LO1 - Game Analysis - Mariokart Wii

Mariokart Wii                                     (Wii)

Mariokart Wii is a sequel/reboot to the long running franchise that initially started as super Mario Kart for the SNES in 1992. It is a Racing game that allows players to choose different stages, characters and vehicles to customise each match. Most racing games, especially nowadays, are more grounded and go for a more realistic approach to racing. Mariokart Wii is not one of those games. The gameplay consists of racing after different players and using different randomly selected weapons that you pick up to try and gain an advantage throughout the race. The use of weapons is uncommon in racing games as there is a whole other genre based around vehicle combat. MarioKart also gives players so many options so easily, focussing more on allowing the players nearly all the control from the very start, which is uncommon in most racers nowadays. There is a sense of progression though, with new tracks, vehicles and characters being unlocked by completing the “Cups” in single player which is quite common among racers, MarioKart makes sure that this is easy enough for players though so that they can unlock most of the features without much hassle.

There isn’t really a story for Mariokart wii, with the single player consisting of completing certain groups of races in “cups”. The game instead uses the Mario characters and locations to offer players a chance to further explore a world they will have known from previous games and just have fun with it.

The game was produced and developed by Nintendo, using the Handle bar engine to build the game. Like previous games in the series the game was built as a racer, with other modes being added later on, the online multiplayer aspects of the game were added to attract a wider target audience and allow players to be able to experience the game with friends more easily.

The characters in the game are all memorable faces from previous games and Mariokart Wii doesn’t try and do anything new or different with them, just giving the fans the cast that they’re used to. The characters are split into 3 categories: small, medium and large and each category has a different set of vehicles available to all the characters.

The gameplay is quite simplistic; you are placed on a starting line and must make it around the course 3 times before anyone else. This isn’t in anyway revolutionary; it’s quite conventional within its genre. However the game’s use of weapons and its charming cast/setting make it easy to forgive. Some levels also offer slight changes, like having to avoid penguins, or going up and down escalators and over fountains. These by no means create an all new gaming experience, but they’re nice touches in a game trying to be just that: nice.

The game is extremely family friendly being rated a 3+ by PEGI, its main target audience is a younger generation of children and the long standing name of the Mario brand lets parents know that this game will be perfectly appropriate for their child and might even attract an older generation of gamers keen for nostalgia and bored of extremely competitive games.

The game is a Wii exclusive due to how it is owned by Nintendo, this will have also been to try and increase sales for the Wii as it wasn’t making as much money as the other consoles. Also, by using the Wii’s motion sensor technology the game is played by tilting the Wii remote and using a few of the buttons. Making it feel far more fun and energetic that most other racers.