Mario Kart 8 review

[Nu-Eclipse]

Why should there be a penalty for, y'know, displaying driving skill to get to the front of the pack and stay there? Maybe those at the back should learn to drive better and improve?

This is why Mario Kart has declined as a game.

[nakamura]

Why is it a penalty? It's just a design choice. If they patched it out then fair enough.

[Nu-Eclipse]

I never said it was. You implied it was - you implied that those at the front of a race could carry on collecting coins without penalty.

And so they should. It's a race - driving skill normally gets you first in any race and it should always be what determines the outcome of any race.

Capping coins is just pure nonsense. Why include coins in MK8 and MK7 if that's the case? There's no point.

[nakamura]

Penalty was the wrong choice in that case then. I do think you are making a bit much of nothing. It's there by design and doesn't cause that much of an issue, if anything it helps balancing.

SMK ain't coming back. Wish they did make another like it but they won't.

[wakka]

I think the coin system works well. If you could collect unlimited coins the person in first would just get faster and faster and faster until they were completely unstoppable. It would be really badly broken if you could do that.

Once you have 10 it's still worth collecting them ya know you get an instant mini speed boost with every one you collect after your 10th.

[Asura]

SMK ain't coming back. Wish they did make another like it but they won't.

Who knows; they might do something in MK9 like the "For Glory" mode in Smash.

Unlimited coins, no blue shells, only certain tracks...

[Nu-Eclipse]

If you could collect unlimited coins the person in first would just get faster and faster and faster until they were completely unstoppable. It would be really badly broken if you could do that.

Funny how this problem never really occured in SMK, but I really do digress.

[nakamura]

The speed was limited to ten coins in SMK. With the new system at least you have a chance of catching a skilled racer.

[Nu-Eclipse]

With the new system at least you have a chance of catching a skilled racer.

Relying on game mechanic technicalities to win rather than one's own driving skill/ability?

If that isn't further proof that Mario Kart jumped the shark generations ago then I really don't know what is.

[nakamura]

Indeed and nobody disagrees with you. Skilled players still win more often than not but luck plays a much bigger factor than SMK, but I honestly don't believe the coin mechanic has a huge impact.

[Nu-Eclipse]

And I never ever said that the coin mechanic did have a huge impact in the first place.

My point all along is that there is no point it being in the game if it is so clearly half-arsed. That point still stands.

[dataDave]

You're talking ****e, and I'm open to proving so in a set of online matches. Bring your blue shells or whatever. Like Nak said, the coin speed bonus was capped at 10 in SMK anyway, I fail to see the difference here beyond a displayed number.

SMK is old. As a vs. racer it's easily exploited and skill doesn't even enter the debate for anyone with any track knowledge or general sense. The only way it stands up today is for the same reason it stood out back then: the time trials.

[Nu-Eclipse]

You're talking ****e, and I'm open to proving so in a set of online matches. Bring your blue shells or whatever. Like Nak said, the coin speed bonus was capped at 10 in SMK anyway, I fail to see the difference here beyond a displayed number.

Yeah, okay - I'm talking ****e.

If you even bothered to properly read my initial point, you'd see that I never said the coin mechanic had that much of an impact in the first place.

SMK is old. As a vs. racer it's easily exploited and skill doesn't even enter the debate for anyone with any track knowledge or general sense. The only way it stands up today is for the same reason it stood out back then: the time trials.

And what's your point? Every MK game has been exploitable in one way or another - this really isn't news. Even MK7 had to be patched to cut out exploitables on certain tracks. What that has to do with anything being discussed here is totally unclear.

You're the one talking ****e if you can't see that the balance between needing pure racing skill and relying on power-ups is completely different between SMK and MK8. SNES Rainbow Road proves this for one thing - pure driving skill needed to succeed on that course in SMK whereas it is totally nerfed beyond recognition in MK7 and MK8 to make it much more easier and boring. There are countless other examples.

Time Trial or not, SMK is still competitively played and popular amongst tourney players today, 23 years on. The modern games in the franchise are not even afterthoughts in comparison. MK64, MKSC, Double Dash, MKDS, MKWii - nobody gives a ****e about them anymore. MK7 is barely still played at this point. I'd be willing to bet that MK8 goes the same way.

[dataDave]

Yeah, okay - I'm talking ****e.

If you even bothered to properly read my initial point, you'd see that I never said the coin mechanic had that much of an impact in the first place.



And what's your point? Every MK game has been exploitable in one way or another - this really isn't news. Even MK7 had to be patched to cut out exploitables on certain tracks. What that has to do with anything being discussed here is totally unclear.

You're the one talking ****e if you can't see that the balance between needing pure racing skill and relying on power-ups is completely different between SMK and MK8. SNES Rainbow Road proves this for one thing - pure driving skill needed to succeed on that course in SMK whereas it is totally nerfed beyond recognition in MK7 and MK8 to make it much more easier and boring. There are countless other examples.

Time Trial or not, SMK is still competitively played and popular amongst tourney players today, 23 years on. The modern games in the franchise are not even afterthoughts in comparison. MK64, MKSC, Double Dash, MKDS, MKWii - nobody gives a ****e about them anymore. MK7 is barely still played at this point. I'd be willing to bet that MK8 goes the same way.

Where are your numbers? "Competitively" or not, bet a lot more people are currently playing MK7 than "competitive" SMK. Let's not even think about comparing the Miiverse activity between both games.

Are you one of the 60 or so (lol) people still relishing in the pure balance of SMK competitively, by any chance? If not then why do you care about what other people are doing? It takes a LOT more time and effort memorising the racing lines on MK8 than in SMK.

Anyway, I'm open to showing you the complete uselessness of power-ups vs. an impeccable racing line at any time.

[nakamura]

MK Wii was busy online until the very last day.