Summary
DLC is a wonderful thing, as it can take an already robust game and expand its lifespan even further with a bevy of new content. Nintendo adopted this model early last year forMario Kart 8 Deluxewith a Booster Course Pass that periodically adds new characters and tracks for players to enjoy. The base version of theSwitch port was already a Wii U game, featuring a ton of content in that form, so these new DLC waves now leave players with no shortage of options to choose from.
With the fifth batch of DLC hittingMario Kart 8 Deluxeearlier this month, that leaves just one more pack on the horizon before Nintendo’s six-wave plan is complete. It remains to be seen what exactly will be included in this final addition to the game, but an even more important question may be when it will become available. Nothing is confirmed as of this writing, however, looking back at past release patterns can help pave the way towards an educated guess.
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The Final Mario Kart 8 DLC PackNintendo formally announced its plan to addDLC content toMario Kart 8 Deluxeduring a February 2022 Nintendo Direct. In that announcement, Nintendo confirmed that these new additions would be split up across six waves, all arriving before the end of 2023. The plan has definitely unfolded as advertised, with one Booster Course pack remaining and with only a few months of 2023 left on the calendar. With less than half of the year left, the question of course is when this final pack will ultimately become available.
Considering that themost recentMario Kart 8 DeluxeDLC packlaunched on July 12, roughly two weeks ago, it’s unlikely that the next wave will arrive anytime soon. Nintendo will likely want to space things out to give this most recent pack time to breathe and for players to enjoy this recent addition to the game, before providing an entirely new barrage of racetracks and characters to play with. For this reason, a release date in the final months of the year seems likely.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Release Pattern
For further confirmation of this, looking back at the release schedule for priorMario Kart 8 DeluxeDLC packs seems to reveal an obvious pattern. After the initial plan was revealed in the aforementioned February 2022 Nintendo Direct, the release lineup was as follows:
Based on this information, it seems like Nintendo wants to have anewMario Kart 8DLC pack availableroughly every 1/3 of the year. One early on during Spring, another at some point in the Summer, and then a final pack as the year comes to a close. Although 2023’s release dates aren’t exactly the same as 2022’s so far, they are close enough to assume that the final pack will follow the same pattern as last year, launching close sometime around December.
Furthermore, it’s likely that this final pack will hit around December as Nintendo will want to space out its Holiday content. It will have the highly anticipatedSuper Mario Bros Wonderavailable in October, thenSuper Mario RPG Remakein November. Rounding out this lineup with moreMario Kart 8 Deluxecontent in December would serve as a nice cherry on top, and give all of these new games enough breathing room in between. All of this is speculation at this point, but Nintendo usually holds a Direct presentation in September, so hopefully, further information will be provided there.
