How to Unlock Birdo on Mario Kart Wii

Last Updated: December 18, 2022

Unlocking the pink dinosaur Birdo on Mario Kart Wii is not very difficult, but it will take a little bit of patience. Birdo is a medium-weight character, giving her balanced stats overall, and she can ride a variety of karts. She is also unlockable right from the beginning, making her one of the first riders most people get. There are two main ways to earn her -- playing 250 multiplayer matches online, or posting times in 16 different time trail courses.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Unlocking Birdo

1
Go to the single player mode from the menu. From here you will see several options including "Grand Prix, "Time Trial," "Vs," and "Battle." Birdo can be unlocked right off the bat, since you start the game with 16 courses, and you need to race a time trial on 16 different courses to unlock her. As such, Birdo is often one of the first characters you unlock.
2
Race time trials on 16 unique courses. The driver and kart you use does not matter. You will need to actually race, as you need to post a time in order to count the track towards your 16, but luckily enough posting times is not incredibly difficult. You just need to finish the race. To keep track of things just race the courses in order, doing all 4 tracks in the first 4 cups. Some tips for good time trial times include:
- Use heavy riders (Bowser, Wario, Donkey Kong), as they have the best top speeds and there are no items or other riders to slow you down. This minimizes the impact of their slow accelerations
- Perfect the start boost -- hit the A button right when the "GO" pops up to speed up fast and shave precious seconds off your time.
- Learn all the shortcuts on the track. While you won't need them to unlock Birdo, you will need them to unlock other characters from time trials.^{[1]
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3
Back out to the title screen once you've raced 16 unique time trials. Hit the "B" button to back all the way out of the time trial screen back to the main menu. Log back in using the same profile you raced the time trials in and you should get a notification that you've unlocked Birdo.
- Remember, you need to do a time trial on 16 different courses, not just 16 trials.
- If you are sure you raced 16 courses, but can't get Birdo unlocked, race a full Grand Prix. You should unlock Birdo when you are done.^{[2]
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Alternatively, play 250 games on the online multiplayer to unlock Birdo. This will likely take longer than racing the time trials, but if you love playing online it may be the best use of your time.^{[3]
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- You can also race 1,350 unique races (any race, any time) in any mode to unlock the pink dino through sheer time spent playing.^{[4]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Racing with Birdo

1
Know that Birdo is a medium-weight driver. Medium drivers have relatively balanced stats, meaning they work well on a variety of tracks and can ride both karts and bikes. This makes Birdo versatile on a variety of tracks no matter your skill levels, but she is especially good for beginners.
- Because she is medium weight, she can push around light drivers, like Baby Luigi. She will, however, still get knocked around by heavies like Bowser.
2
Understand Birdo's defining driver stat is her "Mini-Turbo." Each driver has a series of stats that affect their driving. These stats carry over from kart to kart, no matter what you are driving. Birdo is, overall, average in most regards, but she has two distinct advantages:
- Mini-Turbo: This is the boost you get after a successful drift around a corner. Birdo has one of the highest mini-turbos in the game, though not the highest.
- Off-Road: Birdo will only lose a moderate amount of speed when off the track. While not as good off road as some other drivers, like Yoshi, her moderately high off-road stat means she can handle the occasional deviation off road without major repercussions.^{[5]
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3
Use the best cars for Birdo. Try and maximize the bonuses given to Birdo by using cars that have high drifting potential (for her Mini-Turbo) and high off-road stats. The best types of cars for her are often the Rally cars and the Control Vehicles. Specifically, you should drive:
- Best Karts: Wild Wing or Daytripper.
- Best Bikes: Mach Bike or Sugarscoot.

Community Q&A

Question

Can I get baby Birdo?

DuckNerd

Community Answer

No, baby Birdo doesn't exist, it's just a fan made character. However, you can unlock baby Daisy and baby Luigi.
Question

Can I get baby Rosalina on Mario kart wii?

Community Answer

Baby Rosalina is exclusive to Mario Kart 8 on Wii U & Mario Kart 8 Deluxe on the Switch. This means that no other titles include her, so you can only get her on one of these games.
Question

Can I race any 16 time trials to unlock Birdo?

Community Answer

Yes, but you must race different tracks. For example, Daisy Circuit can only be raced once. Then you must go to another track, say Maple Treeway. You must race on 16 different tracks. If you have a hard time remembering what you did, just do 4 cups, i.e. Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup, and Special Cup (you must have them all unlocked).