For Nintendo 3DS
| Pros: | Cons: |
| 60 FPS even when online and 3D turned on | More tracks and characters would be nice |
| Tons of Replayability and a great online mode | Gyroscope controls don’t mesh well with 3D |
| New underwater and Hangliding are great | Customization welcomed, but poorly executed |
| Tracks are well designed, new 1st person mode | |
A new entry in the Mario Kart series has almost always accompanied a Nintendo system with the exception of the NES and Game Boy, but it’s ironic that a Mario Kart has never been released at the system launch instead coming out at least 6 months later. Although the game didn’t have the impact that I had hoped for, I still found myself enjoying every last minute of Mario Kart 7 and I won’t hesitate in saying that its one of my favorite Mario Kart games to date.
The graphics are for the most part pretty solid with well designed characters, karts, and tracks. The only real exception I found was in the Donkey Kong Country course if you pay attention the trees on the sides of the tracks are not 3D objects, but rather a 2D texture applied to a wall of the level, I notice things like this and they do detract from the score. My favorite aspect of the game’s visuals is that it stays at a consistent 60 frames per second the entire time even with 3D on or when playing online, this is quite a feat by Nintendo so kudos for managing to accomplish it. Finally, the 3D in the game while not nearly as stunning as Super Mario 3D Land, makes driving a bit easier and adds minimal depth to the experience. Some highlights of the 3D include the start of the race when Lakitu counts down the race starting, as well as the bullets in the DS airship stage. On the other hand nothing really sticks out as being awesome and the game doesn’t lose that much from having the 3D turned off. Overall it’s not an all that impressive showcase of 3D but it’s not all that bad either.
As always with Mario Kart the sound effects are wacky, crazy, and unordinary, and they still are. The eight characters on the course constantly yell, scream, (and I think Wiggler may have cursed in worm language), and make other crazy noises and it sounds better than ever. The sounds of the items also sound good as well as the kart motors. The music that accompanies the tracks are all very well composed and some of them are the best themes in the Mario Kart series, but it’s no Legend of Zelda.
The traditional gameplay of Mario Kart 7 is still identical to how it’s always been with only a few major exceptions: the hangliding sections of the courses are phenomenal, adding a possible short-cut, a cool visual effect, variety to the normal course, and a bit of strategy as to where to land, and how far you want to stretch your flight. Overall the hangliding segments are the single best improvement this game has, let’s hope they’ll be back again in future installments. While not as cool as flying, driving underwater also helped add some variety to the courses and was well appreciated by myself. The underwater segments aren’t much different than above ground besides a visual tweak and slightly less control over handling but I enjoyed them nonetheless. Another addition is the new first person mode which can be combined with the motion control mode, or the traditional circle pad mode. I never stayed in 1st person for long as I found it hard to know what was going on around you and it was much more difficult to drive when using this viewpoint, but it was a nice option and it made the 3D stick out that much more. At first, I wasn’t a big advocate for the return of coins, but after a few hours with the game I began appreciating the coins for what they’re worth (see what I did there?). It adds variety, change of pace, and gives you the option to try to go for collecting them or avoid them altogether, I do wish you didn’t have a ten coin limit to each course though. The customization of karts is also a nice addition overall, albeit with a few issues I encountered. First of all, instead of allowing me to purchase new pieces they are randomly unlocked whenever you collect enough coins, and even when you do get your kart pieces there isn’t a very simple way to compare stats without memorizing them in your head. While a good idea on paper, I’m afraid the customization process didn’t quite live up to expectations. With all these improvements it seems Nintendo took some elements of the Mario Kart franchise out of the equation, and actually they did. Gone are bikes from Mario Kart Wii which honestly I never missed them (even though I use them 100% of the time in MKWii), the balloon battle mode has changed (which I never play battles very often so not a huge deal), say good bye to the mission mode from Mario Kart DS (this is a huge downfall as this mode should have stuck with the series ever since MKDS), and say bye-bye to fake item boxes and thunder clouds (the former of which is a shame). Replacing those missing items are the Fire Flower, which is a close combat attack that is both fun to use and gets instant results, the Tanooki Tail, which isn’t all that useful but gives 1st place players another option besides bananas and green koopa shells, and the Lucky Seven. I’m not sure where to stand regarding the Lucky Seven, it gives you seven items at the same time and should be a good thing, but my issue was that I got so overwhelmed with the seven items that I ended up wasting half the items or driving myself off the track. When using the item correctly however, it was more than enough to return me to first place. Finally, my absolute favorite part of MK7 is the new tracks. Nearly every last track is extremely well designed and an absolute blast to race on, explore, and crash on hundreds of times. I love the 1-lap style of the Wuhu Island courses and Rainbow Road, and I also enjoyed the new Bowser’s Castle (which looked a lot like world 8 from Donkey Kong Country Returns, gee I wonder why?). One of my favorites would be Rock Rock Mountain with the exception of the terrible camera angle when ascending its mountainside with boulders rolling down. For the most part the tracks are well designed and this is definitely the best Mario Kart ever in terms of gameplay. One more note: I’ve been upset with the Kart designs now ever since Mario Kart Double Dash, I want karts that are designed off of the characters again, not some cheesy pipe car or soda jet.
Obviously the amount of gameplay in Mario Kart is infinitely high thanks to immense Replayability. I was quite a bit let down by the small character roster which should have been quite a bit bigger and should’ve included Waluigi, Birdo, and Baby Bowser. Also, I think it’s about time the Mario Kart franchise starts having more tracks than just 16 new and 16 old. I want to start having 32 new tracks each installment and I hardly care how many old are included, I’m pretty sure new tracks are better than old. The online mode makes up for this though thanks to its addictive and competitive nature. The new community options are fun by I still just assume play worldwide. I’m sure Mario Kart 7 will end up being my most played game on the 3DS, so I can’t complain much, but once again I do wish there were more characters and tracks included.
The controls in the game are overall good. The normal controls work relatively well with no noticeable problems. The circle pad feels good, the drifting has been changed from past installments and does take a little while to get accustomed to but makes snaking a bit more difficult although it can still be done. The gyroscope controls for 1st person are not good. They don’t work well in the first place but not only that, but they don’t mesh well with 3D, it’s one or the other, and I’d much prefer the 3D over the motion controls. Plus, it is immensely difficult to drift while driving.
So another Mario Kart game has come and gone which signals yet another new system in Nintendo’s ever-growing library. This Mario Kart racer takes the series to new heights thanks to the amazing new ways of driving, and other new additions to the formula. Some of them I can hope for a return while others I’m hoping to be left in the dust (no pun intended). Let’s hope that Mario Kart for Wii U will break the tradition and finally become a launch title.
| Graphics: Smooth character models and tracks, good use of 3D, 60 FPS online and off 9.5 |
| Audio: Some of the best music in the series, great sound effects, but it’s no Zelda 9.0 |
| Gameplay: New modes are all appreciated, fantastic track designs and new items 9.5 |
| Gameplay Amount: Fantastic online mode, more tracks and characters needed 9.5 |
| Controls: Normal controls work relatively well, gyroscope controls don’t work well with 3D9.5 |
| Overall: One of the finest Mario Karts yet, superb online, great new ways of driving 9.3 |
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