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Wii - Mario Kart Wii |
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Written by Bront
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Wednesday, 14 May 2008 |
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 A new, and highly anticipated Mario Kart has arrived on the Wii, and along with it, the Wii Wheel, a steering wheel like peripheral that lets you mount a controller in it. The Wii is Nintendo’s flagship console with graphics, and integrated online capabilities, and many classic Nintendo franchises have made the transition to the Wii successfully so far. The series has always been popular and is credited for founding the cart racing genre, so how does Mario Kart, and it’s new controller fare, and does it bring anything new to the table?
Mario Kart Wii is fairly familiar to people returning to the series, both in modes of play, and general setup. You can play single player in an assortment of options, including Grand Prix, Time Trials, VS, and Battle. Again, like previous versions, playing in these will help you unlock hidden karts, characters, tracks, and other extras. Also, like previous versions, you can play multi-player, with up to 4 players playing at the same time. Multi-player locally lets you play in most of the same modes as 1 player (though not all, depending on how many players you have), and is played via split screen, as is usual for the console versions of the series. And, as is tradition, the courses are a mix of new courses and classic favorites, updated visually and occasionally in function.
 So, what’s new? Well, for starters, the introduction of bikes to the game. Now, Bikes may not seem like they belong in a Kart racing game, but Nintendo did a very good job of putting them in and balancing them with the Karts. Drifting has been tweeked so you have 2 modes, automatic and manual. Automatic will activate drifting if you make a hard turn, and is good for beginners or small children. Manual simply means you activate drifting with a button when you turn, and you can get a speed boost once you drift for a bit, depending on your ride. Karts can get a better boost from drifting, but can no longer use what was called “snaking” (drifting on straight aways). Bikes can’t get the extra drift boost, but can pop a wheelie, which gives them a slight speed boost on straight aways, in exchange for reduced steering and susceptibility to being knocked down when bumped.
That’s not the only big change though. You can now perform stunts when you jump, and when you land you get a small speed boost. This is accomplished by simply shaking the controller (or the D Pad if you’re using the Gamecube or Classic controller) as you launch into the air. The new courses take advantage of this, having multiple places to launch yourself into the air, half-pipes, and pits to face (This highlights other issues, which I will get into later).
Nintendo WFC (Wi-Fi Connect) play is included as well, and is heavily integrated into the game. Mario Kart Wii does have it’s own friend code independent of the console, but you can invite friends with the game on your friend list easily. You can send time trial ghosts to your friends, download top times and race against them, enter online tournaments, and, of course, play live against up to 11 other people from around the world. Online play lets you play up to 2 players on the console at the time, so even it even has its own channel you can install on the console, so you can do just about everything but play without the disk in the system. Online play works smoothly, and you get rated and grouped according to your rating and how well you do, so you shouldn’t ever feel totally outclassed or feel underwhelmed by your competition once you’ve played several rounds.
 Gameplay and control is excellent. All the controls feel responsive, so it’s a matter of personal preference if you want to use the Wii Wheel, standard Wiimote and Nunchuck, Gamecube Controller, or Classic Controller. The Wii Wheel is quite responsive, and while it takes a little more getting used to than the other control schemes, it plays quite nicely. The cart physics are consistent with previous games, which is to say they’re good enough without being too realistic, You have an assortment of various weapon, most from prior games (all the prior DS ones), but a few new ones as well. The AI is very well done, as the racers behave intelligently, race hard, and use their weapons well.
Graphically the game is very well done. The cartoony Mario ensemble is all there, and the courses are bright, well marked, and generally easy to see ahead of you. The backgrounds are lush, colorful, and fun to watch even if you’re not racing. Miis populate parts of the courses (and you can even unlock your Mii to race), as well as billboards and other background details. The characters, carts, and bikes look sharp. Sound is generally good too, with some fun and entertaining songs, some old and some new. Sound effects are nice and effective, but character voices could have been more varied in what they say. Also, some of the music sounds like a cheep midi. While this fits the general Mario theme, it could have been better on the Wii, and effects on the music sometimes make it hard to listen to.
The game is not without its problems though. Most notably, the classic courses, with few exceptions, seem a little less interesting now that you can perform stunts in the air, as few of them have places to jump. Meanwhile, the new courses, having many pits and places to jump, make your character more susceptible to weapons when you’re in the air, as a turtle shell blast can easily knock you into a bit, causing you to lose quite a bit of time.
The negatives don’t take away from the fact that Mario Kart Wii is an outstanding game, and brings a lot of fun to the table. The incredible WFC play, and bikes and stunts bring a new element to the game to make it a fresh entry into the series.
Pros:
-Graphics and artwork are well done.
-WFC play is easy and works well
-Mario Kart channel allows for online content to be dealt with without the game
-Can play 4 players at once, or two at once with WFC play
-Controls are well done
-Cart racing physics are accurate enough but don’t interfere in the fun
-Easy to pick up and play for short periods of time.
-New bikes and stunts add some variety and new life to the series
Cons:
-Weapons can be deadly on new courses
-Old courses show their age
-Character speech gets repetitive
-Music Sound quality is sometimes questionable
Bront’s Score: 8.8 out of 10
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