2020-11-24T16:05:35 01:00

Mario Kart 8: The best tips & tricks

In this Mario Kart 8 guide you will learn:

How to win races
How to do well in Battle Mode
How to escape the blue tank
How to unlock everything

Mario Kart 8 is the top kart racer. Dozens of drivers, tracks and vehicles offer you long-lasting fun. To help you win races even on the highest difficulty levels, we've compiled the most important tips and tricks for you in this Mario Kart 8 guide.

Whether you're playing Mario Kart 8 on Wii U or Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Nintendo Switch, we'll show you how to get the most out of the racing game. The only important difference is that in the Switch version, all tracks (including the DLCs) and (almost) all drivers are already unlocked from the start.

How do I win races in Mario Kart 8?

At first glance, Mario Kart 8 is a simple racing game that is suitable for newcomers. This is quite true, but you'll have to use all the possibilities of the karts and the tracks if you want to succeed on the highest difficulty levels and online against human opponents.

What are the difficulty levels?

There are five difficulty levels in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe ():

50cc
100cc
150cc
150cc mirrored
200cc

The numbers represent the speed of the cars. so 200cc is significantly faster than 50cc. But that's not all, because the strength of your opponents also increases with the higher difficulty levels. On 200cc your opponents drive much more aggressively than in the lower categories. Additionally, there is 150cc mirrored, a real challenge for your brain.

Which driver and vehicle should I choose?

Traditionally, there are three categories of drivers in Mario Kart: easy, medium and hard. The heavier a character is, the slower he starts. In return, his maximum speed is all the higher. Beginners, who still make a lot of driving errors, go for light drivers, while experts choose a heavy driver.

The vehicles in Mario Kart 8 are another way to adapt the driving behavior to your own skills. Beginners pay attention to acceleration, handling and grip. Those who have already mastered the game better tend to go for maximum speed and better boosts.

How do I choose the right controls?

When you press in a race, you can adjust three aspects of the controls. First, whether your kart will drive automatically without you accelerating, second, whether the steering assist will intervene if you make a mistake, and third, whether you want to activate the motion controls. The first two options are ideal for beginners. However, if you want to master the game, you should leave them alone.

How do I activate Super Launch?

To start a race with a boost right at the beginning, you have to step on the gas at the right moment. The right time is when the countdown is at "2". You simply need a little practice to get the timing right. Depending on how well you time it, you'll get a small or large boost.

What do I have to keep in mind when drifting and jumping?

Drifting is essential in Mario Kart 8 to celebrate success. Go into the turn with R and move the analog stick to the left and right. First the small flame on your tires turns blue, then red. If you let go now, you get a small boost. This way you can get an advantage in every turn.

The same applies to jumps. Press R on the highest point of a rise to get a boost every time. This applies not only to obvious ramps, but to hills, no matter how small. Some tracks offer dozens of such opportunities. Taking advantage of them can make a big difference.

What use are the coins to me?

Scattered throughout the tracks in Mario Kart 8 are golden coins, of which you can carry up to ten. Each coin you collect increases your maximum speed a little bit. Even when you're full, it's worth driving over the coins because they give you a minimal boost when you touch them.

How do I win in Battle Mode?

For all beginners, the Balloon Battle is the perfect way to start. The important thing here is to keep a balance between offense and defense. To score points, you need to attack, but stay away from the center of the arenas so as not to give up an easy target. Bob-Omb throw works the same way in principle, but you'll have to be even more aggressive due to the few ?-blocks.

Copsand robbers divide all players into two teams. It is important for the cops to coordinate. Try to push robbers into corners and guard your prison. Robbers, on the other hand, stay in quiet corners of the maps. Become offensive only when several of your team members are in captivity.

In Coin Hunter, similar rules apply as in Balloon Battle. All that really matters is that you try to attack the leading players. Insignia theft is sort of a version of Capture the Flag. Get the sun and let your pursuers see dust. Don't fight around unnecessarily and use mushrooms to make a quick getaway with the loot.

How do I avoid the blue tank?

In older parts of Mario Kart, the blue tank was still a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. To the delight of fans, however, the item appears much less frequently in Mario Kart 8 and can also be fended off using various techniques. Always keep an eye on the mini-map. You have the following options when a blue tank rushes up from behind:

Mushroom: If the blue tank is already circling above you and is about to hit, ignite the turbo and escape the explosion.
Use Items: The items Star, Kugelwilli, Super Horn and Buu Huu will protect you from the impact of a blue tank. However, except for the horn, you will hardly get any of these items when you are in front. However, you can save them for yourself.

Fall back: Yes, no one likes to fall back a spot or two. But since the blue tank is only targeting the first place finisher, this may be the best tactic.
Driving into the abyss: That's right, crashing on purpose can be better than getting hit. In Mario Kart 8, you're back on track relatively quickly.

How do I unlock everything in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe?

In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, you have all the tracks to choose from right from the start. The drivers are also all already unlocked - except for one. To get Gold Mario, you need to get the Gold Cup in all the cups on the 200cc difficulty level. That's not an easy task, but if you follow our tips, you'll manage it.

Apart from that, there is a whole range of vehicle parts to unlock. For every 50 coins you collect, you get a new part. If you have collected a total of 1,000 coins, you will only get a new part every 100 coins. In addition, there are three gold vehicle parts that require you to complete certain tasks:

Gold Body: Get the star rank for each Cup in Mirror Mode.
Gold Tire: Defeat every developer ghost in 150cc time trial.
Gold Glider: Collect a total of 10,000 coins.

Last but not least, you can use Amiibos to unlock costumes for your Miis. To do this, go to the Amiibo tab in the main menu and hold your characters up to the right Joy-Con. Here you can also see an overview of all costumes.

How do I get coins quickly?

There are two good ways to get coins to unlock all the vehicle parts as quickly as possible. If you want to earn the fortune yourself, the Battle Mode is best suited, because there is a maximum of ten coins per race. Choose the Coin Battle here and rake it in for all it's worth.

Option two is the more convenient one. Go into 4-player mode (or 2-player mode if you only have two controllers) and start a 200cc tournament with no items and no CPU opponents. Now set the throttle auto and steering assist on all drivers and let them drive on their own. This way they will happily collect coins for you. The best track for this technique is the cow-moo pasture.

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