LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!…AND METAL PEOPLE, FUNGI, AND REPTILES OF ALL AGES!…AND WALUIGI! START YOUR ENGINES! Mario Kart 8 is a game now!
Now then, this newest installment in the Mario Kart series does something no other Mario Kart has done before. It comes back to the gimmicks of the last Mario Kart, (customizable vehicles, gliders that serve no real purpose, coins, and underwater driving) ) and expands on it. With more parts, and the ability to drive up walls and upside down in zero gravity. While cool, it’s not anything I haven’t seen before *cough cough F-Zero's did zero-gravity first *Cough Cough.
Outside of the zero gravity thing, that’s pretty neat. But, the game does have its flaws. And now we’ll delve a bit into this fun, and sometimes difficult game.

Graphics: 10/10

This game looks great! It’s a weird mix of realistic, and cartoony. But it’s fantastic all the same. There are also little things that I appreciated, when you go into a drift, you leave skid marks on the road. After a lap or two it starts looking like a real racetrack. Also, in the sand you leave tracks behind your kart when driving. And when you drive in the dirt, your tires get dirt on them. It just makes the game seem a bit better when it pays attention to small things like that.
All in all, it’s a glorious HD Mario Kart with very nice attention to detail. One more thing, the characters actually turn their heads to see their items hit other racers. Which can lead to some hilarious replay moments. (Death stare Luigi anyone?)

Sound: 8/10

There is a lot of great music in the game. The best are probably the remixes of older courses, used in the Retro Cups. You might not be able to remember most of the newer courses' songs until a long time of playing.
But the problem I have is, you can hardly hear at all in multiplayer! While you hold down the gas button (AKA 99% of the race) your kart’s engine roars. And that’s fine, most of the other games did this too. But in 3-4 person multiplayer it’s so loud you can’t always hear the music! >.< Most of my time with the game I spent in multiplayer, so I needed to mention that slight oversight by making the engines loud. Also, every character has their own horn, that’s just a small, but nice thing they threw in.
Addictiveness: 9/10
What can I say, it’s Mario Kart! Of course it’s addicting! The fact you can play it on just the gamepad makes it even more addicting! The only problem is, once you stop playing, you kind of forget about how much fun it is, and then when you pick it up again, you won’t be able to stop. It’s a vicious cycle.

Story: ?

There’s no story really. How about this: Once upon a time, the Mushroom Kingdom was inexplicably paved over. And also, because of too many Olympic crossovers with Sanic Sonic, the Mushroom Kingdom has grown shuttle loops and twisty terrain as well. With a need to go fast, Mario and friends jump into their future cars and race for 1st place!

Depth: 5/10

Well, there isn’t too much depth to this game. Every 100 or so coins you get, you earn a new Kart piece (Although this changes to 500 once you get to the thousands). And with every Grand Prix you win, you get a new character. There is a lot of parts however. Mario Kart isn’t exactly a deep game. It has the most content of any past Mario Kart game, but it cost almost all major challenges to do so.

Difficulty: 7/10

Mario Kart is an experience that can’t be very well expressed with words. You can be invincible for most of a race, or Grand Prix, and in an instant, all is lost. It all comes down to a odd mix of actual skill, and chance. You’re at the mercy of the game, and the game has none! MUAHAHAHAHA!!!!!
Although they added a surefire way to destroy the dreaded blue shell, they also upgraded the Blooper, so now the ink actually does block your view of the race.
Another thing I’d like to shed light on is, the game kinda forces you to collect coins, so your kart can improve on it’s speed and acceleration. But when you get hit with an item or fall off the track, you loose three. And you will start falling behind…A lot. And then it’s near impossible to climb back up to 1st place. So, you’re in for a nice challenge.
Some computer players are actually programmed to be especially hard on you during grand prix’s. Even more than it was in 7. First of all, computer players save their mushrooms to use on shortcuts, and pushing you around. Although its not really shown, there is also something called the rival system. So if you were playing as Bowser, Mario and Luigi would go out of their way to hit you with shells, banana peels, and be general jerks to you. But you get to taste the thrill of competition! Learn what a miraculous comeback is! And MAKE WALUIGI NUMBER ONE! WAA! …Or the bitter sting that is 2nd place.

Some pros and cons not covered.

Pro: It’s a great game to play with friends

Con: Honestly, who wanted to play as the Koopalings/Koopa Kids anyway? (Plus I miss King Boo and Dry Bones. I wanted some HD spookyness too.)

Pro: The customization options make each race feel like a new experience.

Con: The zero gravity mechanic is really overused. And you can’t really tell you’re on walls or upside down. All Zero Gravity does, while being cooler than the Sonic Riders gimmick of the same name (Sick burns) it just turns your wheels sideways and gives them a cool Tron Lines sort of effect. And when you bump into people, both of you speed up. But honestly they could have kept the racetracks normal, or at least tilted the camera view sideways when you’re on walls. Probably not turning the view upside down when you are though, because that would become too confusing too fast.

*Drifts across the Finish Line* Victory! Well, there you have it. That’s all for this thrill ride of a review. I hope you enjoyed it, I sure did. Mario Kart 8 is an amazing game. It has some high points, and low points. But you'll have fun no matter what!

One thing I didn't like about this game was the item balance. It was very poor in this game. I have seen computer players get much better items than me who are in 1st while I'm in 5th. I once got a golden mushroom in second! Though this is a good review and I fully enjoy this game despite its few flaws. Oh and the anti gravity didn't really do much for me. It wasn't all that impressive and I never really went out of my way to see what it was like.

Usah! This was a really nice review about a game that interests me. I think you didn't forget to cover anything. But I'll be honest, although I would miss King Boo and Dry Bones as well I would like to play as the Koopalings XD

A user of this :

Good job man!

I really like this game, it's very fun to play with my family. ^^' I particularly like the Battle mode, since it's just like an awesome joust, (should characters choose to drive opposite directions) But I agree with you that the Koopa siblings were a bad choice of extra characters. Mephilis, err, I mean, dry bones, boo, King boo, and King Koopa Bomb would have been much better. Even Whomp King. of how about Birdo?

Oh well.

Kinda disappointing. But I love the customization in this title. I would play you over the internet if I actually had a good internet connection though user.

I don't really like some of the changes that Mario Kart 8 has. First of all, I agree with you on the additions of the Koopa family. I don't really like using them because maybe it's due to the fact that I haven't been really updated on the newest Nintendo characters or they all seem like clones wasting space. There should have been a more diverse group of characters like Boo, Dry Bones, and etc. I like to stick to Luigi as my driver. Go Wee-Gee! Second, the customization is just not really special to me since it seems like they just added a few more things from Mario Kart 7. It's really eh to me. Third, the zero gravity is really overrated like what you said and I agree with that as well. Fourth, I really like some of the remixes from the old maps that are reintroduced in the game like Toad's Turnpike. Some people don't really like the remixes since they are so used to their original soundtracks. Lastly, I hate how you can avoid the blue shell  with the horn item because to me, the blue shell is supposed to be the one adding a twist of the race standings and the "unstoppable" force to attack the first place racer regardless.

If only I had enough money to buy a Wii U and Mario Kart 8, I would certainly play it especially on the internet.

This is a nice and detailed review that you wrote. I really like it. Keep up with the good work! PS I like your rewrite on the story part and ending. It was very creative and it relates to the game. 

*first review I read by user* and thumbs up on it. I really enjoyed reading it. It gave good details and while I was reading it I nodded my head through the whole thing! Make more usahhh! Keep up the awesome reviews. I really enjoyed this game when I played it, it was pretty fun.. wasn't really challanging for me though. Can't wait for your next review!

You dissin' Sonic Riders M8? I also agree, King Boo was my MAIN man, and to have him gone is sad. The Koopalings don't look different enough for me to ever play as them when I get the game.
As for the Gravity not being noticeable, they said it was to prevent disorientation, but I agree that they could've made it more noticeable. However, the fact that you can hit things for a speedboost is pretty cool.
Great review bro~ I want this game more than ever now.

DylanMcKaig : I agree, the item balance is a bit off. And you can only see what it's like through replays, which is kind of a lame reason to watch them.

juuldude : Haha thanks! I'm glad you liked it.

Sword legion : I play it with my family all the time! And, yeah, I have a few characters I would have wanted instead of the Koopalings. Like Sonic-er- I mean Paraoopa, Birdo, or even Peety Piranha! lol And, I know the feeling. My WiiU has internet issues also.

ghostfishy : You're not missing all too much. The only new character woth mentioning is Rosalina, and even then, she's only an important character in Super Mario Galaxy. Anyways, all the Koopalings are basically the same. Most of them are lightweights, so their kart statuses are nearly all identical. I loved the music on Toad's Turnpike also. And, I agree that taking out blue shells kind of kills the mood. Well, it feels great when you're in first place in the last lap on the last track of a grand prix. When you play with friends, it's not much fun since it ills your chances of catching up.

Bintsy : I have quite a few good reviews. I'll make more, don't worry. Lol

Gamin'Gal : So wot if I am m8? King Boo was awesome! And, like I said with Ghostfishy, the Koopalings are almost all identical gameplay-wise. I only played as them to get all the stamps, which are worthless little trinkets basically. lol Thanks sis~ You won't be disappointed to have it. :3

I am beyond startled the nobody mentioned the lack of Bower jr. and diddy kong.


Nice review there man. waluigi is number one!