Mario Kart + Wii Steering Wheel (Wii)

Gamecow’s Price	RRP $99.95     Save $10.95 $89.00
Availability
Genre	Driving Racing
Platform	Nintendo Wii
Release Date	30/04/2008
Rated

Mario Kart+ Wii Steering Wheel is a fantastic and entertaining driving game and has something for everyone.  Hours of fun for the whole family. Parents will find it extremely easy to use, and many parents may find themselves playing Mario Kart more than their children.

The kids will be entertained for hours playing as some of their favourite Nintendo characters. You can also compete against players from around the world when connected to the Internet.  The great part about Mario Kart + Wii Steering Wheel is that even though you may be leading the whole way, your 5 year old daughter can still get a power up and fly straight by you to win.  Great family fun. Who will be the champion in your house?

Mario Kart + Wii Steering Wheel (Wii) Product Information

Mario Kart Wii brings the iconic Mario Kart franchise onto Wii for the very first time. With a host of features including the Wii Wheel, classic and new race tracks, never-before seen Mario Kart characters, new vehicles, Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and even a new Wii channel – the Mario Kart Channel - Mario Kart Wii is a must have for every Wii owner. 

To make it one of the most accessible Mario Kart games to date, Mario Kart Wii comes bundled with a new accessory – the Wii Wheel. The intuitive Wii Wheel makes it simple for everyone to pick up and play Mario Kart Wii, no matter what your previous gaming experience may be. For those that like a challenge, Mario Kart Wii supports four additional control options; Wii Remote turned sideways, Wii Remote and Nunchuk combination, Classic Controller and the Nintendo GameCube Controller, so there is a control method that fits everyone’s experience and style.

Drawing from the features of the Mario Kart franchise, Mario Kart Wii also includes 16 classic race tracks from Nintendo 64, Nintendo DS, Super Nintendo and even Gameboy Advance, as well as 16 spectacular new race tracks and 10 battle arenas.

As well as the new race tracks, Mario Kart Wii includes new characters – including your own Mii, weapons and vehicles. For the first time ever players have the option of racing with karts or motor bikes. Racing with a motor bike will offer different game play possibilities and manoeuvres such as ‘wheelies’, which can be crucial in making it first over the finish line.

Connect your Wii to the internet, and Mario Kart Wii is an online multiplayer game thanks to the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Up to 12 players world wide, can race simultaneously in a contest of speed and skill. The Wi-Fi Connection allows you to see if your friends are playing by checking their status, or you can create a room and use the chat option to send friends messages before a race. You can even jump into your friend’s race as a spectator while their race is in progress, and join the race when the next course begins. Multiplayer Mode is also an option, where up to four people can challenge each other in your living room.

A new Wii Channel will launch with Mario Kart Wii – the Mario Kart Channel. Monitor your rankings against Mario Kart Wii players world wide, share Ghost Data, access a host of special features, and join a community of Mario Kart Wii racing fans from around the world.

Mario Kart + Wii Steering Wheel (Wii) Review

The Mario Kart series first debuted in 1992 on the Super Nintendo.   Mario Kart Wii brings with it a whole new host of new features. For the RRP of a new release title Mario Kart Wii comes bundled with a new peripheral, the Wii Wheel. The Wii remote simply slides into the Wii Wheel on the side and players can use the Wii Wheel to make it a little easier to control the vehicles. Slipping the remote into the Wii Wheel is remarkably simple and what makes the Wii Wheel so impressive is the fact that it feels so sturdy. Sure, it's just a white piece of plastic, but it feels pretty solid. The game does only come bundled with the one Wii Wheel, but additional Wii Wheels are available at the modest price of $19.95.

Game play wise a few changes have been made to the series as well. First up is the inclusion of a new vehicle type, bikes. Motorbikes do handle different than karts, but really do add to Mario Kart Wii, rather than detract from it. For each character in the game (of which there are twelve) players can choose to use either a kart or a motorbike.  Racers in Mario Kart Wii are now able to perform tricks, by flicking the Wii remote up, down, left or right after your character hits a ramp you can perform a trick, which will award the player a speed boost.

The single player options in Mario Kart Wii have also been modified just a little. The main single player mode is once again the Grand Prix Mode. Races are divided up into cups which are separated into three classes.  Aside from the Grand Prix mode there is also a time trial option, as well as a straight forward VS race with customer settings and a battle mode with teams.

One thing Mario Kart Wii features a lot of is multiplayer options. There are local multiplayer options for up to four players, as well as support for the Nintendo WFC. The game play was smooth and connecting wasn't an issue at all. Even though we were playing against opponents all across the world we had no issues at all with lag. It's also worth noting that the game also includes support for up to two players online on the one Wii, meaning that if you have a friend over then they can jump online and race as well.

Mario Kart Wii isn't a simple update. Nintendo have added new characters, new tracks, and a new bundled in peripheral, as well as a new vehicle type (motorcycles) and online play. Even with all these changes, the core extremely fun game play of the Mario Kart series has been retained, meaning anyone who liked the previous games should have no hesitation in picking up Mario Kart Wii.

Full review at PALGN