Mission Mode
Mission Mode is an unused, incomplete game mode present in Mario Kart Wii. It seems to have been intended to function very similarly to Mario Kart DS's Mission Mode, but was ultimately cancelled before completion and hidden away. It is likely that Competition/Tournament Mode, which shares many similarities with Mission Mode, became its replacement. The leftover code and screens of Mission Mode were discovered by MrBean35000vr on August 3rd, 2017, over 9 years after Mario Kart Wii's release date.
What Still Exists
Because Mission Mode was cancelled from the game and was never intended to be accessed, it is missing a lot of data that it's supposed to have in order to work properly. However, most code elements do still exist and can be accessed via cheat codes. The menu screens that allow a user to pick a level, view the level objective and start the game all still exist, albeit with no text. The gameplay mode itself still exists, meaning that it is possible to play the mode and fulfill various objectives, although the game doesn't seem to have a concept of failing, if you fail your objective, the game acts as though you have won anyway. However, the scenarios that Nintendo created for the mode do not exist anymore, meaning that although we can test out the objectives, we do not know how Nintendo would have originally used them and there are no leftover complete missions available in the game filesystem. However, based on certain similarities between game modes present in Mission Mode and Competition/Tournament Mode, it's very possible that some of the missing scenarios were remade as tournaments.
A look through the menus and some of the objectives can be seen in the following video:
Gameplay and Features
Had it been completed, Mission Mode would have put the player through a series of 64 challenges with increasing difficulty, where in each the player would have been required to perform a certain objective within a time limit. The player is not given any choice of what character or vehicle they wish to use, and the nature of the objective would vary depending on the level selected. Furthermore, the game could restrict what drift mode you were allowed to use (Automatic/Manual) or let you choose. This is the only game mode in Mario Kart Wii where a player may not have free choice over what drift mode they can select, a concept not applied anywhere else in the game. At the end of each level, the player would be awarded a rank based on how well they performed (3 stars, 2 stars, 1 star, A, B, etc) and this would be displayed next to the level name in the menu.
Objectives
The known objectives are as follows:
| ID | Objective |
|---|---|
| 0x00 | Release miniturbos to score points. |
| 0x01 | VS Mode. Complete 3 laps before time runs out. |
| 0x02 | VS Mode. Complete 3 laps before time runs out. (Seems identical to mode 0x01). |
| 0x03 | Perform any drift to score. (Faulty, increments score too quickly) |
| 0x04 | Break item boxes to score points. |
| 0x05 | Hit enemies with items to score points. |
| 0x06 | Attack a boss to score points. (E.g. Spiky Topmen, Big Pokey, etc) |
| 0x07 | Unknown. (Most likely unused or deleted. No references are found to this mode in the game's code). |
| 0x08 | Gather coins to score points. |
| 0x09 | Drive through gates to score points. |
| 0x0A | Perform any level of boost start to immediately win the mission. (If you miss the boost start, you can no longer win, at all). |
| 0x0B | Hit CPU opponents with certain items to score points. (All projectiles. Stars, Mushrooms, Mega Mushrooms and Bullet Bills do not score). |
| 0x0C | Perform wheelies to score. (Faulty, increments score too quickly, increments for wheelies on the spot). |
| 0x0D | Get slipstreams from CPU opponents to score points. |
Tutorials
In addition to these game modes, the interface for Mission Mode also has a set of screens for tutorials on how to play the game. In certain missions, before starting, you are given the ability to view a tutorial on a gameplay mechanic. This would have taken you to a screen featuring a simple text entry, and a movie clip demonstrating what to do. These tutorials do not match up completely with the objectives shown above, indicating they were probably meant as supplementary information, rather than a direct guide on how to win your objective. While there is no text for the tutorials, and the movie clips are also not present in the game's filesystem, the names of the movie clips can be found in the game's memory, indicating what they would have been about.
| Filename | Estimation of Contents |
|---|---|
| 00_curve.thp | Steering without drifting (?) |
| 01_drift.thp | Manual Drifting |
| 02_miniturbo.thp | Obtaining miniturbos from Manual Drift |
| 03_autodrift.thp | Automatic Drifting |
| 04_jumpaction.thp | Performing tricks on ramps |
| 05_halfpipejump.thp | Performing tricks on halfpipe ramps |
| 06_wheelie.thp | Performing wheelies |
| 07_spinturn.thp | Turning on the spot (using A+B) |
| 08_back.thp | Reversing (?) |
| 09_startdush.thp | Getting a boost start in the countdown |
| 10_jugemdush.thp | Getting a boost start after respawning |
| 11_slipstream.thp | Getting a slipstream from another racer |
| 12_itemthrow.thp | Throwing/using items |
| 13_itemequip.thp | Dragging items behind you |
The Missing Mission Objectives File
When accessing the leftover menus for Mission Mode, the game attempts to load information from a file called mission_single.kmt, which is supposed to reside in /Race/MissionRun in the game filesystem. This file is not present and presumably permanently lost. Without it, Mission Mode crashes when you try to start a level because it cannot read this file. However, it is possible to get an idea of how it is supposed to work based on a surviving routine in the game's code that is designed to load and parse this file, and thus create a new one that allows the game to continue without crashing.
The file is meant to be a long list of 64 mission objectives, as well as listing supplementary files to load to build the game world. It would have been 0x1C10 bytes long. The first 0x10 bytes are a header of unknown properties, but it doesn't matter what is written in there as it is not checked or validated by the game.
Following on from that, there are a series of 0x70 length entries, one for each level (thus 0x40 in total), starting with 1-1, then moving to 1-2, etc. The game offsets into the file based on which level you select at the menu (0x70 * level number + 0x10), and loads data from there.
The format for these entries is as follows:
| Offset | Size/Usage |
|---|---|
| 0x00 | (u16) Mission Run file (mrxxxxx.szs, see below) |
| 0x02 | (u16) Game Mode (see above) |
| 0x04 | (u8) Course ID |
| 0x05 | (u8) Character ID |
| 0x06 | (u8) Vehicle ID |
| 0x07 | (u8) Engine class (0 = 50cc, 1 = 100cc, 2 = 150cc) |
| 0x08 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x0C | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x10 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x11 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x12 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x13 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x14 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x15 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x16 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x17 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x18 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x19 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x1A | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x1B | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x1C | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x20 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x21 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x22 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x23 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x24 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x25 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x26 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x27 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x28 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x29 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x2A | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x2B | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x2C | (u16) Time limit (seconds) |
| 0x2E | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x2F | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x30 | (u32) Score required |
| 0x34 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x38 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x3C | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x40 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x44 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x48 | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x4A | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x4C | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x4E | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x50 | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x52 | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x54 | (u32) Unknown |
| 0x58 | (u16) Unknown |
| 0x5A | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x5B | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x5C | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x5D | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x5E | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x5F | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x60 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x61 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x62 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x63 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x64 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x65 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x66 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x67 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x68 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x69 | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6A | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6B | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6C | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6D | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6E | (u8) Unknown |
| 0x6F | (u8) Unknown |
The "Mission Run" file listed at 0x00 into the entry is a supplementary file to load from the disc, and it can contain things such as alternate KMP files, additional models to load, etc. The number entered is converted to decimal, then appended to the string "mr", and finally ".szs" is appended. If the number is less than ten, one leading zero is added. The game will then seek the file in Race/MissionRun. So, for example, if it were set to 0x0000, the game will try to load "mr00.szs". If set to 0x000F, it would load "mr15.szs", etc. If it fails to find the file, the mode will still load, but no file replacements will occur.
It is also worth noting that the drift restrictions and tutorial suggestions are not inside of this file, they seem to be somewhere else. It is also not possible to define any CPUs to load, which makes fulfilling some mission objectives completely impossible. However, it is possible to add CPUs via cheat codes, which then allows the objectives to be fulfilled.
Accessing Mission Mode
It is not possible to access Mission Mode ordinarily, so in order to access it, you need to use a cheat code. At present, only PAL cheat codes exist. Other regions will be posted as they become available.
Playing the Mode
There are two distinct cheat codes available to load and play Mission Mode. The first one is designed so that you do not need to create mission_single.kmt, and allows you to test a KMT entry by entering it directly into the cheat code. In this case, every single level will load the scenario entered in the cheat code. The second one assumes that you have created mission_single.kmt and therefore does not allow you to enter scenario data into the code; however you can run many different levels in one session because you can select from the level list to load different scenarios. You cannot run both at once.
Please be aware that completing missions may damage your save file. It may attempt to overwrite non-existent mission leaderboards. If in doubt, use a backup!
Mission Mode and KMT Patch [PAL]
Mission Mode without KMT Patch [PAL]
In both cases, to activate the code, load the Single Player menu, and then press START or +, depending on your controller. The Mission Mode Menu will pop up after a brief delay.
Other Useful Codes
These are some other codes that may be useful when testing Mission Mode, and allow greater functionality of the mode.
The following code allows CPUs to be loaded in Mission Mode:
The following code prevents the game from crashing if a track does not have valid MSPT entries:
The following code replaces the missing text in Mission Mode with text IDs, allowing you to see where text normally renders:
All codes were created by MrBean35000vr.
Porting Tournaments/Competitions to Mission Mode
If you can extract the U8 archive out of a tournament, you can in most cases convert it to work with Mission Mode. Save the extracted U8 archive as a Mission Run file (mrxx.szs) for the Race/MissionRun folder (where xx is the number you define in the KMT scenario), open any and all CommonObj files that the tournament usually requires and copy their internal files into the Mission Run file, then set up the KMT with the correct objective, and correct file ID and add mrxx.szs to the filesystem. You will then be able to play the tournament in Mission Mode, though you will be restricted to whatever character/vehicle you specified in the KMT, and you will have a time limit (which you will also need to specify). There do not seem to be any modes in Mission Mode that do not feature a time limit, so it is not possible to remove that.