Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+ The Games, Movies, TV & Comics You Love
UK EditionUK US EditionUS CA EditionCanada AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • 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
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi 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
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • 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
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi 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
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
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
Don't miss these
Donkey Kong Bananza screenshot showing Pauline on DK's shoulder as they both whistle a tune and Pauline wears a small crown
Platforming Games Donkey Kong Bananza is my game of the year, and I'm convinced it's one of the greatest platformers in Nintendo history
Upcoming Switch 2 games banner image showing a figure holding out their hand from Fire Emblem Fortune's Weave, Yoshi from Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, Ditto in human form with Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Scyther, Timburr in Pokopia, and Mario from Mario Tennis Fever
Nintendo Switch 2 Upcoming Switch 2 games for 2026 and beyond
The Nintendo Switch 2 playing Donkey Kong: Bananza and surrounded by accessories on a wooden table
Nintendo Switch 2 5 games that have defined the first year of Switch 2 (so far)
All the characters in Mario Kart World celebrating in front a Mario Kart banner
Games Nintendo's 2025 has been all about the hardware, but 2026 is going to be its year for games
Metroid Prime 4
Metroid The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild's success was in part responsible for the open-world section in Metroid Prime 4
Donkey Kong, Cranky Kong, and Pauline stand together in a Donkey Kong Bananza screenshot badged with GamesRadar+'s best of 2025 branding
Donkey Kong After 44 years as second banana, Donkey Kong Bananza makes Nintendo's first star a mascot to rival Mario and Link in the Switch 2 era
Donkey Kong mid-punch in Donkey Kong Bananza, his fur and the mud around him matching the arc of his swipe to give a real sense of momentum
Games The 15 best Switch 2 games to play right now
Banjo gives Kazooie the thumbs up in a screenshot from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Games "It gave us more opportunities for variety": How Banjo-Kazooie helped the Nintendo 64 compete with PlayStation
DS
Games The 25 best DS games of all time
A picture of a Nintendo 3DS console next to several of the best 3DS games and Nintendo cards.
Games The 25 best Nintendo 3DS games of all time
The 50 Most Iconic Video Game Characters
Games The 50 most iconic video game characters of all time
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater screenshot showing Big Boss pointing a gun and GamesRadar+'s best of 2025 logo is in the top right-hand corner
Adventure Games From Metal Gear Solid Delta to Silksong, the best action-adventure games of 2025 are a rollicking good time
Upcoming Switch games for 2026 banner showing Mega Man from the All Star Force Collection, Witches in Witchbrook, a large woman in Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, and Fiona in Neverway
Action Games Upcoming Switch games for 2026 and beyond
Best of 2025: open world games, featuring Ghost of Yotei
Open World Games From Assassins Creed Shadows to Pokemon Legends: Z-A, here are the best open world games of 2025 that will take you to new heights
Hollow Knight: Silksong
Platforming Games The 10 best games like Hollow Knight to play after you beat Silksong
Trending
  • New Games for 2026
  • Stranger Things season 5
  • Best Games of 2025
  • The Forge codes
  1. Games
  2. Racing
  3. Mario Kart 8

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

Features
By Danielle 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
Danielle  Lucas
Danielle 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.

Share by:
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Whatsapp
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Read more
Screenshot from Mythic Kart Maker showing a fantasy knight in a kart facing the camera, while sitting idly on a brown road surrounded by trees.
Mario Kart and Super Mario Maker collide in this Steam racing game where you make your own courses while driving: "I've lost hours testing my game"
 
 
Mario Kart World screenshot showing Mario and Luigi battling for top position in a vast open world race
Nintendo wants Mario Kart World to be a Switch 2 game fans will "continue to choose for years to come" like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and I hope that means DLC could be on the cards
 
 
Kirby Air Riders
Switch 2's next big racing game Kirby Air Riders doubles the number of tracks from Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai's GameCube classic, with all 9 original courses returning
 
 
Mario Kart World screenshot for Switch 2 showing Wario blasting ahead with a host of characters right behind him in a desert biome
Mario Kart World update makes playing with friends easier, one intermission track less pathetic, and finally allows you to turn that soundtrack up to the only option you need: "Loud"
 
 
The Nintendo Switch 2 playing Donkey Kong: Bananza and surrounded by accessories on a wooden table
5 games that have defined the first year of Switch 2 (so far)
 
 
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe screenshot shows Mario and Inkling racing.
Mario Kart 8 has outsold Mario Kart World for 2 months straight in the US, but since "over 80%" of Switch 2 owners already have World via console bundle, that "kind of makes it impossible" to outdo the 11-year series GOAT
 
 
Latest in Racing
Star Wars Racer Revenge cover art
New PS5 and PS4 jailbreak exploits trigger a 1,000% surge in prices for Star Wars Racer Revenge
 
 
Star Wars Galactic Racer
That is Sebulba in the Star Wars: Galactic Racer trailer, and Anakin's original antagonist gets the last laugh
 
 
Fable
Amid The Game Awards hubbub, Xbox announces a January Developer Direct featuring the Fable and Forza Horizon 6 studio
 
 
Star Wars Galactic Racer
Star Wars Galactic Racer lets you speed across a galaxy far far away, coming 2026
 
 
Gran Turismo 2: Beige Edition
After 26 years, modders give PS1 racing game classic Gran Turismo 2 the overhaul it deserves, replacing all the race cars with minivans and used car dealerships
 
 
A shiny car from Gran Tursimo 7 in a garage, with the PS5 five year anniversary GamesRadar+ frame along the side
Gran Turismo 7 is the racing game that PS5 will be remembered for, and it's been quietly getting better and better over time
 
 
Latest in Features
Amanda Seyfried as Ann Lee in The Testament of Ann Lee
2026 may be the year of Marvel blockbusters, but I can't wait for these 6 movies that might not be on your watchlist yet
 
 
Winona Ryder as Joyce and Noah Schnapp as Will in Stranger Things season 5
Stranger Things season 5 finale explained: who dies, does it set up a spin-off and what happens to Eleven?
 
 
Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, David Harbour as Hopper and Linnea Berthelsen as Kali in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
Stranger Things season 5 part 2 ending explained: who dies, what is the Upside Down, and how does it set up the finale
 
 
The Split Fiction key art featuring the duo of heroes on fantasy and sci-fi backgrounds with the GR+ Quiz logo in the top right corner
Can you guess the game review from the review quote?
 
 
Diego Luna as Cassian Andor in Andor season 2, after fighting Syril during the massacre of Ghorman
From Andor's shocking massacre to Pluribus's strange invasion, these are the best TV episodes of 2025
 
 
Donkey Kong Bananza screenshot showing Pauline on DK's shoulder as they both whistle a tune and Pauline wears a small crown
Donkey Kong Bananza is my game of the year, and I'm convinced it's one of the greatest platformers in Nintendo history
 
 
  1. Scythe box on a wooden surface, slightly off to one side
    1
    This alt-history board game is still a gold standard for modern strategy
  2. 2
    Skate Story review: "A beautiful and unique skateboarding game with great, stylized visuals set in a grungy underworld"
  3. 3
    Octopath Traveler 0 review: "The strongest entry in this retro-styled JRPG series yet, I love the greater focus on tactical battles"
  4. 4
    Sleep Awake review: "An all-timer horror premise is let down by tired stealth that I feel like I'm sleepwalking through"
  5. 5
    Metroid Prime 4: Beyond review: "The series' atmosphere has never been better, while being dragged down by a boring overworld and clunky psychic powers"
  1. Oona Chaplin as Varang in Avatar: Fire and Ash
    1
    Avatar: Fire and Ash review: "Still a technical marvel, with some of the year's best action filmmaking"
  2. 2
    Five Nights at Freddy's 2 review: "We have waited two years for a Five Nights at Freddy's 1.5"
  3. 3
    Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery review: "Brings Knives Out back to its roots for a sequel that's almost on a par with the original"
  4. 4
    Wicked: For Good review: "Builds to an incredibly cathartic conclusion, but isn't quite as captivating as Part 1"
  5. 5
    The Running Man review: "Some fun action and Glen Powell's star power aren't enough to energize this disappointing Stephen King adaptation"
  1. Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven in Stranger Things season 5 volume 2
    1
    Stranger Things season 5 finale review: “Shows off both the best and the worst of Hawkins”
  2. 2
    Stranger Things season 5, Volume 2 review: “All set up for a finale that has so much to deliver”
  3. 3
    Fallout season 2 review: "A hell of a lot of fun despite being overcrowded and convoluted"
  4. 4
    Stranger Things season 5 volume 1 review: “Can the Duffer brothers stick the landing? It’s sure looking like they will”
  5. 5
    Pluribus season 1 review: "Easily one of the year's best dramas"

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

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • 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...