Mario Kart Wii – WII – Review

Before there
was Smash Bros., Mario Kart was Nintendo’s multiplayer ace in the hole. After
two good, but not great console entries in Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Double
Dash!!, Nintendo released Mario Kart DS and gave the series a much needed boost.
In addition to being a very good racer in its own right, it added simple online
play.

Now, two and a
half years later, Nintendo has delivered the franchise’s Wii incarnation, and it
delivers the goods.

Anyone familiar
with the Mario Kart formula will certainly know what to expect. The gameplay
hasn’t changed a heck of a lot over the years, and Mario Kart Wii is still a
race between different Mario mascots complete with wacky courses and a variety
of items. And as a racer alone, the game succeeds. The course design is quite
good, with a few of the later ones being especially fun and challenging.

On top of this
tried-and-true setup, Nintendo has added some very welcomed minor tweaks. The
most noticeable one is the motion-controlled Wii Wheel, which comes packaged
with Mario Kart Wii. Now, the Wheel is merely a shell that the Wii remote fits
into, but it feels really good, nonetheless. There is a slight learning curve
because there is no steering column. Therefore, you have to get a feel for how
much of a tilt gives you the maximum turning power. Once you get a feel for it,
though, it works very well, and I had no problem defeating players that used a
standard controller setup. Kart Wii is compatible with every possible Wii
controller from a GameCube pad to the Classic Controller. So if you are afraid
of change, you still have that option.

The ability to
perform tricks while in the air has also been added. The reward is a slight
boost after landing. This works well, as it adds a level of strategy. Those who
try to hit every jump will eventually pay for it by flying off the track, so it
becomes very much a game of determining when it’s worth the risk.

Motorcycles
have also been added. This adds another welcomed bit of strategy, as bikes can
perform wheelies for speed boosts, but have almost no turning ability while
doing so. Karts on the other hand can perform a higher level of boost via power
slide. To power slide, simply holding the slide button and release when blue of
or yellow exhaust appears. This slide mechanic is far simpler than in the DS
version, which required the player to alternate pressing left/right on the d-pad
to get the boost.

The happy
by-product of this change is that ‘snaking’ has been completely eliminated. As
anyone who played the DS version online will know, ‘snaking’ is a way to
maintain a state of constant boost by power sliding back and forth continuously.
Because it takes a set amount of time to get the boost now, it is actually
detrimental to snake.

This alone
would have made Mario Kart Wii a better online experience than the DS version,
but the improvements don’t end there. Mario Kart Wii’s online mode is stellar
all-around. Most importantly, unlike Smash Bros. before it, Kart’s online is
super quick to connect and runs at a completely smooth 60 frames per second.
There is no perceivable difference between Kart running online and off, and that
is very impressive, especially given that the game supports 12 players in a
single race. You can even play online alongside a friend, as the game supports
two local players to play online.

The online mode
also includes added features such as time trial leaderboards, where you can
compare your times to players all around the world. You can also download ghost
data for top players and try to break their records. The game also promises
tournaments, and even features a Mario Kart Channel that you can install in your
Wii Menu. This channel will constantly update stats and various info via
WiiConnect24. Quite simply, this is an online feature set that we have never
seen from Nintendo before, and combined with the smooth-running gameplay, it
really is the star of the show.

Unfortunately,
the battle mode doesn’t fare as well as the standard racing either online or
off. The mode has been gimped by a lack of options and required team-based
gameplay. Players are split into two teams, whereas before you had the option of
competing individually. It’s a very strange limitation and one that does hurt
the experience for those who have loved the Mario Kart battle mode in past
games. That’s not to say the mode is worthless now, but why not give gamers the
choice instead of removing the option altogether?

It’s also worth
noting that the single-player Grand Prix mode features some frustrating ‘rubber
banding,’ especially in the 150cc mode. If you are in first, you can expect to
be pummeled by items in the final lap, many times costing you the race. This
means that you can essentially race perfectly and still come in dead last
depending on when and how badly you are assaulted. Thankfully this isn’t a major
problem in the 100cc, which is the best balanced overall. 50cc is very much for
beginners, as karts appear to slow down and let you catch up at times.

Visually, Mario
Kart Wii won’t drop any jaws, but it is still a good-looking game. The graphics
are very simple, as close-up inspection of the tracks and character models will
show, but while racing, they are sharp and very vibrant. The game also features
a few very nice visual effects. Best of all is that the game runs at a constant
60 frames per second in every mode except three or four player split screen.

The music may
not be anything special, but it’s decent enough. The voices are repetitive, but
not overly annoying. Kart does have some very good sound design from its
surround setup to the clever use of the Wii remote’s speaker as an alarm for
incoming threats.

While Mario
Kart Wii certainly has a few nagging flaws in the single-player and battle-mode
areas, it’s still a very good game. The new gameplay additions all add to the
experience and the motion controls work very well. The online mode is
exceptionally good and will have gamers coming back again and again. If you like
Mario Kart and you like competing online, this game is for you.


Review
Scoring Details

for Mario Kart Wii


Gameplay: 9.0
It’s not terribly
different from previous entries, but that’s certainly not a bad thing. The minor
additions there are, however, work well. Tricking, bikes, simplified power
slide, and a number of very good control options (including the Wii Wheel) all
add to the experience. There are also a few masterful track designs, especially
in the later cups.


Graphics: 8.0 
Mario Kart Wii has a
very smooth and sharp look to it with vibrant colors and some nice visual
effects. The game also runs at a silky smooth 60 frames per second in every mode
outside three- or four-player split screen. That said, the visuals are fairly
simplistic, as close-ups of character models and tracks will reveal.

Sound: 8.0
The music isn’t
particularly memorable and some of the voice work is on the annoying side, but
the sound design is quite good. The game makes nice use of surround sound and
the Wii remote speaker.


Difficulty: Medium
Racing classes of
50, 100, and 150cc range from very easy to infuriating. The Wii Wheel does make
the game very accessible.


Concept: 8.5 
It’s certainly not a
revolution of the Mario Kart franchise, but it does provide a good balance of
new and old, aside from the baffling battle mode alterations, that is. The game
gets major points for the fantastic online mode and well conceived control
setups.


Multiplayer: 9.0
Local multiplayer is
as enjoyable as ever, but the online mode easily outshines it. It connects and
runs very quickly and, most importantly, very smoothly. It also features a bevy
of extra features such as time trial leaderboards, downloadable ghost data,
tournaments, and even a Mario Kart channel for the Wii Menu which will
constantly update via WiiConnect24.

Overall: 8.8
The core Mario Kart
gameplay remains basically unchanged, but it’s well executed and slightly
enhanced by minor tweaks and a variety of control setups. The online mode is the
real star here, however. If you liked playing online with Kart on DS, you will
absolutely love playing online on Wii.