Booster Course Wave 3 for Mario Kart 8
Deluxe is here, and we’re checking out All Changes and differences made for
the returning courses. The second race of the Moon Cup is DS Peach Gardens. Yep, it’s time
for my course. [Princess Peach: Yay!] Most likely inspired by European estates, this track features
a walled garden with a mansion similar to Peach’s Castle, numerous topiaries, and other floral
decorations, all guarded by Chomps that patrol the grounds. So how does the most recent update
differ from past instalments? Let’s find out! Evoking thoughts of the Palace of Versailles in
France or Villa Lante in Italy, Peach Gardens in Mario Kart DS seemed most
appropriate for a retreat or wedding, but it was quite simple in design. Enlarged a bit,
the course returned for Wii, with the start pushed ahead and shortcut ramps placed near the
end. During the wait for another revision, a golf course with the same name appeared in Mario Golf:
World Tour as a nod to this track, taking place on Peach’s Castle grounds with a lot of pink, hearts,
and various topiaries of the Super Mario cast. Recently, the course received a huge graphical
overhaul for Tour reflecting the Wave 3 teaser, adding refined decorations—including character
topiaries—and a Big Piranha Plant. Now, it features a surprise detour in the final lap,
utilising the unused part of the original map for a trip around the course in reverse.
Many of the gameplay changes involve the Chomps. Compared to their DS appearance,
these loose-chained menaces moved more slowly. Chomps sped up again in Tour, but they silently
rolled without loose chains or items trailing them. The Chomp by the Mario topiary went in the
opposite direction, with two Dash Panels placed along the back route only for that version. They
once again go slow, bark, and have chains—but no items—and the lone Chomp travels clockwise like
before. New barriers block the back route, but the Chomp can hop straight over them. Another thing
to note here is that since Tour, there have been bricks lining the moat with grass, but only now
can racers drive along them. Unfortunately, invisible walls prevent going too far.
The first flower patch shortcut was made smaller for Tour, but it now is very similar to its
original size again. Simultaneously, other flowerbeds before the maze were removed and
another one put in the corner, while a grassy patch was added on the opposite side with a
garden bench placed at an angle that even the mini-map reflected. Now there’s a garden table
and chairs also, with the spot in front of the bench considered to be out of bounds. Since Tour,
it’s been possible to trick off the top of the slopes leading into and out of the maze area.
This portion of the course has had fewer squares dividing the path compared to DS and Wii—large for
topiaries and small for everything else. The maze has been longer since the makeover, with grassy
lining that could slow down drivers and a space between each cut-off fence and shortened hedge at
the end that now leads out of bounds. Like before the maze, the flowerbeds in the area after it were
rearranged similarly to its counterpart for the Tour update, opting for a table-and-chair
set on the grass. Moving forward, a Big Piranha Plant in a green pipe that targets racers from
the middle of a raised platform replaces the 3 hedges in the circular area. Watch out!
At the S-curve path, ramps were added for the Wii version, adjusting trees to fit. The right ramp
was removed in Tour, but more importantly, the bends were flipped! Furthermore, the foreground
cypresses were rearranged and the flowerbeds adjusted with kerbs blocking them off partially,
while the fencing was made to follow the path a little more. New flower bushes were added in
bounds, but all of these are gone now. The left ramp also was taken out, but a table and chair
set and an aqua bench were put here instead. And behind the bench is another way to get
out of bounds. The Monty Moles burrow across the path for this version, and their burrows can be
used to perform tricks, much like the stationary burrows in Tour before. Heading to the mansion,
pink hyacinths in planters were added to each side of the double doors for the makeover. And
the steps in front allow for tricks for both Tour and the recent update. Oh yeah; that grass
along the fence just ahead that we forgot to mention may slow racers a bit if touched.
For the Final Lap, a radical route change starts where the flowerbed shortcut is, guiding drivers
down the previously inaccessible path onto the other side of the mansion walkway. Two ramps
are placed here, allowing for a jump back to the doors to race along the course in reverse. Just
before the maze is a Glide Ramp for a flight over and around the topiaries and Chomps, much like
Peach Gardens R in Tour. Drivers can pass through the topiaries, but at the risk of slowing down a
lot. We didn’t see this route change coming! As for visual changes beyond the obvious texture
and lighting improvements, there are enough to make our heads spin. Speaking of spinning,
the mini-map has been rotated 180 degrees ever since Wii. The entire environment here as a whole
had numerous adjustments made, like how the lawn stripes were offset a bit in Wii and all separate
orange and yellow flower patches were made into orange, yellow, and white blended beds, while
flowering bushes were increased and rearranged, turning from red and orange...to—again—orange,
yellow, and white. But with Tour’s renovation, the stripes and patches amidst them were replaced
with the presence of two beautiful gazebos surrounded by lovely heart lawn patterns,
with the fewer bushes moved, sporting pink and white flowers. Also in Tour, the outer
wall enclosing the gardens went from being level with only minor tweaks between DS and Wii to being
reconstructed with crenellations and two types of towers, being taller overall. These modifications
also either covered or removed the trees on the other side, but large cypresses were placed around
the perimeter to fill their aesthetic role, along with a curious thin line of grass. The distant
hills were made taller with fewer of them, and the clouds above became thicker and no longer moved
from high winds. This may also explain why the Sun did not return since its appearance in Wii.
And yet it looks brighter now, with thinned-out clouds—behind uniformly striped hills—that also
don’t blow in the wind, but for some reason, the flags atop the towers with darkened star bands
and shingles do! Make sense of that! Finally looking at the starting line,
we see that after being pushed forward in the Wii version, it went from having 17 squares across to
20. The related trellis with the classic logo also was adjusted, removing a set of trees after being
pushed back to align with the starting line. Using two shades of pink, Tour reset the square count
to the original 17 and rebuilt the trellis with red and pink rose accents, a pink modern logo,
and Peach’s crown on top. The fencing changed from edging hoops to a ranch style, while the trees
here became distinctly tiered rather than just striped. But now, the starting line has only 16
squares across, and the trees were repositioned, with all tiered trees becoming medium cypresses.
Likewise, the rose count and placements for the trellis and decorations everywhere differ from
before, and only red roses are seen here. Approaching the Mario topiary in Wii,
the cobblestone pattern went from an angular design to a random type. For Tour’s update,
the stones were flattened, but much more important here was the smoothing of the Super Mario 64-style
Mario topiary, which arguably wasn’t much of an improvement yet. The base became segmented, with
tulips planted along each divider, and the brown bricks underneath were made white, with those
lining the moat also given a bit of an overhanging lip. All around here, the flowering hedges were
made bare and put in planters, separated by rose pedestals. These and all rose pedestals contain
only red roses, now. The clear water reveals a raised basin under the bridges. Meanwhile,
the random cobblestone has been replaced with a fancier fanned cobblestone—our favourite. The
tulip colours differ from before, and poppies fill the green around the much more refined topiary.
Just after the second bridge, an arrow sign that was in DS and Wii was removed for Tour.
One tree on each side of this path was pulled out, and those that remained became tiered with
tulip-filled tree rings around them. The flowers in the patch were switched out with a clustered
type associated with Tour. And brick trim was placed around this patch and flowerbeds like it,
as well as much of the path going forward. At the same time, five fountains were installed
along the outer path, with one by a floral cut in the hedging with more cuts around the hedge square
encompassing the sector. The height of the hedging itself was reduced greatly from before. The arrow
signs on the hedge just before the incline and in the flower patch were taken out, but two new arrow
signs were added by one of the fountains. Both of these have since been removed, leaving no arrow
signs in the area. Hedges are darker now and level with the fence, with grass lining them. Flowers in
the patch now contain red and yellow poppies with butterflies floating above, while white gerbera
daisies can be found blended with the tulips in the tree rings. The fountain where the floral cut
used to be was removed for the new path opening, and all other cuts are just green accents now.
On the incline, the flowering hedges from DS and Wii were replaced in Tour by flowering bushes and
three trellises with varied rose arrangements, all capped with rose pedestals. In the small
area ahead, the flowerbed contained the same flowers as the previous patch, and the grassy
spot included wildflowers, just for show. The hedges that enclosed this sector were swapped
out with pink rose hedges and medium cypress trees atop fixed terra cotta planters. A blue and white
arrow balloon substituted the arrow sign from before. This didn’t return for the Switch update,
but an arrow sign was put in the hedge instead, with the terra cotta now bricks and the
wildflowers in the grass removed entirely. The trellis at the slope was switched to a
different style in Tour than the earlier triad, marking the entrance to the maze. Here, four
remarkable topiaries decorated the large area: Princess Peach at the start, Luigi at the far end,
and both Toad and Toadette to the sides, all surrounded by tall red rose bushes. All other
squares contained fountains with pink rose bushes. These were just duplicate flowering bushes before.
The surrounding hedges became wavy with spherical accents and rose pedestals positioned at the ends,
while large cypresses were planted to mirror the others along the garden limits. Tour also
put two arrow signs pointing towards the maze exit, but both are gone now. This spot is so
much more attractive than it was before Tour! Moving towards the next area, a distinct lip on
the foundation could be seen that was added in Tour, and the trellis style is the same style
as the previous. The same applies to the entire arrangement at the top, which is similar to the
spot before the maze. Originally and for Wii, arrow signs could be found in the flowers and
on the hedge, but Tour took them out in favour of a yellow and orange arrow balloon. Now, a lone
arrow sign rests on the hedge instead. The row of trellises and rose bushes from earlier could
be found here on the decline, starting with Tour. Once reaching the bottom in DS and Wii, there was
not much to see amidst the flowering bushes. Since Tour, this entire spot was redesigned to have rose
bushes and moat cobblestone around the Big Piranha Plant, as well as medium cypresses, fountains,
rose hedges, and rose pedestals on kerbs along the outer banks, all beautifying the spot.
There was a clean separation when crossing onto the winding path in DS,
but this transition was made smooth for Wii. Also at that point, white flower clusters were planted
out of bounds near here. These were removed with the Tour update, but pink hyacinths, along with
white and yellow flowers, lined the flowerbeds that now are filled with gerberas and poppies.
With the revamp in Tour, no transition could be seen anymore, since the dirt road was the same,
only having a darker shade along the edges. The stylised ivory ramp from before was made into
Tour’s standard, which was kind of a shame. Also, a tiered tree was positioned behind the fence
with all other cypresses here made into this type, while small cypresses lined the mansion
front. At the same time, the only arrow sign found around here vanished, never to be seen again.
Well, looking at the mansion here when it was founded, we can see that the window framing,
doorway, moulding, and even stairs became modelled instead of being textures when remade for the Wii.
And like the start of the winding path, the transition onto the walkway was smoothed out.
When Tour made modifications, the transition was distinct again, and the brown bricks at the edge
were made white like the start of the course. The edging hoops above were made into Victorian-style
railing, complementing the architecture well. Speaking of which, the wings of the building
were extended and the entire exterior was given different recesses, jutting faces,
and accents with polychrome brickwork. The windows were altered from having both standard cross and
arched styles to a redesigned arched type only, but the central section was given both taller and
shorter varieties. The roof was flattened on top, and the eaves were made darker than the
other tiles with a scalloped shape. Meanwhile, the square brick pillars were rounded out with rims
darker only for Tour, with the step railing ending at the base of each. These encased the portico,
where recesses were added to its ceiling. The doorway changed to having glass, a glass frame,
and a transom. And the brick barrier with an arrow sign was replaced with two arrow signs and nothing
else, allowing a decent glimpse of the other side. Most of this was kept for the latest version,
but the brickwork all was switched to a uniform cream, while the trimming keystone for each window
was removed entirely. The terra cotta planters with hyacinths were altered to be brick planters
with three poppy varieties inside. And lastly for this area, the arrow signs were pulled,
leaving a view of the back side of the ramp with the arrow field above. Almost done!
In the first iteration of the course, long before the new route was made official, three cypresses
on each side of an unreachable straight path could be seen. In Tour, these trees were removed,
but the path stayed, still blocked off. Now, the path is wavy rather than straight, and every
element not a garden’s edge cypress or part of the architecture is new, including the fencing, hedge,
benches, and MKTV van. Even three of the axed cypresses on the left side returned. Love it.
Much like the European influences in the design of the course, the music matches
well with a style similar to the French valse musette or an Italian waltz with accordion
and mandolin throughout, as well as a bit of tropical sound befitting a vacation spot...
How charming! The Wii and Tour versions are roughly the same, only with added reverb,
cleaner mixing, and overall higher fidelity. But unexpectedly, this theme returned in remixed
form for Peach Gardens in Mario Golf: World Tour, featuring jazzy syncopation in Mario
Golf soundtrack fashion, capturing the spring atmosphere on the royal castle grounds. Nice.
The update puts great emphasis on the elegance of the locale, using the
classic instrumentation but also introducing a graceful violin with delicate harp accents...
In the words of Princess Peach herself: [Princess Peach: It’s just lovely!]
And that’s about it for All Changes we found in DS Peach Gardens! It’s a visually stunning
update that at first doesn’t veer too far away from its original gameplay,
but the final lap mixes things up in a great way, making this course one of the biggest surprises
of the set. But what do you think? Have you found any notable changes that we missed? Let us know in
the comments below. And of course, stay tuned to GameXplain for more on Booster Course Wave 3 for
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and other things Nintendo, too. Thanks for watching! Until next time, ciao!