Review: Mario Kart 7
Mario Kart 7 has finally arrived for the 3DS, bringing new and old drivers and items into the third dimension. It also brings flying and underwater sections, kart customizations and the best online in the series to date, making this one of the best games on the 3DS if not any modern console.
You start off with eight drivers and there's nine unlockable ones to add to your entourage. This might seem a big number, but is paltry compared to Mario Kart Wii’s 25. The stalwarts of Mario, Luigi, Yoshi and the like all appear, with Daisy and Wario being unlockable. Sadly, all the baby characters from MK Wii don’t appear, and they were my favourites. Instead, we have Metal Mario, from Mario 64, who is just a re-skin with a more metallic voice. The rest of the characters are OK, Queen Bee and Rosalina from Super Mario Galaxy both appear, and since we no longer always die when we fall in water, Lakota has also joined the race. But by far the best racer is Wiggler, the angry caterpillar from most Mario games. The best thing about him is that whenever he’s hit by a shell or banana, he turns dark red and the familiar train whistle plays. Annoyingly, because of the lack of unlockable characters, all racers are unlocked by completing 150cc grand prix.
Kart customization is a big part of MK 7. Gone are the weight classes of MK Wii and each driver having personal karts from MK DS. Instead, chassis, wheels and gliders are randomly unlocked by reaching 50, 100 and 150 coin milestones from the coins littered around every course. Thankfully, most courses have an abundance of coins, but sadly, some have very few and you can only carry ten coins at a time, losing three every time you hit anything. My personal kart is made out of the Barrel Train chassis, Mushroom wheels and Swoop glider. This gives me great base speed, acceleration and handling. My friend’s kart is completely different, mainly because he prefers more raw speed style, but also because everyone will unlock items in a different order. Unfortunately, the kart customization is the same for every driver, so unlocking new drivers is pretty pointless, save to brag that you managed to win a 150cc grand prix.
The sixteen new maps are all great, incorporating classic driving, gliding and underwater sections seamlessly. Melody Motorway is my personal favourite track, because when you drift along the piano, each note plays seamlessly. There are no annoying Wario’s Gold Mine tracks, although Rainbow Road returns, meaning more frustrated shouts of being pushed off the track. The two Wuhu Island tracks and Rainbow Toad don’t have laps, instead these huge courses are split into three sections to avoid repetition. Nintendo have also brought back sixteen old maps, adding flying and underwater sections. These are most noticeable in Koopa Cup, where the familiar pipe has been flooded and brief flying sequences in Maple Treeway. My favourite map from Double Dash, Dino Dino Jungle, returns in all its glory.
Unfortunately, Rainbow Road from the SNES returns, killing you at every opportunity, and Kalimari Desert is the most boring track, ever.
The whole multiplayer experience has been revitalised, all for the better. The inclusion of communities is a great one, meaning you can have a place to regularly attend races with your friends, similar to servers in MMOs. If anyone gets Mario Kart 7, the official Sprout community, called The Sprout Racer, with the code 15-1698-2657-3133, and my Mii goes by the name Jeffington (don’t ask me why). The Friends/Opponents section is also fantastic, locating any online friends playing MK7 and people you played against previously to pit you’re racing wits against. Every race is like a five minute adventure, similar to Senna, but online races aren’t perfect. As with other Mario Kart games, it's not fun being hit by a blue shell, then a red shell, then lightening, then a green shell, another red shell then realising your last and the race is finished.
9.5/10
Mario Kart 7, along with Super Mario 3D Land and Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is one of the reasons I own a 3DS. It has great graphics, innovative kart customization and the best multiplayer on the any Nintendo system. Go get it now, or retreat back to your virtual life in Skyrim and pretend Nintendo never existed so you’re not missing out on the greatest games of this generation. And for all your needs in Cardiff and Wales, keep it on TheSprout (yes, I did just quote Dameon Hatfield).
Worried about missing one of Jeff the Fridge's game reviews? Keep an eye on TheSprout Series section of theSprout's new Facebook Fan Page.
2 Comments – Postiwch sylw
gadget guy
Rhoddwyd sylw 52 mis yn ôl - 11th January 2012 - 22:01pm
i mostly agree, but make a custom kart as mario and note the speed, weight and accel, then choose bowser or metal mario and you will see the speed and weight go up and accel goes down.
also dont forget the two blue take off strips in kalamari desert.
MarshMallo
Rhoddwyd sylw 52 mis yn ôl - 11th January 2012 - 22:21pm
Can you take your 3DS to the next Sprout Editorial Meeting? I'd be happy to become 'friends' with you, although i don't own MK7.
How do you find your friend code, though?