Mario Kart Wii Impressions

So I bought Mario Kart for the enjoyment of me and my girlfriend.

The motion sensing has a pretty steep learning curve especially if your a wii noob like me. after some races i didnt end up in last place, though my girlfriend cant seem to get it at all, though i suspect too many glasses of redwine and a foulmood isnt helping either.

Wide variety of maps, though generally they are a bit tougher than GC Wii.

Speaking of which, Mario Kart Wii looks ridicoulously like the GC version, or even the DS version, its horribly ugly, like a monster jumping out of the 90' ies to devour the world. The Wii shows its true colors, i know graphics isnt what its a bout but i expected a bit more, colors look washed out, extreme low poly models and level design.

If my girlfriend doesnt get the controls, i think ill sell my Wii.

Bought it the other day. They' ve made it too easy and you can' t snake anymore. I' m not impressed.

What about Super Smash Bros.? Is that any good?

What about Super Smash Bros.? Is that any good?

Its godly.

Not impressed is my generel perception of the Wii.


Nintendo could have done so much more

This is going to upset some people, but like the Joker says in Batman, ' You can' t make an omelette without breaking some eggs.'

The Wii is a gaming experience that is aimed at 2 demographics.

1) Children under the age of 16 who like good clean games that don' t involved shooting or killing.

2) People that have parties and are bored with the whole naked twister and trivial pursuit thing, getting people to place a Wii controller on their nose to look like an elephant is great fun at 2 in the a.m. with a few vodka' s or Jd' s down your throat.

If you don' t fall into either catagory then it is not for you, yes there are a few legacy games however, how many of these have been written to the same standard as when they were on the N64 or Cube or the Snes?

It doesn' t have the ' Social' side of gaming to it, well not in the same way as live or PSN, this is because it is aimed at getting families to play it together (remember the adverts the whole family on the sofa?).

However that is not to say that it doesn' t have it' s own niche in the market place.

I think a lot was / is being pinned on Mario Kart and from the looks of shops like Game and Toys r Us, it is going to be a big seller, however the people buying it, were under 16' s and family groups and the family groups were young families. The Wii has it' s market and that' s where it will stay. VX do you thow many parties? If you do then keep it for that it is more fun than naked twister...believe me on that.

VX do you thow many parties? If you do then keep it for that it is more fun than naked twister...believe me on that.

When i have parties we dont play games.

Whether or not my girlfriend has fun with Mario Kart is whats gonna make or break if i keep it.

The gaming expiriences on the Wii simply cant compete with whats on the PS3, 360 and the PC

When i have parties we dont play games.

You' re Danish, you don' t know how to have fun.

You' re Danish, you don' t know how to have fun

Since i have a family now im more calm.

But few people can handle me and my friends parties without getting shocked. Well its more a combination of foul words, acts combined with alcohol and various amounts of drugs, presciption or otherwise.

Ive been playing this and Smash Brothers


MK Wii.

First up Just like SMG and most other Nintendo Games, optimization is spot on and no matter how much chaos is going on (MK now moves up to 12P, offline or online) the action is always silky Smooth 60fps with no-draw distance issues.. art direction is as good as always.. Overall it' s looks loverly, not quite as pretty As SMG but very Nice neverless.

The gameplay is a mix between the DS and N6version but this time no snaking is possible , boost are done by either, jumping and waddling analogue side2side (MK ds), Jumping up ramps and perform simple stunts, mushrooms or silptream (bigger characters like bowser are easier to Slipstream).

The characters Weight now make more an impact on collision, IE toad will came to a hault if he crashes into the back of Donkeykong.

The new courses are really nicely designed and have loads of variety. The old classic courses are also really well implemented / re-created.. N64 Bowser castle (YAY IN 60fps!!!), GBA Shy Guy Beach and DS' s Princess gardens and Delphino square are priceless.

Im really liking it, if i was to have a moan, theres abit too much variety, with all the stunts, different cart types i like to concentrate on more racing which i why i rate MK:DS still my fave MK.. It' s still an AAA game nevertheless and certainly by far my fave racer on a console so far.. (GT-prolg = boring in comparison).

F.uck, MK, NMH, PES2008, SSB is Killin my Wii, Been through countless recharges of batteries think im gonna start charging freinds AKA Pay-per-play.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

(GT-prolg = boring in comparison).

why would you even compare the two?

I dont see how you can talk about art direction in a Mario Kart game, its the same bloody art direction thats in the other mario kart games, nothing new.

I expected a lot more polys in the game.

Even from a GC 1.5, which looks more and more like a GC 1.15 instead.

One step foward and two steps back nintedo, try again!

Dam, just came back from town and It' s seems like MK has sold out everywhere...

My neice willl be happy about that.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

Dam, just came back from town and It' s seems like MK has sold out everywhere...

I think Halo has proved that a game doesn' t need to be great to sell a buttload of copies.

ORIGINAL: Virtua fighter 5

Dam, just came back from town and It' s seems like MK has sold out everywhere...

In Birmingham?

Odd. Every store i went into today in Manchester had it in stock.

They' re no longer taking GTA IV pre-orders though...

(YAY IN 60fps!!!)

Awesome!!!!!!!

Garbage in 60fps!!!! OMG!!!!!! Draw Distances, art direction, hooray, hooray!!!!!

Looks like they nailed yet another niche audience with this game. Nintendo, how do you do it???

Most wanted games:

Mass Effect
Assasins Creed
Crysis
Little Big Planet
Drakes Fortune
UTIII
Kane and Lynch
Heavy Rain
Alan Wake

They' re no longer taking GTA IV pre-orders though...

now thats going to be sweet!

I can' t get the hang of using the Wii-mote, so I just thought " *** it" and decided to use the Gamecube controller instead.

I might end up importing Brawl, depending on when the actual release date is.

ROFL.. what a joke.

(not you manrik, im talking the usual Kikizo anti-market leader forum bullshite)

As if i need to argue regarding the quality of a game everyone i know is rightly playing to death.

Grow up.. FFS.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

ORIGINAL: Virtua fighter 5

ROFL.. what a joke.

(not you manrik, im talking the usual Kikizo anti-market leader forum bullshite)

As if i need to argue regarding the quality of a game everyone i know is rightly playing to death.

Grow up.. FFS.

As if i need to argue regarding the quality of a game everyone i know is rightly playing to death.

Grow up.. FFS.

I think your the only one who take personal offence when we dislike a game or a console!

I should point out who the kid here is, but alas, there is no need!

ROFL.. what a joke.

(not you manrik, im talking the usual Kikizo anti-market leader forum bullshite)

As if i need to argue regarding the quality of a game everyone i know is rightly playing to death.

Grow up.. FFS.

I can' t say what what the gaming community is like in Britain as I don' t live there, but here in Canada, out of all the guys I know that like to game, including the 5 that own a Wii, only one is playing Mario Kart, and not much at that.

Most people I know play 360, and it' s what I recommend to anyone who asks me what console to get, even though I bought a ps3 first, and on launch day at that.

Who gives a shit about market leaders? I bet you loved Nintendo to death when they were doing the worst out of all 3 last gen.

I bet you loved Nintendo to death when they were doing the worst out of all 3 last gen.

I followed mainly SEGA MS, Megadrive, Saturn, Dreamcast, Xbox, and now Wii / DS..

Most people I know play 360, and it' s what I recommend to anyone who asks me what console to get, even though I bought a ps3 first, and on launch day at that.

whatever floats ya boat..

I own all three consoles and i hardly touch my 360 and PS3.. Ikaruga has breathed new life into it lately... Next game i' ll be getting for them is Ninja Gaiden 2 and MGS4..

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

I own all three consoles and i hardly touch my 360 and PS3.. Ikaruga has breathed new life into it lately... Next game i' ll be getting for them is Ninja Gaiden 2 and MGS4..

You see, i own all three consoles, lately iv just been using my Xbox 360. Next game i will be getting for the Wii will be a WW inspired Zelda game!

I followed mainly SEGA MS, Megadrive, Saturn, Dreamcast, Xbox, and now Wii / DS..

The Wii and DS are what finally got you interested in Nintendo? That' s a shame considering their earlier efforts in the games industry are by far their best.

Super Mario Kart = Genius
Mario Kart 64 = Genius
Mario Kart: Super Circuit = Genius
Mario Kart DS = Genius
Mario Kart: Double Dash = Genius
Mario Kart Arcade GP = Genius
Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 = Genius
Mario Kart Wii = Watered down bullshit

If you don' t understand why, you haven' t fuc.king played it. Either that or you haven' t played the rest of them.

Mario Kart Wii = Watered down bullshit

Why would you reckon they watered it down? Easier controls or more accessability for the wii kids?

Not kids. Just in general.

Accessibility is pretty much what they' re going for. That' s why they created the Wii-mote in the first place. For some game it' s great... but if it leads to things like this... it' s just pathetic.

The Wii and DS are what finally got you interested in Nintendo? That' s a shame considering their earlier efforts in the games industry are by far their best.

Ive always been interested in the great Nintendo titles (which gamers hasnt).. just that i loved SEGA games more overall back then..


Nitro / Majic

MK wii being watered down?? How you work this out? It' s as deep as its always been.. ive had the game for two weeks now. It' s actually the hardest and at times frustrating of all MK' s, especially in 150c (now having alot more chaos going on with 12 racers and even more obstacles).


Explain yourself. Seriously...

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

Not kids. Just in general.

Accessibility is pretty much what they' re going for. That' s why they created the Wii-mote in the first place. For some game it' s great... but if it leads to things like this... it' s just pathetic.

??

You mean becuase it gives the player the option the play the game with 4 different control types? whats pathetic about that? you don' t like variety?

Explain? your talking shit.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

this game just came out of nowhere.

Change is inevitable. Except from a vending machine.

Viva La Revolution! erm, I mean Viva La Wii!

Mario Kart Wii is awful, without the wheel it is god awful, I have been trying to play it most of the afternoon and ended up going back to Sega Bass Fishing.

Is it true that MK Wii is not 60fps when you play it online?

VF, for a guy who' s claimed that he went from SNES to DS in terms of Nintendo' s hardware... you can' t possibly understand where i' m coming from when i say Mario Kart Wii is watered down. I' m guessing you' ve never even seen a Mario Kart Arcade GP cabinet, nevermind pumped coin after coin into one.

Since everything is relative, i' m saying Mario Kart Wii is watered down compared to previous Mario Kart installments... not compared to every other racing game. It' s not a bad game... it' s just not as good as Mario kart 64 or Mario Kart DS. Double Dash isn' t as good as Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart DS, and neither of those are as good as the original game.

The highlight of the series is probably the DS game. I' d like to say Mario Kart 64, but it' s aged really badly, and although the sprites are still gorgeous and the gameplay is virtually perfect, the DS game is just more well rounded with better course design and solid visuals.

The Wii game is just weak. 50cc and 100cc being karts and bikes respectively is dumb. It makes 150cc the only real option to play the game properly. That' s fine and all in practice, but it' s a stupid design choice. As is multiplayer being exclusively team-based. What the fuc.k is the point of a battle mode if you can' t go all out? And what the fuc.k at it being points based?

The Wii wheel, which the game comes with, is beyond pathetic. It didn' t work in 3rd party games and it doesn' t work in this. It' s undeniable proof that there are genres that the Wii-mote simply doesn' t cater for. Then there' s the stunts, which to be fair do add a reasonable amount of depth do to the boost gains, ...but i' m not playing fuc.king Mario Hoffman... bikes aren' t karts, so get them the fuc.k away from my game!

The removal of snaking was bound to piss purists (like myself) right-the-fuc.k off. The conerstone of Mario Kart racing just gone, ...and why? To make the game more accessible. That and the boring battle modes is enough to drop the game in my estimations. Sure it had Nintendo' s high standard of quality as far as the engine is concerned... but it looks just like the Gamecube iteration and is running on more powerful hardware...so you' d kind expect it to wouldn' t ya...

Vf5 is a moron.

And I had very high hopes for this game It seems the game is still good, but definitely not what I was expecting.

Since everything is relative, i' m saying Mario Kart Wii is watered down compared to previous Mario Kart installments... not compared to every other racing game. It' s not a bad game... it' s just not as good as Mario kart 64 or *Mario Kart DS*.

RE: MK:DS, so do i but for different reasons as a written in the previous page:

Im really liking it, if i was to have a moan, theres abit too much variety, with all the stunts, different cart types i like to concentrate on more racing which i why i rate MK:DS still my fave MK

it' s just not as good as Mario kart 64

You are joking right?? Ive recently played Mario 64 on VC again, and its flawed in all areas. I couldn' t even play the N64 version for 5 seconds after the DS MK. N64 MK is the second worst of the series IMO.

Then there' s the stunts, which to be fair do add a reasonable amount of depth do to the boost gains, ...but i' m not playing fuc.king Mario Hoffman... bikes aren' t karts, so get them the fuc.k away from my game!

This is not watering down but adding depth as you say.

Then there' s:

The characters Weight now make more an impact on collision, IE toad will came to a hault if he crashes into the back of Donkeykong.

That' s another aspect that adds even more depth, then there' s the advanced slipstreaming that is even more dynamic than ever before.. Then there' s the 12 player online that adds even more depth to any version before it.

The Wii wheel, which the game comes with, is beyond pathetic. It didn' t work in 3rd party games and it doesn' t work in this.

You obviously can' t use it!! Go to the leader board or online and see how many wheel users are getting great scores / times. In the first week of me playing the game i was playing mainly against Japanese players and almost ALL of them used the wheel and many, more or less mastered the game to great levels. The wheel was alot better than i expected to be and works really well.

The removal of snaking was bound to piss purists (like myself) right-the-fuc.k off. The conerstone of Mario Kart racing just gone, ...and why? To make the game more accessible.

I used to use snaking all the time but Your speaking as if snaking came with the series. You do know it' s a bug that came out with the DS game only?? and people took it to advantage to turn MK into a routing game. It' s the equivalent to the infamous SFII ' low sweep kick x2 & throw' cheat., it' s a ***ing rout.. nothing purist about it.
Only thing I do agree which has been ***ed up is the Battle mode, I agree with everything your saying on that department but everything else I certainly don' t.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P

Wasn' t snaking following the car for a couple of seconds to get a boost of speed? If that' s what it was, then I know for a fact that is been there since the N64 version, I don' t know about the SNES one, since its been too long.

Snaking has been around on the MK series as far as I know since the SNES.

Anyway, MK will sell well because it caters to it' s " niche" crowd. All Mario games will sell well regardless of quality, just the same as Halo will sell regardless of quality, and the same reason why people buy the newest EA NHL, NFL, or NBA game every year.

Hey, I don' t hate the Wii. I hate the fact that Nintendo has targeted an audience that is ignorant in their gaming knowledge and are charging just about $100 too much for this machine, and are doing little to nothing to improve the quality of games coming out on their system. But why should they. They are the market leader in consoles sold, and that is all that matters. After all, it' s about the number of consoles you sell..............the games can wait.

Most wanted games:

Mass Effect
Assasins Creed
Crysis
Little Big Planet
Drakes Fortune
UTIII
Kane and Lynch
Heavy Rain
Alan Wake

Snaking has existed since forever. It was generally refered to as straight stretch mini-turbos, or SSMT until hardcore F-Zero GX players came up with the term snaking for doing the same thing in that game. VF as usual, proves that he doesn' t know what he' s talking about.

Wasn' t snaking following the car for a couple of seconds to get a boost of speed? If that' s what it was, then I know for a fact that is been there since the N64 version, I don' t know about the SNES one, since its been too long

No, thats slipstreaming..

Snaking is abusing a drift called a ' mini-boost' by drifting back and forth across a straightaway, as if your collecting boosts along the way (but your not). In the DS version people noticed that there was very little cut-off time between performing a ' mini-boosts' if you very quickly and continues performed the ' mini-boost' in succession. When using this rout, the player basically had a constant boost from the word go, in most cases you didn' t even have to pick up items and when playing against players who didnt even know about this bug, you could lap them quite easily (even if they knew the track really well)..

Snaking: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnX4l8UoQUc&feature=related


Regarding the State of the Wii and it' s price and quality of games. It' s all down to bias and what you know and what you want to admit.

The first party Nintendo Games such as SMG, Metriod Prime 3, SSM and MK, paper Mario ETC are soo far away in terms if original idea' s, gameplay design, optimization ,and general perfection, there' s no game out there to even compare them to, nevermind compete against them.. Their in a league of their own and no matter how powerful the other consoles are, Nintendo will continue to outperform them all when it comes to making most videogame benchmarks and GOTY, GOTY, GOTY.

Amongst SMG, MK, NMH, Im paying Wii PES 2008 to death and realize how Nintendo could easily take the ' field sports game' genre too. All it needs is EA to copy Konami and bring these benchmark controls to their EA sports Titles and it' s a wave goodbye to playing on a clumsy, limited pad and hello to the next level.. I see exciting things thanks to Nintendo Wii. IF the nxt Wii supports high-powered tech and HD and the Wiimote controls that are properly realized and taken advantage of by Devs, The future for both Xbox and Playstation are in deep, deep trouble.

Don' t believe me, watch this space!


Now let me get back to MK ffs.

Currently playing:
Korg DS 10 (ds) /  Metal Slug 7 (ds)
Rhythm Heaven (ds) /  Fire Emblem (ds)
Super Stardust HD (psn) /  Virtua Fighter 5 (360)
FSX (P