Boxart



Facts

Published by: Nintendo
Developed by: Nintendo
Genre: Racing Action
Number of Players: 1-12
Release Date:
US: April 27, 2008
Japan: April 10, 2008
Europe: April 11, 2008
Australia: April 24, 2008

Company line:

The worldwide race is on with a whole new set of tricks, tracks and ways to play. Drawing on courses and battle arenas from every game in the series – not to mention tons of new ones – the true king of the Mushroom Kingdom racing circuits will finally be crowned. Place first in Grand Prix circuits or clear skill-based missions to open up increasingly difficult and thrilling circuits. Players can have multiplayer races on any open courses or battle in arenas. Nintendo favorites Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Wario, Bowser and Toad, plus a host of new faces-including your own! Get into the game and put your Mii character behind the wheel. Whether racing around an obstacle-filled track or battling in an arena, drifting and tossing items are the keys to Mario Kart success. Players can shake the Wii Remote while launching off a ramp to pull off a trick that will temporarily boost their speed. When riding a bike, players can gain additional speed by flicking the Wii Remote up and popping a wheelie.

Features:

The Wii Wheel transforms the Wii Remote controller into a steering wheel that feels natural in anyone's hands, while the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controller offer a classic control style for the Mario Kart veteran. In either configuration, players can perform speed-boosting tricks with a shake of the Wii Remote.

Players can race as their favorite Nintendo character, or even as themselves! Mario Kart Wii lets players race with their personalized Mii characters. And racers will see other Mii characters they have created cheering from the sidelines on some race courses.

Players can compete with up to three friends in their living room. Or challenge up to 11 opponents via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in the biggest Mario Kart race yet. All tracks and modes of play are available via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and players can visit the Mario Kart Channel to compete in tournaments, check rankings, see when their friends are playing and download ghost data.

Cruise new tracks and arenas or tour classic courses from Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Mario Kart DS. Tired of riding on four wheels? Bust out one of the new motorbikes for special tricks and techniques.

Control: Mario Kart Wii is compatible with four different control schemes, so players can customize how they want to play:

Wii Remote Controller (with or without Wii Wheel): Steer by tilting the Wii Remote left and right. Or snap the Wii Remote into the Wii Wheel to transform it into a steering wheel for an intuitive, motion-based control scheme.

Nunchuk Controller: Steer with the Control Stick on the Nunchuk and use the Wii Remote to accelerate, perform tricks and drift.

Classic Controller: Mario Kart veterans can let their thumbs do the driving with the Classic Controller. However, players cannot perform certain moves with this control scheme.

Nintendo GameCube Controller: Experienced Mario Kart fans may also enjoy this familiar scheme, although some maneuvers cannot be performed.

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Controls









Iwata Asks




Interview Here


Media



Screenshots here

Gametrailers Preview

Wii Wheel demonstration

Shyguy Beach

Sherbert Island

Bowser Castle 3

Waluigi Stadium

Battle Mode


Characters



Luigi
Mario
Peach
Rosalina
Toad
Toadette
Waluigi
Wario
Yoshi
Your Mii's

Baby Daisy
Baby Luigi
Baby Mario
Baby Peach
Birdo
Bowser
Bowser Jr.

Daisy
Diddy Kong
Donkey Kong
Dry Bones
Dry Bowser
Funky Kong
King Boo
Koopa Troopa



New Stages

Mushroom Cup

Luigi Circuit/Moo Moo Meadows/Mushroom Gorge/Toad's Factory



Flower Cup

Mario Circuit/Coconuts Mall/DK's Snowboard Cross/Wario's Gold Mine



Star Cup

Daisy Circui/Koopa Cape/Maple Treeway/Grumble Volcano



Special Cup

Dry Dry Ruins/Moonview Highway/Bowser's Castle/Rainbow Road





Retro Stages

Shell Cup

Peach Beach (GCN)/Yoshi Falls (NDS)/Ghost Valley 2 (SNES)/Mario Raceway (N64)



Banana Cup

Sherbert Land (N64)/Shy Guy Beach (GBA)/Delfino Square (NDS)/Waluigi Stadium (GCN)



Leaf Cup

Desert Hills (NDS)/Bowser Castle 3 (GBA)/D.K.'s Jungle Parkway (N64)/Mario Circuit (GCN)



Lightning Cup

Mario Circuit 3 (SNES)/Peach Gardens (DS)/DK Mountain (GCN)/Bowser's Castle (N64)





Battle Mode

New Stages

Block Plaza/Chain Chomp Roulette/Delfino Pier/Funky Stadium/Thwomp Desert



Retro Stages

Battle Course 3 (GBA)/Battle Course 4 (SNES)/Cookie Land (GCN)/Skyscraper (N64)/Twilight House (NDS)




Wifi

Players can compete with up to three friends in their living room. Or challenge up to 11 opponents via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in the biggest Mario Kart race yet. All tracks and modes of play are available via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and players can visit the Mario Kart Channel to compete in tournaments, check rankings, see when their friends are playing and download ghost data.

In Mario Kart Wii you can go online via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection by yourself or together with a friend playing on the same Wii console, and let the games begin! You can directly jump into online races with random players Worldwide, or opt for Continental if you prefer a challenge closer to home.



Then you will be placed in a new group of people looking for a match, or you will join an existing group. When the latter happens you will become a spectator of that group’s race currently in progress, as you wait for your turn to hit the track. With up to 12 players being able to battle or race on the circuits of the Mushroom Kingdom simultaneously, Mario Kart Wii is set to provide the biggest challenge in the series to date!

After swapping Friend Codes with other players, you will also be able to see how many of your mates are online, and choose to Create a Room or select Join Friend to gather in a room with your friends before you start your engines.

Q: How can I add friends to my Friend Roster?

A: To add a friend to your Friend Roster : you first need to register their Friend Code. If you and a friend both register each other’s Friend Code you will become Friends in Mario Kart Wii and will be able to play the game together.

Also, when you join a friend's room, if there are any players in the room who are not in your Friend Roster, the Add Friends option will be displayed. Select Add Friends and press the A Button to add a player to your Friend Roster. If they add you to their Friend Roster as well, you will become Friends instantly without having to manually exchange Friend Codes.

Q: How many Friend Codes can I register on my Friend Roster?

A: You can register 30 Friend Codes.

Q: How do online ratings work?

A: Your rating starts at 5,000 and rises or falls when you win or lose in Worldwide or Continental races and battles (games with Friends don't affect your rating). Your rating is separated into a Race Rating for VS Race Mode and a Battle Rating for Battle Mode. Each rating is only affected by wins and losses in its own mode. The ratings are updated according to the final standings of each race.

Your rating determines the players you will race against in Worldwide and Continental matches. Only players with ratings similar to yours will be matched with you.

There are two options for races and battles over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection: up to 12 people via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection or up to 10 people via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection with two people playing locally.



Once inside a room, the globe familiar from the Forecast Channel will highlight the location of all players present. This is where you can text chat with your friends by making a selection from dozens of predefined messages, letting you suggest exactly which kind of race you want to play: from Battle to Grand Prix, and from Team play to your circuit of choice. The Host then decides the race settings, but the track selection is based on the votes of all players combined.

Mario Kart Wii also allows you to install the Mario Kart Channel on your Wii console. This Channel lets you check up on a host of options without the need of inserting the Mario Kart Wii disc into your system.



The Ranking option lets you see your statistics for each track and compare your results to those of your Friends and other players worldwide, represented by their Miis. You’ll have the option of racing against the Ghosts of the best players, or improving your results gradually by taking on the Ghosts of rivals whose times are only slightly better than yours. Players can choose whether they want to share their Time Trial Ghosts with the rest of the world, allowing you to match your skills against the cream of the crop whenever you want.

Another all-new feature of this Channel are the Competitions, where Nintendo will on a regular basis invite players to speedy challenges similar to the Missions of Mario Kart DS. The Channel also allows you to check your ranking in running Competitions as well as Time Trials. You can also go here to register Friends and see if any of them are currently online.

Also note that, up until now, in order to add a person to your Friend Roster when playing a Wii game online, or a Nintendo DS one for that matter, you've had to manually swap Friend Codes with someone you've known.

Mario Kart Wii is now out in Europe and Japan, and it's been confirmed that - for the first time - players can now simply add a "friend" to their roster of up to 30 by simply selecting an option after competing against a random person online.

They then become a friend without the manual code exchange process. In further friend features, the included Mario Kart Channel can be used to send an invitation to the Wii Message Board of players' Wii Friends.


Reviews

Eurogamer - 8/10

Ultimately, the sheer sensory pleasure of playing Mario Kart Wii - from the charming animations, to the bopping tunes, to the sugar-rush boosting, to the exquisite steering - far overcomes the few concerns we have about it. It still has to be docked a mark for the awkward structure and compromised battle modes - but it's still unreservedly recommended to anyone for whom Mario Kart is a gaming cornerstone. And really, that should be everyone.

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Dark Zero

Like always, the core gameplay is still instantly impressive, as is the terrific track design and the long line up of characters. The sheer pomp and majesty of diving around the twisting tracks in GP modes is still endlessly entertaining, perhaps better than ever due to the expansion of raucous racers from eight to twelve. Nailing perfect powerslides is still fun too, as is hitting zip pads. The new addition of performing stunts as you race and hitting half-pipe just helps to make that smile on your face even bigger. Finding secret shortcuts and taking advantage of them is continually compelling too, and just another one of the myriad of delicious details that are presented with near pin-point perfection.

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Games Master UK - 91%

Official Nintendo Magazine - 94%

Edge - 6/10

NGamer UK - 88%

Nintendo Power - 90%

Famitsu - 37/40

Current Gamerankings Average = 83%

Credit

1. Nintendo for creating the Mario Kart series.
2. PantherLotus for his (once again) awesome banner.
3. Myself for pressing submit before i even finished the thread title.
4. Yoopoo for the tip.
5. TheChaos for the list of stages.
6. Stormbringer for the videos.
7. Sindou for the link.

SPECIAL MENTION to Aussie Nintendo and his website, www.aussie-nintendo.com, for his incredible assistance and wealth of information.

Alkaline's thoughts

I still have fond memories of sitting around the room with my mates, playing endless hours of Super Mario Kart on the SNES and Mario Kart 64 on the N64. I know I'm ready to have that kind of fun again. Pure and simple, i can't wait to get my hands on this game. It doesn't seem to be without its flaws (gimped battle mode wtf?) but with new controls, new modes, new online player, new stages, new characters, new items, and more, it sure looks like its going to be one hell of a ride.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES

Sweet, can't wait!!

I officially

Bring back the other thread!

Ill be picking it up, but honestly wont play it a lot before a certain other game comes out. Business.

can't effing wait. It's been a long time since I got to play a REALLY funny game, this one should fill the gap

So it's official.

Already sold in some stores in Europe, like gameware.at

The track design looks really dumbed down from the footage I've seen so far, more akin to Double Dash than the DS version. I hope I'm wrong.

Is it me or is Nintendo releasing tons of games this generation? I'm shocked that this one is releasing so soon

Well you got there eventually Alkaline. Well done. I miss the other thread already though

i like the other thread better

Sindou_Hikaru20 said:

Already sold in some stores in Europe, like gameware.at

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Do they actually ship the game or is it more like a flaw in their system?

"Right. Even if you haven’t inserted the Mario Kart Wii game disc, if you start up your Wii and check the Mario Kart Wii channel, you’ll be able to see if Iwata-san is playing using Wi-Fi. If Miyamoto-san then selects Join, he can join Iwata-san in the match."

Didn't know about this. The online portion sounds actually robust. The round table discussion is awesome.

Rezbit said:

Well you got there eventually Alkaline. Well done. I miss the other thread already though

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^this

Nice redone OP Though, game's looking really good.

Yay, Mario Kart! Hooray for Mario Kart!!

Pre-ordered.

Can't wait for this one!

OLD: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=270692

I just thought of something which could be slightly annoying.
My wiimotes have the wiicondoms on them, is the final Wii wheel designed to allow it to fit in with them on or is it gonna be the frustrating process of taking them on and off over and over?

They...they took out the top 4 racer pictures.

This game has officially lost it's Mario Kart spirit.

now how am i supposed to see who's in the top 4 now? =(

I want this so much. But I can't afford both this and GT5P...
What to do...

samratty said:

I just thought of something which could be slightly annoying.
My wiimotes have the wiicondoms on them, is the final Wii wheel designed to allow it to fit in with them on or is it gonna be the frustrating process of taking them on and off over and over?

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Pssh, nobody uses condoms anymore. Don't you know they reduce sensitivity!

I am delighted to let you know that your Preorder for Mario Kart Wii with Official Wii Wheel is now being processed. The order will be despatched by your chosen delivery method in time to reach you for the day of release.

By using the GAME 1st To Play Preorder Service you have ensured that you will be among the first people to receive Mario Kart Wii with Official Wii Wheel, and we are confident that you will be happy with the order, our service and our speedy delivery!

*half hearted smile

Day 1 for me. That week is going to be interesting, seeing as how GTAIV comes out as well.

I am saving up for a PS3... but I want this and I preordered :lol

Good job Alkaline.

To the other poster: Yeah, it definitely seems like all the big guns have already fired off more quickly than they have in the past. All the major franchises having a visit barely into the second year? That's pretty wow. Everything else (Pikmin, Kid Icarus, Kirby, F-Zero, etc) are secondary franchises but I can't imagine what Nintendo will do once those have been released.

grandjedi6 said:

OLD: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=270692

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heh

Is there a video anywhere of how to use the Wii wheel?

Aren't shoulders buttons normally used for sliding, but these will be missing?

_Alkaline_ said:

Europe: April 11, 2008

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It's already sold out at most places and new shipments arrive at April 18

FUUUUUUUUUUUCK

Sindou_Hikaru20 said:

Already sold in some stores in Europe, like gameware.at

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yeah, annoying as hell...i`m gonna get my amazon copy one week after release since the first shipment has already been sold...

Stitch said:

It's already sold out at most places and new shipments arrive at April 18

FUUUUUUUUUUUCK

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yes -.-

cjelly said:

Is there a video anywhere of how to use the Wii wheel?

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Right here!

PantherLotus said:

Good job Alkaline.

To the other poster: Yeah, it definitely seems like all the big guns have already fired off more quickly than they have in the past. All the major franchises having a visit barely into the second year? That's pretty wow. Everything else (Pikmin, Kid Icarus, Kirby, F-Zero, etc) are secondary franchises but I can't imagine what Nintendo will do once those have been released.

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Same thing basically happend to the Gamecube.

Smash and Pikmin at launch
Mario and Metroid and AC the next year
Zelda and Mario Kart the next year

just move some of the titles around and hope Pikmin and AC come out.

_Alkaline_ said:

Right here!

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Thanks. I didn't realise you held it 'upside down' so you had easy access to the face buttons of the Wii remote.

I remember when Gamestop was asking everyone about pre-ordering this when they were picking up their copies of Brawl. :lol

I can't wait for this game.

Killer thread, thanks for making it. Just a little over three more weeks left...I'm pumped.

Woo hoo! Mario Kart is almost here!

Sure looks blurry compared to the last batch of screens.

Finally we're getting a game vefore the US.


wheres brawl

omg it's so close!

official thread

go gaf gogogogogogo yayyyyyyyyyy

day one!!!!1111one

Hm, they mentioned in the interview that a new character from Galaxy will appear. Rosalina?

getting the european version day 1. hopefully i won't have any problems as i pre ordered it.

Blimblim and co. will probably be uploading videos on Gamersyde, but I'll capture some direct feed videos as well, i guess it'll be nice to show how online races work.

Shig said:

Hm, they mentioned in the interview that a new character from Galaxy will appear. Rosalina?

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Toy Soldier said:

Killer thread, thanks for making it. Just a little over three more weeks left...I'm pumped.

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Under a week for me

I support this thread.

Stitch said:

It's already sold out at most places and new shipments arrive at April 18

FUUUUUUUUUUUCK

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This game made me pre-order at Gamestop . nintendo should get their act together.

Do we have a confirmed tracklist yet?

So the reviews are pretty positive..

why the hell is IGN saying it will get 7s from them,..>?

Can't wait

farnham said:

So the reviews are pretty positive..

why the hell is IGN saying it will get 7s from them,..>?

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Well... A. IGN are morons and B. they were playing an unfinished build of the game. (They'll still give it 7's)

I was gonna preorder this game, then realized I have Gamefly.

I'll use the 'get any new game from gamefly as soon as it comes out' trick and use the keep it option.

Now I gotta add all them friend codes...god damn fuck. My first Wii game were I'll deal with friend codes.

Going to play it Saturday, then my import copy should arrive next Saturday from Japan. Freeloader don't fail me now.