FAKE RONJAN!!Countdown: Mario Kart 8's Soundtrack
Mario Kart 8 (on Nintendo's Wii U and Switch systems) is an amazing game. It's everything great about arcade mascot racers, and it's one of the few games that my 4-year-old son and 74-year-old father can play together.
It also has an amazing soundtrack - one of the best in Nintendo's history. Each of the 48 race tracks has its own music track, spanning multiple genres and ensembles. It's fun, it's frenetic, it's eclectic, and it made me want to rank my favorites. I listened to these tracks over and over for the past week, and this top 20 countdown is the result.
Enjoy!
#20: Excitebike Arena
As one of the first games I ever played on the original NES console, Excitebike will always hold a special place in my heart. While this music track is a bit slow and repetitive compared to others on the list, it makes the cut based on the feels. Nintendo remembers their history too!
#19: Moo Moo Meadows (Wii)
Dat fiddle!!
#18: DK Jungle (3DS)
The original version of this song from Donkey Kong Country on the Super NES is one of the reasons I started paying attention to video game music - I even bought the soundtrack from Nintendo Power!
The remixed version in Mario Kart 8 takes the tempo much faster to the point that it feels just a touch out of control. While this version of the track would never fit into the original Donkey Kong Country series, it's a perfect representation of how playing Mario Kart can feel.
#17: Cloudtop Cruise
Super Mario Galaxy is one of my favorite Mario games ever, so this track clearly inspired by that game had me smiling. I like how it starts as a stylistic homage to tracks like Gusty Garden Galaxy with a similar ensemble and tempo, then flat out pulls that work's final flourish in directly.
#16: Bowser's Castle
Bowser has had a course and music theme for his castle in every single game in this series. This is without question the coolest one he's ever had.
#15: Water Park
This is one of the happiest racing tracks I've ever heard - giving Aqua Tunnel from the Super NES's Stunt Race FX a run for its money. I particularly love the playful instrumental handoffs - you can tell the musicians in the studio were having a blast.
#14: Mario Kart Stadium
Most Mario Kart games have a music theme that serves as the game's main theme. Usually these tracks play during the first course of the game and set the tone for the game, mixing an easy going vibe with a fun melody.
This music track fits the bill perfectly as Mario Kart Stadium is a perfect and breathtaking way to kick the game off. Time will tell if it can join the next group of tracks ....
#11 (three-way tie): Royal Raceway (N64), Mario Circuit (GBA), Yoshi Circuit (GCN)
It's hard to separate these three, as they all represent to the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th games respectively in the Mario Kart series what Mario Kart Stadium represents to Mario Kart 8.
These new versions of these music tracks are upbeat remixes of the originals, and it almost reminds me of a band who's been together for a long time getting together and jamming their early work. Everyone's a little looser and more playful than usual, and they're throwing in ditties here and there or tossing the melody around so longtime listeners have something new to pick up on.
These remixes are kind of like Mario Kart overall - the game can change the tracks or add new characters over the years, but the core of the series is always a great experience you can come back to that feels simultaneously familiar and fresh.
#10: Rainbow Road (SNES)
The original Rainbow Road on Super NES was the scariest race track of its era, complete with a terrifying, aggressive music track. This remixed version makes the song more accessible just as modern technology makes the level more accessible. While I could get all "get off my lawn" here, I appreciate how the updated track preserves the wonder and mystery of the original Rainbow Road.
#9: Bone-Dry Dunes
This is one of my least favorite tracks to play in the game - well, at least after Grumble Volcano - but the music is so cool! It's too bad it took me listening to the soundtrack to realize it.
#8: Yoshi Valley (N64)
I've never been to a hoedown, but this song makes me feel like I have. The banjo and fiddle combo is sublime.
#7: Shy Guy Falls
Is this the cutest music track in the game? I love when the Shy Guys start singing along. The tempo is fast and really helps emphasize that you're literally driving up a waterfall in this course.
#6: Mount Wario
This is one ambitious music track that increases in intensity the further you drive along the course, evolving from a fun jump out of a plane to a perilous pine tree maze to a thrilling downhill sprint. The transitions between the many different parts of the song are seamless and feel almost perfectly choreographed. It almost reminds me of the literally choreographed music tracks from Rayman Legends.
#5: Mute City
Aww, hell yeah! Nintendo knew their music was so good that when they started offering new DLC tracks post-release, they also put these behind the music videos out.
F-Zero has one of the best soundtracks of the 16-bit era, and this new take on the most iconic track in the series is a perfect tribute.
#4: Hyrule Circuit
Similar to the DK Jungle track (#18 above), this remix of the original Zelda theme takes the tempo up, adds more playful exchanges, and overall lightens the mood to make it Mario Kart-appropriate. And I just love that violin!
#3: Rainbow Road (N64)
Wow. Just stunning. Everything about this is a perfect reimagining of the song and course it's based on.
#2: Dolphin Shoals
This song always puts me in a good mood, and its sax solo is a thing to behold. I really enjoyed this 13-minute analysis of that solo from 8-Bit Music Theory.
I considered putting this track #1, except for one huge problem - the game hides most of the song from you! When you're underwater, you're listening to the same melody with totally different instrumentation and it just isn't the same experience. At least you can get this version when watching replays of your races.
#1: Big Blue
The original version of this track on Super NES was one of the best 16-bit songs ever, and for years I've enjoyed the updated versions that Nintendo has put out in other F-Zero and Super Smash Bros. games. This remix tops all of them by such a wide margin that it may be the best music track Nintendo has ever made.
The track is tense throughout, as it opens with an uneasy alliance between the guitar and sax as they pass the melody back and forth. Eventually, the two break the truce and an epic battle ensues, and the drums and bass have to intervene to pull everyone back together.
The first time I heard it I was speechless. And the most recent time I heard it - while I was writing this - I felt the same way. It's the best.
-rj