Other characters, such as Toads, film for the service as well.

This lets the player replay the whole race or the best highlights. Mario Kart 8 gives Lakitu another role, namely filming for Mario Kart TV. In Mario Kart Wii's Rainbow Road and Galaxy Colosseum, the drivers are shown burning up on re-entry into the planet's atmosphere as they fall. In the lattermost game, Lakitu appears immediately to save the drivers without them having to plummet. However, as a penalty for falling, they have to wait a few seconds before they can drive again, usually losing some position, and in Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8, Lakitu also charges the player with up to three coins if they have any. This applies when the racers are falling into a void, a body of water (that they cannot drive through), or lava, or when they are going out of bounds of the track. If the driver crosses the finish line at the end of the race, then Lakitu will come in while waving the checkered flag.Īnother role Lakitu has in the series is helping out the drivers when they are in a bad situation by transporting them back onto the track. However, in the next two installments, Lakitu quickly evades the hazard without getting crushed. There is a secret in Mario Kart Wii regarding this: Lakitu can be crushed by a Thwomp when signaling about going the wrong way. In Mario Kart 8, Lakitu even puts the drivers in the right direction if they do not do so within five seconds outside of Time Trial mode. Another role it has is signaling the players if they are driving the wrong way, doing so in three different ways: it shows a yellow flag with an 'X' on it in Super Mario Kart, a sign saying 'REVERSE' in Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Super Circuit, or a U-turn arrow sign since Mario Kart: Double Dash!!. Occasionally, in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, a Cheep Cheep is caught on the device.

It most prominently appears as the referee, holding a starting light with a fishing pole which tells the drivers when the race begins (except for Mario Kart DS and Mario Kart Tour), and signals the drivers what lap or section they are currently in. It has many responsibilities throughout the series, guiding the race most of the time. A Lakitu starts taking on more friendly roles in the Mario Kart series.

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