Ah Mario Kart, you are on nearly every Nintendo system, and each one of those games are fun to play. It's been a while since I played it, time to break it out again.....on the Wii. The only retro console I have is the GameBoy, but I'll get an NES one day. In fact, I was tempted to get the FC twin....*someone throws a tomato at me* Oh yeah, the review....This game was nothing too special, but it did have it's moments. Let have a look at them.

For starters, it's in 3D. The last game was in 2D, but was able to give that 3D feel. Now it's in proper 3D, although I'm not sure I can say that, with the 3DS being in full 3D. Ok, it's 3D, but on a 2D screen, not  "grab you" 3D like the 3DS, but I digress. These 3D graphics were a great add on to the game, giving the sense of direction that enabled you to power-slide effectively. Power-what, you ask? Power-sliding helps you drift round corners smoothly, you can also get a boost from it. You can use it to boost your way through long straight roads called "snaking" In fact, it was once considered frowned upon by a few fans of the game to "snake" through a course. I suspect that they couldn't do it themselves. But now everyone that can do it, does it. You'll know if your power-sliding if there are sparks in your rear wheels. Blue is a very small boost, yellow is a better boost, and orange is like half a mushroom, maybe a third....

Oh yeah, power-ups. This game changed the face of Mario Kart weaponry. People hide in fear of the name, followed by swearing, and then some swearing at the person that threw it. There was the green shell, simple moving shell that bounced off walls. Then there was a red shell, harder to avoid, as it seeks the person in front, but that could be blocked by holding a banana skin (used to slip drivers) or shell behind you. Now, there is The Blue Shell! A good weapon to some, a terrible weapon to others. It hits the person in first place in a blue explosion. Helpful to those who need to steal that position, but hated when you are close to the finish line on the last lap, you think you are going to make it, and then.....That Blue Shell! You find yourself either being over taken by three drivers - making you forth in the race - or after recovering, you try and speed up, and try and make it first, only to have been beaten by Toad by a hair. I'm not sure which is worse...

There are also thunder bolts, that shrink everyone in front of you, and you can even run them over (take that Toad! ^^), mushrooms to speed yourself up, fake item boxes, used to fool those who think they are getting something else, and of course, the super star, making your faster and invincible for a short time. You get to choose from eight different characters to race in four different cups in three different engines. The light weight characters can steer better, but the heaver weighted characters can knock off the light weight ones, which can be annoying at times =(     The design of the tracks are nice. I like the Yoshi one with the different paths to take, so you'll come back to that one to see which is a faster route. Although some are a little boring, such as Rainbow Road. They could have done something with that course, but they must have thought that simple was often the best.

So you have three modes to choose from: Grand Prix, where you race for the best in four tracks. Time Trail, where you race on your own on a track for the fasted time. And then there's the Battle Mode. This is a personal favorite of mine in this game. Instead of racing to be first, you must attack other drivers with items and be the last one standing. I find this epic, having to use your cunning to get that Toad with the green shell, or sneakily reverse to throw that person off and get him in the back. My favorite is the Sky Scraper track. I love how you can try and throw them off by jumping over a gap, or even - if you are the attacker - be bold enough to jump over that gap and continue the chase, but I could throw the shell backwards and get that Toad plummeting down to his doom if he thinks about that....*evil glint in eyes*

What's my problem with Toad, you say? No problem, I just kind him annoying and smug. On top of that, he's the hardest driver to beat in this game. I always love beating him, but he has beaten me more time =(     Some people think he's a fun guy, while others think he's annoying because he kept saying "your princess is in another caster" GAH! When will my quest end? Overall I give this game a 8.3/10 It seems like a simple game, with nothing that special in it, but all you need to do is give it a chance and it will win your heart. Now, if you'll excuses me, I have a life and death battle with a certain mushroom on top of a Sky Scraper. Oh, and I need to get some blue and red balloons as well as some karts....