We just recently talked about the possibilities of updates and DLC for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (here) and this morning already came the nice surprise of some free DLC additions via 1.6.0 update. And look at that, it's even more Zelda contents...!
It's Link from Breath of the Wild, together with the Master Cycle Zero, the Ancient Tires, and the Paraglider. Besides this being essentially a re-skin of existing content, the attention to detail is quite nice. Breath of the Wild Link even got his own symbol, which is the Sheikah Eye. He's using an Guardian Sword++ instead of the Master Sword and they even incorporated some Sheikah Slate menu sounds.
It's also remarkable how things went back and forth here. Link's Master Cycle originated in Mario Kart 8, then made its way as DLC into Breath of the Wild as the Master Cycle Zero, which now gets featured in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Luckily, I already own the game, because I won a copy in a raffle on ntower.de. I could also borrow a Nintendo Switch from someone, where I was able to try the update this morning already.
And the Master Cycle Zero is awesome, yet again! Normally, I don't like bikes, because for me they handle awkwardly with the inward drifting. This includes the original Master Cycle, where I never really got to use it. But the Master Cycle Zero has an outward drift, like most normal karts do, so I like it quite a lot. I might even "main" the Master Cycle Zero, whenever I'll complete the game for myself.
Future Content Updates?
It would be nice, if they kept supporting Mario Kart 8 Deluxe with free updates from time to time with even more additional content. Mario Kart 8 had the Mercedes Benz crossover for that, but more Nintendo contents probably would be more exciting for the fans. Here are some ideas:
- Princess Zelda from Breath of the Wild
- Captain Falcon
- Kong Family Pack with Diddy, Dixie, Cranky and Funky
- More returning racers
- New Retro Battle Courses: N64 Block Fort and Wii Funky Stadium
- A New Donk City Battle Course
Princess Zelda from Breath of the Wild feels like a must-have addition at this point. She would suit the game quite well in her normal outfit and she would certainly have fun trying the Master Cycle Zero herself. It would be a great fit.
Another important guest racer, who is still missing, would be Captain Falcon. He already has his own kart (the Blue Falcon) and two courses, so all it would need now is the Captain himself to complete this masterful crossover between Mario Kart 8 and F-Zero.
But... it would also mess up the current character select screen. Wild Link and Link were implemented as variants of the same character (like the Villager or the different colored Yoshis), which makes sense, but Zelda or Captain Falcon would really need their own slots, which doesn't fit the current roster in any way.
To make new characters fit nicely, they would need to add at least six of them. And this brings me back to one of my previous DLC ideas: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze x Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. I originally envisioned this as a free DLC outing, where you would get four additional racers from the Kong family: Diddy, Dixie, Cranky, and Funky. Maybe also add some old DK karts like the Barrel Train, but this mostly about the characters.
Other than Diddy and Funky Kong, there are even more potential racers, which they could bring back from past Mario games: Birdo, Wiggler, the Honey Queen or even Petey Piranha. So, there's lots of potential here to fill another row or column of the character select screen, even without the Kongs.
I wouldn't expect any new cups or any other crossovers (like Kirby) as free DLC, however. That would be in the paid DLC category, where Nintendo might not want to go that route.
But the new Battle Mode is certainly something which they could expand on all fronts. Two, four, or even more Battle Courses and maybe even a new game type would be possible additions. Block Fort and Funky Stadium would already be two great returning courses, where the latter could go hand in hand with a "Donkey Kong Country x Mario Kart 8 Deluxe" update. For new courses they could do something based on Super Mario Odyssey, like a New Donk City Battle Course. People sure would love that.
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