DLC review: Mario Kart 8 - Animal Crossing X Mario Kart 8

The second DLC pack for Mario Kart 8 has arrived, bringing with it eight new courses spread across two Grand Prix cups, three new racers, and a handful of new vehicle customization options. Following in the footsteps of the first DLC pack, this latest offering sees the inhabitants of the Mushroom Kingdom open up their roster to accommodate for the Villagers and Isabelle from Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The majority of the vehicle options are similarly reflective of the Animal Crossing image, while the skeletal Dry Bowser is an outlier – a reskin of the Koopa king that presents more creativity in aesthetic appeal than the previously-released Tanooki Mario or Cat Suit Peach did.

And while all of these are fine additions to Mario Kart 8, the real meat of the DLC pack comes from the race tracks themselves. Half of the courses are reimaginings of courses that debuted in previous Mario Kart titles, while the other half are brand new. Two of the reimagined courses have Gameboy Advance origins, and boast the most obvious updates, both in terms of visual prowess and dynamic layout. As has been the case from the day of its release, Mario Kart 8 remains one of the most visually gorgeous games of this eighth console generation, and the pure variety of environments within this DLC pack continue that trend. From a massive playroom where your kart appears to be a shrunken toy, to graffiti-covered subway tunnels, to the winding breakneck turns of the hyper-futuristic Big Blue, there are plenty of impressive little details to take in.

Distinct about the Animal Crossing X Mario Kart 8 pack is the overall more consistent length and quality of the eight tracks when compared to its Legend of Zelda-themed predecessor. Nearly every course makes use of multiple vehicle transformations, something that, once again, could not be said about almost half of the courses within the first DLC pack. The drawback, however, is the fact that there are fewer standout tracks from this latest batch. The Animal Crossing course is relatively straightforward in design, and while the changing of seasons is a neat afterthought, its environmental hazards and visual 'wow-factor' pale in comparison to Hyrule Circuit. With that said, this is still a solid DLC pack that provides quite a lot of bang for your buck. The courses each offer decent degrees of challenge, and revisiting them can drastically improve your finishing time.

My rating: 7.5 (out of 10)*

*(rating applies solely to downloadable content, not its inclusion with the content on the original game disc or other downloadable content)

DLC review: Mario Kart 8 - The Legend of Zelda X Mario Kart 8

This first of two DLC packs for Mario Kart 8 is quite generous, boasting two new Grand Prix cups with four tracks each, four new vehicles, three new racers, and a few additional customization options for your rides. While Tanooki Suit Mario and Cat Suit Peach are quick re-skins of pre-existing characters, the real treat is Link, hero of Hyrule, this time donning his look from Skyward Sword. This more heavily stylized design blends well with the Mushroom Kingdom gang’s cartoony appearances and reacts well to the bright lighting and colorful backdrops of many of Mario Kart 8’s locales. Link and all the other racers can take to the track in the Tanooki Kart, the B-Dasher from Mario Kart DS, the Blue Falcon of F-Zero fame, or a horse-shaped bike known as the Master Cycle.

Of the two new cups, the Egg Cup is arguably the more exciting overall, with three brand new courses and one reimagined version of the Yoshi Circuit from Double Dash!! The three new courses include Dragon Driftway, a windy course with a heavy Chinese festival aesthetic, and two courses that pay homage to Excitebike and F-Zero respectively. The Excitebike Arena, while a relatively uncomplicated series of jumps, presents a looped course that is certainly more interesting than similarly-shaped tracks of yesteryear like Baby Park. Mute City, meanwhile, is the real treat, as it utilizes the anti-gravity sections more fully than most any other track in MK8 yet. The abundance of boost pads and tight, winding turns makes this feel the part of a real F-Zero course, not to be outdone by the shiny metallic textures than cover every structure in the background.

The Triforce cup offers retreads of Wario’s Gold Mine from Mario Kart Wii and yet another variant of Rainbow Road, this time from the SNES days. Wario’s Gold Mine was hardly ever one of the strongest showings in Mario Kart Wii, while Rainbow Road’s layout is incredibly simple, as is the case with nearly every SNES Mario Kart course. While it was interesting to see how vastly different the MK8 Rainbow Road was from its reimagined N64 counterpart, this course has now been overdone in MK8, despite how mesmerizing the sparkly colors and glossy texture of the track might be. Ice Ice Outpost, one of the Triforce Cup’s new courses, splits paths multiple times as players race up, around, and through an arctic facility. The real gem of this cup, however, is the Hyrule Circuit, a somewhat shorter course that zips through Hyrule Castle and its nearby town and field, replacing coins with Rupees and Piranha Plants with Deku Babas.

While the quality of the two cups may not be consistent, they do provide a nice variety of lengths in their courses and a different set of challenges in the layouts of each. At the end of the day, the standouts are really the new race tracks, and while I do imagine there will still be at least a couple of retro courses in the second DLC pack come Spring, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that Nintendo focuses their efforts primarily on providing more impressive new environments. Eight new tracks for less than $10 is a solid bargain on its own, but the fact that this pack includes the aforementioned characters and karts as well makes the whole package one sweet deal for anyone looking to extend their play experience with Mario Kart 8.

My rating: 8 (out of 10)*

*(rating applies solely to downloadable content, not its inclusion with the content on the original game disc or other downloadable content)