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[Kazz]

For all her talk about hating the changes to local versus and battle*, Lady Duke sure does seem to like grabbing the controller from me.

The game is designed around WFC play, which is flawless.  Utterly lag-free, no control response lag whatsoever.  I've seen a single instance of the magical disappearing kart, once common in Mario Kart DS, but that's it.

If you hated Double Dash, or otherwise think there hasn't been a good MK since the N64 version, I encourage you to rent it first or play it at a friend's house, but otherwise I think it's a solid pickup.


* Local versus and battle modes mimic the online modes; they add CPUs until there are 12 players.  The new battle mode even puts everybody on teams now.  It's tough to compete against friends when you can't find each other.  I don't know why they felt the need to make the offline mode exactly like the online mode, but they did.  I, for one, don't really care, because I like going online.
THIS IS WRONG, YOU CAN TURN COMPUTERS OFF, LAWL?


EDIT: LD is holding down and raping the time trials with King Boo on a motorcycle.  It's... it's a... it's a huge turn-on.

[Disposable Ninja]

Yeah, I like rape, too.

[jsnlxndrlv]

Let's review.

Super Mario Kart: I know that I played this, but I sure as hell can't remember anything about it.
Mario Kart 64: is impossible to play because of the Nintendo 64's antiquated controller design, but it will always be glorious in my memory.
Mario Kart Advance (was this Super Circuit?): This was a solid game that I regret selling.  Power slides took some getting used to, but I think it's probably my favorite of the Mario Kart games playable on modern consoles and handhelds.
Mario Kart: Double Dash!!: I loved the fine tuning of pairing a driver with a kart, but all the stat-balancing in the world couldn't make up for fucking obscene levels of chaos in the 150-cc circuits.  This is also where the series dropped the inexplicable videogame abstraction and abandoned bunny hops, orbiting shells and the like, which always made me glower.
Mario Kart DS: Items are still terrible, but now you've got the Pandora's box of snaking, which pushes the game into competitive Smash Bros. levels of lameness.

Considering all that, should I even bother?

[Kazz]

Not if you're going to be a big negative nelly.

I can tell you that snaking is not in this game.  Powersliding has been altered so that the boost is based on how long you've been drifting, not how hard you waggle your stick.

As far as item chaos, I mean, it's Mario Kart.  I don't have a ton of experience in Double Dash, but I can tell you that there aren't two item slots anymore, there aren't crazy-powerful special items all over the place; things have been scaled back in that regard.  But you can't expect to hold 1st place for two full laps; nor should you expect to, having 11 players gunning for you and all.

Again, I encourage you to try it before you buy it.  I can't wholeheartedly recommend it to everyone because, apparently, a lot of people don't like things in recent Mario Karts that never bothered me, so I'm not really qualified to give an opinion anyway.  I do hate hearing how much everyone hates everything, though.  Stop hating everything, everyone.

[Saturn]

is the annoying as hell rubberband ai still around?
and if so does it ALWAYS CHOOSE THE SAME FUCKING GUY TO BE THE DESIGNATED SHITSTICK?

[Thad]

Yeah, I like rape, too.

I had a friend in college who used to scream "STOP RAPING ME!" in the middle of games of CTR.  Like, loudly enough to hear it from the next hall down.

Apparently on one occasion she was playing CTR while the RA was talking to some parents.  They looked at him and asked if he was going to check it out; he said no, it's okay, she shouts that sometimes.

Mario Kart 64: is impossible to play because of the Nintendo 64's antiquated controller design, but it will always be glorious in my memory.

Worth the $10 on VC.

The sprites look fugly on an HDTV, but the polygons look much better than they did on the 64.

...Anyway.  I'm surprised it took me this long to figure it out, and MORE surprised that nobody else seems to be talking about it, but...online play is EXACTLY THE REASON that they abandoned Double Dash's two-man karts.  That shit would not work online without voice chat.

Picked it up yesterday, because we had some friends visiting from college (not the "STOP RAPING ME!" girl) and it's a tradition; we worked our way through two generations of Mario Kart in those days.  Played through the Mushroom and Flower Cups.  The Toad Factory and Wario Mine levels were the most memorable.

Also: extra points for working Miis into it just to add confusion.  "DAMMIT BEN!  ...Not you, Ben.  Your Mii just cut me off."

So far it seems less impressive than Double Dash, but I haven't hit online yet.  I'll post my friend code on the appropriate thread when I get the chance, but it's finals crunch time right now and that's gotta be my focus for the next week.  I'm probably already behind because of hanging with my out-of-town guests

[Dooly]

My roommate got it yesterday, and I've only gone through a couple of cups in 50cc.

In regards to item chaos, if you're in first a lot, the AI will hit you with an absurd amount of items.  In damn near every race, you'll get at least one blue shell, maybe three bloopers, a lightning bolt or two, and a goddamned half-dozen POW blocks.  It's ridiculous.

Also, I don't know if anyone's complaining about the Wii Wheel, but I got accustomed to it pretty much immediately, and I say it definitely adds to the fun.

[Kazz]

50cc, as with every MK before it, is Boring Mode.  The bikes in 100cc are great, and 150cc is Now It Feels Like Racing Mode.

Dooly: It isn't just the AI hitting you with items in first.  I got way ahead in an online race last night.  I was playing as Koopa Troopa on the Bit Bike: great accel, easy maneuvering, great off-road, but an awful top speed, so you have to trick and boost whore.  But it's easy to avoid obstacles this way, so it's sort of a slow-and-steady proposition.  Anyway.

I got literally feet from the finish line when a pair of blue shells and a red shell hit me to deny me the win.  And I was upset at the time, but I thought about it later; if I was in third, trying as hard as I could to get past all the assholes cramming shells up my ass when I'm just trying to catch up to the guy who broke away from the pack, I'd pray for the chance that he got.  So really, I'm pretty happy with the balance.

LD took the controller from me and immediately won her first two online races on the Bit Bike, too.

[Lady Duke]

 EDIT BY KAZZ: HI WE LATER FOUND THAT YOU CAN TURN COMPUTERS OFF OK THX


The game is awful if you wanna play with friends, in your house, on versus mode or battle.  Those are my two favorite modes, so understandably, I am extremely angry and upset about what they did to gameplay.  I can't JUST play versus Kazz and my friend Jordan, I HAVE to play it with 9 fucking moronic computers who just dick everything over.  There's no fun in playing a battle if the computers are competing, because that's not what I want to battle or race for.  If I want to play a FUCKING COMPUTER I'LL DO THE GOD DAMN GRAND PRIS FUCK YOU NINTENDO YOU BASTARDS.

But if you like online play, which is fun, it is good.  Also, I really really really like the new courses, and I super love the additions of motor bikes.  They are the best.  And I love doing wheelies and tricks on jumps.  Tricks on jumps = best thing in the world ever.  Also, I wouldn't pay attention to a lot of the faqs online, since Kazz and I keep finding them to be wrong.  Extremely wrong.

So, if you like battling and versus locally, don't buy the game because it's fucking retarded now, even though they added some great courses that would be amazing for people who would like to battle two friends.  Bastard nintendo, why do you hate your fans more than anything?

[Niku]

There's no fun in playing a battle if the computers are competing, because that's not what I want to battle or race for.  If I want to play a FUCKING COMPUTER I'LL DO THE GOD DAMN GRAND PRIS FUCK YOU NINTENDO YOU BASTARDS.

quoting this for madmaxjr

[Kazz]

LD says that Parish basically stole every last word from her mouth, positive points and negative.  "That is fucking astounding," she says.

[Detonator]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it looks like you can turn the computer "off" in the rules when selecting a game mode (race or battle).  Haven't tried it yet, though.

[Kazz]

GUESS WHAT YOU CAN TURN COMPUTERS OFF

NEVER MIIIIIIIIIND

 

[Kazz]

So anyway, re: Parish, his complaint that the new MK lacks depth and complexity makes him sound as bad as a Brawl tourneyfag, ie, way to miss the point, this is fucking Mario Kart.  If he likes fun (still up for debate), I doubt he can be all grumpygus when actually playing the game.

[Thad]

Also, I don't know if anyone's complaining about the Wii Wheel, but I got accustomed to it pretty much immediately, and I say it definitely adds to the fun.

Damn, *I* wanted to be the first to buck the consensus.

The wheel is awesome.

Granted, I've only used it on 50cc so far; maybe it doesn't work well in the harder cups.

Only complaint is with the items on the D-pad.  Using up and down to choose whether an item shoots forward or back is a great touch, but the fact that every single other controller uses the left trigger for item and the remote uses it for hopping and sliding makes the transition difficult, and holding down the D-pad to drag an item behind you while you power-slide would be a real bastard even WITHOUT the confusion of repeatedly forgetting that releasing the trigger doesn't shoot the item.

Re: retro courses: good selection from the 64, Cube, and DS, not so much from the SNES and GBA.  It's not just that the SNES and GBA courses are dated, it's that they haven't even picked the better ones.  The beach course from GBA is not as good as similar beach courses from the SNES, for example (or such is my recollection; I will admit my memory of the SNES courses is hazy).

Oddly, on Battle, the situation is reversed.  They've picked one of the really kickass courses from the SNES, and gone with the absolute worst from the 64.  Seriously, if someone asked you, "Which battle course from the 64 should we include?" -- would anyone, anywhere, EVER answer "Skyscraper"?

I read one review where a guy suggested that every Mario Kart course ever should be put up as DLC.  I wholeheartedly endorse this idea, with the caveat that, since Mario Kart 64 costs $10 on VC, 16 additional courses for MKW should cost less than that entire game.

[Kazz]

Oddly, on Battle, the situation is reversed.  They've picked one of the really kickass courses from the SNES, and gone with the absolute worst from the 64.  Seriously, if someone asked you, "Which battle course from the 64 should we include?" -- would anyone, anywhere, EVER answer "Skyscraper"?

Apparently, they don't realize that Block Fort is god-damned legendary over here.  With Double Deck a competitive second.

The new maps are large, though; they were designed to accommodate 12 players, so they're not terrible and cramped like the ones in Double Dash.  There's even one that's reminiscent, however slightly, of Block Fort.  *wistful*

I read one review where a guy suggested that every Mario Kart course ever should be put up as DLC.  I wholeheartedly endorse this idea, with the caveat that, since Mario Kart 64 costs $10 on VC, 16 additional courses for MKW should cost less than that entire game.

Are games on the Wii really DLC-capable?

[Lady Duke]

I abhor the wheel.  It's like..the lamest thing ever, and if it didn't come with the game, I wouldn't have one.  It feels dumb steering with it, and I can't do it very well. 

I feel like this is one of the few games that I've played on the wii, where the chuck+wiimote feel SO right to play with.  I especially love shaking my wiimote to do tricks and it's easy to do wheelies.


Also: on the battling crap, I was beyond livid when I read that the only course taken from N64 was skyscraper.  They really couldn't have chosen anything worse, and I totally agree with Thad on that one.

[Thad]

Oddly, on Battle, the situation is reversed.  They've picked one of the really kickass courses from the SNES, and gone with the absolute worst from the 64.  Seriously, if someone asked you, "Which battle course from the 64 should we include?" -- would anyone, anywhere, EVER answer "Skyscraper"?

Apparently, they don't realize that Block Fort is god-damned legendary over here.  With Double Deck a competitive second.

I'm going to assume that they didn't include Block Fort because it was already in the DS version, and they didn't include Double Deck because it's too similar to...whatever the DS one they included was, I forget its name.  Still, a pretty piss-poor pair of excuses.

[Lady Duke]

Block fort's on the ds?  I've never really played any battles on ds because it's lame to battle on ds.  That's such a waste of an amazing course :(

[Thad]

Moving back a bit:

Are games on the Wii really DLC-capable?

That's...not really a correct way of posing the question.  If a game is capable of reading data from the Wii's flash memory, then it is theoretically capable of running DLC; it's not a question of whether Wii games in general are capable of doing it, it's a question of whether any specific game is designed to.  And even if it isn't, that functionality can be added with a firmware update to the Wii itself.

The Wii DLC problem is more about the capacity of that flash memory.  It's not a question of whether games could be designed to access content from that memory, it's a question of how much content it can actually hold.

Anyway.  Poking around a bit, the Wired games blog said back in February that Nintendo acknowledged DLC of some variety was coming.  Whether any of that DLC will be used for Mario Kart is anybody's guess, but it's a huge missed opportunity if it isn't.