Mario Kart 7

Overview

The big jump in Rock Rock Mountain in Europe known as Alpine Pass

Mario Kart 7 is a go-kart style racing game developed by Nintendo. It is the 7th console game in the Mario Kart series, (9th overall, the other two being Mario Kart Arcade GP and MKAGP 2) hence the title Mario Kart 7, and the first to make use of stereoscopic 3D effects. As with other entries in the series, most, if not all, of the characters and tracks in the game are taken from, or are inspired by the characters and settings from the Mario franchise, also developed by Nintendo. Mario Kart games are known for their difference from other racing games, due to their creativity, items, and cartoony-style. This makes these games feel much different than the average racing game.

Changes from series

Mario Kart 7 includes some new features and improvements. One interesting new feature is that, when passing another racer, your characters will look at each other and make faces. Many upgrades to the graphics have been made (relative to Mario Kart DS) including the use of the 3DS's stereoscopic 3D effect.

Nintendo has also stated that the game runs at 60 FPS; with and without the 3d slider up or down. It was stated in the 18th March 2011 edition of Nintendo TV, hosted by Official Nintendo Magazine (in America: Nintendo Power), that the staff have been working harder on this Mario Kart game than any other. It was also mentioned that Mario Kart 7 will include a more balanced item system.

Mario Kart 7 features several new features that have not been in previous games in the series. On big jumps in the game, karts will deploy a hang glider to help them glide over a track. When underwater, a propeller will help the kart drive along the sea floor. The game also features kart customisation, a first in the Mario Kart series.

Karts can be customised with accessories that will give the kart an advantage in races. For example, giant tyres will help for off road tracks, whereas small tyres will be ideal for city tracks. This allows players to actually design their own kart and give their own spin on the race. Players can also peform tricks whilst driving; tricks are performed by pressing the R button at the right time when you have made a jump, or when you reach a gliding booster.

Mario Kart 7 now includes an item filter that includes: All Items, No Items, Banana's Only, Mushrooms Only, Shells Only, and Bob-ombs Only. This allows players to choose their own style of items.

Characters

Mario Kart 7 features characters from the Mario series The Character you select affects various aspects of your kart. From its top speed to the way it handles terrain, it all stars with the driver. Not all characters are available when you first start the game, but as you progress through the Grand Prix cups, you'll gain access to more of them. Many of the characters share many characteristics, and be sure to assemble your right character and right Racing Kart!

• Mario - With his well-rounded characteristics, Mario sets the standard for kart racers!
• Luigi - Luigi shares the same basic qualities as his brother, making him a great choice for all player!

• Princess Peach - Peach's top speed is a bit lower than heavier racers, but she gives a nice boost to your karts acceleration! She is the true combination of racing, elegance, and beauty.

• Yoshi (Green) - Like peach, Yoshi favors acceleration over top speed. He's slightly bigger than a true light weight, but not by much!

• Donkey Kong - Donkey Kong may not be able to match Bowser's weight and speed, but Donkey Kong is great at acceleration. If you are not ready for a heavy weighted charracter, you may want to give Donkey Kong a try.

• Bowser - This heavy hitter has a high top speed and enough weight to jostle through almost everyone. Unfortunately, these valued skill cost him part of his acceleration, handling, and nearly evry other kart characteristic.

• Toad - Toads's lack of weight and speed is offset by his outstanding acceleration and drifting ability. These kind of lightweight characters are great for new player, and Toad is one of the best around that class.

• Koopa Troopa (Green Shell) - This little guy is another great potion for new players trying Mari Kart games. He shares all of toads characteristics, so don't hesitate to pick him.

• Wario - Wario is back to show these racers how things are done in a race. Like Bowser, Wario is a true heavyweight racer. He is great at reaching high speeds, and he's great at jostling. However, his other characteristics are somewhat lacking.

• Princess Daisy - Daisy, wasn't about to sit by while her friends had all the fun. Like Peach, and Yoshi, Daisy balances relatively low speed with an awesome fast acceleration. Mush like Peach she combines, lethal beauty, racing, and simpleness.

• Rosalina - Rosalina may not look it, but she has the same chracteristics as Donkey Kong!! Of course, one would expect the protector of the cosmos could hold her own. Rosalina is another great option for players who want to put a little more muscle into their jostling. She looks at little over weighted, and that makes her hard to move when players bump onto her.

• Metal Mario - Yo can find larger racer on a race that Metal Mario, but not one tougher than him. Metal Mario is another true heavyweight racer, which means he's traded handling acceleration for his high speed and a powerful jostle. He is to be Mario's rival in race.

• Lakitu (Red Shell) - Lakitu got tired of watching other characters race, and decided to enter the race himself to prove that they are not the only ones with racing skills. Selecting this little guy will make any player enjoy the acceleration and drifting this character has to offer in a race. Give Lakitu a Try!!

• Shy Guy (Red) - This plucky lightweight has the outstanding acceleration and drifting you'd expect from someone his size. like similar character, his speed is fairly slow. But Shy Guy has nothing to be ashamed of. (Get it Shy guy - Ashame of nothing) I'm crazy.. PitGoku.

• Wiggler - Wiggler shares the characteristics of lighter heavy weighted characters like Donkey Kong, and Rosalina. This racer has a short fuse, so try not to fall behind!

• Honey Queen - Honey Queen is steeping out of the hive to try her hand at kart racing. She is never looking for trouble, not runs away from it. Honey Queen has all of the characteristics of a true heavy weighted character. She can reach high speeds, but it takes a while to do so.

• Mii - Earn the ability to race as your Mii. Once you do, your newly available Mii appears on the bottom of the selection screen.
• Download Shy Guy (Yellow or Blue, Multiplayer only) - Play against friends, if they don't have a Mario Kart 7 Game Card, they can download the gameplay and only play as a Shy Guy.

There are 5 different weight classes

• Light: Shy guy (red, yellow and blue), Lakitu (red shell), Koopa Troopa (green shell) and Toad

• Medium/Light: Peach, Daisy, Yoshi (green) and Daisy.

• Medium: Mario, Luigi, Mii

• Heavy/Medium: Donkey Kong , Wiggler and Rosalina.

• Heavy: Bowser, Queen Bee, Wario and Metal Mario.

Light has very good acceleration, low speed, okay off-road, okay handling and little weight.

Medium/Light has okay speed, okay acceleration, fairly little weight, okay handling and okay off-road.

Medium has good speed, okay acceleration, middle weight, okay handling and okay off-road.

Heavy/Medium has good speed, low acceleration, Quite a bit of weight, pretty bad handling and okay off-road.

Heavy has Great speed, very low acceleration, A lot of weight, poor handling and okay off-road.

--PitGoku 01:30, 20 May 2012 (BST)

Unlocking Characters

These characters will be unlocked as you proceed on the Grand Prix!

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Toad, and Koopa Troopa are the characters you can choose to race when you first start the game. There is no need for them to be unlocked.

Unlocking

• Daisy - To unlock Daisy, you must take first place in the 150cc Mushroom Cup.

• Wario - To unlock Wario, you must take first place in the 150cc Flower Cup.

• Rosalina - To unlock Rosalina, you must take first place in the 150cc Star Cup.

• Metal Mario - To unlock Metal Mario, you must take first place in the 150cc Special cup.

• Shy Guy - To unlock Shy Guy, you must take first place in the 150cc Shell Cup.

• Honey Queen - To unlock Honey Queen, you must take first place in the 150cc Banana Cup.

• Wiggler - To unlock Wiggler, you must take first place in the 150cc Leaf Cup.

• Lakitu - To unlock Lakitu, you must take first place in the 150cc Lightning Cup.

--PitGoku 01:30, 20 May 2012 (BST)

Statistics

There are twelve categories of statistics:

• Speed (Land)

• Speed (Sea)

• Speed (Sky)

• Acceleration

• Weight

• Handling (Land)

• Handling (Sea)

• Handling (Sky)

• Off-road

• Stability

• Drifting

• Mini-turbo

Items

The items that can be obtained when you hit an item box in Mario Kart 7 are:

• Banana Peel - When ran into, you get spun around quickly, slowing you down. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Triple Banana Peels - A string of three banana peels that can be used. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Green Shell - When hit by one, the player gets thrown in the air, slowing you down. If it hits a wall, it will bounce off the wall. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Triple Green Shells - Three green shells that spin around you. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Red Shell - A shell that homes in on the nearest player. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Triple Red Shells - Three red shells that spin around you. It's also good to use these defensively, mainly when a Red Shell is about to hit you.

• Blue Spiny Shell - A shell that homes in on the player in first position and causes an explosion similar to that of a Bob-omb when it reaches there. It can also hit other players along the way and cause them to be hit like a Green Shell or Red Shell would do. Unlike Blue Spiny Shells in some previous installments, this one does not have wings, just like the original.

• Mushroom - A speed boost.

• Triple Mushrooms - Three speed boosts.

• Golden Mushroom - A speed boost that lasts approximately 5 seconds after its first use (during the 5 seconds you can use it as many times as you want).

• Star - Causes the user to become invincible for a short amount of time. If you touch other players whilst you have the Star's effects they will get thrown into the air.
• Lightning - Causes the players ahead of the user to shrink down, significantly reducing their speed.

• Blooper - Temporarily blocks the vision of the players ahead of the user.

• Bullet Bill - Transform into Bullet Bill. Serves as a very good and long boost where the game controls the user's kart. Also causes invincibility. The time the player is a Bullet Bill depends on the user's place in the racer at the time of use; the further away the user is from the lead, the longer they remain a Bullet Bill.

• Bob-omb - Causes a large explosion and slows down according to how close the kart was to the epicenter.

• Fire Flower - Allows the user to throw fire balls that slow down opponents. 10 Fireballs may be fired before this item is depleted.

• Super Leaf - The user grows a tail and can hit other players with it and block attacks. It cannot block Blue Shells, and when hit by shells and fireballs it will disappear if not swung. It lasts approximately 10 seconds.

• Lucky 7 - Seven items will appear around the player and the player may use one at a time. The items are as follows: Banana Peel, Mushroom, Bob-omb, Green Shell, Red Shell, Star, Blooper, and a couple others. It is unconfirmed, but it is believed that this item may only be used once per race.

• Coins - The more a user has of them, the faster the user goes. If the user is hit 3 of the coins are lost. These are also used to buy in-game items. You can hold a maximum of 10 coins at a time.

Kart Parts

Karts

• Barrel Train Kart
• Zucchini Kart
• Koopa Clown Kart
• Pipe Frame Kart
• Tiny Tug Kart
• B Dasher Kart
• Cloud 9 Kart
• Bumble V Kart
• Bruiser Kart
• Cact-X Kart
• Blue Seven Kart
• Egg 1 Kart
• Gold Standard Kart

Wheels

• Slick Wheels
• Slim Wheels
• Sponge Wheels
• Red Monster Wheels
• Gold Wheels
• Monster Wheels
• Roller Wheels
• Standard Wheels
• Wood Wheels
• Mushroom Wheels

Gliders

• Peach Parasol Glider
• Flower Glider
• Paraglider Glider
• Beast Glider
• Gold Glider
• Swooper Glider
• Super Glider

Gold Steering Wheel

This special kart part is unlocked after playing 80 out of 100 races using First-Person Mode. It is lost after racing 20 races without using First-Person Mode.

Unlocking Parts

• 50 Coins: Random Kart Part 1
• 100 Coins: Random Kart Part 2
• 150 Coins: Random Kart Part 3
• 200 Coins: Random Kart Part 4
• 250 Coins: Random Kart Part 5
• 300 Coins: Random Kart Part 6
• 400 Coins: Random Kart Part 7
• 500 Coins: Random Kart Part 8
• 600 Coins: Random Kart Part 9
• 700 Coins: Random Kart Part 10
• 800 Coins: Random Kart Part 11
• 900 Coins: Random Kart Part 12
• 1,000 Coins: Random Kart Part 13
• 1,200 Coins: Random Kart Part 14
• 1,400 Coins: Random Kart Part 15
• 1,600 Coins: Random Kart Part 16
• 1,800 Coins: Random Kart Part 17
• 2,000 Coins: Random Kart Part 18
• 2,500 Coins: Random Kart Part 19
• 3,000 Coins: Random Kart Part 20
• 3,500 coins: Random Kart Part 21
• 4,000 coins: Random Kart Part 22
• 4,500 coins: Random Kart Part 23
• 5,000 Coins: Beast Glider
• 10,000 Coins or 100 Streetpasses with people who have Mario Kart 7: Gold Glider
• 15,000 Coins or finish all cups in all difficulties with a ranking of at least 1 star: Gold Wheels
• 20,000 Coins or achieve a VR over 10,000: Gold Standard Kart

Kart Pieces Through StreetPass

There is another way of obtaining Kart Pieces without collecting coins for them. If you have StreetPassed someone that happens to have a piece you want in the Mario Kart Channel, tap on them and race them in their Grand Prix. If you win, you will be rewarded with one of the Kart Pieces they used for their StreetPass Kart, providing you with the part you don't have. This makes getting other Kart Pieces such as the Beast Glider much easier. However, this does not work with Golden Kart Pieces.

Gameplay

Mario Kart games generally include many different types of modes to play within them. All of the modes included within Mario Kart 7 are not all currently known though.

Versus Mode: The core system of Mario Kart is expected not to change with Mario Kart 7's versus mode. The player races around multiple Nintendo-themed tracks in their favorite Nintendo character. The object of the game is to come first in each race, and their are a number of methods to achieve the objective, such as cutting corners, drifting, using shortcuts, and using items to increase speed as well as slow down opponents.

Balloon Battle Mode: The object of balloon battle mode is to pop as many of the opponents balloons as possible while still maintaining your own balloons. Every time you pop one of your score goes up by one. Once all of your balloons are popped, you lose point's. Whoever has the most points by the end of the time wins.

Coin Battle Mode: You have to get as many coins as possible before time runs out. You can knock other players' coins out by using items. When the time goes out, the player with the most coins wins. (Does not add coins to Mario Kart Channel.)

There is a two-tiered drifting system, as with all of the Mario Kart games; short drifting with blue sparks gives smaller boost, while longer drifting with orange sparks gives larger boosts.

Tricks are also available by clicking "R" while in air. Players can switch to 1st person view and can drive using the gyroscopic controls that the 3ds utilises.

A link of Mario Kart 3DS new gameplay with sound is shown.

Tournament Cups / Tracks + Battle Stages

These are the heart and soul of the Mario Kart series. Without these, it wouldn't be a Mario Kart game. Below are the tracks that you can race on in either Single or Multiplayer modes. Once again, Mario Kart 7 will include retro tracks from previous entries in the series.

Tournament Cups

Mushroom Cup

• Toad Circuit
• Daisy Hills
• Cheep Cheep Cape/Cheep Cheep Lagoon
• Shy Guy Bazaar

Flower Cup

• Wuhu Island Loop/Wuhu Loop
• Mario Circuit
• Melody Motorway/Music Park
• Alpine Pass/Rock Rock Mountain

Star Cup

• Piranha Plant Pipeway/Piranha Plant Slide
• Wario's Galleon/Wario Shipyard
• Koopa City/New Bowser City
• Wuhu Mountain Loop/Maka Wuhu

Special Cup

• DK Jungle
• Rosalina’s Ice World
• Bowser’s Castle
• Rainbow Road

Shell Cup

• N64 Luigi Raceway
• GBA Bowser Castle 1
• Wii Mushroom Gorge
• DS Luigi's Mansion

Banana Cup

• N64 Koopa Troopa Beach
• SNES Mario Circuit 2
• Wii Coconut Mall
• DS Waluigi Pinball

Leaf Cup

• N64 Kalimari Desert
• DS DK Pass
• GCN Daisy Cruiser
• Wii Maple Treeway

Lightning Cup

• Wii Koopa Cape
• GCN Dino Dino Jungle
• DS Airship Fortress
• SNES Rainbow Road

Battle Stages

• GBA Battle Course 1
• N64 Big Doughnut/N64 Big Donut
• DS Palm Shore
• Honeybee Hive
• Sherbet Rink
• Wuhu Town

Wireless Features

Multiplayer functionality has been confirmed to be available through both online play and local wireless, for up to eight players.

Online: Mario Kart 7 is the first of its kind to support Wi-Fi races for up to eight people. You can create communitys play with friends and more. For full details on this visit Nintendo's official Mario Kart 7 website. (Adds coins to the Mario Kart Channel.)1

StreetPass: Players can exchange and race with other players met through StreetPass. (Adds coins to the Mario Kart Channel.)

Spotpass: You can download SpotPass Time Trial ghosts through the Mario Kart Channel. (Does not add coins to the Mario Kart Channel.)

Release

Mario Kart 7 was confirmed to be released in December, 2011 for all regions. December 1st for Japan, December 2nd for Europe, December 3rd for Australia and December 4th for North America. If you pre-ordered Mario Kart 7 in Australia, you would get a free novelty Mario Cap.

Reception

It often tops 3DS Buzz's chart of greatest reader interest. The game is also the #1 most wanted 3DS game on IGN.

Wuhu Loop Controversy

There is major controversy over the glitch in Wuhu Loop/Wuhu Mountain Loop track where you can skip an entire part of the course. This has really been a problem during the online play of the game. Nintendo has responded to the glitch reportedly going to release a patch in the near future. The patch has been released and fixes the glitch in online play, but oddly enough still allows it to be done in Grand Prix and Time Trial modes.

Development

Nintendo first showed Mario Kart 7 to the public as a non-playable demo at E3 2010. The same video has been shown on 3DS consoles at several press and public 3DS preview events since then.

New information was given at E3 2011 including the estimate release, customization and a new trailer. For the first time, a playable demo was showcased on the show floor at E3 2011.

The same playable demo has appeared at a number of other events, both press and public, most notably the public MCM expo in the UK.

Also, Retro Studios has been working on the game too, designing and revamping the old courses, while Nintendo concentrated on the newer courses. Nintendo did this, so that Mario Kart 7 could be released before the end of the year.

Enemies, Obstacles, and Other Things on the Road

The following enemies and obstacles have been confirmed (excluding items):

• Penguins

• Shy guys on carpets

• Bullet Bills

• Banzai Bills

• Grand Goombas

• Rolling boulders

• Pipes

• Wigglers

• Rocky Wrenches

• Pinballs

• Snowmen

• Walking Trees

• Cars

• Large Bricks

• Boo's

• Lava

• Mushrooms (Big bouncy ones, not the speed boosts)

• Normal Ramps

• Red Arrow Ramps

• Blue Arrow ramps

• Piranha Plants

• Thwomps

• Invincible Thwomps

• Oil Puddles

• Hills

• Clams

• Fish

• Crabs

• Fountains

Hints/Cheats

1. When you drive of a ramp, log or rise in the ground press 'R' to get an extra boost.

2. Even if you have the maximum amount of coins, try to collect some more so you can still get an extra boost.

3. If you are coming first place and second place is right behind and someone has a blue shell, slow down so the person in second place overtakes you and gets hit by the blue shell.

4. On sharp turns try to drift so you get an extra boost.

5. If you fall off the edge and Lakitu fishes you out and places you on the ground, press 'A' just as the wheels touch the ground to get an extra boost.

6. At the start of the race, when Lakitu counts down to two, hold down the 'A' button to get a boost, the closer you press down 'A' to when he says 2 the better boost you get.

7. If you have a banana (or three) place it/them in front of a boost ramp so they have a chance of falling off the edge and you can get way in front of them.

8. If you have a Tanooki Tail, you can use it to deflect green shells, whack bananas away from you, smash red shells or even give you a little extra height when you are using a glider.

9. If you are doing a course with lots of bends and turns, use a character with great handling to go round the bend really quickly.

10. If you are doing a course with little to no off-road parts, try to avoid using Monster wheels and go for something with better handling or acceleration.

11. If you have multiple bananas or multiple green or red shells, you can use them to just make them stand behind you(bananas) or circle around you(Shells) it will protect you against green or red shell attacks. You can also hold the item button while having a single banana, red shell, or green shell to make it stay behind you to protect you from green and red shell hits.

12. If a Blue Shell is about to hit you and you have a mushroom, use the mushroom at the last second to avoid the shell.

13. Your Mii's weight class depends on what size you made him in Mii Maker, make him smaller to make him a lighter class and bigger for a heavier class.

14. Your Mii's voice also changes by the color you choose for it in Mii Maker. Although this does nothing for you race wise, it is a cool trick none the less.

Cheat On the course Wuhu Loop/Wuhu Mountain Loop, right near the entrance of the cave if you drive into the purple water behind the stone Lakitu will put you back on the course just before the third lap begins, which basically skips half of the course. It's a cheat but also known as a glitch. - On the 25th April 201, a new firmware update will be released allowing users to download 'Patches' for 3DS Software, it was hinted that this Glitch would be fixed in a Patch sometime after the 3DS Firmware Update.

Gyro Controls

The use of gyro controls can be used in all types of racing and battling in Mario Kart 7: Grand Prix, Battle Stages, Local Play, Online Play, StreetPass Play and even in the SpotPass ghost data, but it can only be used while in 1st person though (Press up on D-pad). As you may know the Gyro Controls is when you move the 3DS however a tip when using this would be to play in 2D as when moving the 3DS it messes up the 3D. A peripheral was released to help this play style, The 3DS Wheel, it attaches to your 3DS and makes it feel like you are actually moving a steering wheel.

History

The first Mario Kart game was released in 1992, on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). Since then, versions of the game have been released on the Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo Gamecube, Nintendo DS and Wii. Mario Kart has also been released as an arcade game, under the names Mario Kart Arcade GP and Mario Kart Arcade GP 2. As well as featuring characters from the console versions of Mario Kart, these two games featured Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, and Blinky from the Pac-Man series. Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 also introduced a Tamagotchi to the game, allowing players to play as Mametchi. Mario Kart is one of Nintendo's most popular franchises. This is the third Mario Kart game to have included Grand Prix cups featuring pre-existing circuits, with the first being Mario Kart DS and the second being Mario Kart Wii.