Hello. Welcome to part three of the Concepts for the Next Mario Kart series. I'll talk about items that should return, items that shouldn't return, and some new items. I might update this blog in the future.
I wouldn't say I like special items because you have to be a specific character to use them. That can be a problem for people who only use one or two characters. I don't want to be a particular character to use an item; I should be able to use all items no matter what character I use. Just my opinion, though. Alright, let's get into the items.
To start, let's list items that should return. Some of these items will have extra notes.
The feather should only be exclusive to Battle Mode. Although, I feel like it could also work in other modes to avoid shells and stuff. For now, though, I want it to be exclusive to battle mode.
Even though I listed the Boo, I'm not sure if I want it to return entirely. It's pretty annoying. You're about to take a shortcut, and then the Boo takes your mushroom and laughs in your face. It's still a good item, though.
Coins should return in the next Mario Kart and be as common as in Mario Kart 8. There needs to be one item that players can't defend themselves with in first place.
All triple items should rotate around your vehicle.
The Spiny Shell should travel on the ground as it has in 7 and 8. If it only damages the player in first place and no one else, it won't help the person who threw it since you get it when you're far behind.
With the removal of the Blooper, the Crazy Eight will have to replace the Blooper with something else. I feel like they'll only have the Crazy Eight if the next Mario Kart isn't called Mario Kart 9. If it is called Mario Kart 9, they might add the Insane Nine or something.
Now, let's list some items that weren't in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe that I want to return.
To make things more interesting, I think it would be cool if the Yoshi Egg changed color depending on what Yoshi you play as—for example, playing as Red Yoshi will make the egg red instead of green, for example. It will also replace the Blooper on the Crazy Eight.
Purple dust should surround you when you drive over the Poison Mushroom instead of yellow sparks. Yellow sparks appear around the driver if you get struck by Lightning, in case you didn't know. Driving over another Poison Mushroom when you're already affected also doesn't cancel the effect.
There should be only one Heart around your vehicle, like in Mario Kart Tour, instead of two.
The Mega Mushroom should have unique music instead of reusing the music from New Super Mario Bros., just like how the Super Star music is unique in every Mario Kart game.
Now, here's are the items that I don't want to return. I'll explain why I don't want these items.
The Fire Flower essentially replaces the Fireball, and the Fire Flower is better.
I've previously said that I like the Fake Item Box and want it to return, However, I'm not too fond of it anymore. Even if they did make it look similar to the actual Item Box, CPU players and even some players online don't camouflage it with the Item Boxes found on the course, so it would still be pretty obvious that it's fake.
The Bullet Bill replaces the Chain Chomp, and the Bullet Bill is way better.
A new item idea I have will replace the Bowser Shell. Also, the item itself is disturbing because it makes me wonder what Bowser looks like without his shell...
In my previous blog, I've said that I want want Blooper to be a playable character instead of an item, although I sadly don't believe Nintendo will do that. It doesn't help you much when you get the item, and you can still see where you're going when you get inked.
The Thunder Cloud is probably my least favorite item. It's automatic, and it shocks you if you don't bump into somebody. On the other hand, if I had an idea for a rework, then maybe you could throw the item on the track, and then when somebody drives over it, the Thunder Cloud works like it did in Mario Kart Wii. Still, I don't want to see this item again.
The POW Block is an annoyance. Even if you do time it right, you lose your items anyway. The only way to not lose your items is if you're airborne.
The Super Leaf is a below-mediocre item. You have to time when to swing the tail, and the Piranha Plant is a way better version of it.
We don't need the Lucky Seven because I already said the Crazy Eight. It's one more item, so it's better.
Here's some items from Mario Kart Tour I want to see. Many people haven't played Mario Kart Tour, so these items may feel like new items to those people.
The Ice Flower needs a rework. So, here's how I think it should work. It works like the Fire Flower, except it temporarily freezes a player in a block of ice. They also stay frozen for a little bit longer than when they spin-out from a Fire Flower.
I've researched how the Super Bell works in Mario Kart Tour, and the way it works is that it works similar to a Super Horn, but it rings three times. How I would make it work is that it works like the Super Horn, except it only affects players and not other items. It will also make a bell-ringing sound instead of your character's horn.
Here are some ideas for new items.
Bomb Shell
Also called the Black Shell, but it is officially called the Bomb Shell. This shell will explode like a Bob-omb when it collides with a race or an obstacle on the track. It will also explode if it bounces off the wall ten times. I've seen this idea on other people's predictions, so I thought I'd do it.
Dry Bones Shell
The Dry Bones Shell will act as a red shell, but players can throw it three times. It will quickly reassemble once it hits another player, and players can throw it again. It will also break if it hits a wall or another item. However, as said before, it will reassemble unless you are already on the third throw. This idea was also on my old item blog, but for some reason, I wanted to make it explode like a Bob-omb...
Gigantic Koopa Shell
A lot of shells, huh? I used a different picture, but there's not a good picture I can use for this. The Gigantic Koopa Shell works the same as the Bowser Shell, and it replaces that item. Once it bounces off the wall ten times, it breaks.
Triple Bob-ombs
Same as the Bob-omb, but multiplied by three. They rotate around your vehicle.
Lucky Bell
I couldn't find a transparent picture of the Lucky Bell. This item works like the Super Bell, but you can use it as many times as you want before the timer runs out. The timer lasts about as long as a Golden Mushroom.
Here are all the items. This is a total of 36 items.
Now for the item distribution. Just like Mario Kart 8, items should be based on distance. However, to avoid confusion, I'm going to measure in placement.
| Item | Place Recieved |
|---|---|
| Banana | 1st-3rd |
| Green Shell | 1st-4th |
| Red Shell | 2nd-5th |
| Feather | N/A |
| Mushroom | 2nd-6th |
| Super Star | 7th-12th |
| Boo | 5th-9th |
| Coin | 1st |
| Lightning | 10th-12th |
| Triple Mushrooms | 5th-10th |
| Golden Mushroom | 6th-12th |
| Triple Bananas | 1st-4th |
| Triple Green Shells | 3rd-6th |
| Triple Red Shells | 4th-8th |
| Spiny Shell | 8th-10th |
| Bob-omb | 1st-5th |
| Bullet Bill | 9th-12th |
| Fire Flower | 2nd-6th |
| Boomerang Flower | 2nd-4th |
| Piranha Plant | 3rd-6th |
| Super Horn | 1st-5th |
| Crazy Eight | 6th-10th |
| Yoshi Egg | 3rd-7th |
| Poison Mushroom | 2nd-5th |
| Heart | 4th-6th |
| Giant Banana | 2nd-5th |
| Mega Mushroom | 4th-8th |
| Ice Flower | 3rd-6th |
| Hammer | 2nd-4th |
| Giga Bob-omb | 3rd-7th |
| Super Bell | 2nd-5th |
| Bomb Shell | 2nd-5th |
| Dry Bones Shell | 4th-9th |
| Gigantic Koopa Shell | 3rd-8th |
| Triple Bob-ombs | 4th-10th |
| Lucky Bell | 5th-10th |
In the next part, we'll be talking about New Courses.