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Retro|Spective 095: Mario Kart

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    Retro|Spective 095: Mario Kart

    3... 2... Hold A... 1... Go!




    Mainline Entry 01 - Super Mario Kart
    Formats:
    Super NES and Others
    Twenty Seven (!) years ago Nintendo decided to make a Mode 7 based racer that was more complex in design than F-Zero had been and to risk it all by putting their top mascot character front and centre. Eight Mario series characters are selectable to control through multi-race GP Cups, the racing action taking place on a horizontally split screen that also contains the map. Many hold the original acclaimed game to be the best (wrong!) and all of the series core gameplay cornerstones are present in this launching entry. Famed not just for its SP content but also its multiplayer support and the battle mode options, the game was universally received.



    Mainline Entry 02 - Mario Kart 64
    Formats:
    Nintendo 64 and Others
    Four years passed and Mario Kart returned making the quick jump to 3D. Well, the courses did, making use of the visual advances players raced through new courses that showcased shortcut options and the host consoles visuals and new found freedom, even able to go off course in one track and drive up to the entrance of Peach's Castle. Racers were pre-rendered and the game introduced the controversial Blue Shell.



    Mainline Entry 03 - Mario Kart: Super Circuit
    Formats:
    Game Boy Advance and Others
    It would be another five years until the series appeared again and this time, due to the shift to handheld, it moved back to something closer to the SNES original. Super Circuit. Other than enhanced visuals and its new courses this entry is one of the more conservative entries, simply aiming to accurately reproduce the console experience, something it succeeded at.



    Mainline Entry 04 - Mario Kart: Double Dash
    Formats:
    Gamecube and Others
    Those only experiencing the series had waited an eye watering 7 years for a sequel to MK64 and when Double Dash hit anticipation was high. Expanding the racer selection up to 20 racers and using the Sunshine engine, Double Dash's hook was two racers on the kart allowing for two items to be held. It went on to be the second highest selling game on the system but its reputation amongst the franchise isn't one of the strongest.



    Mainline Entry 05 - Mario Kart DS
    Formats:
    Nintendo DS and Others
    The second handheld focused entry sold itself on being the first to support wi-fi multiplayer and being the first 3D based handheld entry. It targeted N64 standard visuals but with 3D character models and introduced earned unlockable karts to the series. Another addition is the ability to draft behind other racers for a boost. Once again the series had another hit on its hands and huge acclaim.



    Spin Off Entry 01 - Mario Kart Arcade GP
    Formats:
    Arcade
    Licensing the franchise to Namco, this arcade based spin-off broadly delivers the same home experience but as it comes from a different company the feel of the racing isn't the same. GP was the first entry to include racers and content from non-Mario series and despite its arcade roots it contained 11 racers and 24 courses. Gameplay was designed to play out broadly the same way as the home versions though weapons were different here.



    Spin Off Entry 02 - Mario Kart Arcade GP 2
    Formats:
    Arcade
    Two years on Namco knocked out a sequel to the arcade game, the game featured some new characters and tweaks but was broadly a very vanilla follow up.



    Mainline Entry 06 - Mario Kart Wii
    Formats:
    Wii and Others
    The Wii entry remains the most successful of all entries thanks to the popularity of the host system. On paper, in some ways, this latest sequel was somewhat lazy in reusing many Double Dash assets that bordered on being quite ugly by this time. The game visually paled next to even Nintendo's own Galaxy games given how the series had broadly tried to keep pace with the main series in this way. It sold itself though on expanding the online support, racers from around the world able to race together, and was also released alongside a moulded wheel shell for the remote for motion controlled steering. It expanded the series content too with 32 courses included. It's success didn't exclude it from some criticism, such as some disagreement over the aggressiveness of its rubber banded AI and the courses being too wide but Nintendo had a monster hit on its hands regardless.



    Mainline Entry 07 - Mario Kart 7
    Formats:
    Nintendo 3DS
    Returning to handhelds, the final (ever?) handheld focused Mario Kart introduced vehicle customisation and a mostly visual feature of Kart's being able to glide and race underwater, a feature making use of the 3D capabilities of the handheld. It's a broadly safe sequel but it nails the experience of the home MK on a portable and set a tone for the sequel that followed.



    Spin Off Entry 03 - Mario Kart Arcade GP DX
    Formats:
    Arcade
    Forever doomed to only be available in arcades, the spin-offs continued with this third release. DX brought in features from MK7 and made changes to some of the previous games course layouts in addition to new guest racers from the Taiko series.



    Mainline Entry 08 - Mario Kart 8
    Formats:
    Wii U and Switch
    The latest entry is now five years old with no sequel on the horizon. MK8 once again ramped up the visuals and tightened course design in answer to the Wii game. The anti-grav aspect was a key selling point even if once again a purely visual one though it did help to explain more imaginative theming in the game. The game also began experimenting with introducing content from other Nintendo franchises, expanded by the DLC released. To some the game stands as the peak of the franchise as it marches in pursuit of the Wii entries sales.



    Spin Off Entry 04 - Mario Kart Arcade GP VR
    Formats:
    Arcade
    Namco returned for a fourth iteration of their entries but this time the game plays in first person with gamers wearing a VR visor to experience the game from their personal perspective. The game is broadly similar to before only now players wave their arm in a throwing motion to use weapons.



    Share your thoughts and memories of the Mario Kart series

    #2
    I don't care what anyone says, I love Mario Kart Wii. I played that game to death at university. I think we played it nearly every day for about three years and while it might not be the best entry in the series, it's a very, very, very fun game.

    Those tracks will be imprinted on my brain till the day I die I think.

    Oh, and we always used nunchuks.

    Comment


      #3
      I will never forget how special Super Mario Kart was when I got it for Xmas 1992. I've been playing it for over 25 years and it never feels old.

      Mario Kart 64 felt quite disappointing at first, but I did manage to get some fun out of it. It just didn't grab me like SMK had.

      MK Super Circuit really impressed me and gave me more SMK style action. Such a great handheld game.

      MK Double Dash looked great and played really well. One of my favourite GameCube games.

      MK DS showed me how capable the DS hardware is. I really liked the graphics and overall design. I have fond memories of playing it a lot last decade.

      MK Wii was an instant hit with me. I thought the graphics were really nice, and it played well. Had lots of fun playing it with friends and family.

      Mario Mart 8 was the game that I got with the Wii U back in 2014 and I still go back to it regularly. An absolutely fantastic game in all areas. It's a joy to play online.
      Last edited by Leon Retro; 17-06-2019, 14:22.

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        #4
        I know I'm in the minority, but my favourite game of the franchise will always be Super Mario Kart 64. I got it for Christmas very early in the N64's life, and it's probably the only game I owned for the entire lifetime of the machine. I lost track of the number of times I finished every cup and championship, or the hundreds of hours of multiplayer.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Asura View Post
          I know I'm in the minority, but my favourite game of the franchise will always be Super Mario Kart 64.
          Lots of people prefer MK64 over SMK. They liked the change in overall style of the game. You also have lots of people in the 'SMK camp' who appreciate its distinct qualities next to what MK64 has to offer.

          I definitely liked MK64, but the wider, longer tracks didn't give me the quintessential 'karting' feel that SMK did brilliantly.

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by Asura View Post
            I know I'm in the minority, but my favourite game of the franchise will always be Super Mario Kart 64. I got it for Christmas very early in the N64's life, and it's probably the only game I owned for the entire lifetime of the machine. I lost track of the number of times I finished every cup and championship, or the hundreds of hours of multiplayer.
            This game has a massive amount of popularity among some people, I don't think you're alone.

            I really liked it at the time, but it's not one that I'd go back to.

            Mario Kart for me is a franchise that fundamentally has improved with time. I know it's sacrilege to SMK die hards, but that game is simply nowhere near as fun as Mario Kart 8 to me. Plus, it doesn't have a four player mode!

            I would definitely like to give an honourable mention to Super Circuit. Simply a brilliant game. I loved that to pieces.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by wakka View Post
              I know it's sacrilege to SMK die hards, but that game is simply nowhere near as fun as Mario Kart 8 to me. Plus, it doesn't have a four player mode!
              I'd love a modern remaster of SMK with online racing. Or even just a similar experience that feels like go-karting. I go back to SMK quite often because it offers something very different to later Mario Kart games(apart from Super Circuit) and I love how it plays.

              The MK64 formula has been perfected with MK8, so it's a different situation than with SMK. The Mario Kart series became more like conventional arcade style racing games, rather than having a distinct 'karting' feel. I can appreciate both styles, which is why MK8 is one of my favourite modern games. I think it's an incredibly good game. Can't wait for MK9.

              Comment


                #8
                SMK64 has gone up in my estimation over the years. I had it back in the day and it didn't make much of an impression with me. I know fans will tear me apart but, personally, I don't think the original SNES game holds up all that well. But then I also wasn't a fan of the GBA one other than thinking it was good for what they could pull off on the system.

                For me, Mario Kart got better when it broke out of the kart thing. And I think both 7 and 8 are absolutely superb. So enjoyable. 7 has been lost a little since 8 came out but the tracks in that game are fantastic. If they released a version of 7 on the Switch that looked like 8, I'd buy it in a heartbeat in spite of all the complaining there would probably be. 8 is brilliant but my one issue with that game comes down to the anti-grav parts - because of how they work, the AG thing is purely cosmetic. I never really get the feeling of being anything other than upright because gravity pretty much doesn't exist in the game. So it feels like a bit of a missed opportunity. Still, the game is fantastic.

                Now where's 9? WHERE?!

                Comment


                  #9
                  I know, GIVE ME 9!!!

                  7 is a really good game as well. I played that to death. If they did a full 8 style upgrade, yup, I'd definitely buy that. I just haven't been able to bring myself to buy Deluxe because of the hours I sank into the WiiU version. I'd just kind of feel like I was wasting my time doing it all again, if that makes sense.

                  Mario Kart is just brilliant. One my favourite series ever. I know people say the Sonic racing games are as good or better, with their more sophisticated single player campaigns, but I've never found those games to have the near magical quality that MK does. There's something special about it.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Never cared for MK64 but I love SMK. Super Circuit is really good as well. MK8 is super polished and fun but I've never felt a burning desire to go back to it once I beat the main game.

                    I can't even begin to tell you how many times I've played through all of SMK over the years. I'd wipe my save as a kid and start over constantly and if I ever load up a SNES emulator on a new system today I'll always give SMK a quick run through on all difficullty levels.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Don't like SMK at all, but I've enjoyed all the others.

                      I have fond memories of MK64 as there wasn't much else worth playing when it came out, so it got a lot of playtime, along with Wave Race and Pilotwings.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Originally posted by Dogg Thang View Post

                        For me, Mario Kart got better when it broke out of the kart thing. And I think both 7 and 8 are absolutely superb.
                        I wish Nintendo had featured a proper 'karting' mode in the MK games after Super. I'd love to have some tight karting tracks to race around in MK8. They would be a nice/fun alternative away from the more traditional arcade racing tracks. I still find the tracks in SMK exhilarating -- Ghost Valley and Bowser Castle never get old.

                        Anyway, I love MK8. Let's hope that MK9 is announced this year.
                        Last edited by Leon Retro; 17-06-2019, 23:51.

                        Comment


                          #13
                          I do enjoy the Sonic racing games a lot but there's state wide gulf in quality between Mario Kart and Sega's series, it's the same other rivals like Crash - fun but nostalgia has to be spinning those who hold it up against Mario's finest.

                          MK64 has definitely reached a certain point of the aging process, I never found the courses to be too wide though, they're practically narrow alleys compared to the parting of the red sea tracks in Wii.

                          Double Dash was such a let down, there's still fun to it but it felt like the first real mis-step the series took and I think it's part of why Wii disappointed. The gameplay of Wii is a bit better but the course width is obscene and somehow it's narrowly uglier than the already ropey DD is cribbed off so heavily. I think it's why MK7 and MK8 were a surprise as I worried a precedent had been set for making them on the cheap but both are up there in the top tier of the franchise

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                            #14
                            Clue for 096 - A beautiful view

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                              #15
                              Viewtiful Joe?

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