The day I first got Mario Kart Wii was the day it was released. I bought another Wii wheel to go with it so that my friend could have the same experience as I would, at the same time. I was so exited when I first opened the package, and getting a good whiff of that new - plastic - smell. I rushed down to pop in the game and put the Wii remote in the wheel, and immediately I jumped into a 50cc Mushroom cup race right after I registered. You know what I thought right after the first race?
God damn it.
First off, the items are very unforgiving. In a race, the recovery time for a shell is longer than if you got hit by a racer with a star, or even if you got hit by a blue shell in an area with a low roof. Now, It wouldn't be a problem, but there are so many god-damn shells in the game that it becomes stressful to race. You'll see yourself just sitting there, watching racers go by as you get sent back from 1st to at least 10th. Also, as you enter later "cc's", CPU's will hold onto items just to unleash them on you, so you'll be crossing your fingers while racing, hoping you can make it to the finish line not dead last.
Second, the graphics are something to be desired. I felt like you could burn Mario Kart Wii onto a Gamecube Disc and play it on a Gamecube. In fact, they even took some character models from "Double Dash!" and simply imported them into Mario Kart Wii. You can easily pick out the similarities in each character's facial features and actions. Sure, the karts and tracks (excluding the obvious) weren't imported, but they sure could use a lot of work. It's a Wii, not a Gamecube.
Third, the Wii wheel can be a hassle at times. I agree, it is very fun and easy to use, but there will be moment's where you'll be saying to yourself "What? How did that happen?", especially if you decide to manually drift. Sometimes, on quick, sharp turns, you sometimes will find yourself drifting the other direction. Once again, you can sit and watch as your lead is demolished because of a simple sensitivity mistake. That's another thing, if you oversteer with the Wii wheel, you will steer in the other direction, but that simply cannot be fixed, sadly. Now, I use a Gamecube controller more often, but drifting is still a bitch, because the item buttons are no longer Y and X. It's L, the other drift button. The one that makes you drift in the opposite direction of the other.
Fourth, what the hell happened to balloon-battle mode? Okay, while playing Wi-fi battles, it only makes sense to have a time limit, because you don't want people waiting for a long time trying to get in. But, when I'm not playing on Wi-fi, there still is a god-damn time limit. WHY? You can't change it, you can't disable it, hell, you can't even extend the time limit Oh and another thing, when someone looses their balloons, they should DIE FOR GOOD, not become revived with 3 balloons and loose one point. Once again, it makes sense in Wi-fi, but not when I'm not on Wi-fi. On a side note: I really wish they would have brought back the feature where you die and turn into a bomb, I loved that.
And, Fifth, Wi-fi is cheaper than a rat Vs. a shark. Yes, I am an expert at Wi-fi, but it still pretty fucking cheap. Example in Wi-fi battle mode: I had a star, and at least 3 racers from the opposing team were racing toward me, all with giant mushrooms, ready to crush me. I use the star and hit all three guys, but I get only one point from it. Yeah, this game can bring your blood to a boil with all their WTF moments. And, you'll notice that you will be doing good in the game, then, all of a sudden, everyone will gang rape you, and you lose all of your points. If you are a spaz, you will find yourself breaking your chair's legs with a hammer.
Despite all that, Mario Kart Wii is a VERY GOOD game. They have added new features and twists to the game, including:
- The ability to use a motorcycle
- Up to 12 racers can play
- Wi-fi racing
- racing as a Mii
- TONS of tracks to keep you busy
- The choice between Auto or Manual Drifting
- and SOME more.
One thing I truly adore is that snaking is near to impossible now. Snakers always ruined my mario kart fun, because you could never beat them, and so you would turn off your DS in frustration. Now, anyone can play... Sort of... You till will meet people that have a higher skill level than you. Even though the game can be immensely frustrating at times, somehow, you will end up back at your couch, kickin' ass at Mario Kart.
Don't even THINK about postin' tl;dr. WARNING IN THE FUCKING TITLE!