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[]
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 
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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unlock Baby Luigi | Do Time Trials and unlock 8 Expert Staff Ghost Data records. | Play 3,150 races | Win 100 WFC Ghost races | |
| Unlock Baby Daisy | Rank 1 Star or higher in all cups on 50 cc. | Play 1,950 races | - | |
| Unlock Toadette | Do Time Trials on all 32 race stages. | Play 2,550 races | Win 1,000 WFC races | |
| Unlock Dry Bones | Do Leaf Cup on 100cc. | Play 1,050 races | - | |
| Unlock Daisy | Do Special Cup on 150cc. | Play 2,850 races | ||
| Unlock Birdo | Do Time Trials on 16 different race stages. | Play 1,350 races | Win 250 WFC races | |
| Unlock Diddy Kong | Do Lightning Cup on 50cc. | Play 450 races | - | |
| Unlock Bowser Jr. | Rank 1 Star or higher in Retro Grand Prix on 100cc. | Play 3,450 races | ||
| Unlock King Boo | Do Star Cup on 50cc. | Play 750 races | ||
| Unlock Rosalina | Rank 1 Star or higher in all cups on Mirror Mode. | Get a Super Mario Galaxy save file and play 50 races or play 4,950 races | ||
| Unlock Funky Kong | Do Time Trials and unlock 4 Expert Staff Ghost Data records. | Play 2,250 races | Win 25 WFC Ghost races | |
| Unlock Dry Bowser | Rank 1 Star or higher in all cups on 150cc. | Play 4,350 races | - | |
| Unlock Mii Outfit | A | Do Special Cup on 100cc. | Play 1,650 races | |
| Unlock B | Do Time Trials and unlock all 32 Expert Staff Ghost Data records. | 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)[]
Returning Courses (Retro Grand Prix)[]
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[]
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[]
- Bob-omb Car
- Bowser (Mechanical)
- Bowser Statue
- Cataquack
- Chain Chomp
- Fire Snake
- Goomba
- Mii Driver
- Monty Mole
- Moo Moo
- Penguin Slider
- Penguin Waddler
- Piranha Plant
- Piranha Plant (Mechanical)
- Podoboo
- Pokey
- Shy Guy Snowboarder
- Sidestepper
- Swooper
- Thwomp
- Wiggler
Hazards[]
- Crusher
- Falling Boulder
- Icy Water
- Koopa Zapper
- Lava
- Lava Plume
- Oil Slick
- Pipe
- Pile of Leaves
- Podoboo Cog
- Ring of Fire
- Road Cone
- Sheer Drop
- Shy Guy Galleon Cannonball
- Vehicles
- Wario's Gold-Filled Mine Cart
- Water
Supporting Cast[]
- Angry Sun
- Birdos
- Boos
- Cheep-Cheeps
- Hammer Bros.
- Koopa Troopas
- Lakitu
- Miis
- Nokis
- Paratroopas
- Penguins
- Piantas
- Pirate Guys
- Shy Guys
- Sledge Bros.
- Toads
- Unagis
- Yoshis
Large Beasts and Tournament Bosses[]
Items[]
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 | Briefly spins out whoever drives into one. |
|
Triple Bananas | Gives the racer three bananas that trail behind their kart. |
|
Fake Item Box | This item imitates an Item Box, which is colored red and the "?" mark is flipped upside down. |
|
Green Shell | Can be thrown backwards or forwards and bounces off of obstacles several times before being destroyed. |
|
Triple Green Shells | Gives a racer three Green Shells, which rotate around them. |
|
Red Shell | A homing shell that locks on to the nearest opponent. |
|
Triple Red Shells | Gives a racer three Red Shells, which rotate around them. |
|
Spiny Shell | Locks on to the racer in first place. |
|
Blooper | Squirts ink on any opponent ahead of the user, limiting vision. |
|
Thunderbolt | Strikes every racer temporarily slowing them down and lose their item. |
|
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.
.png "Thunder Cloud (Mario Kart Wii).png (251 KB)")
Reception[]
Metacritic'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[]
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To view Mario Kart Wii's image gallery, click here.
|
Quotes[]
|
|
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.
- This is the only installment of the Mario Kart series which has more unlockable characters than starters (counting Mii Outfit A and Mii Outfit B as playable characters --and both are unlockables).
- This installment has 12 starters and 14 unlockables, for a total of twenty-six playable characters.
- This is the first Mario Kart installment to have 12 racers per race, as opposed to 8, in all previous games.
External links[]
References[]
- ↑ https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/finance/software/index.html
- ↑ Mario Kart Wii for Wii Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2022-02-26.
[Edit] 
| ||
|---|---|---|
| Main Games | ||
| Super Mario Kart (1992, SNES) · Mario Kart 64 (1996, N64) · Mario Kart: Super Circuit (2001, GBA) · Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (2003, GameCube) · Mario Kart DS (2005, DS) · Mario Kart Wii (2008, Wii) · Mario Kart 7 (2011, 3DS) · Mario Kart 8 (2014, Wii U) · Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017, Switch) | ||
| Arcade Games | ||
| Mario Kart Arcade GP (2005, Arcade) · Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 (2007, Arcade) · Mario Kart Arcade GP DX (2013, Arcade) · Mario Kart Arcade GP VR (2017, Arcade) | ||
| Mobile Games | ||
| Mario Kart Tour (2019, iOS/Android) | ||
| Toys | ||
| K'NEX · Hot Wheels · Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit (2020, Nintendo Switch) | ||
