Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
  1. Apr 29, 2015
    100
    I genuinely have no complaints about the Animal Crossing DLC for Mario Kart 8 and highly recommend getting this content, as well as the first pack if you haven’t yet, to expand on your Mario Kart experience.
  2. Apr 28, 2015
    96
    Old tracks, new tracks, more characters, more vehicles. This new Mario Kart expansion has it all!
  3. Apr 24, 2015
    95
    In the same way as the first DLC for Mario Kart 8, this new expansion offers rich content that make its price seems to cheap for all the new circuits, characters and cars. With this second wave of new circuits, Nintendo shows why it is one of the best games on the new generation consoles and definitely the best title on the franchise and in the karting genre.
  4. 95
    It’s impossible not to be impressed with the second round of DLC: in every way, it either lives up to or even surpasses even the original game, gives tons of content, and does so all while expanding the possibilities of Mario Kart for the future.
  5. 90
    This second DLC pack is great—better than the first—and I highly recommend it.
  6. Apr 29, 2015
    90
    It's the perfect add on for every MK fan out there, one you won't ever regret spending your money for.
  7. Apr 24, 2015
    90
    While not every new track is memorable, there is a consistent quality here and a few of them represent Mario Kart at its best.
  8. Apr 23, 2015
    90
    Generous in both content and price, this is another gold standard in DLC expansions – and in terms of 200cc mode one of the best free extras ever.
  9. Nintendo Force Magazine
    May 27, 2015
    85
    Nintendo has done it again. [Issue #15: May/June 2015, p.22]
  10. May 5, 2015
    85
    This DLC is a perfect add on for every Mario Kart 8 fan.
  11. Apr 23, 2015
    80
    It's hard to resist this second DLC. With 3 characters, 4 vehicles and 8 really inspired tracks for a fair price, we have all we need to keep on playing Mario Kart 8 alone or with friends.
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 336 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Negative: 51 out of 336
  1. Apr 23, 2015
    10
    Simply spectacular! Somehow, Nintendo managed to top Zelda x Mario Kart 8 with their latest pack focused on Animal Crossing. Three brand newSimply spectacular! Somehow, Nintendo managed to top Zelda x Mario Kart 8 with their latest pack focused on Animal Crossing. Three brand new characters (all of which are great choices, unlike the last pack's Tanooki Mario and Cat Peach), eight new tracks (all of which are amazing, unlike the last pack's Ice Ice Outpost), and four new vehicles which I'll find myself constantly using.

    Baby Park is a chaotic thrill ride that lasts seven laps. It's always great fun.
    Cheese Land is a unique and at times challenging coaster through a maze of dairy products.
    Wild Woods is a beautiful and fast-paced climb up to the treetops and through river rapids.
    Animal Crossing is a nostalgic course that can change seasons, giving it great replay value.
    Neo Bowser City is a difficult, twisty rainy nighttime course that really tests your skills.
    Ribbon Road is nonstop eye candy filled with references; not to mention it's simply an amazing course.
    Super Bell Subway is a creative ride through the underground. Avoid the subway trains!
    Big Blue is an F-Zero course (3 sections; not 3 laps) that is speedy, beautiful, challenging, and stellar.

    Have I already given the pack enough praise?
    Full Review »
  2. Apr 26, 2015
    10
    Here is just a quick rundown of all the tracks in the game, as well as the characters and vehicles to help give people who are unsure a solidHere is just a quick rundown of all the tracks in the game, as well as the characters and vehicles to help give people who are unsure a solid overview.

    Baby Park: Still very hectic and crazy as ever, especially when you set it to frantic mode or 200cc! It 's all about items and drifting like in the original, but the anti gravity here is great to let you quickly boost ahead of everyone! Still pretty awesome!

    Cheese Land: Pretty standard stuff, but very focused on small speed boosts. There's a lot of sharp turns for drifting, bumps for doing tricks, and half of it is in anti-gravity. Plus, there's a really cool glider shortcut, and some great music as well. Pretty good honestly.

    Ribbon road: THE PRESENTATION OF THIS TRACK IS PERFECT! Everything is set in a little kid's toy room, and they play it up so well! Other than that, there's a lot of really cool shortcuts that don't require mushrooms to access, which is always great for a little bit of risk vs. reward. Amazing!

    Neo Bowser city: again, pretty standard stuff, but the presentation and music are spot on, and there's some areas on the track where you can definitely fall off easily, even if you're drifting. It's pretty fun just because of that little touch, because everything feels a little more frantic when playing with friends.

    Animal crossing: Again, perfect presentation with some AMAZING attention to detail! There's tons of references to Animal crossing games, like the money rock, trees dropping apples for speed boosts, coins being replaced with bells, and even changing seasons that affect the gameplay! Because of all the little details, this track really feels like you're racing through Animal Crossing, and that's awesome!

    Wild Woods: Presentation is really good once again, Amanda the track design makes good use of nearly EVERY MECHANIC! There's a lot of anti gravity for speed boosts, but they can also launch you off the edge! There's an abundance of ramps, a glider section, a water slide and boost pad section, and really cool drifts! Because of all this, the track feels really fast, and that makes it really fun!

    Super Bell Subway: Presentation mimics a subway station that connects nearly all the tracks, with tons of attention to detail, and really cool references! This track is all about branching paths, and as a result, it feels really different every time! There's riding along the tracks, or above them to the left or right. It's very drifty, features a lot of bumps and boost pads, and the train is a really big obstacle, but also functions as a shortcut for the higher tracks! It feels like the toad's turnpike done much better than in the retro rendition here, and that's really awesome!

    Big Blue: This is possibly the best track in the entire game, if not the entire series! I'm not exaggerating when I say that it's truly epic, unique, and exhilarating! The song in the background is awesome, the presentation is great for displaying the twisty effect of anti gravity, and this track is FAST. Even on 50cc, it's blistering speeds all the way. There's tons of drifts and bumps, conveyer belts, water slides, and boost pads galore. Add that on top of some epic anti gravity that wraps around the entire course, and a huge Mt. Wario lap structure, and you've got an amazing track on your hands!

    Finally, Vehicles and Characters: Isabelle and the villager are both really adorable with all their tricks and karts, dry bowser and his bone bike is a really menacing character, and the p-wing is a great speedster car!

    Well, that's about it! I hope this helps you if you were wondering whether to purchase this or not. Either way, for $8, or $12 is you wanted the other pack, which is also pretty good, this is definitely worth your time!
    Full Review »
  3. Apr 25, 2015
    10
    The first DLC for this game was a superb effort. The second is even better. 8 fantastic tracks. 3 great characters. 4 good vehicles (as wellThe first DLC for this game was a superb effort. The second is even better. 8 fantastic tracks. 3 great characters. 4 good vehicles (as well as a nice set of tyres and a glider). All of this for a very nice price (In Britain £7 for the individual pack or £11 for the two DLC together, and you'd be crazy not to take the latter option). For this price this is an awful lot of content.

    The key addition here is the set of 8 new tracks. Unlike the first DLC, where in my opinion there were tracks that were merely ok, in my opinion all 8 of these rank amongst the better tracks in the game. The highlights include the superb Animal Crossing track, which has a completely different atmosphere depending on the randomly chosen season it happens to be while playing it, and the immensely challenging point-to-point track Big Blue inspired by F-Zero.

    Though not strictly part of this pack I feel that the free update that coincided with its release that included a new 200cc mode deserves a mention. It's simply a wonderful addition to the game that really does make you play it completely differently, requiring frequent use of the brakes (and it is now possible to brake while drifting to assist with this, which is a great addition). This along with the new DLC pushes the entire package of Mario Kart 8 over the top. If Mario Kart 8 wasn't one of the games of the generation when it came out, it surely is now. I hope Nintendo don't stop with it here, I feel like this game has a lot of life left in it still.
    Full Review »