Heart / Super Leaf

History:

The Heart was first crafted by Princess Peach, who, being generally against the violence inherent in the male-dominated Grand Prix, sought to develop a more peaceful, defensive item for the 2003 rendition. Using the Power of Love, she formed the Heart, which would circle a Kart, deflecting most small-scale warfare. It was never that popular outside of herself and Daisy, who claimed it as their special item.

Some of that deflection technology was mimicked, however, in adapting the Super Leaf to the Grand Prix. Millennia ago, the Ancient Tanookis infused their magic onto certain brown leaves. When consumed, people would forcibly be transformed into Half-man / half-raccoon creatures. The effect was temporary, although in stronger doses, this "Super Leaf" would encase the consumer in a suit that resembled the Tanooki itself. Like all raccoons, users gained the power to smash things with their tails, as well as use them to slow their falls through rapid rotation. Like all Tanooki Raccoons, the suit also granted some limited powers of flight. With some ingenuity, the powers of the Super Leaf were adapted to affect the Karts themselves, which granted them similar effects.

Double Dash:

The Super Leaf are lumped as a deflecting successor to the Heart here. In Double Dash, each Racer had a Special Item shared with his or her partner. Peach and Daisy used the Heart, along with King Boo and Petey Piranha, who used every Special Item. The Heart is a unique Item in that it is purely defensive. When activated, two Hearts encircle the Kart, picking up any Item the Driver runs over. This includes Stars and Mushrooms left on the track, which essentially wastes a Heart, although there is some benefit in picking them up and then finding an optimal time to use these Items rather than an immediate activation (into say, a cliff). The pick-up also only works if neither Racer is already holding another Item. In this case, though, it will be used and prevent a spin-out at least.

The Heart overrules Bowser Shells, Giant Bananas, and Fireballs, although when the latter is re-issued, only a single flame, not five are sent out. It is powerless against Chain Chomps and Blue Shells, though, and the Hearts will be destroyed if struck by a Thunderbolt. They also may pick up sitting Bob-ombs, but cannot protect against Bob-omb explosions.

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Like the Fire Flower, once activated, the Tanooki Tail lasts for either ten seconds or ten swipes. It can bat away many items, from shells to bananas, but this requires careful timing. If an item strikes the tail while it is not swiping, it will be destroyed. Also like the Heart, it offers no protection against Blue Shells. It may also be used offensively, and works as a melee similar to the partner-attack from Double Dash, with a bit more potency.

It is also a rare item in that it actually affects the sea and air properties of the kart - becoming a propeller underwater, and gifting a little more speed and lift to flight when activated in the air.

Coconut Mall

History:

The Coconut Mall was already a popular shopping spot on the Isle of Delfino before Daisy took it over. Located near Gelato Beach, she purchased the Mall and converted it to a race course that ended up being even more popular than it was as simply a shopping center. Nevermind the intrusion of Royal Influences on the Isle of Delfino, Daisy later gave the mall over to the Honey Queen, as with her Cruise Line booming and other courses burgeoning, the high crowds and demands became too much for her to handle.

Wii:

Coconut Mall is the second course in the Flower Cup and provides a good transition between the ease of the Mario Circuit and the growing complication of that cup. There is no major dangers here but there are plenty of multiple pathways, difficult shortcuts, sharp turns, and obstacles. There is no Off-Road here, except for a shortcut after the first set of escalators, and for the most part the track is wide but with sheer walls, allowing for plenty of chaos. There are many different paths, although for the most part one is clearly better than the other. The trickiest part may be making sure you hit an escalator when it is moving up and not down, which is on a timer that should work naturally with the progression of the course. If you get bogged down and fall behind that timing will be off (rarely, if you in fact get too far ahead you can beat the timing as well, although this is more of a Time Trial issue). The killer is also timing the final stretch of Boosts around the Cars.

The Staff Ghost here is Daisy, who uses the Sugarscoot in 02:30.764. The Expert switches to the Wild Wing in 02:13.333. Although Daisy is a good character for this level with is massive straightaways and moderate turns, Funky or Rosalina can do a little better with their Vehicle Options' Base Stats and if driven correctly there's no need to slow down or to have even moderate handling.

This track makes a comeback in 7, with some minor changes such as the lack of a final Car, making the final dash panel much safer to hit. The biggest change is the Airstrip on the Final Big Jump, although it's not as essential as Air Travel is on some of the other courses. The Ghost here is switched to the Honey Queen, who uses the Standard, Slim Tires and Super Glider in 02:30.117. The Expert switches to the Koopa Clown, Sponge, and Paraglider in 02:14.167. Her handling in the air will be superb but her land speed leaves much to be desired. Swap those wheels for Slick or Gold and burn it.

Tick Tock Clock

History:

Within Princess Peach's Castle, on the third floor there is a Mystical Clock. The records of its existence go back as far as the construction of the castle itself and it's possible that the structure was built around its time-warping energies rather than the other way around. The Clock is actually a portal to an infinite dimension where time is as manipulable as paint on a brush. It is an extremely dangerous place to explore, but after Mario was able to use the Star Power to conquer its perils he pressured Peach to turn it into a racecourse for profit. Peach never felt great about doing so however, and eventually turned the rights over to Daisy. It remains a dangerous locale for explorers and racers alike, not only because of the deep mysteries surrounding its power and origins.

DS:

This course is actually a relatively simple Figure 8, although there are a good amount of moving parts and gears to throw riders off. Beware of the massive pendulum as well as the spinning clock hands. If you travel in the correct direction of the gears racers can get a bit of a boost but they are hindered by traveling in the opposite direction. It's actually a course more suited for fast Drivers who can haul ass on straightaways with minimal correction (and luck) needed to avoid the pendulum and other hazards. Someone in the ROB-BLS would do nicely here.

The Ghost here is Daisy for some reason who does a 1:54:903 in the Light Dancer. This track has only appeared in DS although it's popular enough to be a likely candidate for a remake someday.

Daisy Cruiser

History:

After spending a large amount of time in the Mushroom Kingdom Princess Daisy created a Cruise Line enterprise based from her Vacation Home on Isle Delfino. It originally launched from Peach Beach, a parcel of land owned by Princess Peach but after Daisy was able to build her own Circuit on the other side of the Island, complete with yachts and other watercraft, the Cruiser launched from there. Its general route takes it from the Daisy Circuit around the Isle Delfino to a brief stop to lounge on Peach Beach, then across the Sea to Dinosaur Land near Yoshi's Island and back again. During the Long Journey Daisy decided to outfit the boat as a Race Course, although the difficult logistics involved has prevented it from appearing in many subsequent Grand Prix.

Double Dash:

Daisy Cruiser appears in the Flower Cup in Double Dash and as such has some tough turns but not a whole lot of obstacles that are that dangerous. Its basic shape is a long oval, although straightaways are usually broken up by slight turns, although some are very sharp. The course is actually wide enough that the two most dramatic turns at both the bow and stern aren't all that difficult and actually pretty good spots for Drifting and Mini Turbos. There aren't any hills but there are some steps that can be lethal for bouncy Karts like the Waluigi Racer, although they're relatively brief. Even though the outside portions of the course are relatively wide there are some tight sections of interior corridors, perfect for nasty items like the Giant Banana, Bowser Shell or Bob-omb. I think any Heavyweight who has access to these items using the Piranha Pipes will finds some success here.

The Daisy Cruiser  can be seen floating around in the distance of many other levels near wide oceans. This includes Peach Beach in both its Double Dash and Wii incarnations, as well as the Yoshi Circuit and Daisy Circuit. The Secret Staff Ghost in the Time Trials here is Daisy driving Peach around in the Heart Coach, pulling a time of 1:52:207.

The course reappears in Mario Kart 7 with some major changes. There is now an alternate path after the start to the immediate left. With 7's new Sea Travel possibilities the big pool is no longer a danger and the cargo hold has been transformed into an aquarium, with just a boost jump afterwards, not a cannon. These are optional shortcuts, but if you take them you had better have someone who is effective underwater. The Ghost here is Daisy, naturally, who goes a 01:49.564 using the Pipe Frame, Sponge Wheels, and Peach Parasol. The Expert exchanges the Pipe Frame for the Tiny Tug and pulls a 01:43.341. The Sponge Wheels rob both of these Karts of their underwater advantage, attack.

Cloud Tracks

History:

The Sky Garden course is one of the very few in Sarasaland, homeland of Princess Daisy. It floats on the skies high above the Capitol Kingdom of Chai. Using some of the Kingdom's own magical essence and the tall vines in the Kingdom the track is supported on the very clouds themselves. Its dangerous access and expensive upkeep led to no other tracks developing up here although this course has returned on a few subsequent Grand Prix under the administration of Daisy.

The blueprints of stable cloud and vine racing technology was eventually adapted in another location, off the Western Coast of the Dark Land, officially in neutral territory, but filled with many of Lord Bowser's Airships. Bowser and Baby Rosalina made a landmark deal to decommission a small portion of his fleet in the interests of the race course. It was one of Baby Rosalina's first moves upon entering the current timestream, and evidently Bowser held her Galactic Authority in high regard despite his attempts to upset her older counterpart.

Super Circuit:

This is the Second Track in the Lightning Cup, which appears only in Super Circuit. It's a bit difficult, almost Rainbow Road-esque with its lack of borders, although the course is wide enough with some cloudy Offroad meridians that slow Racers down. There are also plenty of boosts to avoid some close portions of track. It is basically a simple loop with a handful of tight turns. Control is very important here around the edges so someone like Peach or Yoshi would be valuable. In Grand Prix someone a bit heavier like Kong or Wario might be useful in order to avoid being knocked around.

This track returned in DS where the Staff Ghost is Daisy on one of her random appearances in this game. She utilises the Power Flower in 1:44:400. There is also a Luigi Blimp floating around, which suggests that it might be in the Mushroom Kingdom, but more likely it's Luigi staking his claim on Daisy's territory.

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It's great to see such the amalgamation here of two of Mario Kart's more bizarre courses - Super Circuit's Sky Garden and DS's Airship Fortress. Cloudtop Cruise has four major sections: Some curves on solid clouds, a brief overlay on to the deck of one of Bowser's Airships, an anti-grav section on a metal track inside of an active thunderstorm, and finally across a gargantuan vine growing out of a ? Box. It's pretty diverse but thematically sound. There aren't even a ton of spots to fall off of, unless you botch one of the two air jumps sandwiching the thundercloud or botch the supple slope of the vine.

The Staff Ghost is Baby Rosalina, in perhaps a nod to her other worldly or heavenly nature among the clouds. She uses the Biddybuggy, Standard Tires, and Super Glider, which means her speed is ridiculously low but she can handle like a dream. Handling isn't completely necessary here, the only really difficult turns would be on the Airship deck. Go with something crazy fast like the Mach 8 and Slick Tires and then adjust your handling needs by the Driver's weight class. All you need to beat is 2:26.347.

Royal Tracks

History:

Soon after the young Princess Peach was thrust into the Rule of the Mushroom Kingdom in 1983 after the death of her Father, the Kingdom fell into Financial Ruin. Since the Mushroom People are not naturally capitalistic they remained mostly ignorant however, and their simple farming and trading ways were hardly affected. Some of the larger Banks of Mushroom City and beyond were launched into Crisis though, and many foreclosed. It wasn't until the Racing Grand Prix that began in the early 90s did the economy get a shot in the arm. Not only did more people pay huge sums of cash to see the races, many different parties developed Tracks across the Kingdom, which led to massive Population Movements. It wasn't long then, until with the advice of Toad, her Consigliere, that Peach developed the Royal Raceway on what used to be her Personal Grounds. While later her suitor Mario would develop his own tracks on Private Royal land, Peach also founded the Peach Circuit immediately South of her Official Lands as well as her expansive Private Gardens, the Peach Gardens, which were full of tamed Chain Chomps.

In addition to all this, Daisy, Princess and Ruler of Sarasaland also recently developed a course on the Isle of Delfino, which has proved incredibly popular with both the native Piantas and residents of the Mushroom Kingdom on vacation. We've included it here as the only other Circuit Track sponsored by a Royal Princess.

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The Royal Raceway is mostly known for two things: 1) The Enormous Jump and 2) Access to Peach's Castle. This was an early direct link to a previous Mario Adventure Game, in this case, Super Mario 64, where the Castle is identical and that game's primary setting. It's fitting that the final Award Ceremony also takes place here, giving some Center to the Races in the Mushroom Kingdom. Peach's course is also the center for the Award Ceremony in Double Dash, at Peach Beach.

As the third course in the Star Cup, it's one of the more-advanced Circuit tracks, and it proves it. This course has tons of deceptively dangerous turns, taking any too wide on the slopes towards the lake results in instantaneous failure. If the Big Jump is misjudged it may also lead to a crash into the Mountains. Some grassy sections actually prove nice cut-through spots if you have a Mushroom or Star, but ultimately you need trustworthy handling here to succeed.

Super Circuit:

Super Circuit broke tradition by making Peach Circuit the First Course in the Mushroom Cup.Every game since has featured a Luigi Circuit or something very similar. That said, this isn't a whole lot like Royal Raceway. The Castle is close but inaccessible and there is a ton of grassy corners to cut. There isn't really a character who is poor here. It's very straightforward. This track came back in DS along with the first track from SMK, Mario Circuit 1 and the first track from Double Dash, Luigi Circuit to make up the Shell Cup. It was all a conspiracy to not have an all-Luigi Circuit Cup, for sure. The Ghost here is Peach driving the Royale with a time of 1:12:011.

DS:

Peach Gardens is a unique course with lots of possible turns and paths along with some of the nicest Chain Chomps to be found in a Mario Kart game. It's also in the Special Cup, which is extremely tame in DS. There are some hills that aren't too difficult and not a whole lot of danger outside of some moles, a water hazard that is very easy to avoid and the aforementioned Chomps, who don't chase you but rather stay on their own path. There are plenty of right-angle turns, but the path is actually so wide in these places that it's never that difficult. The same goes for weaving between the large Southern Hedge. Go for someone like Bowser with speed here with impunity. The Ghost is Peach in the Royale again with a time of 1:52:989.

This track also came back in Wii without a whole lot of difference. The Ghost here is Baby Peach this time, clearly loving playing in her Big-Ass Garden. The Normal does a 02:34.894 in the Magikruiser, the Expert pulls a 02:16.777 in the Mini Beast. Again, you can take speed here, Funky in the Spear is perfect.

Wii:

Like I said, I've lumped the Daisy Circuit in here because it's one of the only Circuit Tracks in Wii (actually every Original Cup except for the Special opens with a Circuit Track) and it's more similar to be lumped in here than any place else. It does have some unique elements though. Its seaside village aspects may make it more similar to Delfino Plaza and its Sunset Time recalls Waluigi Stadium. It's a Royal Road, though so it ends up here. It opens up the Star Cup here and is pretty straightforward besides some city twists and gentle curves. Actually the more I look at it the more I realise this is a hodge-podge track. The "8" midway through comes back in Wii's Rainbow Road, and the two sections of track right next to each other looks like an Early Luigi Circuit. Like the other recent Royal Tracks though, someone with tons of Speed can make it through here. It's pretty well suited to Daisy herself in the Mach Bike.

The Ghost is exactly that. Daisy goes a 01:56.822 in the Royal Racer, then the Expert does a 01:41.362 in the Mach Bike.

Princess Daisy

History:

Daisy hails from the far-off Sarasaland where she rules with peace and justice, although she may hardly be found on her throne, instead she continually trounces off with her Mushroom Kingdom friends, leaving the actual Governance of Sarasaland to more capable people. She is more of a Figurehead than Princess Peach and her Royal Duties lessened, she has embarked on many Entrepreneurial Opportunities. Her biggest venture has been her Cruise Line, which jets across the wide Seas of Mushroom World and has made her independently wealthy. She recently used some of this money to purchase a spot of land on Isle Delfino opposite Peach Beach where she has made a very popular Seaside Racecourse.

Daisy has some interesting relationships among the other racers. As she was casual friends with Peach, seeing her at Mushroom World Leaders Conferences and so forth, it was only natural that she'd meet her beau Mario and be introduced to his brother, Luigi, which was a natural fit. Waluigi, however, also obsesses over her, although Wario's involvement in using the Alien Tatanga to attempt to conquer Sarasaland puts a strain on their relationship. Still, Daisy Circuit and Waluigi Stadium are the only Sunset Courses named after a character. Just sayin'.

Double Dash:

Daisy is a playable character from the outset of Double Dash and is Peach's default partner. She is identical to Peach in every way, but still makes for some interesting Partnerships. Like the Daisy/Bowser? What the hell is going on there? Anyway, Double Dash didn't put as much emphasis on the Drivers as it did on individual Karts. Drivers basically determined the Weight Class along with the Special Item while Karts determined the rest. Daisy drives the Bloom Coach, which is pretty decent.

The Bloom Coach has the best shocks and nearly the best Turn Speed of all the Middle Karts. It's also on the faster side at 57 mph. It also has the Best Acceleration of all Middle Karts although it's 8th over all. Its only issues is that it's also the lightest Middle Kart (14th over all) and its Offroad is terrible. Still, it's about as close to a Light Kart as a Middleweight is going to get, so that's worth something.

Daisy's Special Item is the Heart, which is pretty unique. It's purely defensive. Once activated, two Hearts will circle the Vehicle and pick up any item the Driver runs over. This includes Giant Bananas and Bowser Shells. It will however, also pick up Mushrooms and Stars lying on the track instead of instantly boosting from them. It's also tough because you'll only acquire the Item if neither racer has one already, otherwise a Heart is used but you get nothing. Except you don't spin out. So it's pretty good.

There were Secret Staff Ghosts in Double Dash. Daisy appears behind her partner Peach on Peach Beach with a time of 1:20:404 and then takes the lead on Daisy Cruiser at 1:52:207. Both utilize Peach's Heart Coach.

DS:

Daisy appears as an unlockable Character in DS. The major difference between characters here are their weights and Daisy adds 1 to each of her rides, tied with Peach in being in between the lightest characters and Mario and Luigi as Middleweights. DS featured an insistence on Karts rather than Drivers, although their weights still influenced who could push around who. Each Character initially had two Karts with another unlockable, but eventually any Character could use any Kart, which is staggering. The Stats for Daisy's Vehicles are as follows:

Her Karts naturally have excellent Drifting abilities and fair Speed and Acceleration but below-average Handling. Daisy has some interesting Ghosts in this game. Her Nitro Track is on Tick-Tock Clock at 1:54:903 in her Light Dancer. I really think they just ran out of Courses for Characters and so they stuck her here, she has no other connection to Tick-Tock Clock, a course based on a game she had no part of. She's also in the Retro Sky Garden from Super Circuit at 1:44:400 in the Power Flower. Again, she didn't appear in Super Circuit and has no real place in Sky Garden. Then again, that Track is weird enough that any connection to it is a bit strange. Really that could be a Paratroopa Course and nothing else.

Wii:

Wii compiled the DS idea of Kart-Specific Stats with the earlier ideas of Character-Specific Stats and debuted Six Karts and Six Bikes for each Size Class, each with different statistics along with Stat Bonuses that adjusted all of these for each Character. Daisy is actually one of the better Racers in the game. She gets +2 Handling and +3 Drift which are decent but she really flies with her +4 Speed Bonus, one of the highest in the game. The stats specifically tuned to her are as follows:

Her best ride is probably the Mach Bike or the B Dasher Mk 2, two Rides that really take advantage of her ability to Zoom. Wii also has some Staff Ghosts here that are a bit more fitting for her character. She races the Coconut Mall in 02:30.764 (wait...is that really a Shopping thing?) in the Sugarscoot and then her own Daisy Circuit with the Royal Racer in 01:56.822. The Expert Ghosts go 02:13.333 in the Wild Wing and 01:41.362 in the Mach Bike respectively.