Mario Kart (series): Difference between revisions

The success of ''Mario Kart'' has spawned many cartoon-style racing games published by various gaming companies from the {{wp|Fourth generation of video game consoles|16-bit generation}} onwards. It has also been referenced in the ''[[Paper Mario (series)|Paper Mario]]'' role-playing series and inspired several stages in the ''[[Super Smash Bros. (series)|Super Smash Bros.]]'' fighting games. The games in the series have sold a combined total of over 150 million copies worldwide.

==Creation==

[[File:Mkold.png|thumb|The classic logo used until ''[[Mario Kart Arcade GP 2]]'']]

Many course themes appear throughout the series, including circuit, plains, highway, beach, desert, snow, jungle, mountain, haunted, and castle tracks. Most courses are based on an existing ''Super Mario'' location (such as [[Bowser's Castle]]), but there are a number of courses that have not previously appeared elsewhere, such as [[Rainbow Road]]. Each game in the series includes at least 16 original courses at least 3 original battle arenas. Each game's tracks are divided into at least four "cups," or groups in which the player has to have the highest overall placing to win; in most games, each cup contains four tracks. Most courses are completed after three laps. Course outlines are marked out by impassable barriers and feature a variety of bends, ranging from sharp hairpins to wide curves which players can drift around. Numerous obstacles appear on the tracks, ranging from generic obstacles to those themed after the ''Super Mario'' games. For example, the Bowser's Castle tracks often feature [[Thwomp]]s and sometimes [[Fire Bar]]s or [[Lava Bubble]]s; beach courses may feature [[Sidestepper]]s and/or [[Cheep Cheep]]s; and the [[Mario Circuit]] tracks, depending on the game, may incorporate anything from pipe barriers to franchise-staple enemies like [[Piranha Plant]]s and [[Chain Chomp]]s. Another common type of obstacle is off-road sections which slow down the karts, such as shallow water, fields, or [[mud]].

===Characters===

!colspan="2"style="font-size:125%;text-align:left"|''[[Mario Kart 8 Deluxe]]''

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!colspan="2"style="font-size:125%;text-align:left"|''[[Mario Kart Tour]]''

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|''Mario Kart Tour'' was released on mobile devices in 2019. The game's courses are divided into "tours" which change every second Wednesday. At the start of each tour, the obtainable drivers, karts, and gliders, the challenges and rewards, and the selection of playable courses and cups are switched out. The majority of the [[new course]]s are based on real cities (namely [[New York City]], [[Tokyo]], [[Paris]], [[London]], [[Vancouver]], [[Tour Los Angeles Laps|Los Angeles]], [[Berlin]], [[Sydney]], [[Tour Singapore Speedway|Singapore]], [[Amsterdam]], [[List of implied locations#Thailand|Bangkok]], [[Athens]], [[Rome]], and [[Madrid]]). There are also [[Remix course|RMX]] ("remix") courses that use assets from SNES courses but arranged in a new layout. Additionally, the game adds new variants of existing courses (reverse, trick, and reverse/trick variants), a new feature known as "[[Frenzy|Frenzies]]" which are activated when a character receives three of the same item at once and allows the character to use that item continually for a limited time while also becoming invincible, and a score mechanic, where the player earns points for actions such as performing techniques (e.g. [[Mini-Turbo]]s, [[Jump Boost]]s, etc.), interacting with course elements (e.g. driving over a [[Dash Panel]]), or hitting opponents with items. ''Mario Kart Tour'' is free to play, but has in-app purchases available including a 1-month Gold Pass subscription and [[Ruby|rubies]], the game's premium currency, which can be spent on certain items. New playable characters to the series introduced in this game include [[Pauline]], [[Hammer Bro]], [[Monty Mole]], [[Dixie Kong]], [[Captain Toad]], [[Nabbit]], [[King Bob-omb]], [[Kamek]], [[Chargin' Chuck]], and [[Poochy]]; as well as many variants and power-up forms of existing playable characters, such as Mario (Musician) and [[Peachette]]; [[Donkey Kong Jr.]], [[Diddy Kong]], [[Birdo]], [[Petey Piranha]], and [[Funky Kong]] also return after having been absent from multiple successive installments after debuting.

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!colspan="2" style="font-size:125%;text-align:left"|''[[Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit]]''

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|''Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit'', released in 2020, uses physical kart toys to play the game, with each copy containing a toy featuring either Mario or Luigi. The controller is used to control the kart both in real life and on screen, with the real life kart being affected by certain things in the game, and the player can use physical gates to create their own courses.

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The original ''Super Mario Kart'' has been listed among the greatest games ever made by a number of organizations. IGN, in listing it as the fifteenth-best game ever, called it "the original karting masterpiece."<ref>[http://top100.ign.com/2005/011-020.html "IGN's Top 100 Games"]. IGN. 2005.</ref> It has also been credited with creating the kart racing subgenre of video gaming, as many developers have attempted to replicate its success, including [[Sega]] with ''{{wp|Sonic Drift}}'', [[Ubisoft]] with ''{{wp|Street Racer (1994 video game)|Street Racer}}'', [[Konami]] with ''{{wp|Konami Krazy Racers}}'', {{wp|Sony Computer Entertainment}} with ''{{wp|Crash Team Racing}}'', etc. Response to all these competing kart racers has been mixed: GameSpot stated that they tended to be bad,<ref>Ekberg; Brian; Montanari, Randall. [http://www.gamespot.com/features/6132408/index.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=gsupdates&tag=updates;title;6 "History of Mario Sports"]. GameSpot.</ref> and {{wp|1UP.com}} said that their producers tried to improve upon the ''Mario Kart'' formula without success.<ref name="1UP.com">Hirandand, Ravi. [http://www.1up.com/do/feature?cId=3134033 "The Essential 50: #29"]. 1UP.com.</ref>

==Gallery==