Perhaps one of the most well-known franchises Nintendo has ever created, Mario Kart has been pitting friends and family against each other for nearly 30 years. As if attempting to keep the sweat from dripping down one's face while trying to stay on the track in Rainbow Road wasn't enough, these games have always included a variety of items that add extra variables to each race.
These items can either give a bottom-placed player the comeback they needed to move up or give that middle racer the chance to finally take the lead. While some items throughout the series have been mediocre, such as the Green Shell, and some just plain annoying to be struck by, such as the Blue Shell, these are the top-tier items that give racers the best chance for victory.
10 Giant Banana
Making its debut in the GameCube's spectacular version of the series, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, the Giant Banana is far more useful than one would think. Unlike the normal Banana item, which disappears after getting hit once and is relatively small, this potassium powerhouse takes up about a third the width of the track and creates smaller Banana clones once it is hit. This is the first of a series of items that will be discussed that are just too good in the right hands.
9 Bowser Shell
Being another item special to Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, the Bowser Shell is exclusive to Bowser and Bowser Jr. and it is absolutely ruthless. It will continuously bounce back and forth off the sides of the track, wrecking every player in its path with no mercy. An item this tenacious is extremely helpful for those middle place players, allowing them to effortlessly hinder both players in front of and behind them. Since this was before the times of the Super Horn, the Bowser Shell can only be stopped if the players have invincibility active at the time it strikes.
8 Super Leaf
First appearing in Mario Kart 7, the Super Leaf hones the power of Mario's iconic Tanooki suit. Though it is difficult to learn exactly how to master the abilities it grants, it can be very effective once the player gets the hang of it. This item is capable of short-range attacks on enemies.
By itself, that ability isn't very impressive. However, add to that the ability to reflect items back from where they came, such as Red or Green Shells, and it can be a lifesaver in stressful times. Especially since the Shell items are some of the most commonly received across the franchise.
7 Super Horn
The Super Horn is a rather rare grab in Mario Kart 8, but players should thank their lucky stars each time they have this while in the lead. At first glance, this item is only useful for disrupting players near you, which is partially true.
Although, if you practice timing the sonic blast just right, this item is capable of stopping any item dead in its tracks, including the infuriating Blue Shell. It is actually the only item that can destroy a blue shell out of the air, making it a very good item to keep on hand as insurance.
6 Piranha Plant
Even though the Piranha Plant item is far rarer than necessary, it does act as half Bullet Bill and half Power Star. With each use of the item, the Piranha Plant will chomp down, boosting the user forward, and munching on any unfortunate drivers that stand in its path. Granted, the speed boost given is not significant, it's the bonus of breaking grounded items and damaging opponents that give it the power that some of the lower-place drivers need to make that quick, efficient comeback.
5 Boomerang Flower
Now, a quick disclaimer, the Boomerang Flower is not too far off from the Fire Flower, which is also a great item. The thing that makes the Boomerang Flower such an effective attack in Mario Kart is its capability of hitting multiple enemies in the same throw. Yes, players are limited to a mere three attempts to hit others with this power-up, however being a boomerang, it doubles their chances of hitting someone either on its way out or its way back. This is yet another example of items that are better once you learn how to use them correctly.
4 Thunderbolt
One thing that immediately allows the Thunderbolt to be one of the best items in Mario Kart history, is the fact that it is one that damages all other racers in the game. Once activated, this item will disable and shrink all players ahead of and behind its user.
While shrunken, the opponents move a bit slower, which is adding insult to injury as the initial shock already gives the user an advantage. This item has had different balancing throughout the series, but it remains to be one of the best grabs.
3 Golden Mushroom
There is the Red Mushroom, which grants the user a speed boost, allowing them to traverse otherwise too rough terrain. Next, there is the triple Red Mushroom, which is all of that same stuff, except three times. If those things aren't enough for one to catch up and move up some placements, the game will then grant players the Golden Mushroom.
When using this item, the player is allotted a short duration of time in which they can use as many Red Mushroom level boosts as they want, ignoring all different terrains and taking full advantage of the map to speed through and cut into the pack of racers.
2 Bob-Omb
The reason that the Blue Shell gets so much attention is because of just how explosive the strike of the shell is on its target and surrounding players. If players wish to cause that same amount of chaos within the race, learning how to use the Bob-omb will pay off brilliantly in the long-run. The best part about this item is the sense of satisfaction the user feels when successfully striking a group of racers. Timing the throw and placement of the explosion, alongside navigating one's own way around it to not catch the aftermath is a fantastic feeling.
1 Power Star
There's only one word. Invincibility. Throughout the entirety of the Mario Kart franchise, players have been victims of all the items featured here and countless others, and the most reliable, sure-fire way to avoid them all has always been the Power Star. It is truly just as effective here than in any other Super Mario game. This is honestly the greatest of all the items, granting the recipient a rather nice speed boost, the ability to ignore a change in terrain, invulnerability to all items, and the power to damage any opponents that collide with them.