Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Patch Nerfs Item Bagging Strategy

The latest patch for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on Nintendo Switch has nerfed the Item Bagging strategy. This is a trick used by players to game the system and gain an unfair advantage over other competitors.

In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the type of items a player receives from an Item Box is determined by their position in the race, with better items being provided to those further back, to give them the chance to catch up. Item Bagging involves hanging around at the start of the track and acquiring desirable items (like Stars and Bullet Bills), while the other racers continue on. That player then catches up in the race and uses the items to give themselves a lead.

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Mario Kart 8 Deluxe’s Ver. 3.0.0 Patch Nerfs Item Bagging Strategy

The Item Bagging strategy is no more thanks to the latest update from Nintendo for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. The Ver 3.0.0 patch includes the last of the Booster Course tracks to the game along with a series of other changes.

According to the patch notes, the game has “Made it so that you can’t acquire strong items when taking an Item Box by stopping or driving in reverse, or taking an Item Box that is in same location multiple times during a race.” This is a direct reference to Item Bagging, as players will often hang around at the start of the track, reversing and spinning around into Item Boxes until they get what they want.

This change is huge for online play, as lots of players abused this tactic to gain an unfair advantage. It’s fairly easy for players in the back to catch up early in the race, thanks to items slowing down the people in the lead, and once they’re back among the pack, they can throw out a Bullet Bill to secure an easy victory in the final lap.

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The Ver. 3.0.0 patch for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe will likely be the last major update for the game, but it’s ending things on a bang. The Item Bagging strategy is cheese gaming at its absolute worst, and props to Nintendo for finally ending this lame strategy used by people who hate fun.