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miffy495

It wasn't just nostalgia!

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I was very excited this morning. After some blogs posting rumours that Mario Kart SNES would be released on Virtual Console today, I ran to my Wii as soon as I got up to see if I could buy it. Lo, I have completed all three cups on 50cc now, and it is every bit as good as I remember from when I was 5. Humming along with the music from every track, I was struck by (aside from mode 7 scrolling making me feel like my eyes are broken at times) just how goddamned well this game has aged. No snaking, no blue shells. 8 racers with signature items and not much else. Brilliantly designed tracks that allow you to complete a lap in under 20 seconds if you know the route. And I swear to god that music that plays when you start the final lap is exactly the same audio file they're still using on Mario Kart Wii to this day.

If you like the idea of Mario Kart but recent games feel like they reward dumb luck too much, please, PLEASE get this game for your Wii. As long as mode 7 doesn't make you motion sick, it's probably still the best Mario Kart you can play.

Also, amusing anecdote. I've gotten way too used to the Wii. When a Monty Mole jumped on me during a lap of Donut Plains 2, I started shaking my classic controller up and down to try to shake him off. I then realized that the SNES did not in fact have motion controls and started tapping R to make my kart jump. Whups.

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Man, Mario Kart for the SNES never struck my fancy. I don't have this problem anymore, but that Mode 7 thing it did, with the rotating moving plane? It made my eyes hurt, eventually giving me a headache and nausea. You didn't have that problem to this extreme, I take it?

As such, no fond memories of Mario Kart SNES! Mario Kart 64 though... Mmmmmm. :chaste:

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No, although it makes my girlfriend sick and I remember back in the day my mom could never watch me play it. I guess I was just one of the lucky ones. Now, after being spoiled by true 3D, it looks weird and my brain has a harder time accepting it, but I still don't feel bad at all when I'm playing.

I also used to play marathon sessions on my Virtual Boy with no adverse effects. My eyes are super-human!

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Oh god, I totally just cursed myself. After playing through the game to 100cc completion, Rainbow Road had the power to make me motion sick. All that flashing, the rapidly scrolling colours. Ugh. Awesome day of Mario Karting, but I need to go get some air now. First time a game has ever done that.

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I completely agree. Although I only played SNES, N64 and NDS versions. I don't like the powerboost stuff in the NDS. I do like the tracks in the newer versions, there are quite some nice ones. The battle mode is still the best in the SNES version, it has the best arenas. There is nothing as fun as driving into a lane and seeing 3 greenshells coming right for you and then jump just in time over the border to the next lane.

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I agree as well, I have played (at least I think I have) all Mario Kart games and the first is still the best, if just because no blue shell. Additionally I think it has the consistently best racing maps, while most others suffered from "lets do something different" syndrom too much.

IMO only GBA / NDS versions come close, and NDS only for the multiplayer. GBA gets bonus points for having all the original tracks included as well, although the driving models feels slightly off and the size is somehow wrong.

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It's stunning how well the game holds up. Actually, it pretty much broke all subsequent Mario Kart games for me. I thought Double Dash and the DS game were good, but nothing comes close to the SNES original.

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Oh, Mario Kart.. Why do I suck so much at you?

I only played the first version a few times and I was unbelievably terrible at controlling the darn thing. I did my friends with low self esteem a world of good, I'm sure.

Just this last weekend I played Mario kart for Wii for a great many hours and uttely faceplanted the entire time. Once, I got 7th place. It was a triumph. As a result, I can't really speak to whether or not the items are too helpful, as the only thing I've ever recieved is the three mushrooms..

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