Triple Bananas

Triple Bananas
Artwork of three bananas from Mario Kart 8
First appearance	Mario Kart Arcade GP (2005)
Latest appearance	Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit (2020)

Triple Bananas are clusters of three Bananas appearing predominantly in the Mario Kart series, superseding Banana Bunches from Mario Kart 64.

History

Mario Kart series

Mario Kart Arcade GP

Triple Bananas first appear in Mario Kart Arcade GP as unlockable basic items during races. The player may throw each Banana one-by-one as they please and can also use the Bananas to block incoming items. A different variant known as the Banana Train also appears.

Mario Kart DS

Triple Bananas reappear in Mario Kart DS. When used, three Bananas are deployed to trail behind the player's kart. The player may throw each Banana one-by-one whenever as they please, and can also use the Bananas to block incoming items. Triple Bananas appear only in the top three positions in Grand Prix and VS modes, usually with slightly smaller probabilities than Fake Item Boxes; in Battle Mode, they are usable only by human players, and usually appear when the player ranks near the middle.

Mario Kart Arcade GP 2

Triple Bananas return in Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 as an unlockable item, functioning the same way as in its predecessor. The Banana Train also returns.

Mario Kart Wii

Triple Bananas return in Mario Kart Wii, behaving exactly the same as in Mario Kart DS. They appear only in the top four positions for human players and top three for CPUs in Grand Prix and VS modes; Battle Mode probabilities are stable for CPUs, but do not appear for poorly-performing human players. The best chances of getting this item are in 1st and 2nd place, with a 12.5 percent (5 out of 40) chance of getting it in said positions. If the player currently has a Triple Banana, they are unable to obtain a Triple Green Shell or Triple Red Shell and vice versa.

Mario Kart 7

Triple Bananas return in Mario Kart 7, behaving exactly the same as in past games. In Grand Prix and VS modes, they can usually only be obtained in the top two positions; in Battle Mode, human players can only obtain Triple Bananas at or near first place, though CPUs have a fixed probability in obtaining them.

Mario Kart Arcade GP DX

Triple "Gold" Bananas in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX

Triple Bananas return in Mario Kart Arcade GP DX along with the Banana Train. A new variant, the Triple Gold Bananas, also makes an appearance in this game, being the triple equivalent to the Gold Banana.

Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Triple Bananas return in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. This time, when deployed, the Bananas orbit the player's kart like Triple Green/Red Shells rather than trailing behind it, though everything else functions the same. In Grand Prix and VS modes, all players may obtain Triple Bananas 1000-2000 units from the frontrunner; in Battle Mode, they can only be obtained when the player has only one balloon left one minute into the game.

Mario Kart Tour

Triple Bananas reappear in Mario Kart Tour as the special skill of Yellow Shy Guy, Daisy (Swimwear), Luigi (Chef), Waluigi (Bus Driver), Dixie Kong, Donkey Kong Jr. (SNES), and the Pastry, Chef, Pokey, Daisy, and Orange Mii Racing Suits. When used, they are dropped all at once. In the closed beta, it was also the special item of Lemmy and Larry. When Triple Bananas+ is used, the chance of obtaining Triple Bananas is increased and the Bananas spin around the kart faster.

Mario Strikers series

Super Mario Strikers

Triple Bananas appear in Super Mario Strikers. They spawn in the player's inventory when they attempt to make a goal, or gets fouled when not holding the ball. Unlike the Mario Kart series, they are all used at once and they will slide out in front of the player.

Mario Strikers Charged

Triple Bananas reappear in Mario Strikers Charged, functioning the same way as in its predecessor.

Profiles

Mario Kart 7

• Electronic manual description: "Press or to equip, and then press or again to drop one Banana at a time."

Mario Kart 8

• Electronic manual description: "Three Bananas that spin around your vehicle. Press to use them one at a time."

Mario Kart Tour

• Tips & Tricks: "Three bananas revolve around your kart. Tap the screen to throw them all at once and they'll land all lined up in a nice, tidy row!"
• Driver info: "Three Bananas provide a worthy shield... Or ammo to lob at opponents!"
• Driver info (Triple Bananas+): "Increases your chances of getting Triple Bananas. Plus, the bananas revolve faster!"

Gallery

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  Mario Kart DS

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  Mario Kart Wii

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  Mario Kart 7

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  Mario Kart Arcade GP DX

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  Mario Kart 8

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  Mario Kart Tour

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  Dixie Kong using Triple Bananas in Mario Kart Tour

See also

• Banana Bunch
• Triple Gold Bananas

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	トリプルバナナ[?] Toripuru Banana	Triple Banana
Chinese	三重香蕉皮[?] Sānchóng Xiāngjiāo Pí	Triple Banana Peels
French	Triples bananes[?]	Triple Bananas
Italian	Tripla Banana[?]	Triple Banana
Portuguese	Trio de bananas[?]	Triple Bananas
Spanish	Triple plátanos[?]	Triple Bananas

Trivia

• Triple Bananas and Thunder Clouds are the only items from the Mario Kart Arcade GP series that appear in the main Mario Kart series.