Nintendo Media Summit: Behind The Wheel With Mario Kart Wii
As soon as they let us out of the first morning's presentation at Nintendo's Media Summit, everyone made a bee line for the game room. There I ran into my Kotaku colleague, the fabulously metrosexual Michael McWhertor and after we played a rousing head to head round of Samba De Amigo, we decided to try our hand at Mario Kart Wii. There were a few stations set up with some nice couches and Wii wheel controllers so we took a seat and dove in.
What can one say about Mario Kart? It's a great game and a helluva lot of fun, but I think at this point most people who would be interested in this game are fans of the originals. So rather than go through what the game is like, I'll stick to the game facts and what it was like to actually play with the Wii Wheel. As far as facts go, Mario Kart Wii will have thirty two tracks, sixteen classic and sixteen new. I also saw Miis on one of the courses, providing obstacles by driving little cars across the track. You will also be able to race using your favorite Miis in the driver's seat. In addition to all the classic Kart characters, you can also expect to see some new characters including a special certain someone from a certain galaxy game. Your characters have a choice between several vehicles iincluding both cars and motorcycles.
I'm sure what you're looking to hear about though, is the Wii wheel. It feels very nice in the hand and provides a bit of a wider grip than using the Wii remote alone. It was a great way to control the game and the turning was all very accurate, but I did find it a bit awkward since it's not really mounted to anything. I found that I tended to start tilting the wheel rather than actually turning it. This of course was probably due to my incredibly limp wrists and with a little practice I will no doubt be able to handle it correctly. Most of the people I talked with really seemed to enjoy the wheel and I will say that it was preferable to using the Wii remote turned sideways. I think I just need to spend a bit more time with it.
Fortunately, we won't have to wait much longer to get in all the racing goodness we can handle seeing as Mario Kart Wii makes it's debut April 27. But then the real question will be... Brawl or Kart?
Fruit Brute
Posted to Hot Stuff, Video Games on 15 April 2008
· Comments (3)
Other stuff like this: mario, mario kart, nintendo, nintendo media summit, wii
When I grow up, I want to be Motorcycle Peach.
Brawl or Kart? Well, if the two games are anything like their Gamecube predecessors (and playing Super Mash Buttons Brawl in Gamestop the other day makes me think that this is very much the case,) it'll be Kart for me, no question.
But to tell you the truth, I'll probably still be too busy playing Okami to buy Kart on its release date.
Not to come off as a fanboy, but Brawl still wins. The game made ridiculous advances and has a disgusting amount of content. Kart can't touch those speedy sales.
But don't get me wrong, I'm 100% buying Kart. I'm a loyal Mario Kart fan and can't wait for the next one. It'll add some spice so it isn't all just Brawl on our Wii. :)
Well, until GTA IV comes out two days later and the 360 owns the TV. I'll come back to you, Kart. I promise.