Now that I've finally gotten up to speed on the entire Mario Kart series, I wanted to do a sort of ranking of them all, but instead of ranking the games, I figured I'd rank something else: The Rainbow Roads in the games.
Rainbow Road has been a staple of the Mario Kart series since the very beginning, and the game has always ended in a Rainbow Road, apart from when Retro Grand Prix first came about, but starting with Mario Kart 7, even the Retro Grand Prix ended in a classic Rainbow Road. Always set in the stars and often with a beautiful song to accompany it, Rainbow Road is a delightful final trip to close out the Grand Prix.
But how do they compare against each other? Well, I intend to find out. I have played each iteration of Rainbow Road multiple times in a row to get a good gauge on each, weigh their pros and cons, and list them here. Retro Grand Prix iterations will be left out of the official list. Important factors will be atmosphere, difficulty, and enjoyment, among other intangible factors, and remember that this is an opinion-based piece, so if you end up disagreeing, well, that's why. And now, without further adieu— when did I turn French? Er, without further ado...
8. Super Mario Kart - This is the original, the progenitor, the beginner of the tradition. Unfortunately it, just like the game it was introduced in, did not hold up very well. It had some neat atmosphere, such as the road texture and the fact that the Thwomps remain stationary in midair until the first lap is over, but it also had kind of an empty and uninteresting background, and no real unique or interesting course design otherwise. It's a little more fun to play in Mario Kart 7, especially since its controls aren't garbage, but this one doesn't really stand up well to its successors.
7. Mario Kart Wii - This one had a nice sense of height and depth that was lacking since Double Dash, and I'll get to that later, and it had a lot of nice atmosphere and background items. It had some fun jump parts, like a disconnected part of the road you could trick between off a short ramp. Unfortunately, some parts of the level felt a bit cheap if you're not a skilled player or can't see them coming, and even I had a little trouble on a part or two. It's also a bit uninspired compared to the previous Rainbow Roads, and just kind of feels like a rehash at this point, too similar to past Rainbow Roads.
6. Mario Kart 8 - The idea to take Rainbow Road and combine it with a space station setup is a fantastic one, and I love it. It's a fairly fun track, with an amazing atmosphere; the background is so active and alive and it makes it really immersive. Unfortunately, that only serves to distract you from the fact that the track itself isn't all that inspired. Is it fun? Yes. Is it completely unique? Eh. It has a nice branching pathway mechanic, admittedly used before in Mario Kart Wii, but the paths in those were much shorter. Otherwise, this one, while yes, a fun track, just didn't really add much to the lore of Rainbow Road, and the technological feel of the road itself kind of takes away from the charm of the idea of "Rainbow Road."
5. Mario Kart 64 - Some of you are probably surprised I put this so low, especially since I've said many times elsewhere that this is my favorite. Well, favorite is not the same as best. I must admit the datedness of this one, even though I still quite enjoy it. It has a pretty environment and relaxing mood, it almost feels like the course itself is congratulating you as you drive through and see the portraits of characters and items in the sky. There's also the skip that you can pull off, letting you skip half the track, that's so satisfying to accomplish, and the chomps can be fun if there's enough chaos going on. Let's not forget that it also has some of the best music ever made. But it is a bit on the lengthy side, which can be either a good or bad thing depending on your standpoint, and the fact that the entire course is railed removes the challenge from it. It also doesn't have much to offer in the way of course variety either, I must admit. So while I quite enjoy it, I totally see why others don't.
4. Mario Kart: Super Circuit - You're probably thinking "What's this track from this garbage game doing so high up?" Well, I'll tell you: The game sucks, yes, but this course is honestly damn fun. It boasts a great atmosphere with a gorgeous backdrop and mood, with stars occasionally falling on the track. The course itself has a pretty look, and the jump pad walls open up a lot of opportunity for fun, skill, or chaos, which was a pretty unique gimmick. Same with the lightning clouds that could strike you if you were unlucky. Honestly I can't think of a single downside, other than that the music was kind of lackluster, even if it started with a brief remix of the SNES track. Well, the fact that it's on a game with terrible controls might be a downside, but I can't fault the course for that, so it's staying up here.
3. Mario Kart 7 - Back when I wasn't sure I would be owning Mario Kart 7 anytime soon, I watched a video of this Rainbow Road, my consensus being that the second lap looked awesome while the first and third laps looked boring. After playing it, I can safely say that I was wrong. ... only the first lap was boring. But what we got here was the freshest Rainbow Road since Double Dash. It started off as a typical sort of Rainbow Road, then screwed with our expectations by taking us to a planetary ring, then to the surface of a moon. This was a nice and awesome change up, with a fun little last section before the end. It also boasts a beautiful remix of the Nintendo 64 theme, which complements it wonderfully, and even changes tune a little when you land on the surface of the moon. It's a very enchanting track that'll blow away anyone's expectations. Er, if you're playing it blind anyway.
2. Mario Kart DS - Now this one was a surprise, but so was the game. I didn't honestly expect too much out of Mario Kart DS, but it holds up as a pretty solid Mario Kart game, with a surprisingly fun Rainbow Road. Now it doesn't vary too much from the norm, admittedly, but it has a calming starry background with a generally enjoyable course layout, even if a part or two feels recycled from Double Dash. It has its own unique twists tough, such as a loop and a twisted section that take you into antigravity briefly; predecessor to Mario Kart 8 perhaps? There's a few rings in the course that play a little chime when you drive through them that I thought was a neat touch as well, and overall this course is just a lot of fun. If there's any drawback, it's that the music is quite forgettable, but that's about it.
1. Mario Kart: Double Dash!! - I was honestly originally expecting to put the DS entry here at number one, but in the end I couldn't. Mostly because it borrowed too much from this one, as did Mario Kart Wii's. The atmosphere is great, the objects lend well to the visuals, and the city below is just breathtaking to look at. The surface of the road itself is magical. There's just so much charm to this course, and the remix of the Mario Kart 64 track is lovely as well, fitting in perfectly with the mood of the course. It's a blast, there's not a single con I can think of for this one. It is, quite simply, the best Rainbow Road out of them all.
And that's my carefully thought-out list. What do you guys think, agree? Disagree? Think I'm nuts? Let me know what you think? And for a fun little extra, here's a simplified list of the best-to-worst course themes for each as well:
1. Mario Kart 64
2. Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
3. Mario Kart 7
4. Super Mario Kart
5. Mario Kart 8
6. Mario Kart: Super Circuit
7. Mario Kart DS
8. Mario Kart Wii
