I have a 7 year old nephew,ad and it was his Christmas present. Very happy, the wheel is fun to play with and the sounds of the game and levels are really enjoyable.
Mario Kart Wii follows the established pattern for the Mario Kart games: pick a character from the Nintendo ranks, from Mario or Donkey Kong to Super Mario Galaxy's Rosalina, then go head-to-head in kart races on wacky tracks based on Nintendo games.
Nintendo's don't-fix-what-ain't-broke attitude could be called conservative, but it also means the game has built-in appeal for players who enjoyed previous Mario Kart games. The Wii version does introduce a significant new element in the form of motorcycles. Bikes drift a little easier than karts (but with less power) and can do wheelies to gain speed in straightaways. In a word, they're not revolutionary, but they add a little room for players to develop their own racing style.
Also present are the requisite new tracks. There are four new cups and four "retro" cups that resurrect tracks from previous games. The retro tracks run the gamut from the original SNES Mario Kart to selections from the GameCube and DS versions. The recreated tracks strike an intriguing balance between having a nice Wii sheen and maintaining the graphical style of the systems they first appeared on. The new tracks are more of a mixed bag. Some, such as Toad's Factory and Mushroom Gorge, present fun and interesting new concepts. Others, like the new Bowser's Castle, are elegant refinements of classic themes. Frustrating, however, are so-called "new" tracks that blatantly crib from older ones, such as Moon View Highway, which is a dead ringer for Toad's Turnpike (N64).
Most perplexing of all is the handling of items. Falling off the course, getting hit with a thunderbolt or blue shell, and other sundry events all now cause you to lose an item you're holding. In races haunted by the possibility that you may be robbed of your item at any moment, item strategy goes out the window. There is a strong disincentive to hold on to an item and use it at an opportune time; instead, you want to use it as soon as you get it so as to get some benefit instead of just having it taken away. This system may be a deliberate move on Nintendo's part to strip away a layer of complexity and thereby make the game that much more accessible to neophytes, but it is ultimately to the game's detriment. All this is not even to mention the greatly increased incidence of high-powered items like blue shells, which you may now see several times per race.
The solid core gameplay redeems most of the flaws of Mario Kart Wii, and even the game's shortcomings may be less than apparent to new players. The "next generation" has not spurred a quantum leap forward for the series, but as a new iteration of a reliable franchise, Mario Kart Wii does not disappoint.
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WOW - I Am Hooked! Let me just say that I've anticipated the release of this game since standing in line to get the Wii the first day it was released and I can truly say that it's even better than I expected! For what it's worth, I'm in my late 20's and was a HUGE fan of Kart for the 64 back in the day (I feel it's worth mentioning that since the only negative reviewer thus far said he did not care for the 64 version). It can be a bit frustrating at times, but that's part of the reason why it's so great! You can be in last place and come back to win it all (or get in the top 5 anyway). The wheel works great - feels very comfortable. You press the built-in trigger (or B button) to drift and build speed or if you race in automatic, then it doubles as a special button, but mostly that's the left button on the control pad. 2 is accelerate and 1 is brake/reverse, although I'm not sure the brake works quite as well as it did in the 64 version. Online play is AWESOME, but there are some pretty darn good racers out there (even though it just came out today!) It's difficult to write a elegant review since it's way past my bedtime, but I wanted to tell potential buyers how awesome this game is before I go to bed! I'm not a big fan of Smash Bros - I thought Mario Galaxy was very very good, but in my opinion, Mario Kart is the very best game out there for Wii! If you're going to play with friends at your place, I recommend spending $10 for extra wheels - it makes it much more fun! Race On!
"I bought it for my 11 year old daughter. She plays it all the time. If shes happy, i'm happy."
"This game is fun and challenging but it gets repetitive. I like that you can race online with other people."
