Mario Circuit (Mario Kart Wii)
- This article is about the race course from Mario Kart Wii. For other race tracks with similar names, see Mario Circuit.
| Mario Circuit | |||||||||||
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| Appears in | Mario Kart Wii (2008) | ||||||||||
| Cup(s) | Flower Cup | ||||||||||
| Online play | No longer available (Wii) | ||||||||||
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Mario Circuit is the first race course of the Flower Cup in Mario Kart Wii. The track's overview is slightly similar to Figure-8 Circuit from Mario Kart DS, having two main bends and two straight stretches. It takes place in a town in front of Peach's Castle. Some supporting characters from the Super Mario game series like Hammer Bros., Shy Guys and Sledge Bros. appear watching the race. Other characters such as Goombas or a Chain Chomp serve as obstacles within the course. This track shares its music with Luigi Circuit, and an arrangement of it is heard in the title theme, demo movie, options menu, Block Plaza, Award Ceremony, and second half of the credits music. This is also where the Award Ceremony takes place at the end of every cup.
History
Mario Kart Wii
Course layout
The course begins with a long downhill straightaway, with the first set of Item Boxes afterwards. Audience members, such as Shy Guys and Hammer Bros. can be seen on the left and right side of the straightaway, waving at racers. They then take two 90° turns to the right, with a second item set in the middle of the second turn, followed by a slight turn turn and a slight left turn. Racers then reach a 90° turn to the right where a chained Chain Chomp lies. The Chain Chomp will roam on the inside of the turn near its post before lunging to bite at racers. If they drive on the outer half of the road though, the Chain Chomp cannot reach them.
After this turn there is a straight that takes racers through a tunnel underneath the start of the track. In the middle of the tunnel is a third item set. Once racers exit the tunnel, there is a 90° turn to the left, where racers encounter a brief straight with several more Item Boxes that move back and forth. After a gradual U-turn and one last straightaway, racers reach the finish line. Between the tunnel and the finish line, there is a large amount of grass on both sides of the track, and the final straightaway also has trees on either side. Throughout the entire course, there are also Goombas as obstacles; one is found shortly after the first item set, one is found shortly after the second item set, one is found shortly after the tunnel, and two are found along the U-turn at the end of the track.
Shortcuts
The first notable shortcut can be found just before the Chain Chomp. If the player goes straight after taking the slight right turn, they can use a dash panel ramp to jump over most of the off-road and avoid the Chain Chomp entirely. It is possible to perform this shortcut without any Mushrooms and without slowing down, though this is very difficult, so bringing one or two Mushrooms is recommended. Alternatively, the player can use speed items to cut across all of the off-road without using the ramp to begin with.
The second notable set of shortcuts can be found along the latter half of the track. Racers can use speed items to go through the grass along the left side of the track, cutting off the turn after the tunnel and/or the U-turn at the end. However, doing the latter typically requires racers to avoid the trees on the left side of the final straightaway. If performed correctly, the player can use a single Golden Mushroom to perform the previous shortcut near the Chain Chomp and still cut through the entire stretch of grass on the second half of the track.
Lastly, there is a glitch on this course that allows for a major shortcut: If they use a correctly timed Mushroom, the player can clip off of one of the trees to the left of the final straightaway and land on the track below. This shortcut cuts off more than half of the lap.
Staff ghosts
The normal staff ghost for Mario Circuit has a time of 01:44.777, using Mario in the Zip Zip. The expert staff ghost is unlocked if the player gets a time of 01:40.378 or less, with a time of 01:33.702 using Mario on the Sprinter.
Tournaments
May 2008's first tournament, the game's first tournament as a whole, required players to complete a GP race on a version of Mario Circuit with more obstacles: Instead of one chained Chain Chomp, players encounter two unchained Chain Chomps traveling the course in reverse for the duration of the race. Additionally, there are more Goombas and fewer Item Boxes. The tournament was later repeated as the first tournament of May 2010, but with a control restriction of Wii Wheel users only and a vehicle restriction of karts only.
February 2010's second tournament required players to instead take out 16 Goombas on Mario Circuit. The course is now devoid of Chain Chomps, instead having more Goombas than before, and players can make use of Item Boxes that either contain a Star or contain a Green Shell. Vehicles were restricted to karts only. The tournament was later repeated as the second tournament of October 2011, though with the vehicle restriction removed, the second tournament of December 2012, and the first tournament of March 2014, with the vehicle restriction once again removed.
Other appearances
Mario Circuit makes an appearance in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games as the location of the Dream Ski Cross individual and team events. The course is covered in snow and has new changes in elevation to accommodate the sport. There is also a Warp Pipe that teleports the players between sections of the map.
Profiles
Mario Kart Wii
- Website bios:
"A short track with a great straightaway for wheelies, a zesty Chain Chomp, and a very long drift to the finish line."
"A rainbow on the horizon and a scenic view of the castle make Mario Circuit look like a stroll in the woods, but beware - that Chain Chomp isn't just for decoration!"
- Trading Card bio: "The grounds around Princess Peach's castle have changed over the years. Now there's a track built around them that Mario has taken a liking to. The layout is fairly standard...right turns, left turns, straightaway...and repeat. Watch out for Chain Chomps as you round the last right turn."
Gallery
Mario Kart Wii
The course banner
A preview of the course
Luigi, Mario and Peach racing on this course in the demo movie
Mario tricking on this course in the demo movie
Mario racing on this course in the demo movie
Near the Chain Chomp and the ramp
Just after the overhang
4-player
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
Sonic skiis down a hill.
Metal Sonic and Luigi approach the Chain Chomp.
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japanese | マリオサーキット[?] Mario Sākitto |
Mario Circuit | |
| German | Marios Piste[?] | Mario's Track | |
| Italian | Circuito di Mario[?] | Mario's Circuit | |
| Korean | 마리오 서킷[?] Mario Seokit |
Mario Circuit | |
| Spanish (NOA) | Circuito de Mario[?] | Mario's Circuit | |
| Spanish (NOE) | Circuito Mario[?] | Mario Circuit |
Trivia
- As of Mario Kart Tour and the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Booster Course Pass, Mario Circuit is the only track from this game's Flower Cup that has yet to return as a classic course. It is also the only Mario Circuit in the series, excluding Mario Kart 8's, that is yet to appear in another game.
- Mario Kart Wii's Mario Circuit is the only Mario Circuit in the series whose music does not have a full arrangement in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, as the themes for all other Mario Circuits are arranged via a specific course (SNES, GBA, and DS via their respective Mario Circuit, N64 via N64 Royal Raceway, GCN via GCN Yoshi Circuit, and 3DS via 3DS Toad Circuit). However, part of its music does appear via a sampling in 3DS Neo Bowser City.
