MarioWiki

Vote for a featured article!

READ MORE

MarioWiki
Register
Advertisement
Mario Kart

Mario Kart Wii (マリオカートWii Mario Kāto Wī) (often abbreviated to MKWii) is the sixth installment in the Mario Kart series. It was released for the Nintendo Wii and is the first and only Mario Kart installment for the Wii and also comes packaged with the Wii Wheel.

It is the first game in the Mario Kart series that lets the player drive bikes. The game allows up to four players split screen and allowed up to twelve player online matches using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Included in the game is a channel for the Wii Menu called the Mario Kart Channel where a player can compare their scores with other players online. Mario Kart Wii sold a total of 37.38 million copies worldwide, making it the 2nd best-selling video game for the Wii (right behind Wii Sports). It was also the best-selling title in the Mario Kart series for 13 years, until it was beaten out by Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in December 2021 (with 53.79 million copies sold worldwide as of March 2023).[1]

Gameplay[]

MKWii Baby Luigi in Luigi Circuit

Gameplay screenshot of Baby Luigi driving in the first course, Luigi Circuit

One controller option is the Wii Wheel, in which the Wii Remote is placed. This way, the kart can be controlled by tilting the wheel, which the player can steer. The B Button on the rear of the wheel is to use items. The game can also be controlled using the Classic Controller or the Nintendo GameCube Controller.

As in the previous games, the player can participate in a Grand Prix, each containing four tracks in which points are gained for the player's position at the end of the race. The player must come within the top three players at the end of the Grand Prix to win a trophy.

There are 32 tracks in Mario Kart Wii. There are four sets of "new" tracks, along with four sets of tracks that have appeared in the previous titles in the Mario Kart series. Each set contains four tracks and can be played entirely in Grand Prix mode.

A new addition to the series is motorbikes. In 100cc and 150cc, the player can participate using motorbikes. There are specific vehicles for each character. Some characters wear different costumes when driving different vehicles.

The game supports up to four players in offline multiplayer and supported up to twelve players online using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Offline multiplayer includes Vs. and Battle modes, as in Mario Kart DS. In Vs., players can play against each other or in a team. In Battle Mode, the players must play in teams. It isn't possible to unlock trophies or any other awards in multiplayer mode. All characters have over 3,000 voice clips.

Characters[]

There are 26 playable characters in the game (Including Mii Outfit A and B). 12 characters can be played from the start. An extra 14 can be unlocked through the single-player mode. The player can also play as their Mii, the first game in the series which uses this feature. Miis also have a different outfit if unlocked, the male ones having overalls like Mario and the female ones having a Peach dress, with their exclusive color.

Small-sized racers[]

Medium-sized racers[]

Large-sized racers[]

* indicates that this is a character's first appearance in the Mario Kart series
**indicates that this is a character's first appearance in the Mario franchise

Mii[]

The weight of the Mii depends on its height and weight, which can be edited through the Mii Channel. The voice clips of them also depend on the height, making big Miis having a darker voice than small ones.

Unlocking criteria[]

Character Standard Criteria Racing Criteria Wi-Fi Criteria
Baby Luigi Unlock 8 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials Play 3,150 races Win 100 WFC Ghost races
Baby Daisy Rank 1 Star or higher in all 50cc Wii Grand Prix Cups Play 1,950 races -
Toadette Play Time Trials on all courses Play 2,550 races Win 1,000 WFC races
Dry Bones Win the 100cc Leaf Cup Play 1,050 races -
Daisy Win the 150cc Special Cup Play 2,850 races
Birdo Play Time Trials on 16 different courses Play 1,350 races Win 250 WFC races
Diddy Kong Win the 50cc Lightning Cup Play 450 races -
Bowser Jr. Rank 1 Star or higher in all 100cc Retro Grand Prix Cups Play 3,450 races
King Boo Win the 50cc Star Cup Play 750 races
Rosalina Rank 1 Star or higher in all Mirror Cups Play 50 races with a Super Mario Galaxy save file or play 4,950 races
Funky Kong Unlock 4 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials Play 2,250 races Win 25 WFC Ghost races
Dry Bowser Rank 1 Star or higher in all 150cc Wii Grand Prix Cups Play 4,350 races -
Mii Outfit A Win the 100cc Special Cup Play 1,650 races
B Unlock all 32 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials Play 5,100 combined races and battles Win 5,000 WFC Ghost races

Bonuses[]

All of the characters in the game have their own set of bonuses that boost certain statistics for their vehicles. Units are out of 80.

Character Stat Bonuses
Character Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo
Mario - 6 2 2 3 - -
Luigi 2 6 - - - - -
Peach 2 - 5 - 6 - -
Daisy 4 - - 2 - - 3
Yoshi - 3 - - 3 5 -
Birdo - 3 - - - 3 5
Diddy Kong - - 3 - 3 - 5
Bowser Jr. - - - - - 3 3
Baby Mario - 8 - 6 - - -
Baby Luigi 5 8 - - - - -
Baby Peach 3 6 3 3 - - -
Baby Daisy 5 6 - - - - 3
Toad - - 6 - 6 - -
Toadette 3 - - - - 6 -
Koopa Troopa - - - 3 - - 6
Dry Bones - - 3 - 3 - 6
Wario - 3 - - - 3 6
Waluigi - - 6 - 5 3 -
Donkey Kong - 3 2 2 - - 3
Bowser 2 5 - - 3 - -
King Boo - - - 5 - 3 -
Rosalina 3 - - 3 - - 3
Funky Kong 4 - - - - 3 -
Dry Bowser - - - - - 6 6
Small Mii 3 3 - - 3 - 3
Medium Mii 3 3 - - - 3 3
Large Mii 3 - 3 3 3 - 3

Vehicles[]

There are thirty-six total vehicles in this installment. 18 karts, 18 bikes, each divided into the 3 weight classes, making 6 available to each character, 3 are available from the start. Each has 7 stats which are shown during character selection:

  • Speed: How high the top speed of the vehicle is.
  • Weight: How heavy a vehicle is. Bikes are usually lighter than karts.
  • Acceleration: How quickly the vehicle's top speed is achieved from a non-moving position.
  • Handling: How tight the vehicles can normally turn.
  • Drift: How tight the vehicle turns while using the drifting maneuver.
  • Off-Road: How much speed the vehicle retains when off of the track.
  • Mini-Turbo: When using the manual drift option, how effective a mini-boost will be.
Vehicle Stats
Small Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Kart S 41 29 48 48 51 40 45 Out
Booster Seat 27 27 56 64 37 54 59
Mini Beast 55 32 29 32 64 27 64
Cheep Charger 34 24 64 56 59 45 54 Rank 1 Star in all 50cc Retro Grand Prix Cups
Tiny Titan 46 35 43 43 29 64 40 Unlock an Expert Staff Ghost Data record in Time Trials / Win 50 WFC races
Blue Falcon 60 29 35 29 43 24 29 Win the Mirror Lightning Cup
Small Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Bike S 39 21 51 51 54 43 48 Out -
Bullet Bike 53 24 32 35 67 29 67 In -
Bit Bike 25 18 59 67 40 56 62 Out -
Quacker 32 17 67 60 62 48 57 In Win the 150cc Star Cup
Magikruiser 43 24 45 45 32 67 43 Play Time Trials on 8 different courses
Jet Bubble 48 27 40 40 45 35 37 Win the Mirror Leaf Cup
Medium Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Kart M 46 45 40 43 45 35 40 Out -
Classic Dragster 37 43 59 54 40 51 -
Wild Wing 57 51 21 29 59 24 59 -
Super Blooper 50 40 35 37 21 54 35 Win the 50cc Leaf Cup
Daytripper 34 45 51 59 32 48 54 Win the 150cc Leaf Cup
Sprinter 64 48 27 24 37 21 24 Unlock 24 Expert Staff Ghost Data Records in Time Trials / Win 3000 WFC races
Medium Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Bike M 43 37 43 45 48 37 43 Out
Mach Bike 55 37 24 32 62 27 62 In
Sugarscoot 32 32 54 62 35 51 56 Out
Zip Zip 41 35 45 51 29 62 45 Win the 100cc Lightning Cup
Sneakster 62 40 29 27 40 24 27 In Rank 1 Star in all 100cc Wii Grand Prix Cups
Dolphin Dasher 48 43 37 40 24 56 37 In Win the Mirror Star Cup
Large Karts Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Kart L 48 59 37 40 40 35 35 Out -
Offroader 39 64 48 54 18 43 45 Out -
Flame Flyer 62 59 16 21 48 18 48 Out -
Piranha Prowler 55 67 29 35 35 29 27 Out Win the 50cc Special Cup
Jetsetter 69 56 21 17 27 16 16 Out Rank 1 Star in all 150cc Retro Grand Prix Cups
Honeycoupe 53 62 27 29 56 24 56 Out Win the 150cc Lightning Cup
Large Bikes Speed Weight Acceleration Handling Drift Off-Road Mini-Turbo Drift-Type How to Unlock
Standard Bike L 46 54 40 43 43 37 37 Out -
Flame Runner 60 54 18 24 51 21 51 In -
Wario Bike 37 59 51 56 21 45 48 Out -
Shooting Star 50 48 29 32 59 27 59 Out Win the 100cc Star Cup
Spear 67 56 24 18 29 18 18 In Unlock 12 Expert Staff Ghost Data records in Time Trials
Phantom 43 51 43 48 17 56 40 Out Win the Mirror Special Cup

Courses[]

There are 32 racetracks in Mario Kart Wii. Each track is part of a Grand Prix. There are eight different Grand Prix in the game, each comprising four tracks. Sixteen of these tracks are new tracks, however, the last sixteen are tracks from previous games in the series.

In addition to this, there are also ten Battle Courses, the most out of any other Mario Kart game, with five being new courses and five from previous titles in the series.

New Courses (Wii Grand Prix)[]

Mushroom art NSMB Fire Flower Artwork - New Super Mario Bros Starman Special Cup MKWii
Mushroom Cup Flower Cup Star Cup Special Cup
Luigi Circuit Mario Circuit Daisy Circuit Dry Dry Ruins
Moo Moo Meadows Coconut Mall Koopa Cape Moonview Highway
Mushroom Gorge DK Summit Maple Treeway Bowser's Castle
Toad's Factory Wario's Gold Mine Grumble Volcano Rainbow Road

Returning Courses (Retro Grand Prix)[]

Green Shell Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Banana (Mario Kart Wii) Leaf Artwork - Mario Kart Wii LightningBoltMK8
Shell Cup Banana Cup Leaf Cup Lightning Cup
GCN Peach Beach N64 Sherbet Land DS Desert Hills SNES Mario Circuit 3
DS Yoshi Falls GBA Shy Guy Beach GBA Bowser Castle 3 DS Peach Gardens
SNES Ghost Valley 2 DS Delfino Square N64 DK's Jungle Parkway GCN DK Mountain
N64 Mario Raceway GCN Waluigi Stadium GCN Mario Circuit N64 Bowser's Castle

Staff Ghosts[]

Staff Ghosts are ghosts which represent the time made by the Nintendo staff. There are Normal Staff Ghosts, and Expert Staff Ghosts, which are unlocked by beating a certain time ahead of the Normal Staff Ghost. Beating the Expert Staff Ghosts isn't required to unlock anything.

Normal Staff Ghosts[]

Course Staff Name Time Character Vehicle Wii Wheel Drift
Luigi Circuit Nin★sato 01:29.670 Luigi Sprinter Yes Manual
Moo Moo Meadows Nin★YuNya 01:37.856 Baby Daisy Booster Seat Auto
Mushroom Gorge Nin★Murak 02:16.110 Toadette Quacker Manual
Toad's Factory Nin★Misa 02:22.480 Toad Jet Bubble
Mario Circuit Nin★==Kony 01:44.777 Mario Zip Zip
Coconut Mall Nin★♪SiMO 02:30.764 Daisy Sugarscoot No
DK Summit Nin★mokke 02:34.693 Donkey Kong Standard Bike L Yes
Wario's Gold Mine Nin★morimo 02:19.585 Wario Wario Bike
Daisy Circuit Nin★Toki 01:56.822 Daisy Daytripper No
Koopa Cape Nin★Rose 03:03.022 Koopa Troopa Cheep Charger
Maple Treeway Nin★pico 02:58.633 Diddy Kong Classic Dragster Yes
Grumble Volcano Nin★Gorin 02:28.237 Dry Bowser Offroader
Dry Dry Ruins Nin★Kei 02:30.949 Yoshi Classic Dragster
Moonview Highway Nin★KOZ★ 02:16.802 Peach Standard Kart M
Bowser's Castle Nin★YABUKI 03:04.836 Bowser Piranha Prowler No
Rainbow Road Nin★Konno 03:05.895 Rosalina Shooting Star
GCN Peach Beach Nin★HIRO 01:34.233 Peach Daytripper
DS Yoshi Falls Nin★DoTak 01:16.461 Yoshi Zip Zip
SNES Ghost Valley 2 Nin★YOKO 01:06.595 King Boo Standard Kart L Yes
N64 Mario Raceway Nin★Ichiro 02:14.799 Baby Mario Bit Bike
N64 Sherbet Land Nin★Sakat 02:48.651 Baby Luigi Quacker Auto
GBA Shy Guy Beach Nin★Kato 01:45.568 Koopa Troopa Cheep Charger Manual
DS Delfino Square Nin★iwaco 02:41.807 Wario Wario Bike
GCN Waluigi Stadium Nin★NARI★ 02:32.882 Waluigi Standard Bike L No
DS Desert Hills Nin★CHIA 02:10.233 Dry Bones Standard Bike S
GBA Bowser Castle 3 Nin★Fukuda 02:58.304 Dry Bowser Standard Kart L Yes
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway Nin★Matt 02:58.264 Donkey Kong Phantom Auto
GCN Mario Circuit Nin★♪Miz 01:59.771 Mario Standard Bike M Manual
SNES Mario Circuit 3 Nin★iwaco 01:38.880 Baby Mario Standard Kart S
DS Peach Gardens Nin★Ito.y 02:34.894 Baby Peach Magikruiser
GCN DK Mountain Nin★♪msk 02:57.744 Funky Kong Wario Bike
N64 Bowser's Castle Nin★GASK2 03:19.323 Bowser Jr. Standard Kart M

Expert Staff Ghosts[]

Course Staff Name Time Character Vehicle Wii Wheel Drift
Luigi Circuit Nin★Uta♪ 01:19.419 Luigi Mach Bike Yes Manual
Moo Moo Meadows Nin★Tkym 01:25.909 Baby Daisy Bullet Bike No Auto
Mushroom Gorge Nin★Miki 02:01.011 Toadette Mini Beast Manual
Toad's Factory Nin★GQO 02:05.593 Toad Blue Falcon
Mario Circuit Nin★fuyu 01:33.702 Mario Sprinter
Coconut Mall Nin★MUGI★ 02:13.333 Daisy Wild Wing Yes
DK Summit Nin★KOZ★ 02:17.546 Donkey Kong Flame Flyer
Wario's Gold Mine Nin★♪Ryo 02:04.800 Wario Flame Flyer No
Daisy Circuit Nin★Taeko 01:41.362 Daisy Mach Bike No Manual
Koopa Cape Nin★morimo 02:41.370 Koopa Troopa Jet Bubble No Manual
Maple Treeway Nin★MUGI★ 02:37.812 Diddy Kong Sneakster No Manual
Grumble Volcano Nin★aki 02:11.852 Dry Bowser Spear No Manual
Dry Dry Ruins Nin★Akito 02:14.286 Yoshi Sneakster Yes Manual
Moonview Highway Nin★Koh 02:04.163 Peach Mach Bike Yes Manual
Bowser's Castle Nin★Masa 02:42.098 Bowser Flame Runner No Manual
Rainbow Road Nin★Syun1 02:44.734 Rosalina Jetsetter No Manual
GCN Peach Beach Nin★Taeko 01:23.140 Peach Dolphin Dasher Yes Manual
DS Yoshi Falls Nin★FJ 01:09.175 Yoshi Turbo Blooper Yes Manual
SNES Ghost Valley 2 Nin★sira〉 00:58.907 King Boo Spear No Manual
N64 Mario Raceway Nin★Yuuki 01:59.053 Baby Mario Mini Beast No Manual
N64 Sherbet Land Nin★FJ 02:28.356 Baby Luigi Blue Falcon No Manual
GBA Shy Guy Beach Nin★Matt 01:32.867 Koopa Troopa Magikruiser No Manual
DS Delfino Square Nin★TARO 02:24.169 Wario Honeycoupe No Manual
GCN Waluigi Stadium Nin★♪Ryo 02:12.367 Waluigi Piranha Prowler No Manual
DS Desert Hills Nin★solami 01:52.686 Dry Bones Tiny Titan Yes Manual
GBA Bowser Castle 3 Nin★A24 02:39.391 Dry Bowser Flame Runner No Manual
N64 DK's Jungle Parkway Nin★Syun1 02:37.782 Donkey Kong Flame Flyer Yes Manual
GCN Mario Circuit Nin★Dai8 01:49.939 Mario Wild Wing No Manual
SNES Mario Circuit 3 Nin★Shige 01:26.659 Baby Mario Bullet Bike Manual
DS Peach Gardens Nin★==Kony 02:16.777 Baby Peach Mini Beast Yes Manual
GCN DK Mountain Nin★Miyam 02:38.130 Funky Kong Flame Flyer Manual
N64 Bowser's Castle Nin★Kentan 02:55.933 Bowser Jr. Sneakster Manual

Battle Arenas[]

New Retro
Block Plaza SNES Battle Course 4
Delfino Pier GBA Battle Course 3
Funky Stadium N64 Skyscraper
Chain Chomp Wheel GCN Cookie Land
Thwomp Desert DS Twilight House

Other characters[]

Beasts[]

Hazards[]

Supporting Cast[]

Large Beasts and Tournament Bosses[]

Items[]

Item Box Artwork - Mario Kart Wii

Artwork of an Item Box

Items play a fundamental part in Mario Kart Wii. Items are received through Item Boxes, which are sparkly and have a question mark on them are usually scattered in groups throughout a course, often in a horizontal line. The item is then stored for use whenever the racer wishes (except in the case of the Thunder Cloud, which is immediately activated). Items can be split into two categories: aggressive items and strategic items. Normally, the lower the player's position in the race, the rarer and more useful items they will receive from item boxes to help balance the gameplay.

Aggressive items[]

Aggressive items are any items that will affect other players in a way that another racer's vision is blocked, stops, or loses speed, such as the Red Shell. The aggressive items are listed below.

Image Name Description
Banana (Mario Kart Wii) Banana Briefly spins out whoever drives into one.
Triple Bananas Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Triple Bananas Gives the racer three bananas that trail behind their kart.
Fake Item Box - Mario Kart Wii Fake Item Box This item imitates an Item Box, which is colored red and the ? mark is flipped upside down.
Green Shell Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Green Shell Can be thrown backwards or forwards and bounces off of obstacles several times before being destroyed.
Triple Green Shells Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Triple Green Shells Gives a racer three Green Shells, which rotate around them.
Red Shell Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Red Shell A homing shell that locks on to the nearest opponent.
TripleRedShell Triple Red Shells Gives a racer three Red Shells, which rotate around them.
MKWii Blue Shell Spiny Shell Locks on to the racer in first place.
NewBlooper Blooper Squirts ink on any opponent ahead of the user, limiting vision.
Lightning Artwork - Mario Kart Wii Thunderbolt Strikes every racer temporarily slowing them down and lose their item.
POW Block (Mario Kart Wii) POW Block
New item
Shakes up all racers in front of the user into an explosive spin that causes them to drop their items if they are on the ground when it breaks.

Strategic items[]

Strategic items are items such as the Mushroom, which will assist in the race, without affecting the other racers if without effort from the racer (e.g. the mushroom can only affect another racer if the other racer is rammed with the mushroom). Such items are listed below.

Reception[]

Metracritic's users rate the game 8.4/10 with many positive reviews. Most of the positive reviews comment that the gameplay is fun and reviewers commented that the online mode of Mario Kart Wii is "lag-free."[2]

Gallery[]

Hat mario To view Mario Kart Wii's
image gallery, click here.


Quotes[]

Hat mario To view Mario Kart Wii's
quotes click here.

Trivia[]

  • This and Mario Kart 8 are the only Mario Kart games to allow use of the Wii Wheel.
    • This is the only one of these to have it be usable with the main controller, as the main controller for Mario Kart 8 is the Wii U GamePad, compared to the Mario Kart Wii main controller, which is the Wii Remote which is compatible with the Wii Wheel.

External links[]

References[]

Advertisement