Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass Wave 6 - Review

 At the finish line.

Console: Nintendo Switch

And here we are, at the finishing line. The 6th and last wave of the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC is out, completing the entire thing. I will say that I am a bit sad now that's all over. I've enjoyed playing through each wave when they dropped and writing about them right here. But that's a story for another time. Right here, right now it's about what this conclusion offers. 

And what it has on offer is quite a few things more than anyone thought. When with Wave 4 Nintendo started throwing in new racers, there was one character I wanted, Pauline, who at long last makes her grand console kart debut. That alone has made me anticipate this wave more than any other, even more so than when Wave 2 brought Waluigi Pinball to the game. 

So, let's dive into this 6th and final wave and see if Booster Course Pass goes out on with a Golden Cup in its hand or if it slips on a banana peel with the finish in eyesight. 

In this wave, we have Rome Avanti (Tour), DK Mountain (GameCube), Daisy Circuit (Wii) and Piranha Plant Cove (New) in the Acorn Cup. The Spiny Cup closes things out with Madrid Drive (Tour), Rosalina's Ice World (3DS), Bowser Castle 3 (SNES) and Rainbow Road (Wii). We also have a whopping 4 new racers. Aside from my girl Pauline, we get the also hotly anticipated Diddy Kong, Funky Kong and Peachette. 

The 8 tracks in this final wave.

A very solid collection of appreciated classics, an unexpected but welcoming 3DS track and the usual suspects with the 2-3 Tour courses. Not that many tracks that I myself was very excited for though. Outside of the two Wii tracks and DK Mountain, I don't think I ever even raced on them before. But hey: that only means that these tracks were that much more 'fresh' to me. 

Getting into the tracks, Rome Avanti is a fine Tour course. Not that much different from the usual Tour schtick but each lap is noticeably different and offers its own little challenge. The other 'old' Tour track, Madrid Drive, certainly is a Tour track alright. Football fans might smirk at it though. The last Tour track, the 'new' track (advertised as such but also playable in Tour for a few weeks now) Piranha Plant Cove is a good one. Varied lap design, fun visuals with the switching between above and underwater sections and surprisingly not that difficult. 

DK Mountain is a well-made GC track that I think many will enjoy. I'm just not one of them. The course is well designed with pleasant visuals and a catchy tune but I think each lap lasts a bit too long and the main theme is done better in Mount Wario. Rosalina's Ice World is that unexpected pick from Nintendo but I can see why they chose it. It's a well-designed and fun track that has enough going for it to stand out among all the other snow-themed courses. 

Bowser Castle 3 feels like it's here out of obligation. This is the 4th game the track has been featured in, but the team did add some anti-gravity sections to spice things up for this latest outing. Daisy Circuit is a simple course with pleasant music. I don't have anything more to say about that course than that. 

And Wii Rainbow Road? It's good to see you back old friend! You always were one of my favourites, right after the DS incarnation. Just such a fun track to race. Really, just a course that oozes fun to me. 

The new racers of this wave are my favourite set, and not just because of Pauline (she even sings some of her lines!). It's because these are all recognizable characters that people have actively been campaigning for to get in. Well, except, Peachette perhaps, but personally I have a soft spot for her from my time with New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe so I don´t mind her presence here not even a single bit.  

Pauline with here microphone stand. A nice little detail the team added in. 

Another surprise is that this wave came with two extra goodies no one predicted. Some new costumes for the Mii racer and a jukebox that lets you play the music of all the tracks. Admittedly, superfluous additions but still very nice things to have. That they went out of their way to include them tells you enough already.

Oh, and one more thing in this department: I did give the jukebox a good listening while writing this review. Just a little inconsequential tidbit I felt like sharing. The rearrangements of all the Wii tracks I find especially catchy. By all means, give those a listen!

Conclusion

With wave 6, the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass ends in a solid position. While I think it lacks that 'banger´ course, the entire selection is nothing if not solid. It has enough variety to satisfy and enough quality that you can't call this selection disappointing on its own merits. As this is the final wave there is no doubt people are disappointed that a favourite track of theirs (*cough* Rainbow Road DS *cough*) didn't make the cut after all but that shouldn't put the blame on the courses that did manage to reach the finish line in the last minute. 

Throw in the 4 new racers and some unexpected extras in the Mii costumes and the Jukebox, and you have a wave that closes things out in a good way with more content than first expected.