Summary
In agreat departure from its predecessor,Mario Kart Worldfeatures unlockable characters much like older entries in the series, plus over one hundred costumes waiting to be discovered. By picking up small golden bags, known as Dash Food, at Yoshi’s various food outlets scattered throughout the game world, players can consume their contents and change their outfits.
Racing in cups is necessary to make some key characters playable, and gives more opportunities for Kamek tounlock some of the various enemies. While simply driving around the game’s open world in Free Roam mode can allow for all costumes to be unlocked in just a few hours, some may prefer to unlock everything organically by playing the game as is generally intended. With a bit of good fortune, some cups can help completionists fill their digital closets and have fun while doing so.
8Mushroom Cup
A Good Introduction To New Mechanics
It makes sense that the “worst” cup to unlock new costumes is theMushroom Cup, since it is likely the first experience for most players in the game. A perfectly enjoyable introduction toMario Kart World, it allows new and returning players toget a feel for the new kartsand many new gameplay mechanics, including that first encounter with a Dash Food power-up.
Starting with Mario Bros. Circuit and finishing at DK Spaceport, there are very few Yoshi’s Diners and food trucks to be found. The few that drivers come across are on the interconnecting roads between courses, and most of them only serve burgers, though some may find cake on the way to Crown City.
7Flower Cup
Low Variety, But Great Potential With A Bit Of Luck
TheFlower Cupallows players totake their favorite charactersthrough some of the best courses on the handheld DS and 3DS consoles, plus the N64 classic Wario Stadium. Desert Hills is a great course, but it offers no chance of a change of clothing mid-race, with the first opportunity coming on the road to Shy Guy Bazaar with some flatbread.
Wario Stadium is one of several locations to enjoy some curry, but that’s all for reliable Dash Food sources in this cup. On rare occasions, the item-dispensing trucks on the road to Airship Fortress will drop Dash Food. However, it’s probably not advisable to place all hope in these drops, since such items are rarely given, instead dishing out mostly for bananas and dash mushrooms.
6Star Cup
Many Types Of Food, But Few Sources
Continuing in the chronological order of the cups, theStar Cupis usually the third collection of courses that most will enjoy, and its variety places it ahead of prior tournaments. After a slow start at DK Pass, there are four different food types to be found throughout the following three courses, but very few Yoshi’s Diner locations leave fewer opportunities for unlocks.
Between DK Pass and Starview Peak, baked goods can be found, which are required by many characters. Rather appropriately, race participants can prepare to take on Sky High Sundae with cake and ice cream, before snacking on kebabs on the journey to Wario Shipyard. The latter is the food required to unlock Wario’s popular pirate costume when using the mustachioed gentleman.
5Lightning Cup
Similar Issues To The Star Cup
Apart from unlocking Bowser Jr. after beating theLightning Cup, there areplenty of other secrets to discover. Fans ofMario Kart Wiiwill have fond memories of Moo Moo Meadows and Toad Factory, and when heading out of the former on the way to Choco Mountain, the Yoshi vendors offer milk, which is seldom found when racing in any other cup.
The aforementioned Toad Factory has the most to offer for costume collectors, as there are donuts and snacks to consume before heading inside, plus the Dash Bag on the approach to the spectacular Bowser’s Castle course contains curry. Despite this bounty of offerings in the Lightning Cup, the number of Yoshi’s locations can be counted on one hand, rendering them easily missable.
4Banana Cup
The courses in theBanana Cupoffer a bit of everything with land, sea, and air all well represented, allowing for somedriver-kart combo experimentation and refinement, plus Birdo becomes playable after winning it. The returning GameCube course, Peach Beach, starts the tournament strong with fish and chips down in the beach area, plus some kebabs elsewhere on the course.
Two other types of food can be enjoyed at the Venice-inspired Salty Salty Speedway and Dino Dino Jungle fromMario Kart: Double Dash!!, in the form of burgers and pizza. The Yoshi’s outlets are spread nicely throughout these three courses, but there are slim pickings at Great ? Block Ruins, though that does not take away enjoyment from the highly picturesque track.
3Leaf Cup
Eastern-Style Food Found On These Tracks
The distinctive Eastern flavor of Cheep Cheep Falls and the beginning of Dandelion Depths means that there are some Dash Food contents only found in theLeaf Cup. Only a few characters can wear these Japan-themed costumes by eating various sushi platters, which unlock outfits ranging from the happi clothes of Mario and Luigi to Lakitu’s fisherman get-up.
Other lesser-found consumables like Takoyaki and taiyaki are available in these areas, though they unlock the same costumes as the sushi box. Boo Cinema is one of the few courses with popcorn too, making the Leaf Cup an absolute necessity to find those elusive costumes, given the rarity of the Dash Food found here. Dry Bones Burnout has some snacks at food trucks, too.
2Special Cup
Many New Costumes, But Only On Two Courses
A lack of food on the Acorn Heights and Rainbow Road courses keeps theSpecial Cupaway from top spot, but it’s still one of the better cups to find new threads. While heading toward the ever-present SNES track, Mario Circuit, one ofthe many great retro tracks, players can feast on snacks and donuts along the way.
Then comes the absolute goldmine that is the road to Peach Stadium, which has several Yoshi’s locations along the way, plus the plaza north of the stadium with four different food trucks. Pancakes, donuts, cakes, and ice cream can all be found here for some rapid unlocks before heading toward the end of the race. A lunchbox can also be collected, though this only reverts the character to their default costume.
1Shell Cup
Crown City Has A High Concentration Of Possibilities
While completingthe set of Mario’s costumesin one playthrough of theShell Cupmay be unlikely, it’s certainly an excellent set of four tracks to make great progress in unlocking outfits. Like many other cups, it’s a slow start with very few options on Koopa Troopa Beach and Faraway Oasis, but then comes the relentless barrage of Dash Food on the way to Crown City.
Unlike its Mushroom Cup variant, Crown City’s route takes competitors across the long bridge, which has an incredibly high concentration of Yoshi’s food trucks, plus there are always several Yoshi-themed dash panel ramp trucks on the bridge, which have Dash Food on top. Characters with around five costumes or fewer, such as King Boo and Baby Peach, could have their sets completed by one race in this version of Crown City.
