Bowser's Castle (Mario Kart Wii)
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| Appears in | Mario Kart Wii (2008) | ||||||||||
| Cup(s) | Special Cup | ||||||||||
| Online play | No longer available (Wii) | ||||||||||
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Bowser's Castle is the third course of the Special Cup in Mario Kart Wii. It resembles the Mario Kart: Double Dash!! iteration of Bowser's Castle, as it has Thwomps, the same castle entrance designed to resemble Bowser's face, and Bowser's laugh playing upon entry into the castle.
The music for this course is based on that of Maple Treeway, albeit rearranged into a slower, lower-pitched, and more sinister version. Additionally, elements of the castle music from the original Super Mario Bros. can be heard in the beginning portion of this course's music.
This is the only course in Mario Kart Wii's Special Cup to not appear in Mario Kart Tour, as well as the only course in the Special Cup that has yet to appear as a retro course.
Course layout
The course begins outside the castle, on a dirt road with off-road and dead trees on both sides of the track. There is first a brief straightaway followed by a drawbridge which quickly curves downwards and then curves upwards before ending in a ramp; the bridge also has two dash panels on it and the first set of Item Boxes lies atop the ramp. After going off the ramp and getting across the lava, racers continue driving straight and enter the castle as Bowser's laugh is heard and an alternate version of the music starts playing. They first encounter a straight corridor which is inexplicably wavy but otherwise symmetrical; the corridor has several pillars in the middle and two more item sets on both sides. Racers can also perform tricks off of the wavy floor. After the corridor, racers go down a staircase and take a 90° turn to the left. There is then a right 90° turn and two more left 90° turns, all of which have a Thwomp in the middle. Like in N64 Bowser's Castle, if racers are crushed by a Thwomp, it will utter a laugh. Racers also go down additional staircases in between each turn. Between the two left turns, there is another set of Item Boxes, and the castle wall is missing on the right which allows racers to fall into the lava. After the last turn there is a dash panel ramp which leads racers into a large room filled with lava.
Here, the track is quite wide at first, with Kanaami Road that curves upward on the sides. As racers land, they initially can continue driving straight and encounter a few dash panels but are quickly guided to the sides of the track where there are small half-pipes. Atop the half-pipes on each side are more Item Boxes as well as very small Fire Chains. Upon landing from the first pair of half-pipes, racers reach a similar part of the track which guides them up to another pair of half-pipes with more Item Boxes and Fire Chains. During this whole process, a Mecha Bowser launches giant fireballs down the middle of the track which explode where the track first splits, as indicated by a large marking on the track. After racers land from the second pair of half-pipes, the track splits into two symmetrical narrow paths that curve around the Mecha Bowser. Each path contains a Fire Bar followed by a dash panel ramp and another item set. Where the two paths join, racers are led into a separate area that's partially outside.
In this area, racers gradually gain height as they make a 360° loop clockwise, going around another large pool of lava. Initially, the inside of the turn is composed of Kanaami Road and there are several Lava Geysers that occasionally erupt through it. Racers then climb up a staircase, pass a lone Thwomp, and climb up a second staircase. At the end of the loop, there are three Thwomps next to each other that take up the entire width of the track; they alternate between the middle Thwomp falling and the other two Thwomps falling at the same time. After the Thwomps there is a slight left turn followed by a huge dash panel ramp made of Kanaami Road. Atop the ramp is one last set of Item Boxes, but there is also a giant Fire Bar that can hit racers as they go off the ramp. Upon landing, racers go straight down some more stairs and exit the castle. Upon exiting the castle, racers make another 90° turn to the left before going down one last staircase and returning to the dirt road that the course began on. The road makes a slight left turn and widens, leading racers into a straightaway littered with Lava Geysers that erupt from the ground, although racers are able to perform tricks off of the mounds that the active Lava Geysers create. After this straightaway, racers reach the finish line.
Shortcuts
The first notable shortcut can be found at the pairs of half-pipes. If the player uses a Mushroom, they can drive through a patch of thick mud in the middle of the track, skipping the first pair of half-pipes. The process can be repeated via a second patch of mud, though there is a simple ramp that allows the player to cross the second patch of mud without speed items, so long as they avoid the fireballs from the Mecha Bowser.
Additionally, a glitch shortcut can be found at the split path to the right of the Mecha Bowser. By stopping at the dash panel ramp and aiming to the right where the end of the track curves upwards the most, the player can launch themselves through a part of the wall that does not have proper collision. If performed correctly, the player can land on the part of the track above and skip the entire 360° loop. It is possible to perform this without a Mushroom, but using one is recommended.
Tournaments
August 2009's second tournament required players to complete a Time Trial on a version of Bowser's Castle with more obstacles: There are now more Lava Geysers, Swoop swarms above the wavy corridor, more Thwomps in more threatening locations, and some unbreakable crates. Additionally, all Fire Chains are larger, and all Fire Chains and Fire Bars spin faster. Players start the Time Trial with a set of Triple Mushrooms. The tournament was later repeated as the first tournament of July 2011, the second tournament of September 2012, and the first tournament of December 2013.
Profiles
Mario Kart Wii
- European website bio: "Only some skilful stunt driving will enable you to dodge the huge fireballs spat out by the stone statue of Bowser. Moving hallways, a river of lava, and eleven other racers gunning for first place make the task even trickier."
Gallery
The course banner
A preview of the course
Right before the entrance
The wavy hall
The area with the lava on the extreme right
In the Mecha Bowser area
The curve with fire pillars in it
After the triple Thwomps before the ramp
The fire pillar area, just before the finish line
Names in other languages
| Language | Name | Meaning | Notes |
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| Japanese | クッパキャッスル[?] Kuppa Kyassuru |
Bowser Castle | |
| French | Château de Bowser[?] | Bowser's Castle | |
| German | Bowsers Festung[?] | Bowser´s Fortress | |
| Korean | 쿠파 성[?] Kupa Seong |
Bowser Castle | |
| Spanish | Castillo de Bowser[?] | Bowser's Castle |
