Unlocking Items in Mario Kart Wii
Find Out How to Unlock Characters, Karts, Bikes and the Mirror Mode
Unlock all the Characters
Fourteen characters in all can be unlocked in Mario Kart Wii, in addition to the twelve characters already available at the start of the game. The following characters can be unlocked by completing certain tasks:
- King Boo - Win the 50cc Star Cup
- Diddy Kong - Win the 50cc Retro Cups
- Mii (Outfit A) - Win the 100cc Special Cup
- Dry Bones - Win the 100cc Leaf Cup
- Daisy - Win the 150cc Special Cup
- Baby Daisy - Get 1 star in all 50cc Wii Cups
- Bowser Jr. - Get 1 star in all 100cc Retro Cups
- Dry Bowser - Get 1 star in all 150cc Wii Cups
- Rosalina - Get 1 star in all Mirror Mode Wii Cups (or, have a Super Mario Galaxy save file and complete 50 races)
- Birdo - Play 16 Time Trial Mode courses (or, win 250 WiFi matches)
- Toadette - Play 32 Time Trial Mode courses (or, win 1000 WiFi matches)
- Funky Kong - Unlock 4 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode
- Baby Luigi - Unlock 8 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode
- Mii (Outfit B) - Unlock 32 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode
Unlock all the Karts
Nine unlockable karts are also hidden within Mario Kart Wii:
- Piranha Prowler (large kart) - Win 50cc Special Cup
- Turbo Blooper (medium kart) - Win 50cc Leaf Cup
- Royal Racer (medium kart) - Win 150cc Leaf Cup
- Honeycoupe (large kart) - Win 150cc Lightning Cup
- Blue Falcon (small kart) - Win Mirror Mode Lightning Cup
- Cheep Charger (small kart) - Get 1 star in all 50cc Retro Cups
- Aero Glider (large kart) - Get 1 star in all 150cc Retro Cups
- Tiny Titan (small kart) - Unlock 1 Expert Staff Time in Time Trial Mode (or, win 50 WiFi matches)
- Sprinter (medium kart) - Unlock 24 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode
Unlock all the Bikes
Similarly, nine bikes can also be unlocked upon meeting certain requirements in Mario Kart Wii:
- Shooting Star (large bike) - Win 100cc Star Cup
- Zip Zip (medium bike) - Win 100cc Lightning Cup
- Quacker (small bike) - Win 150cc Star Cup
- Dolphin Dasher (medium bike) - Win Mirror Mode Star Cup
- Phantom (large bike) - Win Mirror Mode Special Cup
- Bubble Bike (small bike) - Win Mirror Mode Leaf Cup
- Sneakster (medium bike) - Get 1 star in all 100cc Wii cups
- Magikruiser (small bike) - Play 8 Time Trial Mode courses
- Spear (large bike) - Unlock 12 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode
Unlock Mirror Mode
In addition to unlockable characters, karts and bikes, Nintendo also included an unlockable Grand Prix mode in Mario Kart Wii: Mirror Mode. To unlock Mirror Mode, one must place 1st in all races in the 150cc mode.
Get a Golden Wii Wheel and Stars by a Nickname
Unlocking all the characters, bikes, and karts in Mario Kart Wii will undoubtedly require a lot of driving. Fortunately, Nintendo has implemented a way to recognize those players who excel at offline Mario Kart. If one competes in over 100 Grand Prix games AND uses the Wii Wheel more than 50 percent of the time, that player will have a Golden Wheel next to his or her name during online play.
Additionally, if one gets one star in every Grand Prix cup, he or she will have one star by his or her name during online play. Similarly, if one gets two stars in every Grand Prix cup, he will have two stars by his name, and so on.
Final Notes
Gamers should note that some of the kart and bike names will be different in European and Japanese versions of Mario Kart Wii; the names provided here are from the North American version of the game.
Additionally, players should note that, upon completing some of the above requirements, the character, bike, or kart in question may not be available until the player restarts the game.
For a variety of Mario Kart Wii tips that can help players unlock all the items in Mario Kart Wii -- including how to block red and green shells, how to avoid blue shells and POW blocks, and how to beat Grumble Volcano in under a minute -- go to Suite101's article, How to Win at Mario Kart Wii.
Gamers may also be interested in reading Suite101's Mario Kart Wii review, or in learning about another upcoming Nintendo Wii Mario game, Mario Super Sluggers.
