables you to block attacks from behind, such as those pesky red shells, and to time your item drops more effectively. You can drag bananas, green shells, red shells and Bob-Ombs (note that Fake Item Boxes can be dragged, but do not block against shells). Slipstreaming ------------- By following the car in front on a straight you can slipstream and increase you speed. As they are absorbing the wind they leave a tail of less resistant air in their wake, which allows you to move in a slightly faster manner. You can tell if you are doing this as blue lines will appear on your screen, and if done long enough you can get a boost which will allow you to over take. In Mario Kart Wii, slipstreaming is a really valuable technique as the boost is larger this time, and considering there are more players in each race now, the potential to use it is greater. Very handy if you need to overtake others. However, watch out in case they fire a shell or drop a banana. Tricks ------ A new technique to Mario Kart Wii, flicking the Wiimote or tapping Up on the D-Pad with the controllers as you leave a ramp performs a trick, and gives you a boost upon landing. Very handy. Note that you need to press this _just_ as you take off, and that it can be performed whenever you lift from the ground, such as when you bump into course specific obstacles. Wheelies -------- The introduction of bikes brings about the introduction of wheelies. Flicking the Wiimote or pressing Up on the D-Pad raises the front tire, giving you a boost of speed for around four seconds until it automatically drops again. You can perform another straight after. Note two things however; you can not steer (or very slightly) when you are performing them, and you are highly venerable to being shunted when doing this. Only do it when you are on a straight and with little others around you. Turning on the spot ------------------- You can turn on the spot by holding accelerate and brake together (A and B) and turning left and right. This is very handy if you are driving the wrong way. Recovering after falling off the track -------------------------------------- If you just fell off the track and are being lifted back on, you can recover quicker by pressing accelerate JUST as you touch the ground again to receive a boost. Takes some practice, but worth it even if you are an experienced racer; you never know when some heavier kart is gonna knock you off the track. --------------------------------- Driving and Item Tips and Tactics --------------------------------- Here are some additional item and driving tips that might come in handy. Feel free to submit any of your own! � Coming off the track or hitting a wall slows you down to a literal crawl... so watch your driving! � If you are gonna cut out some of the track, subsidize the slowdown with a drifting mini-boost or better yet, a mushroom. � Placing fake item boxes or bananas by real item boxes should block them from view of your opponents, meaning there's a chance they could drive in to them. Although the CPU might spot this against people in multiplayer and online it'll work better, it is also good if you want to 'replace' you current item with another by dropping it by the item box so you'll collect those in front. � If you are in first place, then it's a good idea to drag an item behind you (or have a draggable item with you) in case you need to defend against shells and what not. It's a pain to have you lead wiped away by a cheap item at the last minute so try and get used to doing this. � If you are neck and neck with an opponent and coming up to item boxes, drop back slightly so you are a position behind them and grab an item. As in first place you cannot pick up red shells, doing this method could bag you one so you can take them out and take a substantial lead. Although this is incredibly annoying and cheap its a sure fire winner especially if you are on the final lap. � Again like the above, if you are in a very close race then drop back a few positions and grab an item box. As items are based on position and not proximity, you could get something like Thunder, a Star or Three Red Shells. And who wouldn't want that, eh? � If you are going to use a red/blue shell then wait for them to get a slight lead, otherwise the red shell will just fly straight past them and the blue shell likewise and even worse take you out in the impending explosion (if they are in first anyway). � If you have several (hopefully red) shells, then you can incapacitate a kart ahead. Fire one to spin them out, and then fire another as you go past them (where they've hardly had time to recover). By the time they have started going again proper, you'll have speeded ahead. � Trick all the time. Every time you get off the ground, every time you hit a ramp, flick up the Wiimote or tap Up on the D-Pad to get a speed boost. It'll help you stomp that rubberband AI, and of course, those invisible people on the internets tubes. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.05. Items =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Pick up an item box in a race and you'll get an item. But do you know how to use it properly and to it's full advantages? There are three new weapons in Mario Kart Wii - POW Blocks, Big Mushrooms and Storm Clouds. They are shown at the end of the list, so scroll down and take a peak if you want to know how to use these new additions to the already bustling arsenal. ------ Banana ------ Position Received - 1st-3rd How to use - Press L to drop this banana skin on to the track. When a kart slips on to it they will slide out of control for a second or two. It will remain on the track until someone slips on it or until it is destroyed (by a shell or Bo-omb). Try and place bananas on parts of the track where most racers will go on to them such as thin ledges, the insides of tracks, in front of boosters and item boxes. You can also use them for defending by holding down L to dangle it behind you, so it's probably more handy in that respect. Defending Against - If you see a banana on the track, common sense tells you to avoid it (well at least I hope it does) so try and drive around it if you can. You can also blast them away with a Bob-Omb or a shell. If you hit a banana, you also drop the items you are holding. ------------- Triple Banana ------------- Position Received - 1st-3rd How to use - This is basically the same as a single banana (see above) but with three. However unlike triple shells they don't spin around you but instead just dangle behind rather pointlessly. Use them to strategically place on the track and defend with if needed. Defending Against - Again like normal bananas, avoid driving over them. If you see another player with them (it's visible) then avoid hanging around behind them as chances are they'll drop them straight on to your lap. The CPU tends to drop them about three seconds after one another, so remember this if you are playing the GP modes. If you hit a banana, then you drop all the items you are holding. ----------- Green Shell ----------- Position Received - 1st-3rd How to use - Press L to fire this forward in a rather linear fashion to hit other karts and cause them to spin out of control. Rather handy, but it's quite hard to hit other karts with. Better still is that you can fire them behind you by holding down on the d-pad. If they are close enough then chances are they'll have little chance of getting out of the way. Green shells can bounce off walls a few times before behind destroyed, so if you in a narrow tunnel or area firing one off and escaping could do a spot of damage. Like bananas, you can dangle these behind by holding down the L button which is ideal for defending against other shells. Also shells can destroy bananas on the track if you need them disposed of, as well as boxes and enemies on the track. Defending Against - Avoid shells hitting you as you'll spin out of control. You should be able to hear them, so check behind you to see so you can dodge them. Rivals too can fire shells behind them so if you are slipstreaming remember this. --------- Red Shell --------- Position Received - 2nd-8th How to use - Press L to fire it ahead of you, where it will home in on the nearest kart and cause them to spin out. Even if you are a few corners away it'll follow the track and take them out. Rather handy, eh? Some points though; don't fire when they are too close as it'll just whiz by them, and the shell can hit corners so fire it in a reasonably open area. It can also hit bananas and other shells and get destroyed, but if that occurs then you're unlucky. Like green shells, you can fire it backwards (L+Down) and dangle it behind you. It WILL NOT home in if you fire it backward, but rather go in a straight line like a green shell would. I advise that you keep a red shell handy at all times for defense and for regaining a position if you've just been taken. Defending Against - If one is coming your way (you can hear it or see it on the bottom) then simply dangle an item behind you and it should counter it. However sometimes it can hit you from the side (just after a corner for example) so try and get on a straight before it hits you. If you don't have an item, then just try and race on and hopefully it'll hit a corner of the track, but otherwise you are gonna get hit and in that situation, there isn't a lot you can do about it. ------------------------- Triple Red / Green Shells ------------------------- Position Received - 2nd-8th How to use - These are three red or green shells that rotate around you. The shells themselves act like normal shells respectively, but the rotating aspect is very handy for several reasons. For one, it acts as an ever acting defense against other items. You can use it as a weapon by just ramming other karts and make them spin you (you'll lose a shell in the process mind) and it's great in case you drive into items like bananas as they are automatically taken care of. It's also great as having three shells is pretty sweet anyway. Remember just because you have three shells doesn't mean you have to waste them in one go. A good tip is when you take someone out with a shell from a reasonable distance, as you go by just before fire another to incapacitate them further. Very annoying for them, but great for you. Defending Against - For general shell defense see the red and green shell tips above. When you notice another kart having three, avoid touching them for a start or you will naturally spin out. Don't try and take all their shells out with shells of your own as that's pretty pointless, you may as well let them fire them off so their defense is down for attacking. ---------------- Spiny Blue Shell ---------------- Position Received - 4th-8th How to use - Fire it with the L button and it'll fly off to first place and explode there, causing an explosion that will take out those in the region too. Pretty sweet. If you have one and the first placed kart is quite close, hold off until they are further away as it'll take you out too. Oh, did I mention it'll also take out the items they are carrying as well? Defending Against - If one if coming your way, there is little you can do but bite the bullet. Dispose of your items just before as it'll destroy them. If you hear it coming and there are other karts behind you, then you could try and drop back and catch them in the blast radius as well, and if you are really luckly, the shell could get them instead. You can also avoid getting hit by using a Star, but otherwise as said most of the time you'll have to get hit, so don't get too annoyed if this happens a fair amount. --------- Fake Item --------- Position Received - 1st-3rd How to use - Press L to drop a fake item on the track. When rival karts drive in to it they'll spin out. Essentially a banana with better camoflauge. Sadly, you can no longer use them to block shells (but can still dangle them. I advise that you pop this by real item boxes to confuse other players, as well as in front of boosters and on areas of the track that are thin / where most karts race over. Defending Against - You can spot a fake item box via several ways. Firstly, the ? is upside down and the box doesn't rotate. Other players, especially the CPU will just place them anywhere on the track, so if you see a box on its own away from normal item box placements then chances are it'll be a fake one. -------- Mushroom -------- Position Received - 2nd-8th How to use - Press L to boost your karts speed for a second or two. This is really handy for gaining a few places, and most of all for skipping sections of the track like corners or tacking advantage or certain shortcuts better. Just remember that you can't really stop once you've used the boost (say if suddenly realised you were going to go into a banana or off a cliff) so keep an eye out of where you are going to boost into. Defending Against - Not a lot you can do here. Just avoid knocking into them if you see them coming. --------------- Triple Mushroom --------------- Position Received - 2nd-8th How to use - This is the same as a normal Mushroom, expect you have three. Predictable, eh? Remember to use them to cut corners of the track and to take full advantages of shortcuts. I would say a very important point is to make them last; on certain tracks there is a great shortcut you can take but only when using a mushroom, so it makes far more sense to save a mushroom for this every lap than to use them on one. Defending Against - Once again you can't really defend or stop other karts from using mushrooms. ------------- Gold Mushroom ------------- Position Received - 6th-12th How to use - Tap the L button while the Gold Mushroom is active to gain several boosts - so it's basically like an extended mushroom. It's based off time and not the amount of boosts you create, so once you've started using it use it to it's full advantage. Like normal mushrooms use them on corners and shortcuts, and not on thin ledges so you boost into a bottomless pit. Unless you want to. Defending Against - Again, you can't really defend or stop other karts from using gold mushrooms. ------- Bob-Omb ------- Position Received - 4rd-8th How to use - Press L to drop it behind you, L+Up to throw it ahead and hold L to dangle it behind you. A Bob-Omb explodes when other karts are near by, or it'll detonate after about five seconds. When it does it creates a huge explosion worthy of taking out several karts at a time. Where you place it is up to you - if there are loads of karts ahead then throw it ahead, otherwise just drop it behind. Another handy side effect is that it'll destroy the items of those involved in the explosion. Defending Against - If you see a bomb, drive around it as much as you can. It detonates after it flashes red several times, but drive around it anyway even if it isn't going to go off soon. ----------- Bullet Bill ----------- Position Received - 6th-12th How to use - Press L to become a Bullet Bill and fly along the track for about five to ten seconds on autopilot, taking out karts in the way. It also destroys their items, a great side effect. Defending Against - If you hear or see a Bullet Bill coming behind, drive out of the way as it seriously knocks you to the side, possibly off the track. It'll also destroy any items you are holding, so its worth diverting for a few seconds to avoid getting hit. ------- Blooper ------- Position Received - 3rd-8th How to use - Press L to make Blooper spray ink on those in front of you. It will partially blind their vision for about 10-15 seconds, or until they go over a booster. Most CPU carts drive like crazy once they get hit by this, so it's very handy in the Grand Prix. Try not to use it when your opponents are due to go other boosters, so time it to it's most effective timing. Defending Against - If you get hit, then you should be able to drive fairly OK for a while but when it drops down a little and really clouds you vision. Try and drive over any boosters or use a mushroom if you can as that'll get rid of the ink instantly. ----------- Thunderbolt ----------- Position Received - 6th-12th How to use - Press L to make all other karts shrink in size, causing them to slow down. Unlike other Mario Kart games you can't run over the shrinked karts and make them flat, so just drive past them instead. Shrinked karts won't make big jumps, even boost ones, so if you can time it around them that's an advantage to you. Defending Against - If you get shrunk, then avoid jumps, even boost ones, as you won't make it. Instead just wait around before them until you regain your size. Remember that you can still perform mini-boosts when you're small which is a great advantage in the GP modes, as CPU players won't do this when shrunk. You can prevent being shrunk by using a star or if you happen to fall off the track at that time. ---- Star ---- Position Received - 6th-12th How to use - Press L to use the star, making you invincible, giving you extra speed and removing terrain slowdown. So when you have it, run in to other karts and through any obstacles in your way and take advantage of shortcuts and cutting corners as you won't slowdown. A star lasts about eight seconds. Defending Against - If you see someone using a star then they'll be brightly multi-coloured, and like when you see a bullet bill getting hit by one will throw you to side and destroy your item, so dive out of the way as best as you can. You cannot use shells or other items against them in this state, so just wait until it's over and let 'er rip. ------------------- Thundercloud (NEW!) ------------------- Position Received - 4rd-8th How to use - Having this causes a thundercloud to appear above you as soon as you get it from an Item box, increasing your speed and removing the impacts of terrain. However you need to pass it on otherwise you will be struck by lightning and become shrunken. As you get this in the middle of the pack, passing it on to someone else in a hurry should not be too much of a problem. Defending Against - If this appears over you, run into another racer to try and pass it on. You have around four - five seconds to do so. If you are around a bunch of others just drive into them and hope for the best, or slow down so people come past and hopefully brush you. If you have an item, use it and hopefully that'll stop them so you can hit 'em. Also note that if you go into a Booster Rocket it will disappear automatically, handy if you are on such a track. ---------------- POW Block (NEW!) ---------------- Position Received - 4rd-8th How to use - All the vehicles ahead will get a warning that they will be spun out, dropping all their items. Extremely useful for covering a little ground, and further more losing their items. Defending Against - There is little you can do when this appears - just shed your items the best way you can, or ideally, get on a rocket boost or use an invincibility item. If you are off the ground (NOT JUMPING) such as from a ramp, then you will avoid this item (thanks acelee). Wes Cheung sends in this tip - if you are on a bike, performing a wheelie will reduce the hit incured. While you will still spin out and lose your items, your speed is notably faster than if you were not performing a wheelie in the first place. Similarly, shaking the Wiimote will create such a forcefield to protect you as well - thanks Jaumot Joel / CoolChain, Daniel Botterill, Raymond McMillan ------------------- Big Mushroom (NEW!) ------------------- Position Received - 4th-8th How to use - Activate the item to grow big, meaning you go faster and can crush other racers. To use this at it's best, wait until the track opens up, or when there is a huddle of others ahead of you. Upon hitting another racer, they spin out and shrink. Defending Against - If you (somehow) spot this, get out of the way. Using items against them do not work, so wait until they return to normal and feel free to extract your revenge. If you are lucky enough to have a Star, this takes them out. Thanks 'A Link to the Future'! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 2.06. Characters, Karts and Bikes =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= This section will give you the lowdown on all the characters in the game, as well as the karts and bikes they have to offer, and how to unlock them. If you want a more coherent list of unlockables, check the relevant section toward the end of the guide. ---------- Characters ---------- There are three character classes - LIGHT, MEDIUM and HEAVY. LIGHT - High Acceleration, High Off-Road, Low Top Speed. MEDIUM - Medium Acceleration, Medium Top Speed, Medium Off-Road. HEAVY - High Top Speed, Low Acceleration, Low Off-Road. Whatever class you choose depends on your playing style, but I advise MEDIUM to begin with, especially when using the Wheel. Also note two things - - Characters within the weight class are the SAME as one another. - The only differences between characters are the KARTS or BIKES that they choose within that class. LIGHT CHARACTERS - Baby Mario Baby Peach Toad Koopa Troopa Baby Luigi (Unlocked 8 Expert Staff Ghosts) Baby Daisy (50CC New all 1 Star) Toadette (Set TT times on 32 different courses) Dry Bones (100CC Leaf Cup MEDIUM CHARACTERS - Mario Luigi Peach Yoshi Daisy (150CC Special Cup) Birdo (Set TT times on 16 different courses) Bowser Jr. (100CC Retro 1 Star) Diddy Kong (50CC Lightning Cup) HEAVY CHARACTERS - Wario Waluigi Donkey Kong Bowser Funky Kong (Unlocked 4 Expert Staff Ghosts) King Boo (50CC Star Cup) Rosalina (100CC Shell Cup) Dry Bowser (150CC all 1 Star) ANY - (these are dependant on the weight of your Mii!) Mii Racer Outfit A (100CC Special Cup) Mii Racer Outfit B (32 Expert Staff Ghosts Unlocked) ----- Bikes ----- A new addition to Mario Kart Wii, these steer and act like karts in pretty much every way. They get the advantage of wheelies, by flicking up or press Up on the D-Pad, giving you a speed boost. However as a result, when drift boosting you can only do blue sparks, and not the subsequent red sparks. You HAVE to race these in 100CC class, giving you a chance at trying them out. ----------------------- Vehicle Characteristics ----------------------- All three class types have three vehicles to choose from the off, as well as one to unlock. They share karts and no character has specific vehicles them alone can use. Speed - This dictates how fast the top speed is. The higher the Speed stat, the faster your kart can go overall. However usually high speed karts are dogged by low acceleration. For more experienced players. Weight - This impacts on jumps and nudging other players. Heavy karts can smash through lighter karts, sometimes off the track, and they also fly less after jumps. This is usually tied in with low handling stats. Acceleration - The higher the acceleration, the faster you can recover back to higher speeds have stopping or slowing down. Very handy for beginners, and generally great overall. Handling - This higher the handling the easier it is the turn, very handy for this tight corners. Lighter karts usually have this stat. Drift - A high drift stat usually means that drift mini-boosts are easier to attain, and that the effect of the boost is longer lasting. Off-Road - The highest this is, the less of an effect grass, dirt and other non track surfaces slow your kart down. It will always slow down your kart, but can be minimised by using this stat. Mini-Turbo - Ignore this if you are on Automatic, otherwise the higher the stat the longer and more powerful the mini-turbo will be. As you cannot Snake proper in this game this does not have much of an impact, but that is also course dependant. --------- Kart List --------- LIGHT KARTS - Standard Kart S Baby Booster Concerto Rally Romper (Unlock 1 Expert Staff Ghost / 50 WFC Wins) Blue Falcon (150CC Mirror Lightning Cup) Cheep Charger (50CC all 1 Star) MEDIUM KARTS - Standard Kart M Nostalgia 1 Wild Wing Turbo Blooper (50CC Leaf Cup) Royal Racer (150CC Leaf Cup) B Dasher Mk 2 (Unlock 24 Expert Staff Ghosts) HEAVY KARTS - Standard Kart L Offroader Flame Flyer Piranha Prowler (50CC Special Cup) Dragonetti (150CC Lightning Cup) Aero Glider (150CC Retro Cup, all 1 Star) --------- Bike List --------- LIGHT BIKES - Standard Bike S Bullet Bike Nano Bike Quacker (150CC Star Cup) Magikruiser (Set TT times on 8 different courses) Torpedo (Unlocked 12 Expert Staff Ghosts) MEDIUM BIKES - Standard Bike M Mach Bike Bon Bon Rapide (100CC Lightning Cup) Dolphin Dasher (150CC Mirror Special Cup) Nitrocycle (100CC All 1 Star) HEAVY BIKES - Standard Bike L Bowser Bike Wario Bike Twinkle Star (100CC Star Cup) Phantom (150CC Special Cup) Torpedo (12 Expert Staff Ghosts Unlocked) =============================================================================== -------------- 3. COURSES -------------- =============================================================================== =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.01. Mushroom Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ------------- Luigi Circuit ------------- Walkthrough - After the first easy right corner and a small straight, the track shifts left and then is followed by two long right turns after another, which you can drift across both and get a maximum boost. After another straight and left turn is a wide right with booster pads; drift across these so when you exit before the start finish you have a boost ready. Pretty simple, the width of the track gives you a lot to play with here. Shortcuts - There is a ramp on the left before the boosters that you can mushroom to and trick from. - You can use a mushroom over the sand on the last corner, skipping the boosters out entirely. Thanks Petey - I did not even consider doing that! Other Tips - Sometimes the Luigi statue head will be replaced by a Mii! Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BOsKYNfhmw Time Trial Tips - Generally stay on the insides of the turns, especially the booster corner - Use your Mushroom to get to the ramp before the boosters, enabling you to perform a trick and get an added boost. --------------- Moo Moo Meadows --------------- Walkthrough - A long left with item boxes opens up to a meandering area of track; follow the middle as much as possible, and if you have any items that can boost you or void the off track slowdown, use it here. After is a ramp you can trick from, and a left leads to an open area with hills in the middle. Use the opening ramp to trick and avoid the first hill, go right round the others, and take the final driftable left to the finish. Shortcuts - On the last corner of the meandering section, use a mushroom on that last corner. Just as the track goes right for the final time, continue driving left and drift, boost across to come out just before the small blue ramp. Other Tips - On the second lap cows invade the meandering area of the track, so watch out! - As mentioned, if you have mushrooms or a star save them for the meandering section. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zIhpTxaKo0 Time Trial Tips - The second lap will have cows invading the track, so weave through them. - Use the mushroom to bypass that final corner of the meandering section (see Shortcuts above). - After tricking from the booster ramp, drift right round the hill to the checkpoint. -------------- Mushroom Gorge -------------- Walkthrough - Tightly drift left then right across the bridge, and over the bouncy mushroom. Now you have a choice of left and right; left takes waaay too long and has nothing really special to add, while the right has bouncy mushrooms that cut out that corner entirely. You can probably fit in two drift boosts into the left corner into the cavern, where there is another two routes. Again, go right - it is shorter and you can still pick up an item box. Finally there is a wide left, with Goombas to avoid just on the inside of the track. Shortcuts - Just as you start the lap, if you use a mushroom between the green and blue flowers on the left you'll land on a lower bouncy mushroom, then a higher one, and on the bridge, cutting out the opening section. Note that this does not save much time, and you can easily hit the side of the bridge and fall, but is pretty fun to attempt. - On the last corner, if you drift early you can use a mushroom to go inside across the grass, cutting out the corner. Other Tips - You can knock other characters away in midair when bouncing across mushrooms - providing that you are heavier, of course. - It is possible to perform tricks just as you are bouncing from mushrooms. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS2rroltsxo Time Trial Tips - Take the right route each time you come to the mushrooms. - Use your Mushroom to cut inside of the final corner. -------------- Toad's Factory -------------- Walkthrough - Starting with a wide right, you are taken to a conveyor belt straight. The central belt is going in the forward direction so take it across, although dodge the crushers if they start to tremble. Drift right and stay in the middle to avoid falling from the edge of the moving platforms, and just go straight throw the crossing belts, avoiding the crates and aiming to get an item box as you go. Drift right into a left corner with two opposing belts; take the one going onward to give you more speed and off the ramp jump at the end to outside. After the bumps is the final muddy straight. There are boosts to the sides, then middle and a ramp. Certain laps have these out, otherwise go up the sides until they appear again. After the final ramp boost you are done. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - Always take the belts that are going in your direction. - If you have mushrooms or a star, save it until the final muddy straight so you can just go straight through without worrying about the booster pads being open or not. - Hitting the crates on the horizontal belt section drops a Mushroom onto the track. - A Mii will sometimes appear above the horizontal belts halfway through the track. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvQrgvxfFyo Time Trial Tips - The opening belt on the 1st and 3rd laps will not crush you if you have a decent enough time. - The last belt section (on the corner) will be green on the Outside, Inside, Outside in that order from lap to lap. - Be sure to trick from the ramp going into the horizontal belt section, and use the mushroom as you toward the end. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.02. Flower Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ------------- Mario Circuit ------------- Walkthrough - After a couple of easy right driftable turns is a corner section with a Chain Chomp. How you take this section depends on his position; take the left corner proper and stick to the outside to avoid his bite if he is on the right area of grass, otherwise you can go across the grass and use the boost ramp. After the tunnel, drift left, grab a few item boxes and avoid the Goombas in the middle of the track until the finish. Shortcuts - At the Chain Chomp corner, if you have a mushroom boost across the grass to the boost ramp to skip the corner out and shave off a few seconds. - You can use a mushroom just as you leave the tunnel going left, cutting out the wide corner as it goes up. Other Tips - None. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AV1bVQt8qU Time Trial Tips - On the second lap, it is possible to take the inside of the Chain Chomp corner, going under the Chain Chomp itself, providing your time is decent enough. - Use the mushroom at either shortcut above; I unlocked the Expert Staff Ghost via the grass cutting out of the tunnel one, however you might prefer to use it to get to the ramp. ------------ Coconut Mall ------------ Walkthrough - As you enter the mall two escalators greet you - choose the one going up each time - and ignore the stairs down in the centre, go right close to the corner and jump off the top with a free boost. Head through the plaza, drift right round the corner to an open area. Slip right and use the boost to the end stairs and drift up them, where the path splits. Going up and left gets you some item boxes and a big jump for tricks, otherwise left is slightly quicker and can still get you an item box and a boost. Use the left ramp for a trick, right onto a straight with cars; don't ignore the boosts but only use them if you are sure you won't hit a car - where ever the car is drive on the very opposite. Shortcuts - After the first escalators, stay on the same level and go right to the corner, where you can cut into a shop. The carpet slows you right down, so use an item, and it will take out above the plaza area and out after the second set of escalators. Other Tips - Miis are shown on the posters and adverts throughout the course! - The cars that block you before the final corner are driven by Miis. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1StSusVvG8 Time Trial Tips - The escalators at the start dictate whether you use the shortcut or not (as well as the mushroom). On the 1st lap, you have to go right, so use the mushroom at the shortcut. On the 2nd and 3rd laps, both are left, so use the boosters at the corner and jump off the top. Where you use your mushrooms is up to you, but I recommend the final straight. -------------------- DK's Snowboard Cross -------------------- Walkthrough - Drift right and take the booster rocket to the top of the track. Drift left and use the booster ramp to get some speed and a trick. Go left to navigate the snow, and at the bumpy area, stay in the centre to use two trickable booster ramps one after another. Drift on the inside on the next right and left turns (don't fall!) to reach a snowy half pipe. This is kinda tough; use the boosters and go left up the side, not going over the pipe, but cutting right before the next patch of snow and up the right side (again, not going up), then right round to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - A mushroom can be used to get through the snow at any point. - At the bumpy section, you can trick over and over. - The snowboarder statue head can randomly be one of your Miis! Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g35nf8Oo-xY Time Trial Tips - At the bumpy section, either use the central two ramps and trick from them, or use the bumps to trick over and over. They take _about_ the same amount of time, so this is down to preference. - At the end, use the booster and cut left of the snow, not going over, and use the mushroom to cut through the second patch. ----------------- Wario's Gold Mine ----------------- Walkthrough - Drift the right and left into the dip to use booster pads to get up the hill. Turn left and just drift right round ignoring the quarter trick pipe, and go onward into the cavern. Bats will fly out in a line in certain parts of the track, so spot their locations from a distance, drift right and use the booster ramp. This S bend is hard to drift on due to the mine cart track that travels across the insides of the track, but is possible as long as there are no carts in the way. After another tunnel is an easy right to the finish. Shortcuts - After you come to the mine carts, they trail off to the left when the track goes straight on; follow them to drive off the track to a side tunnel, with boosters taking you to the final corner. Other Tips - The mine carts toward the end of the track have item boxes trailing them, so cut across them as they travel to pick up a weapon. - Hitting too many bats in the opening tunnel will cause you to spin out. - Hitting a mine cart will knock you from the track - you can see their track in grey, so avoid going across it if you can. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my1-dnTmyG4 Time Trial Tips - Not much to add - the second lap minecarts are a bit of a nightmare if you are doing a decent time as they seem right in the way, but do not be afraid to slow down or take a wide birth. It took me a while to admit I could not do that bit perfectly. - Use the mushroom in the straight dip leaving the cavern. - Do not use the shortcut. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.03. Star Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ------------- Daisy Circuit ------------- Walkthrough - After a straight and some item boxes will come an essentially right bend that jaggles left and right. You can drift it easily, and if you hit a traffic cone then it'll just bounce away from you. Next up are two roundabouts - take the right each time and stick to the insides to cover less track. Drift right in the tunnel as it meanders out left, drift around the tight yet long right turn and finally the easy left to the finish. Shortcuts - After the initial right section, just before you enter the round abouts, there is a staircase in the right building with a booster ramp to trick from, shaving a second or two off your time. Other Tips - You can get on the inside of the final corner by going on the ramped section before it and drifting tight left to avoid falling from it. Worth practicing. - Traffic cones don't really slow you down that much, and bounce away from you with cool effect. - Miis spectate from certain parts of the course. - The roundabout statue randomly is replaced by a Mii. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9K-z8p8v_0 Time Trial Tips - Use that staircase shortcut; drift boost into the bottom, mushroom up it and trick out of it. - Depending on how well your vehicle handles, use the raised inside part of the final corner to save some time. ---------- Koopa Cape ---------- Walkthrough - Semi-snake the first area and use the boost ramp to the wide corner. Stick left and trick from the ramp, then on the inside here to the next ramp and trick again. As you land drift left straight away onto the river. Go straight ahead and use the ramp to trick and boost across the corner, then go left and use the left ramp, but NOT trick. Go right then left and down into the tunnel. This is very linear, and half way through stick to the watery middle to get a boost across to the end. Do not touch the electrodes otherwise you'll shrink! Ramp boost out and take the final corner reasonably wide, as touching the watery inside will slide you off. Shortcuts - After you take a left sharp turn in the river area, there is a grassy area right that you can cut across. Use a mushroom or star to make the most of it. Other Tips - Avoid the electrodes in the tunnel at all costs, as shrinking is not fun! - The Koopa on the wall after the first ramp is sometimes replaced by a Mii. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UZC6hgHezM Time Trial Tips - Trick from the first two ramps, as well as the one leading into the river. - Use the mushroom to cut across the final corner of the river section. ------------- Maple Treeway ------------- Walkthrough - A gentle S-bend section takes you to a rocket boost across the level. Drift right, out of the tunnel and left to an open area with two Wrigglers to avoid. They (mostly) stick to the outside, but try and gauge where they will go quickly and head across. What follows is a tight right and a thin path with booster pads on the left and right sides (take the left) and a hairpin turn. Due to the boosters before it, it is hard to take it tight so either drift as soon as you launch from them and cut as much out as possible, or take advantage of the trick quarter pipe. Bomb down the straight and a bridge to a ramp, and a soft left into a bouncing net. As you are bounced up you can do tricks for sneaky boosts. Head across the bumpy roots to the start finish. Shortcuts - At the very start of the track, just it turns left, you can go right in a gap in the barrier for a route with boosters to come out at the booster rocket. It is considerably faster than taking the opening route. - The final part with the trees has two booster ramps either side. Other Tips - There are piles of leaves throughout, which sometimes contain a mushroom - or a banana. - The bouncy net at the end can be tricked from, if you time it right, as well as the tree roots just after. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9o7ENhdOsM Time Trial Tips - Use that opening shortcut to cut a few seconds. - Use the mushroom after the hairpin turn, on the straight with the leaves coming into the booster then bouncy net. - The central section with the Wrigglers should be tackled as follows - 1st Lap, go central then left side; 2nd Lap, go far left of both Wrigglers; 3rd Lap, go far right of both Wrigglers. - At the end, be sure to trick across the net, and use either the side booster ramps or trick from the roots in the centre. --------------- Grumble Volcano --------------- Walkthrough - Off the ramp is a slight meandering section (which is effectively a straight) which takes you to a driftable right turn. Across the side moving platform into a cavern with a higher and lower section; take the (left) higher one round to the exit, go straight on over the platforms and up the right route for a booster ramp. Turn right as you land on the ground, trick from the ramp and take the right route, not tricking from the final ramp to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - There are ramps and booster jumps everywhere in this course - just be sure to trick from the right ones! - The more laps you play, the more the stage falls apart. You can see the cracks before it happens, so stick to the main part of the course. - More flames are added in the second part of the course in the Grand Prix, so just be careful as you go. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsY9Yhy7RIc Time Trial Tips - Do not trick from the final ramp if you took the right route. - Use the mushroom either in the opening cavern to skip the corners leading to the moving platform, or at the start finish straight. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.04. Special Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ------------- Dry Dry Ruins ------------- Walkthrough - A long and wide right driftable turn takes you down to a bridge with broken off edges - stick to the middle and stick to the middle of the following S-bend. After is a straight before the tunnel with collapsed pillars either side for trick jumps. As you enter the temple, drive through the bats (if you hit them there is little penalty) and either use the quarter trick pipe to boost, or just drive across the small section of sand. After two right turns is an open area with a pit of sand in the centre; you can drive across this in the first lap, but you must go round it in the following ones. After another bat crossing are two booster ramps after another, a quick left and easy right will take you to the finish. Shortcuts - In the final corner after the two ramps, if you have an item you can boost straight onward past it to the start finish line. Other Tips - Sand fills parts of the course increasingly as laps go on, so stay to the main parts and watch as you drive. - Pillars collapsed outside can give you a jump for tricks; this is especially handy in the middle S-bend which can be driven straight across of as a result. - The bats in the start and exit of the temple hardly slow you down if hit, so go bat crap crazy. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jToIbQkwgSE Time Trial Tips - On the second and third laps use full advantage of the fallen columns to trick from. - Use the mushroom across the sand as you enter the temple; use it too late and you will crash into the end wall, so turn into the corner early and activate. Although you might be tempted to save the mushroom for the final corner shortcut, using the quarter pipe in the temple adds a lot of time and is better attributed here. ---------------- Moonview Highway ---------------- Walkthrough - Drift right and stay on the left as the track meanders out to an opening cliff, and drift along the left side onto the bridge. After the track shifts slightly afterward, there is a toll and the road expands to two lanes each side with boosters. Stick to the central two lanes, hopping between the boosters that populate them, then as the tunnel arrives use the right booster as you enter and cut across at the corner to the left side and exit to another toll booth and the start finish. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - Everyone drives on the left, like in the UK / Australia, so stay on that side pretty much at all times. - Hitting the Bob-Omb cart causes it to explode and take out any other characters and items around you. - Miis operate the toll booths. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLEplcWvp04 Time Trial Tips - One of the tougher time trials, you have to memorize both the patterns of the boosters in the latter section, as well as the way of the traffic. - The booster pads are best taken as follows - take the very left toll, main boost, then boosters go left to right across the lanes to the corner, where you will boost around the inside. Use the boost before and after the main boost in the lane next to the right lane, into the tunnel and drift left cutting into the left two lanes where there is a booster on the right side. Boost into the left, exit to the toll booths. Watch the above replay so it makes more sense. - The traffic differs according to the lap, meaning you will have to alter your booster route. On the 1st Lap, as you enter the tunnel stick to the left lane going straight on to avoid a car. On the 2nd Lap, there will be a car coming round the inside lane at the booster corner. On the 3rd lap, providing your time is decent no traffic will hinder you in the booster or tunnel sections. - If you hit a car proper you will lose your mushrooms, so you need to do it with a degree of perfection. --------------- Bowser's Castle --------------- Walkthrough - Trick from the opening booster jump into the wobbly hallway, which you can trick from as it bounces you up. Down the steps and drift left and right down the passage, avoiding the Thwomps. At the central section with the giant fireball spitting Bowser, you need to use your half pipe skills to get across the muddy central parts by tricking up and down left, across to the right and onward. The path splits into two, but they are both equally the same with a booster ramp. Take the following right corner wide to avoid the fire that spits in the grated inside area, which is followed by a few corners with Thwomps. On the set of three Thwomps, the outer two drop together. Trick the booster ramp and drift left to the final straight, populated with spirts of fire - you can drive close to them, just not _over_ them. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - You can perform tricks on the wobbly corridor as you lift from the ground. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WzMSmxRVVg Time Trial Tips - Trick over the wobbly corridor. - The central section really depends on your time in terms of how its tackled. Basically, you need to use the half pipe to trick boost over the first mud section, and either again for the second, or use the ramp. However if you use the ramp you may hit a fireball... use your mushroom on the first patch of mud, then the trick on the either the halfpipe or ramp on the second accordingly. - You can drift the inside of the grated corner before the Thwomps, _right_ on the inside, to avoid the flames. ------------ Rainbow Road ------------ Walkthrough - Head straight down and go right then left to hit the boosters, and off the ramp. Drift the left turn to more boosters, and another barrier-less left. Head straight up this wobbly section where you can do tricks as you lift off the ground, followed by a ramp. This mini figure of eight section is tough to drift and can be easily fallen off from, so take it easy, and is followed by some tight turns and a rainbow jump. Right drift into a rainbow passage to come out at an immediate split - the right is far easier but slightly longer, whereas the left and lower route is thin and has no barriers (do not take it if you are using the Wii Wheel!). The final left corner has boosters, especially on the very inside which will shave off some time. Shortcuts - Using a mushroom you can leap the first middle of eight section, and ensuring you trick it, you'll do the same with the second. Other Tips - You can trick at the wobbly section of track halfway through. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=os61GcGxaJM Time Trial Tips - Watch and learn from the Expert Staff Ghost video above. - Use the mushroom the get across the opening gap in the figure of eight, being sure to trick from it to get over the second. - You can drift most corners, even the one in between the traveling magic tunnels. - Take the right route toward the end - the left is harder and does not take any more time off. - At the final corner, drift on the very inside, then boost, drift right into the left most booster to the checkpoint. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.05. Shell Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= --------------- GCN Peach Beach --------------- Walkthrough - Drift around the first corner, and you will come across a beach area. There is a tide here that changes every lap. The best advice is to either avoid the water totally and stay on the dry sand or go through the water, but only around the white edge where the water isn't that deep enough to slow you down. There are also Cataquacks here, which you must avoid otherwise they will flip you up into the air. Go through the rock formations after, where there is some more beach (with more Cataquacks to avoid), drift around the corner to the path and onward to the start/finish line. Shortcuts - When you go to the beach area after the first corner, you can go left instead of onward. That way there is are item boxes and a ramp, which cuts your time according to what lap you are on and if you have a mushroom (see below). - You can use a mushroom across the water. Other Tips - There is a side area to the left before the start finish line with item boxes, but serves no other purpose. - The random pipe that was on the first corner from the original has now been removed. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKpsumnkV5g Time Trial Tips - The mushroom strategy is different to most Time Trials. On the 1st Lap, use it to get across most of the receding water. On the 2nd Lap, use _both_ mushrooms to get across the water. On the 3rd Lap, you do not have to use any. -------------- DS Yoshi Falls -------------- Walkthrough - At first you are presented with two lanes; the left over a bridge, the right over water. Go left to use the boosters, only using the right if you have an item to help you across, and stay left over the ramp to get a trick between the boosters. The final bend has boosters on the outside, but drift along it as well to get a bonus drift as well. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - Stick to the inside of the turn - ie the water in most cases to cover less ground so get slightly further ahead. However only do so if you can boost or mushroom to get over easy enough. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Gx3R1GhRNo Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom on the very first corner, over the water. - Take the next corner on the left side, and use a booster to get your most of the way across the inside water of the next inside section, and a drift boost across the rest. Use a booster pad to get you to the checkpoint. ------------------- SNES Ghost Valley 2 ------------------- Walkthrough - Drift around the first wide U-Bend and drive left round the corner. Stick to the left to go around the barrier and go right, and then right left right quickly making sure you exit wide on the right to avoid the gaps in the track. Finish off by drifting the final corner to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - After the first few corners there is a small straight and a corner that turns left then right around. There is a gap in the barrier here with ramp, which you can trick across - just drift before to avoid going off the other side. Other Tips - Hitting the edge blocks causes them to disappear. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Q2iyBLzRo Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom to use the shortcut without tricking. - Drift most of the corners in twos, being sure to have a maximum boost coming out of them. ----------------- N64 Mario Raceway ----------------- Walkthrough - Drift right twice and watch out for the two sharp lefts, other wise you'll fly out on to the grass. Following this is a U turn right which can be drifted if you are very early, otherwise slowdown and turn normally. After is a quick left and right to a straight, a tricky right right left to a straight through a pipe, leaving the final right turn and the checkpoint. Shortcuts - Just before the U-Bend, cut right and use a mushroom to avoid that corner and appear at a ramp. Trick off it to get back on to the track.. - You can use a mushroom to cut the corner before the pipe tunnel toward the end of the track. Other Tips - You can drive up the inside of the end pipe tunnel and trick from it back onto the track to get a boost out of no where. - Random trivia; Mario Kart 64 claims this track is 567M in length. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpivNXVpzyo Time Trial Tips - Practice using the first shortcut, as it safes a load of time. This is where your mushrooms are used. - Trick out of the pipe tunnel toward the end for an extra boost. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.06. Banana Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ---------------- N64 Sherbet Land ---------------- Walkthrough - Turn right and drift left. Go onward and drive around the crack to avoid falling in to the drink. Go right, where there is a rock ahead - go right to get some item boxes and a boost ramp. Head on to the tunnel, avoiding the penguins, and stick constantly to the left wall to avoid the penguins around the various columns. You may hit one on the second column, but you can evade to the left just about. As you exit, there are item boxes on the left side if you want them, otherwise go straight on to the corner, round then to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - Touching a penguin causes you to spin out. - You can jump the cracks at the corners if you time it right, but I wouldn't do it unless you are in time trial as it's tough to pull off. - The mother of the penguins is located on an island on the left of the checkpoint. - Random trivia; Mario Kart 64 claims this track is 756M in length. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5IS4h34fdM Time Trial Tips - Instead of using the ramp off to the right, stick on the very left and use your mushroom across the edge, jumping over the cracks as you go. ----------------- GBA Shy Guy Beach ----------------- Walkthrough - Drive onward, drift left at the far island and past a vegetated area. Drive over the bump and round the islands, navigating round the crabs that litter them. Head over the small islands, sticking in the middle to avoid the cannon fire either side and drift round the corner. Now head down the left side of the vegetation and through the shallow waters straight to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - After the first vegetated patch, there is an island off to the left that you can use to cut out the corner, providing you have a boost item that is. - You can cut left at the final vegetated area, even without an item, although you haven't got much room to play with there. Other Tips - Stick to the light, shallow waters. - Hitting a crab spins you out. - The pirate ship in the distance fires cannon balls on to the course, which explode with a wide radius. Stay away! Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEHzjreHAyg Time Trial Tips - Use a kart that has a high off-road stat, such as the Turbo Blooper. - Take the very inside of the first corner to avoid the crabs. - Use the mushroom after the first vegetated area, over the island on the left. - Before sure to trick from the ramps. ----------------- DS Delfino Square ----------------- Walkthrough - Head up the hill to the statue, where you have to go clockwise around it (drift close to the inside) to where you have to go down a street. Drift to the left and grab an Item Box, then a right down a backstreet to where the path splits in to two. One is a tame turn down the left, the other has steps that head straight on. The faster route is straight on. Either path takes you to a group of item boxes and out to a bridge. Head left to the side market, where you will see some boxes to the side. Drift right around the corner and trick over the booster suspension bridge, drift round the short right, onward, then round the right angle to the check point. Shortcuts - Before the stone bridge you can drive left toward the river and use a mushroom to fly across to the pier, and drive up, cutting out that entire corner. It is hard to manage though! - After the first stone bridge, there are a few boxes on the left. There is a small backstreet shortcut behind these that requires a sharp turn in to. As its full of mud you'll need a mushroom to make the most of it, and you'll appear at the booster suspension bridge. You need to use it early as to not fly off into the water afterward! - You can use a mushroom through the grass after the suspension bridge. Other Tips - Try placing bananas and other items after the suspension bridge, so other racers land straight into them. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LOnu72wRR8 Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom in the muddy backstreet shortcut. - Take the right route just before the first bridge. ------------------- GCN Waluigi Stadium ------------------- Walkthrough - Most of the corners of this course can be drifted around, so do so. When going over the ramps through the rings of fire, aim for the middle to get the item box (and to avoid getting burnt). About halfway through the course (the long straight on the left side of the map) are rotating lines of fire, and pipes. The lines are easy enough to avoid, but always go to the right of the pipes as Piranha plants appear from them. The only other thing worth noting is that the S bend toward the end of the track can be shorted a little with a mushroom. Shortcuts - After the second booster ramp is a left turn; you can use a mushroom across the water cutting out the corner entirely. Other Tips - There are a lot of ramps you can trick from. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLV6Srl33dA Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom at the water corner as described in the shortcut above. - At the final bumps before the S-Bend, only trick from the first one. - At the pipe piranha section, go up the left and drive off parallel to it so you just jump off and back on, trick boosting down the straight. You can do this before and over the left most pipe to save a lot of time. Check the Expert Staff Ghost Video for an example. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.07. Leaf Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= --------------- DS Desert Hills --------------- Walkthrough - Drift close to the inside of this long right bend, and the left and right turns after. Here you'll meet your first pokey which can he easily avoided. Over the hill is a straight with Pokeys and a few sets of Item Boxes. There is a long turn after this with a few sharp bends that should be drifted; there are item boxes on the outside of these turns, so if you don't mind sacrificing a few seconds of your time for these then go for it. After these is the check point straight. On the second and third laps fireballs with start to appear, on the second lap one to the right of the pyramid and in the twisty end section, and on the third just after the check point and at the twisty end section. To avoid them, go to where they have come from (you can tell by their fire trail that comes from behind them). Shortcuts - After the first bend, there is a pyramid to your left. Use a mushroom down the dirt path to the left of this to shave a few seconds off your time. - On the last corner, you can use a mushroom just before to get over the large area of dirt on its right. Other Tips - Due to the wide nature of the course you can easily drift throughout. - You can trick from the ramp just before the straight with the two Pokeys. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnJ2TTZC5uU Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom to skip out the final corner. ------------------- GBA Bowser Castle 3 ------------------- Walkthrough - Drift round the first two let corners, and wide right to avoid the Thwomps. Over the grates, turn right, left and left again to the bumpy ramp area. Stick to the left and perform tricks constantly. Wide drift the left U-Bend, use the ramp between the Thwomps and right down the grate straight. Go right slightly and go straight down the middle of the jagged area, drift around left and head straight down the middle to the very end. Shortcuts - None. Other Tips - Certain areas of lava are now just red rocks that slow you down; if you have special items, use them to skip some of the corners. - At the bumpy ramp area, perform lots of tricks to gain time. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8hHhwGCMZ4 Time Trial Tips - Trick from every ramp in that short ramp section halfway through the track. - Use the mushroom just after the grated area after the booster ramp, down the "straight", allowing you to drive over the red rocks at the start. ----------------------- N64 DK's Jungle Parkway ----------------------- Walkthrough - Turn right, onward a short distance then drift right up the spiral to the jump across the river. When you land hold drift left and boost start onward. The next few corners are sharp - right, left, left, try and drift the right U bend by the river, left and down to the bridge. Make sure you are central when you try and board the bridge or you'll knock yourself back. After the bridge is a cave, so turn right and round to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - If you have a mushroom, use it in the cave at the end to get up the bank. Other Tips - Plant item boxes on the bridge before the cave, or better yet just before it, as your opponents will have a tough time getting past them. - Random trivia; Mario Kart 64 claims this track is 893M in length. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq2TmDaL9YQ Time Trial Tips - Drift as soon as you touch down after flying over the river. - Use the mushroom in the cave shortcut, as described above. - You can drift boost most of this track. ----------------- GCN Mario Circuit ----------------- Walkthrough - Drift round the first two corners (especially the sharp second corner) and stick to the right of the road after to avoid the Chain Chomp that will appear from the left. After the tunnel, avoid the sides of the road due to the Piranha Plants, and drift around the hairpin and the corner going right afterward. At this bumpy area, avoid touching the Goombas or you will spin out. Go onward to the start/finish line. Shortcuts - After the first two corners, the road goes right round the green area on the left (where the Chain Chomp is).You can cut across the green area with a mushroom (you may have to drive a little onto the grass then use it to get across all of it). Other Tips - You can trick off the bumps on the second to last corner area. - You can trick from the final bridge. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ze016Sx7kvw Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom to the left of the Chain Chomp, as described in the shortcut above. - If you trick from the right most bump at the end, you can boost over the little nub of grass and drift round to the bridge. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 3.08. Lightning Cup =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -------------------- SNES Mario Circuit 3 -------------------- Walkthrough - Drift right, drive around the two left corners and drift right on the exit to a tight right surrounded by pipes and a straight. This ends in a really tight hairpin so stick to the right and drift close to the corner and wide again (but make sure you don't hit the pipes as you exit the corner). You can drift the next wide bend around to the S-bend which has to be taken with care, finishing with the final driftable corner. Try and end up on the right side to make use of the booster. Shortcuts - Before the last couple of corners, where the track goes right, left then the final corner, you can cut out the first part by using a mushroom straight through the barrier. Other Tips - There are a few oil slicks around, which can be leapt. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8N86xTpGUA Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom at the shortcut toward the end of the track as described above. - Most of the track can be drift boosted, so do so. ---------------- DS Peach Gardens ---------------- Walkthrough - Head onward onto the island and exit on the first left. Head onward and go clockwise round the flower bed, and up the ramp and clockwise around the square flower bed here and down to the hedge maze ahead. Here you must navigate through the blocks to the far end whilst dodging chain chomps. The other side has an incline, drift right round another flower bed to another decline to a hedge section. Here are just three cone shaped hedges to drive through; head round the first and then cut into the middle and to a winding track. There are moles that come out of the holes, so avoid these on to a path at the other end. There is one last right corner here which is easily driftable to the check point. Shortcuts - Using mushrooms you can boost through the flowerbeds throughout the track, the best of which is the first section with the arrow sign. - The first square flowerbed you come across has a small path to the right of it, which shaves a second or two off your time. - For the winding section towards the end, mushrooms can cut out the corners. Other Tips - Shells and other items can take out the moles that are on the dirt track at the end. - There are ramps either side of the winding end section, which are ideal if you have an item to use them. - The Chain Chomps in the maze have item boxes following them. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r_cZZi89DQ Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom at the first flowerbed section, with the arrow sign pointing left. - Drift in and out of the maze like sections, and ignore the ramps at the very end. --------------- GCN DK Mountain --------------- Walkthrough - The first uphill section can be driven straight up, so you don't have to follow the track properly. The mild corner after can be drifted, then you fly across the course to the mountain at the end when you enter through the giant barrel. At the rocky area afterward you don't have to follow the track, but using tricks at the ramps is advised. At the greenery area, boulders will appear but can be easily missed, with the remaining corners very sharp - either drift early or not at all. Continue to the the bridge and the start/finish line. Shortcut - If you use a mushroom against the raised section of the first corner you will fly over it to the corner before the rocket boost. - At the first very sharp corner at the end of the track, you can cut right after over the gap to the final corner. However it is very tricky to do so, and you will end up hitting the far side of the track, meaning it is pretty pointless in this version. Other Tips - The crack that takes up the right side toward the end of the green area is missing from this version. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAhFt_3xQTY Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom at the first section of track, as described above and shown in the above Expert Staff Ghost Video. - Only trick from the first two ramps after the rocket boost, and cut right of the third and final one. ------------------- N64 Bowser's Castle ------------------- Walkthrough - Probably the greatest MK course ever? Drive into the castle and round the right, drive on then drift early and left. Drift right and stay on the right side of the carpet, ready to dodge the Thwomps that come from behind and to drift around right at the end. Turn right, dodge the moving Twomps and turn left - don't drift as you might fall on the bridge just after. Go down the steps and into the courtyard below, ready the drift round the tight U bend left. Turn right at the end but stay central so you don't fall off the bridge on the way round, up the spiral road on to the roof, straight on dropping down and sticking to the left, round the final right corner to the checkpoint. Shortcuts - If you have a mushroom, you can cut out the first right corner over the grass between the hedges, before you enter the castle. Other Tips - Random trivia; Mario Kart 64 claims this track is 777M in length. Expert Staff Ghost Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wrb_oc9Jg2Q Time Trial Tips - Use the mushroom to cut out the first right corner over the grass between the hedges, as described above. - Trick from the ramps on the roof. =============================================================================== ------------------ 4. BATTLE MODE ------------------ =============================================================================== Now available to play with the computer, with friends and online, the Battle Mode is back and better than ever! There are two modes - Balloon Battle - Your staple Battle Mode, where balloons represent your lives. Use items to take away other racer's balloons, and don't hit any obstacles to take away your own! Coin Runners - Replacing Shine Runners from previously, you or your team has to collect as many coins as possible before the time runs out. Items help you distract other racers, so watch out where they are and snipe them before they get what is yours! ---------- Wii Stages ---------- Block Plaza - A very simple track with four platforms to the north, south, east and west that are connected to the ground via ramps and to one another via bridges. Item boxes populate between the platforms on the ground and on top of them. Hide round corners or wait on top of platforms and drop down to surprise others! Delfino Pier - A rather interesting stage that changes over time. At first you just have a wide red roof with a booster ramp at the peak and a path around the outside. Around a minute in a bridge will drop to the side to another roof, and gates will open on the path to inside that building with item boxes galore. Soon after the water level will also rise, constraining you to the roof, but lowers again shortly after. Watch the water levels and don't touch the dark water otherwise you'll die! Funky Stadium - After bombing down a ramp and entering the stadium, there are high ramps all over the place to get item boxes, and to evade shells and other items. You can run up the sides (but not back to the opening ramps) if you need to hide. Chain Chomp Roulette - You are projected onto a giant roulette wheel with a chomp that rolls around. Use the central ramp and ones on the outside for item boxes, but there is little strategy here - just drive around and go nuts! Thwomp Desert - Another random stage, just a circle that goes into a quick sand pit with a Thwomp above it. Don't go in the middle. Now and again the Thowmp will drop and cause the stage to ripple. There are Thomps stuck in the sand that you can drive into and trick from, and watch out for the cacti at the edges that will pop a balloon or two! ------------ Retro Stages ------------ SNES Battle Course 4 - A very simple court where each corner is divided up into linear segments, with a sand box in the middle. I personally find that you can drift through a corner segment, out to the centre, and back in again, giving you a decent speed and collecting item boxes as you go. GBA Battle Course 3 - Another simple court, with a lot of space to work with and little dividers. Again, drifting around a corner segment at speed and picking off people with the items collected is a nice tactic I adopt. N64 Skyscraper - A ring with a centre area, with holes you can fall down between them. There are no item boxes in the centre, so just drive round the ring, collect a few items and head in and take some names, back again etc. With some luck, others might fall into the holes too. GCN Cookie Land - A tiny circular stage with item boxes everywhere. This is pretty hectic, I just drift around the very outside and spam items whenever possible. DS Twilight House - This is a large symmetrical area with eight rooms in a square, a path outside. Like on the other 'simple' courses, it is possible to drift everywhere. Item boxes are some what sporadic - they are a few in some rooms and none in others - but the blindness of walls everywhere means you can pull off some really effective surprise attacks. =============================================================================== ------------- 5. ONLINE ------------- =============================================================================== Online is really easy, and moreover, very well done. Compared to Mario Kart DS it does several times better - - First console Mario Kart to support internet play - Up to 12 Players - Two players playing online on one console - Dedicated Wii Channel for Time Trials and Friend Lists (optional download) - Battle Mode now playable online - All tracks playable - Able to drag items --------------- Getting Started --------------- Go to the Wii Menu and set up your internet settings, so you are ready to go. Do not ask me how to do this or what troubleshooting errors you may have, as I do not know. But once you get it up and running, on the menu there are two options at the bottom - Nintendo WFC, and Mario Kart Channel. ------------ Nintendo WFC ------------ Three options - Worldwide, Continental and Friends. The first two you play against those of a similar rank to you either around the world or on the continent, and you have to have Friends on your list, online AND searching for you to connect. A bit of a pain, but still. From there, choose VS Race or Battle. Again, you are ranked against those similar to you (see below for more details). Pick your character, drift type and you'll be connected and shown who you are playing with via the map. You are added to a race, but note that you may have to wait for it to finish before starting (you can watch it while you wait). Pick a track (or select random) and the computer will select a random selection, then race! Once the race is over, you can continue with the same people, or quit and select a new group. You do not have to commit yourself to a set of races against the same number of people, just drop in and out. The system is really good, with little lag. You can also play with someone else split screen - they can use their own Mii, but they will not get ranking points if they are a Guest. ------- Ranking ------- You start at 5000 points, which changes according to what positions you end in. Come within the top 6 and you increase, bottom 6 you decrease. Getting the top two or bottom two changes the increment to around 100 either way, which is pretty steep. The point of the ranking is that you are paired to those of a similar ability, and just to gauge how good you are. You can check your rank at any time by looking at the License Details at the top of the screen. ------------------ Mario Kart Channel ------------------ This can either be browsed on the disc or downloaded onto the Wii Channel front page. Either way the menus are the same. There are FRIENDS, GHOST DATA, RANKINGS and COMPETITIONS. Register yourself in FRIENDS to get a 12 digit friend code, and add others. Once you have done so, you can see what they are doing right now and what their Mii is. Cool. GHOST DATA allows you to share and download data from friends. RANKINGS shows your competition and Time Trial data against others either on the Continent or Globally, showing a horizontal Mii graph, and giving you the opportunity to download the highest score Ghost and those of your friends. Competitions is explained below. The bottom option allows you to firstly download the channel onto your Wii so you can do all of the above without having to play the game. After that, it either asks you to download the latest version from time to time, or invite friends by sending them a message to their board. ------------Competitions ------------ The closest thing to DLC we will see, these are special downloadable challenges like the Missions in Mario Kart DS, such as objectives and specific time trials. Right now nothing is available, but as it does, this will be updated. =============================================================================== ------------------------------ 6. UNLOCKABLES AND SECRETS ------------------------------ =============================================================================== ------------------------------- Unlockable Characters and Karts ------------------------------- General Unlockables - - Completing the first two cups in each type will unlock the third; completing the third will unlock the forth. - Getting trophies on all of 50CC and 100CC will unlock the ability to race with both Karts and Bikes. - Getting all trophies in a class displays credits, and congratulations screen (with your Mii!) that you can post on your Wii Message Board. Remember, you need to get a GOLD trophy to unlock whatever you need! 50CC ---- Mushroom Cup - N/A Flower Cup - N/A Star Cup - King Boo (character) Special Cup - Piranha Prowler (large kart) Shell Cup - N/A Banana Cup - N/A Leaf Cup - Turbo Blooper (medium kart) Lightning Cup - Diddy Kong (character) 100CC ----- Mushroom Cup - N/A Flower Cup - N/A Star Cup - Twinkle Star (large bike) Special Cup - Mii Outfit A (character) Shell Cup - N/A Banana Cup - N/A Leaf Cup - Dry Bones (character) Lightning Cup - Rapide (medium bike) 150CC ----- Mushroom Cup - N/A Flower Cup - N/A Star Cup - Quacker (small bike) Special Cup - Daisy (character) Shell Cup - N/A Banana Cup - N/A Leaf Cup - Royal Racer (medium kart) Lightning Cup - Dragonetti (large kart), 150CC Mirror Mode (mode) 150CC MIRROR ------------ Mushroom Cup - N/A Flower Cup - N/A Star Cup - Dolphin Dasher (medium bike) Special Cup - Phantom (large bike) Shell Cup - N/A Banana Cup - N/A Leaf Cup - Bubble Bike (small bike) Lightning Cup - Blue Falcon (small kart) TIME TRIAL ---------- Set times on 8 different courses - Magikruiser (Small Bike) Set times on 16 different courses - Birdo (character) Set times on 32 different courses - Toadette (character) Unlocked 4 Expert Staff Ghosts - Funky Kong (character) Unlocked 8 Expert Staff Ghosts - Baby Luigi (character) Unlocked 12 Expert Staff Ghosts - Torpedo (Large Bike) Unlocked 24 Expert Staff Ghosts - B Dasher Mk 2 (Medium Kart) Unlocked all 32 Expert Staff Ghosts - Mii Outfit B (character) STAR RANKS (See Below) ---------- 50CC new at 1 Star or More - Baby Daisy (character) 50CC all at 1 Star or More - Cheep Charger (small kart) 100CC retro at 1 Star or More - Bowser Jr. (character) 100CC all at 1 Star or More - Nitrocycle (medium bike) 150CC new at 1 Star or More - Dry Bowser (character) 150CC retro at 1 Star or More - Aero Glider (heavy kart) VERSUS / ONLINE --------------- 50 WFC Wins - Royal Racer (Medium Kart) 250 Versus Wins - Birdo (character) UNLOCKING ROSALINA ------------------ There are several possible ways to unlock Rosalina, or one way that no one is quite sure about. It is a mixture of the following - - Have a Super Mario Galaxy save file - Complete Super Mario Galaxy after first creating a Mario Kart Wii save - Play the game for an extended period of time I personally unlocked Rosalina after getting Gold on the 100CC Star Cup, but this could have been fitting into the extended period of time clause. When this is more concrete it'll be updated, but for now thanks to Jonny Bull, ---------- Star Ranks ---------- You will be ranked based on your performance within the Grand Prix, up to three stars. You need to one star many of the cups in order to get all the unlockables, so it is important to know how to get them. To three stars, you have to win ALL four races and get 60 points, and get very good times on all the laps. That is it, help yourself to items and what not. Just try not to obviously fall off the track or hit into walls, as it will slow your time down. Note that you do not _need_ 60 points to get ONE star. You can drop a few points, but as long as you get a decent time and come first it is possible to get it. Thanks Amphetamine! To get stars next to your name online, then complete _every_ cup with stars. All cups with one star gets you one star, two gets two, and three for three. Note if you have three for all except one, then you will not have three stars until you get that cup up to scratch. ---------- Gold Wheel ---------- To get a Gold Wheel online, then play with the Wheel (or just the Wii Remote) online a lot. A lot sounds awfully vague, but after enough races and / or wins you'll have a gold wheel displayed against your name. Safe. ----------------- 150CC Mirror Mode ----------------- Getting gold on the first three Grand Prix Modes (50CC, 100CC and 150CC) will unlock this mode. Basically all the tracks are mirrored, but as you've played each track by at least three times by now you should be able to tackle these with relative ease. ------------------------------------ Alternative Title and Ending Screens ------------------------------------ Achieve a gold in every cup for the title and ending screens to change for good. This includes the dreaded 150CC Mirror mode as well. ------------ Staff Ghosts ------------ Under Time Trial you can unlock a range of charcters and vehicles by either setting times or unlocking Expert Staff Ghosts (scroll up for a list of Time Trial unlockables). Normal Staff Ghosts are automatically unlocked and ready to race against in Time Trial mode for a good thrashing, and beating these by several seconds unlocks an Expert Staff Ghost. Below is a list of every track, the Normal Staff Ghost Time, the Unlock Time for the Expert Staff Ghost time, along with their time and replay video. MUSHROOM CUP Luigi Circuit Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:29.670 Unlock Time - 01:24.411 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 0.19.419 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BOsKYNfhmw Moo Moo Meadows Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:37.856 Unlock Time - 01.33.571 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.25.909 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zIhpTxaKo0 Mushroom Gorge Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:16.110 Unlock Time - 02.05.494 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.01.011 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS2rroltsxo Toad's Factory Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:22.480 Unlock Time - 02.12.784 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.05.593 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yvQrgvxfFyo FLOWER CUP Mario Circuit Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:44.777 Unlock Time - 01.39.183 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.33.702 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AV1bVQt8qU Coconut Mall Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:30.764 Unlock Time - 02.24.788 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.13.333 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1StSusVvG8 DK's Snowboard Cross Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:34.693 Unlock Time - 02.24.725 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.17.546 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g35nf8Oo-xY Wario's Gold Mine Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:19.583 Unlock Time - 02.14.932 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.04.800 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=my1-dnTmyG4 STAR CUP Daisy Circuit Normal Staff Ghost Time - 0:56.822 Unlock Time - 01.48.791 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.41.362 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9K-z8p8v_0 Koopa Cape Normal Staff Ghost Time - 03:03.022 Unlock Time - 02.54.897 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.41.370 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UZC6hgHezM Maple Treeway Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:58.633 Unlock Time - 02.50.229 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.37.812 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9o7ENhdOsM Grumble Volcano Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:28.237 Unlock Time - 02.19.524 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.11.852 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsY9Yhy7RIc SPECIAL CUP Dry Dry Ruins Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:30.949 Unlock Time - 02.21.681 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.14.286 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jToIbQkwgSE Moonview Highway Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:16.802 Unlock Time - 02.07.016 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.04.163 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLEplcWvp04 Bowser's Castle Normal Staff Ghost Time - 03:04.836 Unlock Time - 02.55.017 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.42.098 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WzMSmxRVVg Rainbow Road Normal Staff Ghost Time - 03:05.895 Unlock Time - 02.59.293 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.44.734 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=os61GcGxaJM SHELL CUP GCN Peach Beach Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:34.233 Unlock Time - 01.30.698 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.23.140 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKpsumnkV5g DS Yoshi Falls Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:16.461 Unlock Time - 01.12.901 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.09.175 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Gx3R1GhRNo SNES Ghost Valley 2 Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:06.595 Unlock Time - 01.03.752 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 00.58.907 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Q2iyBLzRo N64 Mario Raceway Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:14.799 Unlock Time - 02.07.915 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.59.053 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpivNXVpzyo BANANA CUP N64 Sherbet Land Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:48.651 Unlock Time - 02.37.784 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.28.356 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5IS4h34fdM GBA Shy Guy Beach Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:45.568 Unlock Time - 01.39.255 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.32.867 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEHzjreHAyg DS Delfino Square Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:41.807 Unlock Time - 02.33.107 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.24.169 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LOnu72wRR8 GCN Waluigi Stadium Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:32.882 Unlock Time - 02.24.645 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.12.367 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLV6Srl33dA LEAF CUP DS Desert Hills Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:10.233 Unlock Time - 02.01.141 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.52.686 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnJ2TTZC5uU GBA Bowser Castle 3 Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:58.304 Unlock Time - 02.50.637 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.39.391 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8hHhwGCMZ4 N64 DK's Jungle Parkway Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:58.264 Unlock Time - 02.49.028 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.37.782 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq2TmDaL9YQ GCN Mario Circuit Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:59.771 Unlock Time - 01.55.267 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.49.939 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ze016Sx7kvw LIGHTNING CUP SNES Mario Circuit 3 Normal Staff Ghost Time - 01:38.880 Unlock Time - 01.34.828 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 01.26.659 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8N86xTpGUA DS Peach Gardens Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:34.894 Unlock Time - 02.29.006 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.16.777 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6r_cZZi89DQ GCN DK Mountain Normal Staff Ghost Time - 02:57.744 Unlock Time - 02.50.248 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.38.130 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAhFt_3xQTY N64 Bowser's Castle Normal Staff Ghost Time - 03:19.323 Unlock Time - 03.06.723 Expert Staff Ghost Time - 02.55.933 Video - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wrb_oc9Jg2Q --------------- Mii Appearances --------------- Miis appear on various courses throughout the game, either as spectators, toll booth operators, or even replacing statues and pictures! Mushroom Cup ------------ Luigi Circuit - Trackside spectators - Replaces the Luigi logo at random Moo Moo Meadows - None Mushroom Gorge - None Toad's Factory - Factory sign above horizontal belt strip Flower Cup ---------- Mario Circuit - None Coconut Mall - Displayed on adverts and posters around stage - Drive the cars that block your way on last corner DK's Snowboard Cross - Replace the snowboarding statue randomly Wario's Gold Mine - None Star Cup -------- Daisy Circuit - Trackside spectators - Roundabout statue replaced by a Mii randomly Koopa Cape - Koopa replaced by Mii randomly after first ramp Maple Treeway - None Grumble Volcano - None Special Cup ----------- Dry Dry Ruins - None Moonview Highway - Miis operate the toll booths Bowser's Castle - None Rainbow Road - None Shell Cup --------- GCN Peach Beach - None DS Yoshi Falls - None SNES Ghost Valley 2 - None N64 Mario Raceway - None Banana Cup ---------- N64 Sherbet Land - None GBA Shy Guy Beach - None DS Delfino Square - None GCN Waluigi Stadium - None Leaf Cup -------- DS Desert Hills - None GBA Bowser Castle 3 - None N64 DK's Jungle Parkway - None GCN Mario Circuit - None Lightning Cup ------------- SNES Mario Circuit 3 - None DS Peach Gardens - None GCN DK Mountain - None N64 Bowser's Castle - None =============================================================================== ------------------------------------ 6. CONCLUSION AND SPECIAL THANKS ------------------------------------ =============================================================================== That's just about it, folks. I hope that this document has been of aid in one form or another, and that it has been easy to use. If you could, please either ask me questions, suggestions, comments or contributions at [email protected]. Also could you rate this FAQ so I could get some feedback. Thank you for reading. +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+ | Special Thanks to these who have contributed to the guide in some way... | +--------------------------------------------------------------------------+ CJayC + (Gamefaqs) - For accepting this guide and for creating the best site SBAllen on the internet. Thanks! http://www.gamefaqs.com The site also supplied most of the cheats and unlockables, so thanks to them and their contributors. IGN - For accepting this guide and for creating an awesome video games site. Thanks! http://www.ign.com Nintendo - For creating a new Mario Kart! Is always a nice thing to play each generation. :) ASCII Generator - For producing the text ASCII for my Crazyreyn sig. Thanks, and is a great site if you need any ASCII text. http://www.network-science.de/ascii/ acelee - For details with the POW item. Thanks! phil zsiga - For details about the items. Thanks! Wes Cheung - For details about the POW block item. Thanks! Jonny Bull - Rosalina information. Thanks! Jaumot Joel / CoolChain - POW Block information. Thanks! Amphetamine - Regarding the star rankings. Thanks! A Link to the Future - For POW Block and Thundercloud info. Thanks! Daniel Botterill - For POW Block information! Thanks! Raymond McMillan - For POW Block information! Thanks! Daniel "DIProgan" Isaksson - For online information. Thanks! ye-roon - For Birdo unlocking information. Thanks! Mikhail Stepanov - For POW Block information! Thanks! Lauri Sippola - For Thundercloud Information. Thanks! Petey - For an interesting Luigi Circuit Shortcut. Thanks! dutchcheesehead - For POW Block information! Thanks! +-------------------------------------------------------------+ | Special Thanks to these who are my good GameFAQS friends... | +-------------------------------------------------------------+ Robert Lane (Lanerobertlane) Richard Arnett (Guitarfreak86) Ryan Harrison (RHarrison0987) Thomas Carter (Carter12) Duncan Hardy (Super Nova) Rebecca Skinner (Karpah) Martin Dale-Hench (Fox) Brian Sulpher (BSulpher) Trace Jackson (Meowthnum1) Richard B. (Gbness) Steve McFadden (Psycho Penguin) Chris Noonan (Merca) Colin Scully (me frog) Tom Hayes (THayes) And everyone else at the FAQ Contributors board! Also a nod to the GameFAQs UK board and v3, for being so damn funny and cool. :) If I have forgotten you, then please contact me and I'll fix your name up here! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ___ / __|_ _ __ _ ____ _ _ _ ___ _ _ _ _ | (__| '_/ _` |_ / || | '_/ -_) || | ' \ \___|_| \__,_/__|\_, |_| \___|\_, |_||_| |__/ |__/ http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/recognition/27600.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Crazyreyn ([email protected]) Copyright (c)2008 Matthew Reynolds. All rights reserved. +------------------+ | Copyright Notice | +------------------+ This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. ===============================END OF DOCUMENT============================