Mario Kart DS-Track Hack Information Guide

Mario Kart was released with only 20/32 courses available for online play. Thanks to talented users from the GBADev community, we have found a way for those of us using Flash Kits to enjoy the other 12 courses online.

This guide was originally published at the M3 WIKI, which is now deleted and forgotten. The information in this guide was retained using an old M3 WIKI link and the Internet's Way Back Machine. The guide has been slightly rewritten but the information and steps to hacking Mario Kart remain the same.

What You Need

The Mario Kart DS ROM
The Retail version IPS Patch or the DEMO version IPS Patch
An IPS Patching Program
For a custom hack you will need a Hex Editor

Please note: the guide was written for the Retail IPS patch and not the DEMO IPS patch. Hexing the DEMO patch will be similar but not identical to the steps contained in this article.

Applying the IPS Patch

The IPS patch replaces the first 12 courses in the online course list (of the 20 available) with the courses not normally available for WIFI.

Make a physical back up of your ROM
Click the Apply IPS Patch button. Select the IPS patch by using the program's browsing window
Select the ROM to patch

If the above image appears then your ROM has successfully been IPS patched.

Hexing a Custom Track Hack

The track list can be edited to simply include your favorite 20 courses with a hex editor program. The WIFI list cannot be made longer than 20, so no matter what you have to leave 12 of the courses off your list. However, you can still race on those courses if your opponent chooses them.

Open the modified ROM in a hex editor. Go to 0x00004C34. The value here should be 0C (which is hex for 12). This is the number of tracks in your customized list. Change it to 14 (hex for 20). This will allow you to change every course in the WFC track list. From 0x00004C64 to 0x00004C6F, you should find the string "0C0F111317181A2021232526." This is the 12 new tracks. Change them, and the following 8 bytes (up to 0x00004C77), to adjust your track list.

Below are the values for all tracks in the game, along with their internal names. Grand Prix courses not normally available are marked with asterisks, followed by the Grand Prix courses name in brackets. The other courses are either battle arenas or incomplete tracks and playing them on WIFI is not recommended as they may crash the game.

01 - old_yoshi_gc [GCN Yoshi Circuit]
02 - old_mario_gc
03 - luigi_course
04 - dokan_course
05 - test1_course
06 - donkey_course
07 - wario_course
08 - nokonoko_course
09 - old_baby_gc [GCN Baby Park]
0A - old_mario_sfc [SNES Mario Circuit 1]
0B - old_momo_64 [N64 Moo Moo Farm]
0C - old_koopa_agb * [GBA Bowser Castle 2] *
0D - old_peach_agb [GBA Peach Circuit]
0E - old_luigi_gc [GCN Luigi Circuit]
0F - old_noko_sfc * [SNES Koopa Beach 2] *
10 - old_frappe_64 [N64 Frappe Snowland]
11 - clock_course * [Tick-Tock Clock] *
12 - mansion_course [Luigi's Mansion]
13 - airship_course * [Airship Fortress] *
14 - cross_course [Figure 8 Circuit]
15 - test_circle
16 - bank_course [Yoshi Falls]
17 - old_hyudoro_64 * [N64 Banshee Boardwalk] *
18 - ridge_course * [Shroom Ridge] *
19 - mario_course [Mario Circuit]
1A - garden_course * [Peach Gardens] *
1B - desert_course [Desert Hills]
1C - town_course [Delfino Square]
1D - rainbow_course [Rainbow Road]
1E - snow_course [DK Pass]
1F - beach_course [Cheep Cheep Beach]
20 - koopa_course * [Bowser Castle] *
21 - pinball_course * [Waluigi Pinball] *
22 - stadium_course [Wario Stadium]
23 - old_donut_sfc * [SNES Donut Plains 1] *
24 - old_choco_64 [N64 Choco Mountain]
25 - old_luigi_agb * [GBA Luigi Circuit] *
26 - old_kinoko_gc * [GCN Mushroom Bridge] *
27 - old_choco_sfc [SNES Choco Island 2]
28 - old_sky_agb [GBA Sky Garden]
29 - mini_block_course
2A - mini_block_64
2B - mini_dokan_gc
2C - mini_stage1 [Nintendo DS Works on WiFi]
2D - mini_stage2 [Twilight House Doesn't work on WiFi]
2E - mini_stage3
2F - mini_stage4
30 - mr_stage1
31 - mr_stage2
32 - mr_stage3
33 - mr_stage4
34 - Award
35 - StaffRoll
36 - StaffRollTrue

Here is another list, with only the 32 standard courses listed in cup order along with their hex marker. Bolded courses are not normally available for WIFI play.

Mushroom:

14 - Figure-8 Circuit
16 - Yoshi Falls
1F - Cheep Cheep Beach
12 - Luigi's Mansion

Flower:

1B - Desert Hills
1C - Delfino Square
21 - Waluigi Pinball
18 - Shroom Ridge

Star:

1E - DK Pass
11 - Tick-Tock Clock
19 - Mario Circuit
13 - Airship Fortress

Special:

22 - Wario Stadium
1A - Peach Gardens
20 - Bowser's Castle
1D - Rainbow Road

Shell:

0A - SNES Mario Circuit 1
0B - N64 Moo Moo Farm
0D - GBA Peach Circuit
0E - GCN Luigi Circuit

Banana:

23 - SNES Donut Plains 1
10 - N64 Frappe Snowland
0C - GBA Bowser Castle 2
09 - GCN Baby Park

Leaf:

0F - SNES Koopa Beach 2
24 - N64 Choco Mountain
25 - GBA Luigi Circuit
26 - GCN Mushroom Bridge

Lightning:

27 - SNES Choco Island 2
17 - N64 Banshee Boardwalk
28 - GBA Sky Garden
01 - GCN Yoshi Circuit

Frequently Asked Questions

How do these courses get picked?

Sadly even if you choose a "locked" course, you have to hope that yours gets chosen in the luck of the draw.

What problems are there with the locked tracks?

Most play just fine except for some minor graphical glitches. The cannons in Airship Fortress and Waluigi Pinball do funny stuff when you see people go through them, but the gameplay is unaffected. In airship fortress you cannot use projectile items when you're on the airship itself. In the levels with other vehicles, the cars won't start moving until all players a synced up and the countdown starts.

Why won't this load, file is corrupt?

The IPS patch will change the header of the ROM. Acekard's AKAIO and Bliss firmwares will fail to load the ROM as it will be seen as a corrupt file. To fix this run ndstool from the command prompt as 'ndstool -f gamename'.

Will save files work with this patched ROM?

Yes, save files will work just fine. Most users who make use of the Track Hack do so for online play only. These users may choose to make use of a 100% unlocked save file. This way they can quickly game with all known vehicles.

Can Nintendo detect the Track Hack?

The Track Hack simply sends a request to the DS on the other side asking it to load a MAP not previously allowed. Nintendo does not detect this or attempt to block any users, just as they do not block any WIFI ROMs running from Flash Kits. Have no fear when you game and enjoy the Track Hack.

Special Thanks

To the original M3 WIKI article which is now gone and forgotten
Another World for recovering the information and hosting it on GBATemp's WIKI
Troa11 for some original info
Hypershell for the hex info