Rumors have been swirling for quite some time that Nintendo has a new Mario Kart game in development, with some leakers referring to it as Mario Kart 9 and others calling it Mario Kart Crossroads. According to the leaks, the new Mario Kart will apparently be some kind of Super Smash Bros.-level crossover game with a variety of Nintendo characters racing each other. With so many rumors about this supposed Mario Kart game, many fans were expecting to see it announced at the latest Nintendo Direct event, but instead the Big N revealed paid DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Nintendo has revealed fresh Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC that will release throughout 2022 and into 2023 in the form of the Booster Course Pass, which consists of remastered tracks from previous Mario Kart games. The content in the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass will be released in six waves, with each wave consisting of eight new tracks for a total of 48 courses. Wave 1 will include Coconut Mall from Mario Kart Wii, Choco Mountain from Mario Kart 64, and Tokyo Blur from Mario Kart Tour. These tracks and five others that have yet to be specified will launch on March 18.
Pre-orders for the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass go live today, with it costing $24.99. However, those who are signed up for the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack should note that the Booster Course Pass is included at no additional cost. This significantly increases the value of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack, as it not only give players access to Sega Genesis games, Nintendo 64 classics, and the Animal Crossing: New Horizons - Happy Home Paradise DLC, but now the Booster Course Pass as well.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is one of the best-selling games of all time, so it does make sense for Nintendo to release more DLC for it. After all, there is a huge install base of Mario Kart fans who still play Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and are likely happy to be getting new content, even if they have to pay for it. However, it's also likely that there will be fans upset that the Nintendo Direct didn't include the reveal of the rumored Mario Kart 9 game, especially since a version of Mario Kart 8 dates back to the Wii U.
The new Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC extends all the way through 2023, and so fans shouldn't hold their breath about seeing the next Mario Kart game at any point in the near future. However, that doesn't mean that the rumored game isn't in the works. After all, Nintendo has said that the Nintendo Switch is only halfway through its lifecycle, meaning there's plenty of time for a new Mario Kart game to come at some point down the road.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is out now, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.