Rainbow Road (SNES)

Mario Kart 7 (2011)

Mario Kart 8 (DLC Pack 1) (2014)

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017)

WarioWare Gold (2018)

Mario Kart Tour (2019)

Winter Tour (2019)

London Tour

Valentine's Tour

Vancouver Tour

Mario Bros. Tour

Trick Tour

Peach Tour

Exploration Tour

Halloween Tour (2020)

Sunset Tour

Mario vs. Luigi Tour

Winter Tour (2020)

Rosalina Tour

Peach vs. Daisy Tour

Ninja Tour

### Course map

The original **Rainbow Road** debuted in *Super Mario Kart*, as the last course of the Special Cup, starting the *Mario Kart* series tradition of having Rainbow Road as the last course of the final cup. It is the shortest Rainbow Road to date, and it is the most common retro track in the series, having appeared six times in different games, more than any other *Mario Kart* track.

This course is unique in *Super Mario Kart* in the fact that it is the only track in the game that is not numbered compared to the others, and thus it is the game's only unique track. It is the only track in the Special Cup with normal traction, but lacks rails entirely and has only 90-degree turns. Rainbow-colored tiles and a few jumping bumps cover the track's surface, and the yellow tiles conceal Coins. This course features Star Thwomps which can wipe out a racer by touch, unlike regular Thwomps, as well as by crushing, unless the racer uses a Super Star or a Boo.

## Course layout

The track begins with racers taking a turn to the right, where they will find ? Panels to gather items. There are some Jumps, followed by four Thwomps. After this, racers turn to the right again where they can collect some coins, followed by another turn to the right, where there is once again a path with jumping bumps with an incoming turn that might cause racers to fall. After this turn, the track gets narrower and follows a long path where more coins and Thwomps are found along the way with another turn awaiting the player. It is here where the track gets even more narrow increasing the risk of falling. Before the final turn, the track splits into two roads; the left side contains coins while the right side has two ? Panels, both have a pair of Thwomps near the part where these roads merge. Alternatively, there are two jumping bumps in the middle gap; if any racers use a Mushroom while they are heading for them, they can jump over the gap for a significant shortcut. After the final turn, before the finish line, there is another quartet of Thwomps, but this time there is no space between them to pass, with players only being able to pass them by driving on the side or when the Thwomps are rising.

## *Mario Kart Tour*

Rainbow Road reappears in *Mario Kart Tour*, starting with the Tokyo Tour, mostly taking on the appearance of its *Mario Kart 7* iteration. However, the ramp inside the second U-turn is absent (as in the original and GBA versions), the hole in the road is even smaller than it was before (the narrow part at the end is only one tile long, and the hole in general is 7 tiles shorter), the last two Thwomps are further apart, the red tiling on the course and banner returns (in place of the pink ones in *Mario Kart 7*), the track edges are rounded, the track itself is thicker, and the arrow signs and Thwomp designs from the *Mario Kart 8* rendition return. This course is a favorite of Rosalina, Metal Mario, Ice Mario, Pauline (Party Time), and Peach (Wedding). It is also a favorite of Dry Bones (Gold) if he is at level 3 and Peach (Kimono) if she is at level 6.

The course's R variant now includes a Glide Ramp going over a large gap, with star-shaped sets of coins appearing. The T variant includes a larger quantity of ramps, as well as steeper inclines in certain sections, while also removing all Star Thwomps; the sections that had them originally now constantly wave. The R/T variant greatly changes the layout, adding steeper inclines, sections which constantly wave (though Star Thwomps do appear unlike in the T variant), a Glide Ramp, a large amount of Star Rings, and a Mushroom Trampoline.

The course also reuses the *Mario Kart 7* arrangement of its theme, while other retro courses retain their original music.

This version of Rainbow Road received two remixed versions, titled RMX Rainbow Road 1 and RMX Rainbow Road 2, first appearing in the Super Mario Kart Tour and New Year's 2021 Tour, respectively.