Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ The Games, Movies, TV & Comics You Love
flag of UK
UK
flag of US
US
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of Australia
Australia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Future Games Show
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • Newsletters
    • Total Film
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsarama
Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Future Games Show
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • Newsletters
    • Total Film
    • Retro Gamer
    • Newsarama
Total Film
Gaming Magazines
Gaming Magazines
Why subscribe?
  • Subscribe from just £3
  • Takes you closer to the games, movies and TV you love
  • Try a single issue or save on a subscription
  • Issues delivered straight to your door or device
From$12
Subscribe now
Trending
  • Dying Light: The Beast
  • Borderlands 4 review
  • Battlefield 6
  • New Games for 2025
Don't miss these
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Yoshi leaping off of his bike in celebration
Super Mario Mario Kart World's staff would "go skateboarding or ride their bikes" during lunch breaks, which explains the wild movement in the Switch 2 racer
Mario Kart World screenshot showing a Goomba happily jumping out of a kart.
Super Mario Mario Kart World doesn't feature Nintendo icons from Zelda and Animal Crossing because its developers say "it didn't seem necessary to us, given everything we could already do with Mario"
Bee Wario pops a trick off Crown City Bridge in Mario Kart World
Racing Games Nintendo has made my biggest problem with Mario Kart World even worse
Spike closely staring at the camera in a Mario Kart World screenshot.
Super Mario Mario Kart World fans slam Nintendo for making 3-lap tracks even rarer: "Now I have an excuse not to buy the Switch 2"
Mario Kart World
Super Mario Mario Kart World banana snipers beware: that MKTV helicopter watching you race can apparently obliterate your chances at winning
Mario Kart World screenshot featuring Mario and a P Switch
Super Mario Nintendo seemingly took out an unofficial, paid interactive Mario Kart World app, but free browser versions can help you find all the P-Switches the Switch 2 racing game won't tell you about
Mario Kart World screenshot featuring Toad
Super Mario Mario Kart World's latest update has Nintendo saying you will play those intermission tracks and you will like them as picking 'Random' no longer guarantees a regular 3-lap race online
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Donkey Kong posing for the camera
Super Mario Mario Kart World update 1.2 seemingly speeds up the Switch 2 racer and finally addresses intermission track complaints, but getting classic 3-lap races online doesn't seem to be much easier
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond key art featuring Samus in her suit with her hand outstretched using purple psychic powers
Games After smashing through Donkey Kong Bananza I've run out of things to play on my Nintendo Switch 2 – so here are 5 games that better get release dates at Gamescom 2025
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Games Be it a new Animal Crossing or Fire Emblem, I can't justify buying a Switch 2 without Nintendo meeting me halfway on this wishlist
Mario Kart World screenshot for Switch 2 showing Wario blasting ahead with a host of characters right behind him in a desert biome
Super Mario I finally got to play Mario Kart World after hundreds of hours in Mario Kart 8, but Knockout Tour was so stressful that I immediately went back to its predecessor
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Toad elated after hitting a boost pad on a bike
Racing Games Wow, Mario Kart World really is Nintendo's take on Grand Theft Auto, as NPCs can break into each other's cars: "He's breaking into Green Shy Guy's car! And now he's stealing it!"
Screenshot featuring Toad and Toadette from the Wii U version of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Games The 25 best Wii U games of all time
Best Switch 2 games: Toad smiling while racing on a train track during Mario Kart World.
Games The 15 best Switch 2 games to play right now in 2025
Mario Kart 64
Super Mario Mario Kart World just launched with Switch 2, but PC gamers are playing Mario Kart 64 instead thanks to a "many-year" fan project that doesn't contain Nintendo's original code
  1. Games
  2. Racing
  3. Mario Kart 8

Eight Nintendo games that NEED to become Mario Kart 8 tracks right now

Features
By Daniella Lucas published 21 April 2017

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is awesome, and if anyone else suggests otherwise I'll Blue Shell them. It's so awesome, in fact, that games which don't even have Mario in the title are allowed to join the dangerous dodgem party.

Both The Legend of Zelda and Animal Crossing now part of the standard track roster, its got me thinking about who else needs to join in on the banana-flinging, horn-tooting, self-green-shelling madness. With that in mind, here are eight classic Nintendo titles that NEED to become Mario Kart 8 tracks...

Page 1 of 9
Page 1 of 9
1. Pokemon

1. Pokemon

Each region in the monster-catching series has already been partitioned out into handy routes, screaming to be turned into lengthy tracks. Just imagine skidding through the long grass with wild Pokemon appearing as driving hazards, and throwing Pokeballs instead of bananas at your fellow racers. It's super effective!

Page 2 of 9
Page 2 of 9
2. Metroid

2. Metroid

Mario Kart already has the whole space thing covered thanks to the various Rainbow Roads, but what it hasn't got is a track that takes you on a journey around a suspiciously dangerous planet before launches you (in morphball form, of course) into the twinkling abyss to careen around Samus's shiny Gunship.

Page 3 of 9
Page 3 of 9
3. Star Fox

3. Star Fox

Making full use of the antigrav wheels, this track could barrel roll through the sky, passing over the length of a Arwing before bringing you crashing down to ground level after a blue shell goes rogue. Added bonus: Slippy Toad and co provide unhelpful race commentary along the bottom of the screen. Don't forget about me!

Page 4 of 9
Page 4 of 9
4. Chibi-Robo

4. Chibi-Robo

This would be the closest Mario Kart could get to being Micro Machines, with everyone charging around a messy kitchen table, with jam spills placed just after tricky corners to slow you down, and boost jumps off of Chibi-Robo's little power cord. You could even collect happy points instead of coins! Ace.

Page 5 of 9
Page 5 of 9
5. Professor Layton

5. Professor Layton

The brilliant battle mode arenas are back in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, so why not give your cranium a workout with a stage that boxes all the racers into a giant traffic-puzzle cube and sees you all frantically shunt each other around until you reach the exit. And all the coins become hint coins, too. Every puzzle has an answer! And the answer is shells. 

Page 6 of 9
Page 6 of 9
6. Kirby

6. Kirby

Imagine all the vibrancy of a Mario Kart track, but with a lovely plasticine sheen to all those piranha plants trying to gobble you up mid race. Or perhaps this is just an excuse to get yourself behind the handlebars of a hamster-themed motorbike. Move over Epona bike! Your time is over.

Page 7 of 9
Page 7 of 9
7. Fire Emblem

7. Fire Emblem

You drive along the edge of giant version of Lucina's sword, as she bravely battles with Chrom. The track could leap between their blades as they clash. Instead of your standard mushrooms and shells, you battle with the rock-paper-scissors set up of the traditional Fire Emblem weapon triangle of sword, axe and lance. And there would be awkward romance, too. Although I'm not sure how. 

Page 8 of 9
Page 8 of 9
8. Monster Hunter

8. Monster Hunter

It's the turn of the ever helpful Palico to get behind the wheel, meowing incessantly and spitting out cat puns as you navigate a prehistoric field while being chased by raptor-like Jaggis. Harvest speed-boosting meat chunks in place of coins by running over the local wildlife. No, it's not weird. YOU'RE WEIRD. 

Page 9 of 9
Page 9 of 9
CATEGORIES
Wii-u Platforms Nintendo
Daniella  Lucas
Daniella Lucas
Social Links Navigation
Dani's ears prick up every time the words 'final' and 'fantasy' are mentioned in the same sentence. Great when talking about JRPGs, but it becomes a real hassle when discussing the finals of your fantasy football league. Cloud would totally be a better striker than Rooney.
See more Platform Features
Read more
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Yoshi leaping off of his bike in celebration
Mario Kart World's staff would "go skateboarding or ride their bikes" during lunch breaks, which explains the wild movement in the Switch 2 racer
 
 
Mario Kart World screenshot showing a Goomba happily jumping out of a kart.
Mario Kart World doesn't feature Nintendo icons from Zelda and Animal Crossing because its developers say "it didn't seem necessary to us, given everything we could already do with Mario"
 
 
Bee Wario pops a trick off Crown City Bridge in Mario Kart World
Nintendo has made my biggest problem with Mario Kart World even worse
 
 
Spike closely staring at the camera in a Mario Kart World screenshot.
Mario Kart World fans slam Nintendo for making 3-lap tracks even rarer: "Now I have an excuse not to buy the Switch 2"
 
 
Mario Kart World
Mario Kart World banana snipers beware: that MKTV helicopter watching you race can apparently obliterate your chances at winning
 
 
Mario Kart World screenshot featuring Mario and a P Switch
Nintendo seemingly took out an unofficial, paid interactive Mario Kart World app, but free browser versions can help you find all the P-Switches the Switch 2 racing game won't tell you about
 
 
Latest in Racing
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Toad elated after hitting a boost pad on a bike
Wow, Mario Kart World really is Nintendo's take on Grand Theft Auto, as NPCs can break into each other's cars: "He's breaking into Green Shy Guy's car! And now he's stealing it!"
 
 
Haru Urara art
Millions of gamers on Steam and beyond gather to mourn famously untalented horse who inspired the beloved anime girl in Umamusume, Haru Urara: "May she get all the grass and carrots in heaven"
 
 
A blue car in Tokyo Xtreme Racer
Legendary Japanese racing game dev goes under the radar for 18 years, quietly emerges to drop the best-rated Steam racer of 2025, and gives fans 20 days to grab it at a hefty discount before the price jumps to $50
 
 
The Crew
After Ubisoft's shutdown of The Crew spawned the Stop Killing Games movement, a group of fans are finally ready to release a server emulator to keep the racer alive: "No one will ever be able to take this away from you now"
 
 
Forza Horizon 5
Forza Horizon 6's Japan open world seems likelier than ever as a car import company mistakenly sheds some light on the Xbox sequel
 
 
Umamusume: Pretty Derby horse girls racing
Fan of Steam's latest gacha craze Umamusume: Pretty Derby sacrifices brand new fridge to his sociopathic horse girl who's only winning third place: "She's a late bloomer"
 
 
Latest in Features
Demon Slayer Infinity Castle
Anime is officially mainstream after Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle, but where does it go from here?
 
 
Chance Perdomo in Gen V
Is Chance Perdomo in Gen V season 2? How The Boys spin-off pays tribute
 
 
Assassin's Creed Shadows
Assassin's Creed Shadows' new DLC weapon transforms Naoe into a samurai-bashing machine, and I'll never use anything else
 
 
Asa Germann as Sam Riordan in Gen V season 2
Gen V season 2 proves you can go bigger and bolder without relying on shock value, and The Boys' final season could learn a lot from the spin-off
 
 
Borderlands 4 tips picture showing enemies drawn into a singularity vortex while the player watches
Borderlands 4 does what Destiny couldn't: I'm finally back on the looter shooter train, and it feels like reliving my 60 hours in Borderlands 2
 
 
The key art for Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight showing a shadowed Batman superimposed in front of a neon and spotlight lit Gotham City
I briefly mistook the new Lego Batman for modded Arkham footage, genuinely bamboozling me while making me more excited for the game than ever
 
 
  1. Key art for Lego Voyagers showing the two lego heroes with red and blue brick eyes near a rocket
    1
    Lego Voyagers review: "A carefully crafted, playful, and earnest adventure"
  2. 2
    There's now a real version of the Witcher Gwent card game, and it's just as engrossing as the original
  3. 3
    Borderlands 4 review: "Undeniably an excellent looter shooter, but one that requires a bit of tunnel vision to fully enjoy"
  4. 4
    This enormous exploration board game won't be for everyone, but it's a masterclass in narrative and sandbox gameplay
  5. 5
    Hollow Knight Silksong review: "Worth the wait and then some, this isn't just more Hollow Knight but an evolved, spindly beast all its own – even if it's fiddly at times"
  1. Leonardo DiCaprio as Bob in One Battle After Another
    1
    One Battle After Another review: "One of the best studio movies in years and an instant classic"
  2. 2
    The Conjuring: Last Rites review: "Not bold or memorable enough for the Warrens' final chapter"
  3. 3
    Demon Slayer: Infinity Castle review: "Roars past Mugen Train as Demon Slayer's best adventure yet"
  4. 4
    The Long Walk review: "One of the best Stephen King adaptations ever made"
  5. 5
    Frankenstein review: "A classy, if somewhat safe, adaptation"
  1. The cast of Gen V season 2
    1
    Gen V season 2 review: "As strong as the first season, if not stronger"
  2. 2
    Wednesday season 2 part 2 review: "Ortega shines, but it's a zombie who steals the entire show"
  3. 3
    Peacemaker season 2 review: "Darker and sadder than the first year, but there's still a lot of fun to be had with the 11th Street Kids."
  4. 4
    Wednesday season 2 part 1 review: "Complex and exciting but weighed down by too many subplots"
  5. 5
    Alien: Earth review: "Arguably the franchise's strongest outing since James Cameron's Aliens"

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...