Mario Kart has always been an influential part of my life; I grew up with it. Since Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is creating new courses in the booster pass, I figured it was a good time to sit down and fully rate all original 48 courses. Feel free to agree to disagree with me on this, but these are my ratings. 

F Tier

   The worst of the worst. My choices for F Tier may be controversial, but that’s okay. Don’t get offended if your favorite course falls in this tier; the best thing to do is simply choose a better track. These are the courses I only play if it’s selected online, or if I play grand prix. 

   Sherbet Land: Every time this course is chosen, whether it’s while playing with friends or online, I dread it. When I first began playing Sherbet Land, I hated the fact that the road was so slippery. Although I dislike the feature, I’ve grown to appreciate the slipperiness. It has helped improve my skills, especially in 200CC. But at this point the course just annoys me. Every once in a while when I play I fall into the big holes in the ice, leading me to drive underwater, which I dislike. I know how to avoid the holes and stay on the ice, but sometimes when I make one wrong move, or get hit by a shell and land in the hole, my day gets ruined. 

   Cheese Land: Cheese Land and I are enemies. I was dumbfounded when I found out that a lot of Mario Kart players enjoy this course. How could anyone enjoy a course so cruel? The colors are tacky. Orangish yellow with hints of green, red, blue, and even more yellow. It just doesn’t do it for me. Not to mention the material of the road is similar to the other desert courses, which I find completely un-enjoyable. I’ve mastered the twists and turns, the shortcuts come easy to me, I can dodge the Chain Chomps with ease. The layout of the course itself isn’t what puts Cheese Land in F Tier. It’s strictly the colors and the fact that it’s a desert map, two horrible combos. The creators wasted amazing music on such an awful course. 

   Dry Dry Desert: I hate desert courses far more than I do underwater courses. The colors in Dry Dry Desert course are similar to Cheese Land, and the music has potential to be better. I do not enjoy the course. I would choose it over Cheese Land, though. 

Dolphin Shoals: Dolphin Shoals makes me extremely upset. Ignoring that almost the entire course is underwater, the section where players drive over pipes for air to lift them through the big pit until reaching the red eel is irritating. If players aren’t driving fast enough, or simply miss the air boost, they’re toast. If I had a dollar for every time I hit the first two pipes, but fell 1 inch short (not exaggerating) of the last pipe and got consumed by the dark pit beneath me, I’d have about $10. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s enough to make me hate this course. 

  Donut Plains 3: The music? Love. The course? No comment. I’d give Donut Plains 3 a participation award, but that’s about all. I just find the course extremely boring

   Yoshi Circuit: If someone claims this is their favorite course, they’re lying. The shape of the course is cool. It’s in the shape of Yoshi himself. But that’s the only good thing about it. It’s the type of course that a seven year old enjoys. I think that’s pretty self explanatory as to how boring and easy the course is. There are good drifts though.

   Neo Bowser City: The course is fine unless it’s 200CC. It’s too slippery as nearly the entire course is in the rain. That’s all I have to say about Neo Bowser City. Too slippery. 

D Tier

   D Tier covers the courses that deserve more credit than F Tier, but not quite good enough for C Tier. They leave a memorable mark on the game, but they fail to stand out from the rest of the courses. 

Bone-Dry Dunes: This course is straight up displeasing. The colors are dull, the music is similar to other desert courses, and the Dry Bones towards the end are annoyingly everywhere. I have nothing nice to say about it. The course itself isn’t hard, it’s just annoying. Especially towards the middle of the course when turning to drive on the rib cage right before flying in the air, I almost always get stopped by the piranha plant. I don’t know if it’s strictly due to the turn itself, or if it’s a skill issue, but I do know that it makes me turn off my switch for the night every single time. The only reason why Bone-Dry Dunes isn’t in F Tier is because It has good drifting opportunities. 

   Mute City: Mute City is alright. I enjoy the many power ramps, they add a twist to the course. Other than that, it isn’t special. The curves are mid, and there is no action apart from other players. Mute City gets boring quickly. 

   Big Blue: Just like Mute City, Big Blue is okay. I cannot seem to memorize Big Blue like the back of my hand. The other 47? I could play them in my sleep. Big Blue? I can’t remember one thing about the background or the course, other than it obviously being blue. There isn’t anything that causes it to stand out from the rest. 

   Super Bell Subway: The long subway train is actually annoying. It isn’t hard to miss, but when colliding with the train, it can be difficult for racers to get back on their feet. I play online frequently and still average 8th place in Super Bell Subway. The course isn’t my favorite, but it isn’t worthy of F Tier either.  

Excitebike Arena: There isn’t much to say about Excitebike Arena. The course isn’t fun at all. There’s no action other than the items thrown by other players, and the numerous bumps in the road get very annoying after a while. 

   Ribbon Road: It’s cool, but it doesn’t make much sense. Midway through, the road is bumpy, which usually means players can do a trick and receive a power boost. N64 Rainbow Road for example, has numerous bumps which allow players to execute the feature, but in Ribbon Road the feature isn’t allowed. Why make the roads bumpy if players can’t do any tricks?

   Hyrule Circuit: Honestly, I don’t have anything negative to say about Hyrule Circuit. I just strictly do not like the course. I find it boring and only play when it comes up randomly or I play Grand Prix and choose the Triforce Cup. I do like how they changed the coins to emeralds though. The attention to detail is very impressive. 

C Tier 

   C Tier is in the middle of the ratings. They deserve an honorable mention, but nothing more and nothing less. 

   Ice Ice Outpost: Although getting so much slander, Ice Ice Outpost isn’t all that bad. The music is enjoyable, and the Violin solo is sick. Yes, there’s a lot of curves and turns with very little action, but once nailing the shortcuts the course becomes more fun. I believe it is the first snow course where players are primarily on the road, and not snow or ice. Ice Ice Outpost is unique from the other winter courses and it deserves more recognition. 

   Sweet Sweet Canyon: The best thing about it is the music. It’s cheerful, upbeat, and nice to listen to, but as for driving there’s absolutely nothing special about it. Sweet Sweet Canyon is just another course. The game would be fine with or without it. 

   Water Park : Water Park is similar to Sweet Sweet Canyon, they both fail to stand out from the rest. If a friend of mine chooses the course or if it gets chosen online, I wouldn’t be upset about it and it wouldn’t ruin my mood, but I would never voluntarily choose Water Park. Plus, I hate driving underwater. 

   Dragon Driftway: Dragon Driftway is a good course for drifting, hence why it’s called “Driftway.” If practice for turns is needed then this course is the way to go. Other than that it’s alright. It’s a boring, simple course. The graphics are killer though. 

   Baby Park: Why does Baby Park receive so much slander? I get that it’s seven laps full of driving in the same oval over and over, but it’s still fun. I really enjoy the colors and the background images of Baby Park, it’s pleasing to the eye. This course brings a lot of nostalgia. During car rides my brother and I used to play Baby Park nonstop when we were younger. It was fun to race against each other in the long oval, and try to pass one another at the last minute. I understand if Baby Park is in D Tier, it’s quick and basic. But F Tier? That’s just cruel. 

Toad Harbor: Toad Harbor is definitely over hyped. I like the fact that the course is located in the midst of a town. The numerous trains add a good challenge to players, and it adds to the course feeling more real. Though after a while, the course gets boring. The music is mid, there are no difficult turns. Toad’s Harbor is exciting, but only when playing for the first time. It easily loses its sparkle. 

   Twisted Mansion: Don’t get me wrong, Twisted Mansion is really fun, but the anti-gravity effect bothers me. I feel like the effect was abused with this track, as a large portion uses anti-gravity. Honestly, there are probably a handful of other courses which have the same amount of anti-gravity, but specifically in Twisted Mansion it’s easy to mess up in terms of drifting. It gets annoying. The drift can easily be lost, but depending on where the drift is lost, players sometimes have to wait until the next turn to begin their drift again, which can be very inconvenient. 

   Animal Crossing: The Animal Crossing course isn’t horrible. My favorite detail in the track are the seasons. They change randomly. Players can either race in summer, autumn, spring, or winter, but it’s different every time. The track isn’t boring either. The obstacles are reasonable and can be challenging. There’s nothing bad about the course, I just don’t play it enough to put it higher on the list. 

   Mario Circuit: Okay, we get it. Mario Circuit is featured on the cover, one of the first four cups, and has good turns, but what else? Mario Circuit is fun, yes, but where’s the flavor? It’s basic and lacks good energy. The background is cool though. 

   Shy Guy Falls: Although I love Shy Guy, the course is disappointing. The background is extremely dull, the curves are lame and simple, there’s barely any action, the drifts are okay but not amazing. The track is a let down. To me, it seems like the creators just customized the course at the last minute and didn’t put much thought into it. Shy Guy Falls had potential to be A Tier, but unfortunately it’s stuck down here. 

B Tier 

   B Tier is also in the middle, but leaning towards the top of the list. It’s like part 2 of C tier, but better. 

   Toad’s Turnpike: Such a fun course. Driving alongside various cars, driving on the walls, the busyness of the course is what makes it enjoyable. 

     Yoshi Valley: It isn’t the worst course in the world. It has multiple routes which makes it stand out from most of the other courses. Players can choose from traveling through a rocket, racing through a dirt tunnel with bats flying at them, or the regular road route. Apart from the three different roads, there is very little action to the course itself. It only features two shortcuts, both of which are out in the open and are easy to accomplish. The only obstacles on the course are the bats (only when choosing the dirt tunnel route) and a giant Yoshi egg, which I might add is extremely easy to drive around. The track gets boring quickly.

   Moo Moo Meadows: I love the cows. Other than that the course is kind of basic. It’s fun but not super fun. 

   Royal Raceway: In my opinion, this course has the best opportunity to drift. At the beginning of the map, the road is shaped like half a square. Players have to make two “corner” turns which isn’t difficult. Drifting the entire half square is really fun to accomplish. It’s honestly my favorite part of the course. I always get upset when a blue or red shell hits me and I can’t continue my long awaited drift. It’s not quite A Tier, as there is very little action apart from the other players. 

   Mario Kart Stadium: Creators of Mario Kart did not disappoint with this track. As the very first course in the Mushroom Cup (the first cup) it’s simple enough for new racers, but still enjoyable for old racers. The many boost ramps add a twist, especially when playing in 200CC. It’s a good course for players of any experience. 

 Cheep Cheep Beach: Growing up I hated this course, I don’t know why though because now I cannot think of anything that would make me hate it. Maybe the crabs at the end? I’m not sure. Cheep Cheep Beach isn’t un-enjoyable, I just don’t care about the course enough to rank it higher.

   Cloudtop Cruise: Love and hate her. She does get on my nerves during 200CC, but other than that Cloudtop Cruise is one of my favorites. The area with a ton of power boosts and lightning is probably the most enjoyable part. I like taking note of the lightning’s patterns. 

   Wario Stadium: I really enjoy the detail. The crowd in the background is really cool to view as you’re in the air, it adds a realistic feel to the course. Adding three 90 degree angle turns in a row to part of the road was a smart idea. It took a bit of time to master the turns in 200CC which was entertaining. Other than that the course is decent. It isn’t the worst but it isn’t the best either. 

A Tier 

   Not quite the best, but they’re up there on the list. These courses just didn’t make the cut in my opinion. They basically play as the understudies for S Tier. 

   Wild Woods: Wild Woods is the potential Shy Guy falls was missing. The background isn’t dull, and it’s actually pleasing. Along with this, the turns are similar to those in Shy Guy falls, but in Wild Woods a large section of the map is basically a river. Players drive on top of water, which is also a feature in a section of Shy Guy Falls, but it differs because in this course players drive in the same direction that the water goes. This makes the road fast, and slippery, which adds more fun and excitement. The plethora of Shy Guys in the background warms my heart too. 

   Wario’s Gold Mine: This course has always been a favorite of mine. The course is just really fun, it never disappoints even though I’ve played it a countless amount of times and there’s nothing new to it. Bonus points for the shortcut at the end. 

   Sunshine Airport: I feel like there’s mixed emotions on Sunshine Airport. Most people usually like the course or dislike it, there’s no in between. For me, this course is a classic to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. It’s fun, the drifts are great, there’s a bit of a challenge to it. There isn’t anything wrong with Sunshine Airport, I just don’t like it to the level I do with S Tier courses. 

   Bowser’s Castle: I’m sorry Music Park, but this course takes first place in the music category. It’s probably just me, but I love the music. Definitely a step-up for me from Bowser’s Castle on the Wii. 

    SNES Rainbow Road: Simple but fun. SNES Rainbow Road is only A Tier because I like the rainbow road courses a ton. I do like the various thwomps but other than that the course is just there.  

  Thwomp Ruins: Always fun to play. I think having a whole course dedicated to the thwomps after they’ve made a countless number of appearances since 1988 is really cool. It gives these bad guys the recognition they deserve. 

   Rainbow Road: Obviously I really enjoy the different Rainbow Road courses. A ton of people dislike playing them, which is reasonable as they’re challenging, but once developing the correct racing skills and learning Rainbow Road like the back of your hand, it’s very enjoyable. This course specifically would’ve been in S Tier because of its many curves and intertwining roads, but the course lacks background. Usually when I think of a rainbow road, I think of something magical, a background with tons of colors. But this specific rainbow road course’s background is kind of space/astronaut themed. It just doesn’t hype the course up correctly. For that reason, it falls down to A Tier. 

   DK Jungle: Honorable mention to Donkey Kong on this one. DK Jungle is always fun. I really like the shortcut right by the finish line, but I hate when someone throws a lightning bolt or shell as I’m about to take the shortcut. A majority of the time (unless having a long enough lead) it can be the reason why someone doesn’t finish in first. Other than that, the course is enjoyable. I just don’t favor it enough to put it higher. 

   Mount Wario: In this course every lap is different, whereas in other courses each lap is the same. The turns and curves are decent but they aren’t anything memorable. This winter course is probably my favorite, it’s the most fun out of the three and brings the most challenges, especially when driving through the small patch of woods. 

S Tier 

   The best of the best. I play these courses the most. Not to brag, but I very rarely finish these courses in any place besides first. They’re my pride and joy.

   Electrodome: I feel like Electrodome is almost always near the top of people’s lists. The energy is amazing, and the busy background, colors, and music really ties it all together. I like how the floor lights up as players drive, it adds a ton of character. Honestly, if it wasn’t for the attention to detail on this course, it would probably be rated B Tier. 

   Tick-Tock Clock: This course is definitely a classic. The music? Outstanding. The detail to clocks? Phenomenal. The layout of the course? Simple, but effective. There’s nothing else to say about it. Tick-Tock Clock is just simply one of the best, most fun courses. If it wasn’t for the music in Music Park, this one would be number one.

   GBA Mario Circuit: I absolutely love this course. When I play with friends and family and they ask me to choose a course, this is usually my go-to. It’s easy enough for beginners, but still fun for experienced players. The drifts are amazing as well, it never disappoints. I absolutely slay this course every single time. 

   Piranha Plant Slide: I don’t have much to say about Piranha Plant Slide, I mean there’s like four different slides and a handful of piranha plants. It’s pretty self explanatory. The course itself brings a challenge, I feel as if it isn’t 100% straightforward which is good. I think the main reason as to why this course is ranked so high is strictly because of a singular turn. It’s a direct 90 degree turn and in 200CC specifically, it takes a lot of time and practice to master. 

   N64 Rainbow Road: This specific Rainbow Road will forever hold a special place in my heart. The numerous turns are perfect for drifting. Every time I play I’m able to reach the third-level drift (purple drift), which in some circumstances can be the exact difference between first and second place. Similar to Mount Wario, each lap is different. This added feature makes the course much more fun. 

  Grumble Volcano:  Although being a difficult course to master, Grumble Volcano is fun every time. It’s challenging as tons of fireballs and lava puddles fill the track, and constantly get in the way, but once developing the correct skills it’s fun to guess the fireballs’ next moves and try to dodge them. Along with this, once the first person to finish lap 1 passes the finish line, parts of the track start to crumble. This represents the volcano “erupting.” The road itself shrinks, adding another challenge. Not only is this course fun to play, but it’s also fun to watch. Specifically when new players play for the first time, it’s amusing to see them driving on part of the road, only for it to suddenly drop beneath them into the lava.  

   Music Park: Saving best for last, we have Music Park (also known as Melody Motorway).  This is such an underrated course, I don’t even know where to start. The music in my opinion is the second best out of all the courses. Especially when drifting the entire turn on the pianos towards the beginning of the course, each key adding a new note into the song is breathtaking. Sometimes I get so distracted by how groovy the music is that I lose my spot in first place. Luckily for me, it’s easy to get back into first. Music Park is a simple course. The turns are easy, and the piranha plants, giant music notes, and other obstacles aren’t very difficult to avoid. But I really think the background and detail of the course distract racers from how simple the course actually is.

   Putting my ratings aside, I’m very thankful for the game and these courses. The creators deserve tons of credit for all the work they’ve put into Mario Kart. It’s been an important aspect of many people’s childhoods/lives. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and its creators definitely need more recognition for all the hard work they’ve put into Nintendo all these years.