In the newest Nintendo Direct, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC revealed. At a $24.99 price tag, players may be wondering is the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC worth it or not. In order to help players commit to this decision, here is a speculated analysis of the DLC’s appealing qualities alongside its downsides.
The Booster Course Pass DLC will release in waves, with a total of 48 new maps. Each wave has eight new maps, with six separate waves. Most of these maps are remasters of preexisting Mario Kart games from the other series. Sadly, this means that there will likely be no “new” entry in the Mario Kart series for the Nintendo Switch.
Is the DLC Worth it?
Considering the DLC isn’t out yet, the answer to this will be purely speculative. Technically, the question and title should be “Will Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC be Worth it.” But anyway, at a price point of $24.99 + tax, that places it at a little above $2 per new course. For players that love Mario Kart, this is an absolute steal of a price. Each map will surely have immense replay value, offering different forms of entertainment. Nostalgia, exhilarating thrill, competitive fun, each map creates a whole new world for players to traverse.
But will the maps even be good?
Well, it’s Mario Kart with the official Nintendo company brand name attached to it. And with how great Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is, there’s an incredible amount of quality assurance in these new additions. Keep in mind, many of the maps in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe were originally DLC for the Wii U entry. And for the most part, those maps were quite impressive. Some definitely stand out among the rest, but as a whole the maps were literally so good, that they released Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as a standalone for the Switch. Hopefully, the same can be said for the upcoming new DLC maps.
The biggest reason players wouldn’t buy the DLC is in argue of wanting a brand new entry over more downloadable content.
As previously mentioned, many members of the community waited in anticipation of a potential new Mario Kart game. Mario Kart 8 turns 8 years old in 2022. That’s a pretty old game, and to throw more money at such an old game directly supports the practice of funding DLC rather than brand new game development.
If Mario Kart is releasing more and more new maps, who is to say that they won’t release Mario Kart 8 SUPER Deluxe for their future entry for their hypothetical newest console?
Nintendo Switch Online Full Expansion Pack
Players who have the Nintendo Switch Online full expansion pack reap the benefits, since they get the entire Booster Course Pass for free. Therefore, players who already have this will find the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe very much worth it. They are, essentially, getting it for free.
But is the Nintendo Switch Online expansion pack worth it? Well, this is a whole other issue with its own variables. Shown below are the price points for Nintendo Online, excluding tax, all presented in USD.
A lot of Switch users already have Nintendo Online. So this article will focus on the difference between Nintendo Online yearly membership versus the same yearly membership + Expansion Pack. From $19.99 to $49.99, this is a $30 price increase. Seeing as how Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC costs $24.99, that’s only a $5 difference. Once again, this calculation assumes users already have the yearly online base subscription.
This means that for users already planning on buying the DLC, they’re essentially getting the rest of the online expansion features for only $5. But here’s the thing. Do Nintendo Online Expansion Pack users only gain access to the DLC during the extent of their subscription? Or is the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC considered a one time free purchase during the time of release? If it’s the latter, it seems pretty worth it.
Once again, this calculation assumes players regularly use the Nintendo Switch’s online features, and are therefore already subscribed to their online features.
In Conclusion
The community has been waiting for Mario Kart news for quite a while. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC brings brand new maps to the already amazing game, but pretty much eliminates the possibility of a new Mario Kart entry for the Nintendo Switch. Considering Mario Kart 8 is technically an eight years old game, this is a tad disappointing. Hopefully, this article helped players wondering is Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC worth it or not. Technically speaking, this article should be called “Will Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC Be Worth it.” Whatever the case, there’s definitely a lot to take into consideration.
Expect more details and updates on The Game Haus as more information for the DLC reveals.
Stay Connected
You can find more articles like, “Is the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC Worth it?” and you can ‘Like’ The Game Haus on Facebook and ‘Follow’ us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from other great TGH writers along with Terry!
“From Our Haus to Yours”