Mario Kart 8 Review by: Uzar - 9.6/10
Mario Kart 8!LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!…AND METAL PEOPLE, FUNGI, AND REPTILES OF ALL AGES!…AND WALUIGI! START YOUR ENGINES! Mario Kart 8 is a game now!
Now then, this newest installment in the Mario Kart series does something no other Mario Kart has done before. It comes back to the gimmicks of the last Mario Kart, (customizable vehicles, gliders that serve no real purpose, coins, and underwater driving) ) and expands on it. With more parts, and the ability to drive up walls and upside down in zero gravity. While cool, it’s not anything I haven’t seen before *cough cough F-Zero's did zero-gravity first *Cough Cough.
Outside of the zero gravity thing, that’s pretty neat. But, the game does have its flaws. And now we’ll delve a bit into this fun, and sometimes difficult game.
Graphics: 10/10This game looks great! It’s a weird mix of realistic, and cartoony. But it’s fantastic all the same. There are also little things that I appreciated, when you go into a drift, you leave skid marks on the road. After a lap or two it starts looking like a real racetrack. Also, in the sand you leave tracks behind your kart when driving. And when you drive in the dirt, your tires get dirt on them. It just makes the game seem a bit better when it pays attention to small things like that.
All in all, it’s a glorious HD Mario Kart with very nice attention to detail. One more thing, the characters actually turn their heads to see their items hit other racers. Which can lead to some hilarious replay moments. (Death stare Luigi anyone?)
Sound: 8/10There is a lot of great music in the game. The best are probably the remixes of older courses, used in the Retro Cups. You might not be able to remember most of the newer courses' songs until a long time of playing.
But the problem I have is, you can hardly hear at all in multiplayer! While you hold down the gas button (AKA 99% of the race) your kart’s engine roars. And that’s fine, most of the other games did this too. But in 3-4 person multiplayer it’s so loud you can’t always hear the music! >.< Most of my time with the game I spent in multiplayer, so I needed to mention that slight oversight by making the engines loud. Also, every character has their own horn, that’s just a small, but nice thing they threw in.
Addictiveness: 9/10
What can I say, it’s Mario Kart! Of course it’s addicting! The fact you can play it on just the gamepad makes it even more addicting! The only problem is, once you stop playing, you kind of forget about how much fun it is, and then when you pick it up again, you won’t be able to stop. It’s a vicious cycle.
Story: ?There’s no story really. How about this: Once upon a time, the Mushroom Kingdom was inexplicably paved over. And also, because of too many Olympic crossovers with Sanic Sonic, the Mushroom Kingdom has grown shuttle loops and twisty terrain as well. With a need to go fast, Mario and friends jump into their future cars and race for 1st place!
Depth: 5/10Well, there isn’t too much depth to this game. Every 100 or so coins you get, you earn a new Kart piece (Although this changes to 500 once you get to the thousands). And with every Grand Prix you win, you get a new character. There is a lot of parts however. Mario Kart isn’t exactly a deep game. It has the most content of any past Mario Kart game, but it cost almost all major challenges to do so.
Difficulty: 7/10Mario Kart is an experience that can’t be very well expressed with words. You can be invincible for most of a race, or Grand Prix, and in an instant, all is lost. It all comes down to a odd mix of actual skill, and chance. You’re at the mercy of the game, and the game has none! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
Although they added a surefire way to destroy the dreaded blue shell, they also upgraded the Blooper, so now the ink actually does block your view of the race.
Another thing I’d like to shed light on is, the game kinda forces you to collect coins, so your kart can improve on it’s speed and acceleration. But when you get hit with an item or fall off the track, you loose three. And you will start falling behind…A lot. And then it’s near impossible to climb back up to 1st place. So, you’re in for a nice challenge.
Some computer players are actually programmed to be especially hard on you during grand prix’s. Even more than it was in 7. First of all, computer players save their mushrooms to use on shortcuts, and pushing you around. Although its not really shown, there is also something called the rival system. So if you were playing as Bowser, Mario and Luigi would go out of their way to hit you with shells, banana peels, and be general jerks to you. But you get to taste the thrill of competition! Learn what a miraculous comeback is! And MAKE WALUIGI NUMBER ONE! WAA! …Or the bitter sting that is 2nd place.
Some pros and cons not covered.
Pro: It’s a great game to play with friends
Con: Honestly, who wanted to play as the Koopalings/Koopa Kids anyway? (Plus I miss King Boo and Dry Bones. I wanted some HD spookyness too.)
Pro: The customization options make each race feel like a new experience.
Con: The zero gravity mechanic is really overused. And you can’t really tell you’re on walls or upside down. All Zero Gravity does, while being cooler than the Sonic Riders gimmick of the same name (Sick burns) it just turns your wheels sideways and gives them a cool Tron Lines sort of effect. And when you bump into people, both of you speed up. But honestly they could have kept the racetracks normal, or at least tilted the camera view sideways when you’re on walls. Probably not turning the view upside down when you are though, because that would become too confusing too fast.
*Drifts across the Finish Line* Victory! Well, there you have it. That’s all for this thrill ride of a review. I hope you enjoyed it, I sure did. ^_^ Mario Kart 8 is an amazing game. It has some high points, and low points. But you'll have fun no matter what!
Graphics
10 Sound
8 Addictive
10 Depth
5 Difficulty
7