MARIO KART ON Wii

INTRODUCTION

Mario Kart for Wii is a game that is perfect for anyone and everyone – it is recommended from age 3+ and the fun doesn’t deteriorate as the player gets older, in fact from my experiences the older the player the more fun they have!!

It is a simple game to understand that is based on using a Car Wheel (Wii Wheel) and turning the Wheel to turn your car or bike The idea is the same as any race game - to finish first.
The difference is that in Mario Kart you can pick up items that can hinder your opponent or give you advantages.

It's a game that parents can play with their children, children can play by themselves, or parents can play late night together – ideal with a group of friends.

WHAT YOU GET

In the package you get
1 X Mario Kart Game with Wii Stars
1 X Wii Wheel
An instruction leaflet.

The R.R.P. is £39.99 but by shopping around it can be bought for less it is currently available new on Amazon from £25.99.

I would say that you MUST buy extra wheels to add to the fun – the ‘official’ Wii wheel is available fro £6 - £9 but we have a couple of ‘Gamexpert’ wheels which are from Amazon at £1.99 which work perfectly well.

STARTUP

If you haven’t played the game before the startup screen may seem a little confusing, but you soon get used to it. There are four different "Licenses" that you can play with, and you just have to select one. Each license is a different Wii - and the progress of that Mii is tracked. One disadvantage I find to Mario Kart Wii is that you can only play with one license at a time, so if two people are playing you only get records for one – annoying if you do particularly well!!!

Wii WHEEL

As I said earlier, one is included with the game, but this really is a game best played with other people so it is advisable to buy more.
The Wheel is very easy to use: simply slot the Wii controller in the middle, slot the wrist strap through the hole, put the wrist strap on (we don’t want Nana to have a Wii Wheel in her face do we!!) and you are ready for the off.
To operate the Wii remote with the Wii Wheel turn the Wii wheel left if you want to go left, and right if you want to turn right just like a normal steering wheel.
Pressing Up on the control pad throws items in front of you (bananas, Koopa shells, etc.)
The 1 button is brake/reverse
The 2 button makes you accelerate.
The A button has a rear camera
The B button shoots items either behind you or in front of you
depending on the item.
The plus button pauses the game.

Those are the controls for the Wii Wheel/Wii remote if you have it on auto drift, if you choose manual drifting, up on the control pad uses items, down throws them behind you. and the B button the drifting button.

So what are the other options?

The Wii Wheel is not the only controller although I think it is by far the best.
You can also use the Wii Remote with Nunchuk. Turning is done with the Nunchuk stick (not by turning it), and the various buttons shoot weapons, look backwards, slide or go. This method is less fun and not nearly as easy.
I believe that t is also possible to use the Wii controller (the actual plug-in controller), or a Game Cube controller but have no experience of these so cannot give an opinion on them.

VEHICLES

I think that one of the great features to Mario Kart Wii is the facility to select a unique vehicle (there are a choice different karts and motorcycles all with different characteristics).

Vehicle Features
As you begin the game you have the choice of 3 karts and 3 motorcycles, but you do have the chance to get more by unlocking them as you complete various tasks in the game. The vehicles all have differences, which you take into consideration when choosing them - Speed, Weight, Acceleration, Handling, Drift, Off-Road, and Mini-Turbo.

Motorcycles
The introduction of motorcycles to the game gives the player the ability to perform a wheelie. You do this by shaking your Wii Wheel, but you are not able to turn while doing a wheelie.
As well as the wheelies for motorcycles, you can also perform tricks while in the air on both karts and motorcycles. You do this by shaking your Wii Wheel just after getting in the air, and you will perform a trick and get a small boost upon landing.
Motorcycles seem a bit easier to be thrown off the road by a collision with your opponent. I have noticed that the heavier characters usually do better on motorcycles then in karts and vice versa.

RACE/BATTLE

Mario Kart Wii has both race and battle features, with different types for each. One thing that I like is that you can play in battle mode by yourself against the computer.
The races are t Grand Prix, Time Trials, and VS, and the battle mode has Balloon Battle and Coin Runner modes.
The Game starts off nice and easy with the Luigi circuit. Then it gets more challenging with the likes of Bowser Castle, with the fireballs and Twomps trying to crush you There are 32 tracks in all - 16 new and 16 retro courses.
These new and old levels are available in both races and battles,. There are 4 engine course in this game, starting with 50 cc, 100cc, 150cc and 150 cc each with 8 cups. Which means you will be racing for 32 cups

As you get into the game you get used to all the items on the tracks that can help or hinder your journey.
Look out for the l red and silver arrows that flash on the track, when you drive over one of these you get a turbo boost. Theses are also found on ramps and will propel you into the air. Driving through the 3D flashing boxes that are scattered around the tracks, with question marks in them, will give you a special power that you can use by pressing the 'B' button whenever you want. You could get a turbo boosts, or a bullet which turns you in to a bullet that speeds along the track at great speed for a short time – when you are in ‘bullet mode’ the steering is automatic there are also things that you can use on your Then there are items that can be used against your opponents – things like bananas that you can be dropped on the track,or lightning, which strikes all your opponents cars with lightning and for a short time makes them spin out and shrink or Blooper, which sprays ink on the windscreens all the cars in front of you. windscreens making it hard for them to see where they are going for a short time.
Be careful not to hit one of the bananas as it will spin you a couple of times and slow you down. Other obstacles to look out for are ‘fake’ question mark boxes, which have the question mark upside down - if you don’t avoid these boxes they explode and turn you over, also to avoid are things like wooden boxes, cows, mud etc , there is certainly plenty to keep you occupied.

CHARACTERS

There are lots of characters available in Mario Kart Wii
You start with 12 characters and continue to add to them as you progress through the game. In all, there are 25 - 24 of these are characters from Nintendo Franchises, the other one is your Mii. Among this list are several series classics including Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, Yoshi, Bowser, DK, ect. But, the game also features 5 complete new comers to the series, Funky Kong, Baby Peach, Baby Daisy, Rosalina(what?), and Dry Bowser.

GRAPHICS AND AUDIO

The graphics are a mixed bag an none of them will blow you away.
I personally think that as Wii games are concerned, Mario Kart is one of the better looking games for the consol. Many of the new 16 tracks extremely stylish and well designed.
It is a colourful game and remembering that these are cartoons the graphics are very watchable.

As regards to the sound, each character in the game have a short list of lines along with some grunts and groans, and this chatter is somewhat overshadowed by background music. To me the sounds fit in well with the fun nature of the game fairly well.

ONLINE GAMEPLAY

Playing online is a great feature of Mario Kart Wii - you can play with two people on your machine, and can play with up to 12 people online. I have not played online but my son frequently does, he loves the fact that he can play with his sister who now lives 60 miles away!!

I asked my son’s advice and opinion on the Online Gameplay and he told me that you can either connect on Nintendo WFC to play in games against people, or you can connect through the Mario Kart Channel, where you can enter tournaments, send ghosts to your friends, view rankings, and set friends
He emphasised that it doesn’t compare to X-Box live but that it still ‘pretty cool’ (he is 13!!)

WHAT DO I THINK

Mario Kart Wii is a fantastic game that is fun for the whole family.
I think that is a fantastic way for families to get together and have fun. But you can play for hours by yourself in one player mode either playing Grand Prix, Battles, Times Trials, or you can play online against your friends!
If you have a Wii do buy this game, if you haven’t buy a Wii!!!!!