Review: Mario Kart 7

If you've never played a variant of Mario Kart you probably A) hate video games, or B) have been living under a rock for the last, oh, 19 years or so. The first in the series was released in August of 1992, which means if Mario Kart were a person, they'd have graduated high school - presumably somewhere in Italy - and would be well into university by now.

Franchises don't often last 19 years, but Mario Kart's continued success is hard-earned and well-deserved. Nothing illustrates that quite so well as Mario Kart 7, the first of the series released for Nintendo's 3DS handheld. While the core gameplay remains the same, that's the beauty of Mario Kart. It doesn't change much, but it never fails to be really freakin' fun.

Just in case you have been living under a rock, Mario Kart is a racing game featuring the characters from Nintendo's massively popular Mario series. The characters race each other in go-karts, and collect items that can be strategically used to slow competitors down or speed the player's character up. Because of these items, the player can never be entirely sure of victory - even the best Mario Kart player can be in first place for the whole match and get owned at the finish line by some noob firing off an almost-unavoidable blue shell, which knocks your kart and stalls you. As you race, you collect gold coins that help you unlock new vehicles to choose from as well as new ways to customise your karts.

Mario Kart 7 introduces glasses-free 3D to the franchise, and while it's really nice looking - no one develops games for Nintendo hardware like Nintendo's software department - one of the limitations of the 3DS is that there is a definite sweet spot for 3D viewing, and moving outside of that spot blurs the image on screen. While I don't move around like I'm literally clutching a steering wheel, I do find it nearly impossible to stay completely still and in place while playing racing games, so I would frequently have to readjust my position to better view the screen. The problem gets worse if you use the gyroscope controls rather than just the buttons, as you have to physically tilt the 3DS to steer your kart.

The gyroscope controls are quite fun to try out, although mostly a novelty. Competitively, you're still going to play with the traditional button controls. When you're using the gyroscope controls the camera switches to first-person view, which gives you a shorter range of vision and thus puts you at a disadvantage.

One thing Nintendo has never really been good at is putting together a decent online multiplayer system. That said, Mario Kart 7 is the first time Nintendo has ever done multiplayer right. The matchmaking process is simple, quick, and we never failed to find a game to join. If you join while a match is in progress, you have to wait for the next game to start, but you're treated to a live show of the race as it happens. Once you're in, races are lag-free and the competition is fierce.

The only disappointing aspect of the multiplayer is that there's no easy system to party up with a buddy - even if you add friends to your 3DS's friends list, the simplest way to play with them is to join an online match that they're already in. The only way to party up is to create what's called a community and invite your friends to it - which you do by sending them a code, the same way you add friends using friend codes. Unfortunately you can't send an invitation through the 3DS's interface, and your friends can't just search for the name of the community. Once they join your group, though, you can communicate using pre-set commands like 'Hello' and 'Shall we get started?'. You can't party up and join a multiplayer match with people outside the community, however - you can only play against each other.

Local multiplayer is very easy, and supports Download Play - so even if your 3DS-toting pal doesn't have Mario Kart 7, they can play with you. Using Download Play means that options are limited - such as a reduced number of available maps - but it's certainly better than not being able to play Mario Kart with your friends.

The single player function is less fun than the multiplayer, but it always has been in Mario Kart. The main campaign is Grand Prix mode, where you compete in four races and earn points depending on where you place. If you've got the most points over four races, you win, and unlock a bunch of new maps. The race courses are a mixture of old maps and new, and all of them are incredibly creative. The revamped classic Rainbow Road has gotten even more insane in it's design, and other environments include a cruise liner and a road race up a mountain.

Mario Kart 7 really encompasses everything that's good about the franchise. The essential gameplay remains its silly old self, but that's what we love about it. For 3DS owners, Mario Kart 7 is a must-buy, and for non-3DS owners, a potential system-seller.

•  
•