Hacking Mario Kart Wii - Custom Distributions

[RunningSnakes]

Possibly the greatest racing game ever "Mario Kart Wii" continues to keep growing in the mod community. It is astounding what has been done to the core game, borderline ridiculous.

If you are a newcomer or veteran of the MKW mod scene, this is why this thread was created, for fans who cannot get enough of the content.

Through Riivolution, most folks use these custom builds through Dolphin, but many of us want or need these mods to be available as .wbfs, to be played through our Wii USB/SD loaders.

Give me some time (1-2 days) to provide links for all that is needed, everything is legitimate and free. You must have your copy of Mario Kart Wii in .iso for this.

Some very well known and Great mods are Wiimms builds, Cris Fusion builds, FJRoyet Deluxe builds. Wiimms is a pioneer for the Wii scene so i had to include his existence again for acknowledgement.

https://wiki.tockdom.com/wiki/Custom_Track_Distribution

Here is the link for custom builds^^^^^^^

List of recommendations...
Wiimms Fun/History (older)
Cris Fusion (older)
Top 100 (older)

Newer builds...
CTGP Revolution Classic
CTGP Revolution Dolphin
FJRoyet Deluxe
Retro Mix v1.0 (,v1.1 broke ISO compatibility)
Retro Rewind
Revo Kart 8 Deluxe
Wave Rush

Other builds to consider...
Infinite
Luminous
OptPack
Retro Popular
Shuffle
Throwback
Variety Pack
Yosh's Track Pack DX

Attached below is the app you need for conversion. Simply extract it to your PC desktop then extract a custom build into the same folder along with your MKW iso file.

Double click the RiivolutionIsoBuilder.exe and follow the instructions. When asked "Yes or No" about using the Pack contents, type Yes. When asked "Yes or No" about My Stuff folder, type No. There may be other selections for different builds which i usually select (0 = None). If you need help, post here and i'll do my best to assist. Have fun!!!

 

[wei134102]

happy to hear that,happy new year!hah!

 

[RunningSnakes]

Links are attached to OP.

Here are a few covers...

 

[wei134102]

I try the FJRoyet Deluxe,but when i chose the Deluxe and iso,but nothing happen！my be i dont konw how to use it!

 

[RunningSnakes]

I try the FJRoyet Deluxe,but when i chose the Deluxe and iso,but nothing happen！my be i dont konw how to use it!

Try this link for DELUXE. ^^^^^ ...You will need Discord account for that link which is free.

Also, some of these MKW custom builds come with their own ISO patcher, all of Wiimms builds for example.

 

[wei134102]

https://discord.gg/f4NXh76

Try this link for DELUXE. ^^^^^ ...You will need Discord account for that link which is free.

Also, some of these MKW custom builds come with their own ISO patcher, all of Wiimms builds for example.

so,i join the discord,and i see the path need the spicel iso,licky is they have wbfs file download!thanks!

 

[RunningSnakes]

Mario Kart Retro Rewind update 02/02/25 is out and fully working. If you build this version type No when asked if you want to Remove Blur. If you type Yes the iso/wbfs will work with Dolphin, however you will receive a Cheat Code warning through all 3 Wii loaders (CFG, GX, WFL) and the game is not playable.

I also moved Wave Rush up to Recommended category. A great release with most of the "Newer" great tracks. Check it out if you get a chance!

 

[albarapa]

Mario Kart Retro Rewind update 02/02/25 is out and fully working. If you build this version type No when asked if you want to Remove Blur. If you type Yes the iso/wbfs will work with Dolphin, however you will receive a Cheat Code warning through all 3 Wii loaders (CFG, GX, WFL) and the game is not playable.

I also moved Wave Rush up to Recommended category. A great release with most of the "Newer" great tracks. Check it out if you get a chance!

What type of cheat code warning is this? In the game itself or from the loader?

 

[RunningSnakes]

What type of cheat code warning is this? In the game itself or from the loader?

I am assuming it is the game. With the Remove Blur = Yes, the game initially loads but then get something like "Please turn off all Cheat Codes" warning.

I don't have cheat codes turned on for any Wii games but do have many installed. However, even if i had cheat codes enabled, the game would be looking for RMCERR (this is what i named the iso/wbfs) cheat which does not exist.

I will build again with Remove Blur = Yes and test again, then post an update.

Edit: Update...i built the wbfs again with Remove Blur enabled. Without changing anything both WFL and GX are now playing both builds, Strange?

Maybe my first attempt did not build correctly as i was multitasking on windows 7 pc at the time. To clarify, now both No Blur and Original Blur wbfs Mario Kart Retro Rewind 02/02/25 builds are working properly through Wii USB/SD loaders.

Post automatically merged: Feb 5, 2025

Covers for Wave Rush...

 

[albarapa]

I am assuming it is the game. With the Remove Blur = Yes, the game initially loads but then get something like "Please turn off all Cheat Codes" warning.

I don't have cheat codes turned on for any Wii games but do have many installed. However, even if i had cheat codes enabled, the game would be looking for RMCERR (this is what i named the iso/wbfs) cheat which does not exist.

I will build again with Remove Blur = Yes and test again, then post an update.

Edit: Update...i built the wbfs again with Remove Blur enabled. Without changing anything both WFL and GX are now playing both builds, Strange?

Maybe my first attempt did not build correctly as i was multitasking on windows 7 pc at the time. To clarify, now both No Blur and Original Blur wbfs Mario Kart Retro Rewind 02/02/25 builds are working properly through Wii USB/SD loaders.

Post automatically merged: Feb 5, 2025

Covers for Wave Rush...

Great, I've managed it too. It just looks like the game has less saturated colors than when I launch it via the loader. Is this just my perception or have you noticed something similar?

 

[RunningSnakes]

Great, I've managed it too. It just looks like the game has less saturated colors than when I launch it via the loader. Is this just my perception or have you noticed something similar?

I agree, Dolphin makes everything look much sharper and beautiful.

Playing MKW mods through the Wii just feels natural and special to me. I used to be competitive online for many years but not much these days.

Picking up 4-5 solid distributions and learning the tracks offline is great fun. So many new tracks are beautiful but many are not playable online unless you have learned the track(s) by playing multiple times before.

I am a fan of tracks that reward skill, not always zig-zag tracks that require Bikes and small/medium weight. I think mods who create "Nintendo" type tracks have the right approach, usually those tracks were planned well and play well.

It's all good though, MKW continues to touch gamers 17 years later. Few games have had the impact of MKW, i'll list a few that keep company...

Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros. 3
Metroid
Super Metroid
Streets Of Rage 2
Doom

 

[SaulFabre]

You forgot Mario Kart Wii Deluxe and MK64 Remade Wii. They're damn good, too!

PS: started playing CTGP-R Dolphin on Dolphin emulator lol (original CTGP-R has a stupid invasive DRM)

 

[RunningSnakes]

You forgot Mario Kart Wii Deluxe and MK64 Remade Wii. They're damn good, too!

PS: started playing CTGP-R Dolphin on Dolphin emulator lol (original CTGP-R has a stupid invasive DRM)

I mentioned FJRoyet MKW Deluxe a few times here, yes it is one of the very best distributions without question. I have not tried Remade but will try later tonight. The Dolphin distribution is great and quite current which is what many of us always wanted 10-12 years ago.

 

[RunningSnakes]

FJRoyet Mario Kart Wii Deluxe 9.0 was released this morning. I haven't had a chance to play yet but it looks fantastic!!!

Edit:
I tested the new release (9.0) on both WFL and GX, simply incredible! Blue shells coming all day with "Default" set to Hard and a few of my favorite tracks return, including Desert Castle Raceway.

I had issues with WFL (2 times) freezing up when selecting VS Race, after selecting Grand Prix and returning to VS Race, the issue seems fixed. Maybe GX has the same issue but was tested differently on my end, Dolphin worked straight out of box.

I hope this release fixes stability through Wii, so many code dumps in previous releases makes it very hard to keep coming back.

 

[Cracklitrox]

FJRoyet Mario Kart Wii Deluxe 9.0 was released this morning. I haven't had a chance to play yet but it looks fantastic!!!

Edit:
I tested the new release (9.0) on both WFL and GX, simply incredible! Blue shells coming all day with "Default" set to Hard and a few of my favorite tracks return, including Desert Castle Raceway.

I had issues with WFL (2 times) freezing up when selecting VS Race, after selecting Grand Prix and returning to VS Race, the issue seems fixed. Maybe GX has the same issue but was tested differently on my end, Dolphin worked straight out of box.

I hope this release fixes stability through Wii, so many code dumps in previous releases makes it very hard to keep coming back.

I have tried to use the Riivolution patch to iso for that version but I have not succeeded, I was planning to use it on my Xbox Series Dolphin.

 

[RunningSnakes]

I have tried to use the Riivolution patch to iso for that version but I have not succeeded, I was planning to use it on my Xbox Series Dolphin.

If you have not joined their Discord i recommend doing so, you will get what is required there.

 

[skele46]

how do you dump the patched iso onto a hard drive for usb loader gx??

 

[RunningSnakes]

how do you dump the patched iso onto a hard drive for usb loader gx??

Are you referring to Mario Kart Wii Deluxe 9.0?

Is your file ISO or WBFS?

 

[skele46]

Are you referring to Mario Kart Wii Deluxe 9.0?

Is your file ISO or WBFS?

talking about in general, trying to play retro rewind. it's an iso

 

[RunningSnakes]

talking about in general, trying to play retro rewind. it's an iso

https://gbatemp.net/download/wii-backup-manager.37308/

Use Wii Backup Manager to convert the .iso to .wbfs on your desktop. Then transfer the wbfs to your usb device also using Wii Backup Manager.