Mario Kart Adventure (UUM)

Mario Kart Adventure is a racing game for the Nintendo Switch, and the ninth main installment in the Mario Kart series. It is the second Mario Kart game for the Nintendo Switch, after Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Mario Kart Adventure

Publisher(s)

Platform(s)

Genre(s)

Racing

Series

Mario Kart

Predecessor

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Release Date(s)

2021

2021
2021
2021
2021
2021
2021

Mode(s)

Single player

Multiplayer
Online play

Age Rating(s)

Media Included

Nintendo Switch cartridge

Digital download

Available Input

Joy-Con

Nintendo Switch Pro Controller

Gameplay[]

The gameplay maintains traditional elements of previous Mario Kart games. Players pick a character of six weight classes, and drive vehichles of varying stats, strengths, and weaknesses around an obstacle-like racetrack, in an attempt to finish first of the sixteen racers. The gliding, underwater, and anti-gravity sections from Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8 return, although vehicle customization does not. All vehicles from Mario Kart Wii return. Coins are found across tracks, and a maximum of 99 can be held. With the exception of Adventure Mode, the biggest addition to Mario Kart Adventure is the fact that the player can now choose what other characters are racing, as well as their vehicles. The only rule is that a given character's rival(s) must be included.

Point spread comparison
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16
Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, Mario Kart: Super Circuit	9	6	3	1	0	0	0	0	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Mario Kart: Double Dash, Mario Kart DS	10	8	6	4	3	2	1	0	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Mario Kart Wii	15	12	10	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1	0	-	-	-	-
Mario Kart 7	10	8	6	5	4	3	2	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Mario Kart 8 (Deluxe)	15	12	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1	-	-	-	-
Mario Kart Adventure	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1	0
Gold background signifies victory results, with a unique winning animation and music. Silver background signifies moderate win results. Bronze background signifies losing results, with losing animations and music.

Characters[]

There are 50 playable characters from the start, and 50 unlockable ones, making there 100 characters in total.

Each driver is categorized into one of six weight classes; Feather being the lightest, followed by Light, Medium, Standard, Cruiser, and finally Heavy. The former two drive Lightweight vehicles, the middle two drive Middleweight vehicles, and the latter two drive Heavyweight vehicles.

There are 20 Feather drivers, 21 Light drivers, 19 Medium drivers, 10 Standard drivers, 16 Cruiser drivers, and 14 Heavy drivers.

Starting characters[]

Unlockable characters[]

Character variants[]

See here.

Character notes[]

Metal Mario, Gold Mario, Frozen Mario, Green Bronze Luigi, Silver Luigi, Pink Gold Peach, Orange Silver Daisy, Peachette and Shadow Mario are the only variants to change the weight class of their character.
When Pom Pom uses the Boomerang Flower, she throws her own boomerangs.
When Madame Broode uses the Chain Chomp, she summons Chain Chompikins.

Non-playable characters[]

Character	Description
L.K.	L.K. serves as the referee, and replaces the generic Lakitu from previous games.
Brighton & Twila	Depending on the character the player is using, either Brighton or Twila serve as the player's guide in Adventure Mode, taking on a similar role to Aku Aku and Uka Uka in Crash Team Racing, or Taj in Diddy Kong Racing.
Fawful	Fawful is the main antagonist and final boss of Adventure Mode.

Vehicles[]

Lightweight vehicles[]

Karts	Bikes	ATVs
Standard Kart S	Standard Bike S	Standard ATV S
Booster Seat	Bullet Bike	Teddy Buggy
Mini Beast	Bit Bike	Micro Mecha
Cheep Charger	Quacker	Ribbit Rider
Tiny Titan	Magikruiser	Poochy Prowler
Blue Falcon	Bubble Jet	Chomper

Middleweight vehicles[]

Karts	Bikes	ATVs
Standard Kart M	Standard Bike M	Standard ATV M
Classic Dragster	Mach Bike	Yoshi Quad
Wild Wing	Sugarscoot	Slitherer
Super Blooper	Zip Zip	Peel Pedal
Daytripper	Sneakster	Quad Strike
Sprinter	Dolphin Dasher	Sushi Slayer

Heavyweight vehicles[]

Karts	Bikes	ATVs
Standard Kart L	Standard Bike L	Standard ATV L
Offroader	Flame Runner	Bone Rattler
Flame Flyer	Wario Bike	Rhino Rusher
Piranha Prowler	Shooting Star	Wild Wiggler
Jetsetter	Spear	Q-Rex
Honeycoupe	Phantom	Zipper

Any weight class[]

Karts	Bikes	ATVs
Parade Kart	Parade Bike	Parade ATV

Courses[]

Nitro Cups[]

Tracks
Mushroom Cup	Luigi Circuit	Huckit Beach	Moo Moo Ranch	Fossil Falls
Flower Cup	Mario Circuit	Bob-omb Battlefield	Honeycomb Forest	Toad Theater
Egg Cup	Pauline Circuit	Kamek's Library	Banana Jungle	Shiver City
Star Cup	Tostarena Town	Horror Hotel	Funky Market	Wario's Construction Site
Special Cup	Waluigi Carnival	Blooper Cove	Bowser's Castle	Rainbow Road

Retro Cups[]

Tracks
Shell Cup	DS Figure-8 Circuit	3DS Cheep Cheep Lagoon	MK8 Sweet Sweet Canyon	SNES Bowser Castle 2
Banana Cup	3DS Shy Guy Bazzar	SNES Vanilla Lake 1	GBA Sunset Wilds	Wii Daisy Circuit
Bell Cup	GCN Mushroom City	DS Shroom Ridge	N64 Wario Stadium	MK8 Sunshine Airport
Leaf Cup	Wii Dry Dry Ruins	3DS Rock Rock Mountain	GBA Broken Pier	MK8 Electrodrome
Lightning Cup	3DS Rosalina's Ice World	MK8 Cloudtop Cruise	GCN Bowser's Castle	GBA Rainbow Road

Two additional cups, the Nitro All-Cup Tour and Retro All-Cup Tour are unlocked after the player beats the 150cc Special Cup and 150cc Lightning Cup respectively. The 20 tracks are played in random order, with the exception of Luigi Circuit always appearing first and Rainbow Road always appearing last in the Nitro All-Cup Tour, and DS Figure-8 Circuit always appearing first and GBA Rainbow Road always appearing last in the Retro All-Cup Tour.

Battle courses[]

Tracks
Nitro courses	Peach's Castle	Comet Observatory	Gangplank Galleon	Forgotten Isle	Baby World	Bros Outpost	Skate Park	Fawful Stadium
Retro courses	SNES Battle Course 2	N64 Double Deck	GBA Battle Course 2	GCN Block City	DS Tart Top	Wii Delfino Pier	3DS Honeybee Hive	MK8 Lunar Colony

Game modes[]

Adventure Mode[]

The main mode of Mario Kart Adventure. Not much is currently known about Adventure Mode, other than it has the player driving around an overworld, and Fawful is the main antagonist. In this mode, only starting characters and standard vehicles are used.

Grand Prix[]

Sixteen drivers race in four tracks in one cup. The drivers' ranks are determined by points. The closer the driver is to first, the more points they will win. The Nitro Cups consists of the Mushroom, Flower, Egg, Star, and Special Cups, while the Retro Cups are made up of the Shell, Banana, Bell, Leaf, and Lightning Cup.

Name	Description	Unlock criteria
50cc	50cc vehicles are slow, and opponents do not try too hard to keep up with the player.	Available from the start.
100cc	100cc vehicles are quicker, and opponents put more effort into keeping up with the player.	Available from the start.
150cc	150cc vehicles are fast, and opponents put quite a bit of effort into keeping up with the player.	Available from the start.
Mirror	Tracks are inverted left to right. Engine class is 150cc, ands opponents put a lot of effort into keeping up with the player.	Win all 150cc cups.
200cc	200cc vehicles are CRAZY FAST! Braking is crucial. Opponent difficulty is the same as 150cc.	Win all 50cc, 100cc, 150cc, and Mirror cups.

Time Trials[]

The player races thorough one track in the fastest time they can by themselves without and computer-controlled opponents. The player starts out with a Triple Mushroom. It has the option to race against a "ghost"; the recording of a player's driving performance. Ghosts appear as semi-transparent and behave exactly as players who used them.

VS[]

VS allows the player to race with their own settings, but it is otherwise similar to Grand Prix.

Battle[]

Battle Mode is a set of minigames that take place on enclosed arenas rather than tracks. In this mode, characters only use standard vehicles. Like VS Mode, this mode can be played solo, in two teams of eight, four teams of four, or eight teams of two. The first six sub-modes are available from the start, while the rest must be unlocked.

Name	Description
Balloon Battle	The classic mode where drivers use items to pop each others' balloons. It is more similar to the pre-Mario Kart Wii iteration, where drivers are eliminated once all of their balloons are popped.
Coin Runners	Coins are scattered across the course. The driver/team with the most coins when time runs out wins.
Shine Thief	A single Shine Sprite appears in a random spot on the course. Once a driver grabs it, they must hold onto it without getting hit. The driver/team who has the Shine Sprite when time runs out wins.
Bob-omb Blast	This mode is similar to Balloon Battle, but only Bob-ombs and Bob-omb Buddies are used, and up to ten can be collected at once. When a driver loses all of their balloons, they are eliminated.
Renegade Roundup	This mode is always played in two teams of eight, and is in the vein of "cops and robbers". The authorities have Potted Piranha Plants that are permanently attached to their vehicles. Captured renegades are sent to a cage. Remaining renegades can free their teammates by driving over a switch. If all renegades are captured, the authorities automatically win. If at least one renegade wins when time runs out, they win.
Moon Madness	This mode is similar to Shine Runners in Mario Kart DS. Seventeen Power Moons are scattered across the course. When time runs out, the racers with the fewest Power Moons are eliminated. The process repeats until one driver/team remains.
Turnip Hunt	Each driver/team has a base with a basket of turnips. The goal is to steal turnips from each other's baskets, and bring them to their own. Turnips are also found scattered across the course. The driver/team with the most turnips when time runs out wins.
Thunder Cloud's Wrath	A driver has a Thunder Cloud hovering above them, and they must pass it to another driver before they get zapped and eliminated from the battle. When a driver is eliminated, the Thunder Cloud moves to another driver. The last remaining driver/team wins.
Chomp Guardians	This mode is always played in two or four teams. Each team has a Chain Chomp that freely roams around the course. The goal is to defeat the other Chain Chomp(s) while defending one's own. The team whose Chain Chomp has the most health when time runs out wins. Chain Chomps are immune to their team's items. If all but one have been defeated, that Chain Chomp's team automatically wins.

Missions[]

The player completes tasks while earning a ranking. It features seven levels, each containing eight missions and a boss battle. Like Adventure Mode, only starting characters and standard vehicles are used. The types of missions are as following;

Numbered Gates: The player must drive through numbered gates in numerical order.
Coin Collecting: The player must collect all the coins on the tract.
Destroy Item Boxes: The player must run over all Item Boxes.
Enemies: The player uses items to defeat all enemies.
Drive Backwards: The player drives backwards. The directions are reversed.
Mini-Turbo: The player performs a certain amount of Mini-Turbos.
Race: The player races against a CPU opponent for one lap.
Boss: Unlocked after beating a level's eight missions.

Items[]

Track items[]

Item	Description
Item Box	Gives a random item. Items given are based on the racer's position.
Double Item Box	Gives the racer two items. The second item is held in reserve.
Coin	Increases the racer's acceleration. Up to 99 can be collected at once.
Star Bit	Replaces coins on Rainbow Road, GBA Rainbow Road, and Comet Observatory.
Shine Sprite	It only appears in the Shine Thief sub-mode of Battle Mode. The driver/team who has the Shine Sprite when time runs out wins.
Power Moon	They only appear in the Moon Madness sub-mode of Battle Mode. When time runs out, the racers with the fewest Power Moons are eliminated. The process repeats until one driver/team remains.
Turnip	They only appear in the Turnip Hunt sub-mode of Battle Mode. The driver/team with the most turnips when time runs out wins.
Plus Clock	Adds 10 seconds to the time limit in Cat Shine races in Adventure Mode.

Item Box items[]

Item	Description
Mushroom	Gives the racer a small speed boost.
Triple Mushroom	Three mushrooms orbit the racer's vehicle providing them three separate speed boosts.
Green Shell	Travels in a straight line and knocks over a kart it hits. Can also be used to protect from incoming attacks.
Triple Green Shell	Three Green Shells orbit the player's vehicle, protecting them from incoming attacks.
Red Shell	Locks onto the nearest driver in front of the player, and knocks them over.
Triple Red Shell	Three Red Shells orbit the player's vehicle, protecting them from incoming attacks.
Banana	Protects from incoming attacks, and spins out other racers that hit it.
Triple Banana	A trail of three bananas follow the player's vehicle, protecting them from incoming attacks.
Golden Mushroom	Gives the player continuous speed bosts for a short time.
Fire Flower	Allows the player to throw fireballs for a short time, that cause other racers to spin out on impact.
Star	Provides the player invincibility for a short time, and gives them a speed boost.
Bob-omb	Explodes after a short time after being thrown or dropped, knocking over any driver in its blast radius.
Double Bob-omb	Two Bob-ombs orbit the player's vehicle.
Spiny Shell	Flies directly to the racer in first place, and explodes like a Bob-omb.
Lightning	Causes all racers ahead of the user to shrink to a very small size and lose their items, with the effect gradually wearing off from last to first place. This items takes no effect on racers with the Star, Bullet Bill, or Peepa activated. Racers with the Mega Mushroom activated shrink to normal size.
Bullet Bill	Transforms the player into a Bullet Bill, rocketing them through the track with autopilot. It also provides invincibility.
Fake Item Box	This item imitates an Item Box but has a more washed out color scheme and an upside down question mark. It causes racers to flip over once hit. Unlike past games, it can now block incoming attacks.
Bombshell	Travels in a straight path like a Green Shell, and explodes when it hits a racer or wall.
Triple Bombshell	Orbits the player's vehicle, and while the do protect from incoming attacks, they explode upon contact.
Potted Piranha Plant	Automatically chomps obstacles and other racers, giving the player a speed boost for each bite.
Super Horn	Emits a shockwave that blows away other racers and can destroy all items, including the Spiny Shell.
Cape Feather BATTLE MODE ONLY	Causes the driver to spin and leap in the air, providing a small speed boost when they land. If used near an opponent, the driver steals a balloon, three coins, the Shine Sprite, a Power Moon, or a turnip.
Super Leaf BATTLE MODE ONLY	Gives the driver's vehicle a tail that can be used to deflect items, attack opponents, and collect coins. The tail disappears after a while or if the driver gets hit.
Super Bell BATTLE MODE ONLY	Gives the driver's vehicle paws, allowing them to deflect items, attack opponents, and collect coins. If used midair, the driver can dive in on opponents. The paws disappear after a while or if the driver gets hit.
Peepa NEW ITEM	Makes the player transparent, making them invincible for a short time, and steals an opponent's item. Serves as a replacement for the Boo.
Apple Pie NEW ITEM	Covers all racers ahead with filling and reduces their visibility, and causes them to significantly slow down and lose their traction. Serves as a replacement for the Blooper.
Ice Flower NEW ITEM	Allows the player to throw ice balls for a short time, which freeze other racers for a few seconds.
1-Up Mushroom NEW ITEM	Orbits the player's vehicle, and causes L.K. to rescue the player much faster. Only one can be used at a time.
Double Cherry NEW ITEM	Creates a clone of the racer. When they run into an Item Box, they obtain two of the same item. When the racer/clone gets hit or falls off the track, the clone disintegrates. Only one clone can be created at a time.
Bob-omb Buddy NEW ITEM	Acts like a banana, and explodes when an opponent hits it. Unlike the regular Bob-omb, it only explodes upon contact with a driver.

Special items[]

Item	Description	Character(s)
Fireball	Functions similarly to the Fire Flower, but five are thrown at once, and they are larger than the Fire Flower's fireballs.	Mario, Baby Mario, Dry Bowser
Heart	Two hearts orbit the racer's vehicle, protecting them from incoming attacks. When a heart makes contact with an item, it picks up the item and lets the racer use it.	Peach, Pauline, Baby Peach, Sprixie, Wendy
Yoshi/Birdo Egg	Locks onto the nearest driver in front of the player and knocks them over, similarly to the Red Shell. It releases items upon contact.	Yoshi, Birdo
Chain Chomp	Pulls the racer's vehicle forward, knocking over any drivers in its path. It eventually detaches from the vehicle and runs off.	Shy Guy, Iggy, Madame Broode
Giant Banana	Functions like a regular banana, but it is larger, has a longer spin out duration, and spawns three regular bananas upon contact.	Donkey Kong, Baby Donkey Kong
Bowser's Shell	Functions like a Green Shell, but is larger and takes longer to disappear.	Bowser, Boom Boom, Koopa Kid
Thunder Cloud	The Thunder Cloud now must be thrown for it to work, but otherwise functions like it did in Mario Kart Wii.	Lakitu, Sumo Bro., Mallow
Hammer	A spread of five are thrown forward, while three are thrown backward. Locks onto drivers and knocks them over like a Red Shell. However, this only works if the opponent is close enough.	Mini Mario, Hammer Bro., Morton, Sledge Bro.
Poison Mushroom	Causes opponents who run into it to spin out, lose all of their coins, and makes them unable to use items.	Nabbit, Viruses
Mega Mushroom	The driver becomes bigger and is able to squash other racers. It makes the driver immune to all items except for the Star, Bullet Bill, Lightning, Super Horn, and Apple Pie. The player can also go off road without slowing down.	Toad, Dr. Mario, Toadsworth
Mini Mushroom	Shrinks racers that run into it and makes them unable to use items. Unlike the Lightning, racers with the Mega Mushroom activated shrink to this small size.	Toadette, Honeybee, Toadofsky
Boomerang Flower	Can be used up to three times. hitting racers forward/backward and when it returns to its user after the first two uses.	Pom Pom, Ninji, Cappy, Tiara, Rango
Banana Barrel	Continuously shoots bananas onto the track for a short time.	Cranky Kong, Donkey Kong Jr.
Mushroom Cannon	Continuously shoots mushrooms onto the track for a short time.	Goomba, Captain Toad
Bob-omb Cannon	Continuously shoots Bob-ombs onto the track for a short time.	Spike, Monty Mole, Robo Mario
Giga Bob-omb	Functions like a regular Bob-omb, but has a larger blast radius.	Waluigi, Lemmy, King Bob-omb, Hariet
Poltergust 3000 NEW ITEM	Sucks racers to slow them down, and also steals coins from them. It can also suck coins and items.	Luigi, Baby Luigi, Professor E. Gadd, Gooigi
Smiley Flower NEW ITEM	Two flowers orbit the racer's vehicle, protecting them from attacks. Instead of picking up items like the Heart, it reflects them. It also creates pollen that causes racers to spin out.	Daisy, Baby Daisy, Wiggler, Petey Piranha, Honey Queen
Magic Paintbrush NEW ITEM	Creates puddles of paint that causes opponents to spin out. Opponents who run into the paint also have even more of the screen filled, and their traction is even more reduced.	Bowser Jr., Larry, Blooper, Spewart
Gold Flower NEW ITEM	Allows the player to throw large, golden fireballs for a short time. They steal three coins from each driver they hit.	Wario, Bandit, Baby Wario
Surfboard NEW ITEM	The driver's vehicle rides on a surfboard over a wave, propelling them forward. It also spins out opponents and steals coins from them.	Funky Kong, Lochlady, Bubblainian, Plessie
Peanut Popgun NEW ITEM	Up to ten peanuts can be fired. Like the Hammer, peanuts only lock onto opponents if they are close enough.	Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong
Launch Star NEW ITEM	Rockets the player forward with autopilot. It creates a shockwave upon use, and lasts longer than the Bullet Bill.	Rosalina, Luma, Baby Rosalina, Lubba, Hungry Luma, Geno
Shell Cannon NEW ITEM	Continuously shoots Green Shells onto the track for a short time.	Koopa Troopa, Koopa Paratroopa, Koopa the Quick, Chargin' Chuck
Dry Shell NEW ITEM	Locks onto opponents like a Red Shell, but reassembles and targets the next two racers.	Dry Bones, Boo, King Boo, Tostarenan
Bill Blaster NEW ITEM	Up to four small Bullet Bills can be launched. They explode upon contact.	Roy, King K. Rool, Kritter, Captain Syrup
Magic Wand NEW ITEM	When used, one of three spells are casted; the red triangle locks onto opponents and knocks them over, the green square creates a shield, and the blue circle provides a speed boost. The spell casted is the one closest to the front of the vehicle.	Ludwig, Kamek, Motley Bossblob
Pineapple NEW ITEM	It is thrown forward like a Green Shell, but when it hits an opponent or obstacle, it breaks and creates a puddle of juice, which causes opponents to spin out.	Pianta, Noki, Il Piantissimo
Iceball NEW ITEM	The racer throws five large iceballs at once. Their freeze lasts longer than the Ice Flower's iceballs.	Shiverian, Penguin
Brick Block NEW ITEM	Brings racers who run into it to an immediate stop, causing them to lose all momentum. It breaks upon contact.	Topper, Greenie, Broozer

Adventure Mode key items[]

Trophy: Obtained by finishing 1st in a race. Collecting all four of a world's trophies allows the player to race the boss.
Key: Obtained after defeating a boss. The player must collect all keys in order to race Fawful.
Cat Shine: Cat Shine races are unlocked after beating a world's boss. In these races, there are no opponents, and the player must beat a track's given time.
Power Moon: Power Moon races are also unlocked after beating a world's boss. They are obtained by collecting all five Moon Shards on a course. In these races, the player doesn't necessarily need to come in 1st. Yellow, green, blue, and red Power Moons are obtained by Power Moon races, while purple ones are collected by completing bonus rounds; where the player must collect all Moon Shards on a battle course within a given time.
Gem: Gem Cups are unlocked by obtaining all Power Moons of the same color. A Gem Cup is a Grand Prix-like series of five races

Double Dash partners[]

In VS and Battle Mode, the player has the option to play in Double Dash Mode. In said mode, only karts are allowed and they have been redesigned in order to accomidate two characters. Listed below are the default pairings.

Partner A	Partner B
Mario	Luigi
Peach	Daisy
Yoshi	Birdo
Toad	Toadette
Bowser	Bowser Jr.
Wario	Waluigi
Donkey Kong	Funky Kong
Diddy Kong	Dixie Kong
Rosalina	Luma
Pauline	Mini Mario
Baby Mario	Baby Luigi
Baby Peach	Baby Daisy
Baby Rosalina	Sprixie
Koopa Troopa	Koopa Paratroopa
Dry Bones	Boo
Shy Guy	Goomba
Hammer Bro	Spike
Wiggler	Lakitu
Larry	Wendy
Morton	Roy
Iggy	Lemmy
Ludwig	Kamek
Boom Boom	Pom Pom
Petey Piranha	King Bob-omb
Pianta	Noki
Monty Mole	Blooper
Ninji	Bandit
Lubba	Hungry Luma
Baby Wario	Baby Donkey Kong
Cranky Kong	Donkey Kong Jr.
King Boo	Dry Bowser
Cappy	Tiara
Tostarenan	Lochlady
Shiverian	Bubblainian
Honey Queen	Honeybee
Penguin	Plessie
Sledge Bro.	Sumo Bro.
Topper	Hariet
Rango	Spewart
King K. Rool	Kremling
Professor E. Gadd	Dr. Mario
Captain Toad	Nabbit
Il Piantissimo	Koopa the Quick
Madame Broode	Captain Syrup
Gooigi	Greenie
Chargin' Chuck	Broozer
Toadsworth	Toadofsky
Motley Bossblob	Koopa Kid
Geno	Mallow
Robo Mario	Viruses