QCF: Mario Kart 8

espite the number of troubles plaguing Nintendo since the launch of the Wii U, there’s one consistent quality in their output that keeps them afloat, and that’s their trademark magic; that undeniably inherent charm in their titles that just focuses on delivering dumb fun.  Call it a trump card, or a desperate ace in the hole, but honestly; Nintendo loves what it does, and Mario Kart 8 is a celebration of what the brand does best—refined no less.

Which is not only fortunate for every Wii U owner out there, but reason enough to be a potential one too as with the Big N’s latest sequel to their cartoon take on Death Race 2000 is one of the more solid entries to the series.

Mario Kart 8 empathizes on one thing above all else: being its own personal renaissance of the series, and everything that it’s done since the original released on the SNES. The eighth installment goes the extra mile by trying to cover both accessibility, and complexity; casual and hardcore players will be able to take something out of the experience together.

Traditionally, stats and traits like speed and handling used to be determined by what character you chose, but now, whichever Mushroom Kingdom mascot you choose to drive will only determine your weight class and size of vehicle frames selectable. Taking cues from Double Dash and Xzibit, players can now customize their ride in detail.

Casually speaking, it’s somewhat nebulous when taking on the 50CC difficulty and most of the tracks in a 100CC, and rookie drivers can just jump in without giving it much thought, but the extent and outcome of detailing your vehicle can get deep for players who want to invest into true competitive karting. Delegations like, what kind of kart or bike you choose, which have their own various properties, what type of tire and deciding which will compliment your Kart choice, with its own strengths and weaknesses to collaborate with it, and finally, gliding accessory, operating under the same concept as it makes its return from MK7.

Finding the right groove when setting up your preferred set of wheels significantly help players acclimate more than just the simpler aspects of driving, Mario Kart 8 highlights dynamics that notably affect your chances of reaching the finish line first.

Tricks for example, are one of those x-factors and doing one off a jump will get you a boost; pulling them off is easy, knowing how to pull them and execute the necessary amount of finesse to speed boost away at the right trajectory and angle is where it counts. Another pertains to the introduction of the cool anti-gravity driving featured the moment your karts’ tires transform into hover pads, bringing another element to the competitive driving: collision boosting. As the name would suggest, collision boosting will grant speed boosts to any driver that makes violent contact against of their opponents; still subjecting them to the dizzy aftermath suffered from the impact normally. Gliding can also play a role as far as duration of your hang time, and it’s altitude, which can come in handy for specific tracks or shortcuts when climbing ranks within the heat of the race.

All of these mechanics hinge on the build of your ride and the art of discovery as you experiment with the right set of parts isn’t just genuinely rewarding, it’s fun.

The new items added to this entry’s arsenal are infused with the same kind of frenetic spirit that previous titles within the line have, and have a blend of the same philosophy of catering to the casual and hardcore minded.

The piranha Plant for example—which is rapid-firing weapon that’ll bite any foe in front of you within a generous proximity and dish out some critical damage to their momentum. The other additions are the Boomerang is reloadable projectile weapons with 2-3 shots available to fire, and the Super Horn fires a shockwave that’s excellent for crowd control when opportunely used. Finally, there’s the rare and insane Crazy Eight, this bad boy is entre of items (Coin, Bob-omb, Mushroom, Star, Blooper, Green Shell, Red Shell, and a Banana) that circle around the player for them to use in that order of priority. The remaining items are a mix of all the familiar items the franchise has used so far (including that damned Blue Shell) and the total selection is the biggest seen in a Mario Kart game yet; 21 ways to torture your opponents on the track.

Sadly, if there’s one thing that Mario Kart 8 misses its potential with, it’s one of the most crucial aspects that make it a big deal to begin with—its multiplayer.

First, let’s address the good before we hit the bad, and surprisingly; it’s the online play. The online component of Mario Kart 8’s multiplayer is more than just competent, with accessible lobbies for public racing in a worldwide or regional range, and even private affairs with Nintendo Network friends; you can even host private party using a friendly password system. The net code functions magnificently, running at a consistently smooth 720p resolution and 60FPS throughout every race; which is more than what I can say for local multiplayer.

When playing three-four player bouts, the frame rate not only dips into 59 or lower, but it constantly wavers between low and high with the graphic processing in the hardware internally struggling to settle at a set rate. Playing through tracks, some perform better than others, and there are some that are significantly plagued with the issue (Thwomp Ruins is the worst.)

The Battle mode has also been practically reduced to afterthought, and is a mere shell (no pun intended) of what it used to be. Instead of having unique stages built on the model that accommodates a contest of warring wagons, it repurposes eight of the titles tracks, tracks designed primarily around racing, into combat arenas. The results are clumsy and oafish, even servicing a full twelve-racer lineup, maneuvering and circling back when preying on an encountered target is awkward because the real estate of the track just wasn’t meant to be driven on that way.

While Mario Kart 8 is certainly not the best candidate for couch party play from the Kart family, it’s still one of the better entries within the franchise, and proves that the idea of Mario and his friends racing each other in wacky cars still has plenty of steam left in it. Also, it’s worth noting it’s one of the most gorgeous games to come out on the Wii U left, and proves that the platform is definitely capable of dishing some serious eye candy in spite of its more advanced hardware competition in the console market.