Overview
Mario Kart: Arcade GP DX is a third-person kart racer developed and released by Namco Bandai (in conjunction with Nintendo) for arcades (using PC-based Namco System ES3 hardware) in Japan on July 25, 2013.
The sequel to Mario Kart: Arcade GP 2 (and the third in the arcade Mario Kart spin-off series), Arcade GP DX updates the game's graphics (such as HD resolution) and gameplay (some of it from Mario Kart 7) while adding a new selection of courses and an updated character roster (including a guest character from the Taiko no Tatsujin series). It also now makes use of Namco's BANAPASSPORT card system for keeping progress and unlocking new content.
The game also has three new modes: "National Battle" (a Time Attack replacement where players are pitted against player ghosts from each of the 50 Japanese regions) and "Two Player Co-op" (where two players team-up against two CPU teams, gaining mode-specific items and abilities, such as the tank-like "Fusion Kart"). A third mode was later added in 2015 (and removed in 2016), titled "Team Battle", which builds on Two Player Co-op by splitting a four-player match into two teams.
The game received a limited worldwide release on 2014, removing all card reader support and the National Battle mode. All characters are unlocked automatically, with the game providing a random selection of karts and items for each player at the start of each race. Both Japanese and worldwide releases received numerous updates up to 2018.
Characters
The game's original release included 13 playable characters, two of whom are guest characters, and 4 of whom must be unlocked to the player's BANAPASSPORT beforehand. Ms. Pac-Man, Blinky, and Mametchi were removed from the previous game. 6 additional characters were added post-release as unlockables for a total of 19 characters. All unlockable characters are unlocked automatically in the worldwide release (although variants are not included).
Each character has their own stats (acceleration, handling, and maximum speed). Lighter characters sacrifice their speed for improved handling, and vice versa for heavier characters.
The game also includes 10 unlockable variants of characters, each of which can unlock unique items, and various unlockable karts (each of which improves stats, with the possibility of going beyond the maximum value).
As the worldwide release does not use BANAPASSPORT, all characters in that release are unlocked automatically (with variants removed entirely). Players also cannot choose their kart or items, and are instead given a random selection.
Very Light
- Baby Mario (unlockable, added on July 28, 2015)
- Baby Peach (unlockable, added on July 28, 2015)
- King Boo (time-limited unlockable added on October 18, 2017, made available as a regular unlockable on October 10, 2018)
Light
- Toad (has an unlockable "Blue" variant)
- Don-Chan (new addition, guest character from the Taiko no Tatsujin series, has unlockable "Strawberry" and "Hero" variants)
- Bowser Jr. (unlockable, new addition)
- Lakitu (unlockable, new addition, added on December 18, 2018)
Average (Better Acceleration)
Average (Better Speed)
- Mario (has unlockable "Fire" and "Tanooki" variants)
- Luigi (has an unlockable "Ice" variant)
- Pac-Man (guest character from the Pac-Man series)
- Daisy (unlockable, new addition, added on June 6, 2017)
Heavy
Courses
The game's original release included 10 courses, each split into five Cups. Four additional courses (two Cups) were added post-release.
Toad Cup (Easy)
Mario Cup (Normal)
- Splash Circuit
- Tropical Coast
Don-Chan Cup (Normal)
- Don Dance Street
- Omatsuri Circuit
Pac-Man Cup (Normal)
Added on April 21, 2016.
- Pac-Man Stadium
- Namco Circuit
DK Cup (Normal)
Added on December 18, 2018.
- Bananan Labyrinth
- DK Jungle
Bowser Jr. Cup (Master)
Bowser Cup (Super Difficulty)
- Bowser's Factory
- Bowser's Castle
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