Walmarts across the country are setting up amiibo displays in advance of the collectibles' November 21 launch. It of course mentions that the first set of 12 figures will be compatible with Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, but it also reminds us that amiibo functions are coming to Mario Kart 8 and Hyrule Warriors. In regards to Mario Kart 8, we now know which of those first 12 will be usable.
In the above photo, snapped by NF Magazine Editor-in-Chief Lucas Thomas, we see that Mario, Yoshi, Peach, and Donkey Kong will bring the amiibo party to the racetrack. It seems clear that only the amiibo that represent characters in both MK8 and Smash will work, so we can safely assume that the eventual Bowser, Wario, and Rosalina figures will work too. But what about Link and Villager? They're being added to MK8 as DLC racers, so shouldn't their amiibo be allowed? And there's always the chance that Nintendo will release non-Smash specific amiibo for the racers who don't have Smash analogs.
If you happen to swing by Walmart, try to spot one of these displays.