While Mario Kart fans might have anticipated the announcement of Mario Kart 9 during today’s Nintendo Direct, Nintendo instead opted to announce that 48 additional courses, some of them remastered courses from across the Mario Kart series, will be hitting Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as paid DLC via what it’s calling the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass.
The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass will include 48 courses, with at least some of them being remastered courses from past Mario Kart games like Mario Kart Super Circuit for the Game Boy Advance, Mario Kart Double Dash!! for the GameCube, and Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo.
Eight courses will be released at a time in six waves of releases which will roll out up until the end of 2023. The newly added courses, much like the courses already included in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, can be played both locally and online.
Coconut Mall from Mario Kart Wii, Tokyo Blur from Mario Kart Tour, and Choco Mountain from Mario Kart 64 will be among the remastered courses included in the first wave of releases in the Booster Course Pass. They’ll hit the Nintendo the eShop on March 18.
Pre-orders for the Booster Course Pass will be available on the eShop later today. The Booster Course Pass DLC can be purchased on the eShop for $24.99. The DLC is also available to play for paid members of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack for no additional cost.
Of course, remastered courses from past entries are nothing new for Mario Kart 8 or for the Mario Kart series in general. Including remastered versions of past courses has been standard series practice dating back to 2o01's Mario Kart: Super Circuit for the Game Boy Advance. Given Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s incredible sales numbers and staying power, perhaps it’s not so surprising that Nintendo has opted to continue releasing new content for this entry, rather than announce plans for a new one just yet.