How To Get Stars In Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart games traditionally feature a lot of content that is locked away when you start the game. Over the years players have had to win championships in order to unlock new courses, but in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe all the content is available from the moment you start the game (no doubt a decision made because this is a re-release of sorts following the Wii U version). That is, all content apart from the brand new Gold Mario included exclusively in the Switch version of Mario Kart 8. Gold Mario is the top Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Unlockable you'll want to get your hands on.

In this Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Unlockables guide we'll detail how you unlock Gold Mario in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the main unlockable in the game. If you're wondering why we've also got info on how to stop Blue Shells, you'll need that skill if you're going to be successful in your quest to unlock Gold Mario. On top of that we've got a rundown of all the tracks, characters and new content in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Switch.

If you really can't be bothered to put in the time to unlock Gold Mario, we've got plenty more articles on our Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Guide Hub. Head over there if you're done here.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Unlockables - How to Unlock Gold Mario

The instructions to unlock Gold Mario in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe are remarkably simple: Finish first in all 200CC racing events. That's it. Simple. Except it's not simple. In fact it's far from simple as getting that gold trophy in every event is extremely challenging. Luckily for you we've got some tips to help you get your mits on the Gold Mario character.

How to Avoid Blue Shells by Boosting in Mario Kart 8

The mushroom is a simple item in Mario Kart 8. Use it and you'll get a speed boost. It's an item everyone can understand. But in the right hands it's a potentially race-winning power-up that can let you dodge a blue shell attack.

With a mushroom in hand wait until the blue shell has activated its final attack, then use the mushroom to accelerate forward and out of the blast radius. Timing here is tricky to master, but get it right and you'll have a huge advantage when trying to win 200CC races,

Use the Super Horn to Block the Blue Shell in Mario Kart 8

Watch for the moment the blue shell gets in front of you and then tips up, as if to show you its belly. At this exact moment use the Super Horn and you'll prevent the blue shell from hitting you. Your timing has to be spot on.

To get into first position and have to struggle against the dreaded blue shell you're going to need to be at the top of your game. Follow our Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Boost Guide for info on how to repeatedly get those essential bursts of speed.

Gold Mario isn't a new addition to the Mario franchise, even though he's never appeared in Mario Kart until Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Gold Mario has appeared in Super Mario Maker, Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash, and Mario and Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

It's worth noting that Gold Mario doesn't have any special abilities that make him a great character to play as - he's essentially a reskin of Metal Mario, which means he's very heavy. Getting hold of him is more of a status symbol that lets you show off to friends.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Unlockables - How to Unlock Gold Parts

As well as getting your hands on Gold Mario, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe also has unlockable gold parts. To get all three items you'll need to complete a series of challenges.

Unlock Gold Standard kart: Win every Cup with a single star on both 150cc and Mirror Mode in Grand Prix.
Unlock Gold Tires: Beat every Staff Ghost Racer in Time Trial competing at 150cc.
Unlock Gold Glider: Collect 10,000 coins.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Characters and Tracks - What's New in Switch Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe offers brand new and retro-inspired Battle mode courses, there are no new tracks for other game modes. What you get in the Switch game is the entire line-up of tracks from the Wii U version of Mario Kart 8 along with all the tracks added via DLC. The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Characters list is also bolstered thanks to a number of brand new characters.

This brings the content package up to a bumper 48 tracks in total. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe also includes 41 characters, five of whom are exclusive to the Switch game.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Characters

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Switch includes a total of 41 characters (not counting variations). This includes all Mario Kart 8's DLC characters plus five new racers exclusive to the Switch game.

Baby Daisy
Baby Luigi
Baby Mario
Baby Peach
Baby Rosalina
Bowser
Bowser Jr. (MK8 Deluxe Exclusive)
Cat Peach (Previously MK8 DLC)
Daisy
Donkey Kong
Dry Bones (MK8 Deluxe Exclusive)
Dry Bowser (Previously MK8 DLC)
Lakitu
Larry
Lemmy
Link (DLC)
Ludwig
Luigi
Gold Mario (unlocked for completing every cup at 200cc)
Iggy
Inkling Girl (MK8 Deluxe Exclusive, three versions available)
Inkling Boy (MK8 Deluxe Exclusive, three versions available)
Isabelle (Previously MK8 DLC)
King Boo (MK8 Deluxe Exclusive)
Koopa Troopa
Mario
Metal Mario
Mii
Morton
Peach
Pink Gold Peach
Rosalina
Roy
Shy Guy (eight versions available)
Tanooki Mario (Previously MK8 DLC)
Toad
Toadette
Villager (Previously MK8 DLC)
Waluigi
Wario
Wendy
Yoshi (eight versions available)

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Tracks

Many of the tracks in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe are based on classic courses from Mario Kart games through the years. We've marked the platforms each track first appeared on. If you remember them they've had quite the visual overhaul in their move to new hardware.

Mushroom Cup

Mario Kart Stadium
Water Park
Sweet Sweet Canyon
Thwomp Ruins

Flower Cup

Mario Circuit
Toad Harbour
Twisted Mansion
Shy Guy Falls

Star Cup

Sunshine Airport
Dolphin Shoals
Electrodrome
Mount Wario

Special Cup

Cloudtop Cruise
Bone-Dry Dunes
Bowser's Castle
Rainbow Road

Shell Cup

Moo Moo Meadows (Wii)
Mario Circuit (GBA)
Cheep Cheep Beach (DS)
Toad's Turnpike (N64)

Banana Cup

Dry Dry Desert (GameCube)
Donut Plains 3 (SNES)
Royal Raceway (N64)
DK Jungle (3DS)

Leaf Cup

Wario Stadium (DS)
Sherbet Land (GameCube)
Music Park (3DS)
Yoshi Valley (N64)

Lightning Cup

Tick-Tock Clock (DS)
Piranha Plan Slide (3DS)
Grumble Volcano (Wii)
Rainbow Road (N64)

Egg Cup (Previously DLC 1 for Mario Kart 8)

Yoshi Circuit (GameCube)
Excitebike Arena (based on Excitebike)
Dragon Driftway
Mute City (based on F-Zero)

Triforce Cup (Previously DLC 1 for Mario Kart 8)

Wario's Gold Mine (Wii)
Rainbow Road (SNES)
Ice Ice Outpost
Hyrule Circult (based on Legend of Zelda)

Crossing Cup (Previously DLC 2 for Mario Kart 8)

Baby Park (GameCube)
Cheese Land (GBA)
Wild Woods
Animal Crossing (based on Animal Crossing)

Bell Cup (Previously DLC 2 for Mario Kart 8)

Neo Bowser City (3DS)
Ribbon Road (GBA)
Super Bell Subway
Big Blue (based on F-Zero)

That's all the cups, tracks, and characters included in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Switch. Head elsewhere for details on how to build the best kart/character combo in Mario Kart 8 and a Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Weapons Guide.

Now you've got Gold Mario and the other Mario Kart 8 Deluxe unlockables we hope you'll have many great moments of showing off!

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Tom Orry

Audience Development Manager, Gamer Network

Tom started life on a circus in Australia before his family moved to the UK. His love of gaming started soon after, which essentially meant he bought every video game magazine available and worked numerous part-time jobs as a child in order to afford costly N64 games. He created UK site VideoGamer.com, of which he was the Editor for over a decade. He now doesn't like circuses.