Welcome back to my passion blog, where I am discussing the Mario Kart Wii Grand Prix Cups. Last week, I covered one of my favorite circuits, Star Cup–therefore it’s only fitting to go from one of my favorites to Banana Cup, which I despise. I am not sure whether my opinion about the circuit is popular or controversial, but nonetheless, Banana Cup has the most irritating courses in the sense that room for error is high when courses do not have the wow factor.

Banana Cup begins with Sherbet Land, which I find somewhat exciting but it’s definitely the course I dread in the circuit. The entire course is over ice with cute penguins sliding around, making players prone to error when they even make the slightest miscalculation when driving around them. However, other than avoiding the penguins, the sharp turns around the course provide the only other real obstacle. Turn angles need to be calculated and precise because the ice causes cars to almost hydroplane, causing racers to bump the bordering glaciers or fall off the course, where they are frozen and have longer recovery time. Although these obstacles do add to the aesthetic of Sherbet Land being in Antarctica with the penguins and glaciers, they make the course rather tedious instead of exciting.

Shy Guy Beach is the second course in Banana Cup. My personal favorite feature of the course is that there are cannons that shoot bob-ombs around the course, leaving racers with seconds to get away before they explode. Other than the bob-ombs, grass patches, wandering crabs, and the surrounding ocean create obstacles that slow down players. However, similar to Sherbet Land, these obstacles other than the bob-ombs do not have any wow factor to them and make the course tedious rather than exciting. And I cannot leave out the umbrellas towards the finish line that add an extra irritating obstacle that ruins any racer’s chance of winning right before the line.

Although Banana Cup is what I consider to be one of the most irritating of the Mario Kart Grand Prix circuits, one course keeps the cup from being the worst circuit–Delfino Square. Mixed with tons of sharp turns, shortcuts, and a drawbridge that gives racers big speed or big height, Delfino Square provides a breath of fresh air and excitement compared to other Banana Cup circuits. In addition to these obstacles, there are scattered boxes along a part of the course, which when broken can either slow players down or provide a nice powerup. The aforementioned drawbridge gives players a chance to perform tricks across and there are shortcuts across water and grass that enable racers to save valuable time on different parts of the course.

After the success of Delfino Square, Banana Cup ends on a sour note with Waluigi Stadium. Many players I have seen enjoy this course, so I might have a rather controversial opinion about the course–nevertheless, I see Waluigi Stadium as simply subpar compared to other fourth courses with the likes of Rainbow Road, Grumble Volcano, and Wario’s Gold Mine. The course entails everything a race track should–there are halfpipes, piranha plants that shoot flames at racers, and sharp turns that create tons of obstacles. However, none of the obstacles the course has are specific just to that course, since there are courses with similar halfpipes, piranha plants are a staple in Mario Circuits, and sharp turns are found in just about every course. Similar to Sherbet Land and Shy Guy Beach, the obstacles in Waluigi Stadium just do not have the same wow factor as other fourth courses, making Banana Cup one of the most subpar Grand Prix Cups.