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==Characters==
==Characters==
The eight available drivers can be classified into four types based on top speed, balance (handling) and acceleration. When two karts of different weight collide, the heavier kart will be knocked off the course far less and lose less speed than the lighter one, but lighter characters are better off-road.


The eight available drivers can be classified into four types based on top [[speed]], [[steering]], and [[acceleration]]. When two karts of different weight collide, the heavier kart will be knocked off the course far less and lose less speed than the lighter one, but lighter characters are better off-road.
'''About Statistics'''
*Top Speed: Fastest possible speed.
*Acceleration: Rate at which speed increases.
*Handling(DRIFTING): Ability to turn.
*Mass: How heavy the karter is. Determines what karter will be pushed more in a collision.


{| cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" class="infobox bordered" style="margin: auto; text-align: center"
1(okay),2(good),3(average),4(great),5(excellent).
|- style="background: #ccccff"

! width="15%" style="vertical-align: middle" | Character
(lightweights)
! width="17%" | Speed

! width="17%" | Acceleration
TOAD
! width="17%" | Steering

! width="17%" | Weight
SPEED 4
! width="17%" | Computer ability
(AECLE) 4
|-
TURNING 3
| [[Image:Bowser.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Bowser in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]
MASS 2
[[Bowser]]

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good
KOOPA
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very poor

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good
SPEED 5
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Heavyweight
(AECLE) 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Fireball
TURNING 2
|-
MASS 1
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Donkey Kong Junior.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Donkey Kong Junior in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]

[[Donkey Kong Junior]]
(light-middleweights)
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very poor
PEACH
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Heavyweight
SPEED 4
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Banana peel
(AECLE) 5
|-
TURNING 1
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Koopa Troopa.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Koopa Troopa in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]
MASS 2
[[Koopa Troopa]]

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average
YOSHI
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good
SPEED 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Lightweight
(AECLE) 4
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Green Koopa Shell
TURNING 2
|-
MASS 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Luigi.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Luigi in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]

[[Luigi]]
(heavy-middleweights)
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average
MARIO
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Heavy-middleweight
SPEED 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Star
(AECLE) 2
|-
TURNING 5
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Mario.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Mario in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]
MASS 4
[[Mario]]

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good
LUIGI
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good
SPEED 2
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Heavy-middleweight
(AECLE) 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Star
TURNING 4
|-
MASS 3
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Princess Peach.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Princess Peach in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]

[[Princess Peach]]
(heavyweights)
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good
DK.JR
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Light-middleweight
SPEED 2
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Shrinking Mushroom
(AECLE) 1
|-
TURNING 4
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Toad.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Toad in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]
MASS 4
[[Toad (Nintendo)|Toad]]

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average
BOWSER
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Good

| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good
SPEED 1
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Lightweight
(AECLE) 2
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Shrinking Mushroom
TURNING 3
|-
MASS 5
| style="vertical-align: middle" | [[Image:Yoshi.Super Mario Kart.select screen.front.jpg|Portray of Yoshi in the Super Mario Kart select screen]]
[[Yoshi]]
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Very good
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Average
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Light-middleweight
| style="vertical-align: middle" | Yoshi Egg
|}


==Items==
==Items==

Revision as of 21:57, 23 April 2006

You must add a |reason= parameter to this Cleanup template – replace it with {{Cleanup|April 2006|reason=<Fill reason here>}}, or remove the Cleanup template.

Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Kart cover art.
Super Mario Kart cover art.
Developer(s)Nintendo
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Platform(s)SNES
ReleaseJapan 27 August 1992
United States of America 1 September, 1992
Europe 21 January 1993
Genre(s)Racing
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer

Super Mario Kart is the first video game in the Mario Kart series, released in 1992 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Players race go-karts as one of eight characters from the Super Mario Bros. series. This game gave birth to the sub-genre of kart racing. It features impressive (for the time) graphics thanks to its use of Mode 7.

The music was composed by Soyo Oka and Taro Bando, and included some sequences and varients of Koji Kondo's works, though he had no direct involvement in the project.

Gameplay

File:Mario Kart SNES.PNG
The game is always split screen, even in one player mode. The lower half is used here to show a course map.

Super Mario Kart can be played by one or two players.

Single player

There are two single player modes:

The first is Mario Kart GP, in which one player races seven computer-controlled drivers. Engine classes of 50cc, 100cc, and 150cc are available. Larger engines result in faster vehicles and a greater level of difficulty. There are four cups to select: the Mushroom, Flower, and Star Cups are available immediately and the Special Cup is unlocked after completing the first three in 100cc or 150cc. There is no 50cc Special Cup. Winning the Special Cup in 100cc mode unlocks 150cc mode. Each cup consists of five tracks and the player must receive fourth place or better in any track to advance to the next.

The second mode is the time trial, in which the player races through one track in an attempt to set a record for best lap time or course time. No items are available in a time trial.

Multiplayer

Three multiplayer modes are available:

The first is MarioKart GP , which plays just like the single player version, but with one less computer-controlled driver. In order to proceed to the next track only one of the drivers is required to rank in the top four.

A Match race is a one-on-one race on one track.

The last mode, Battle mode, is the only mode in which players do not race. Two players choose from four levels specially designed for battle mode and try to pop the three balloons surrounding the other player with items such as Koopa shells or banana peels. The last player with balloons wins.

File:Lakitu Super Mario Kart.png
Lakitu helps the drivers when they get into trouble.

In all modes, Lakitu runs the raceway and rescues drivers who have driven off the track for a price of two coins.

Characters

The eight available drivers can be classified into four types based on top speed, steering, and acceleration. When two karts of different weight collide, the heavier kart will be knocked off the course far less and lose less speed than the lighter one, but lighter characters are better off-road.

Character Speed Acceleration Steering Weight Computer ability
Portray of Bowser in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Bowser

Very good Very poor Good Heavyweight Fireball
Portray of Donkey Kong Junior in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Donkey Kong Junior

Very good Very poor Good Heavyweight Banana peel
Portray of Koopa Troopa in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Koopa Troopa

Average Good Very good Lightweight Green Koopa Shell
Portray of Luigi in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Luigi

Good Average Good Heavy-middleweight Star
Portray of Mario in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Mario

Good Average Good Heavy-middleweight Star
Portray of Princess Peach in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Princess Peach

Average Very good Average Light-middleweight Shrinking Mushroom
Portray of Toad in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Toad

Average Good Very good Lightweight Shrinking Mushroom
Portray of Yoshi in the Super Mario Kart select screen

Yoshi

Average Very good Average Light-middleweight Yoshi Egg

Items

One of the features in this game that sets it apart from other games of the time is the arsenal of Mario Bros. weapons used to power-up one's kart or impede the progress of other racers. An item can be obtained by running over a yellow question mark square. The weapon received is chosen randomly, but is affected slightly by one's position. A racer is in first is more likely to get a weapon used to impede progress of players behind him or her, while a player in last is more likely to get projectiles to use on players in front of him or her and is more likely to get stronger items.

  • Banana peels can be placed behind a racer or tossed in front of a racer. If a kart hits a banana peel, it spins out, resulting in a loss of speed. In Grand Prix mode, the computer-controlled Donkey Kong Jr. has an infinite number of these at his disposal.
  • Boo (Ghost) is used to steal an item from the other player, as well as make the player that used it invisible (this item only appears in battle mode and match race).
  • A Feather is used to perform a high jump during which the kart spins 360° in the air (the 360° turn is a purely cosmetic element of the jump). It is used to jump over obstacles or gaps or to perform certain shortcuts. In Grand Prix mode, all computer controlled racers will randomly use this item to dodge obstacles (such as items used by the player or other racers). Because of this, this is the only Mario Kart game in which the Feather has appeared.
  • A Green Koopa Shell can be placed behind a kart to impede following racers or thrown in front of kart in an attempt to hit another kart. This shell travels in a straight line and ricochets off of walls. In Grand Prix mode, the computer-controlled Koopa Troopa has an infinite number of these at his disposal, although he tosses it forward like a banana peel instead of shooting it forward like a human player would.
  • Lightning is the most powerful weapon in the game and much more rare than the other items. When used, a bolt of lightning hits every opposing racer and shrinks him or her, which reduces his or her speed and allows him or her to be squished if run over.
  • A Mushroom is used to give the player a temporary speed boost or to perform a super jump when used while driving over bumps.
  • A Red Koopa Shell is used to attack leading racers. This weapon locks on to the driver in front of the player, making it easier to hit another kart than with a green shell. Unlike the green shell, it cannot be set behind a kart and does not ricochet off of walls. One of the more impressive uses of a Red Koopa Shell potentially occurs in Mushroom Cup's Ghost Valley 1. As with Luke Skywalker's mission to destroy the Empire's Death Star in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, in order to execute a Death Star in Super Mario Kart's Ghost Valley, a player must launch a smart missile (Red Koopa Shell) at precisely the right moment so that it may travel down a narrow pathway and destroy the enemy. See Death Star.
  • A Starman is another powerful weapon that provides a kart with greater speed and invincibility to everything except track boundaries, deep water, lava, and cliffs. In Grand Prix mode, the computer-controlled Mario and Luigi have an infinite number of these at their disposal.
  • Coins gives the player two extra coins. Single coins can also be picked up off the track. Each coin increases the speed of the player's kart up to a maximum of ten, beyond which they no longer affect the kart's speed. Coins can be lost by bumping into other racers on the track, falling into pits, water, and lava, hitting obstacles placed by other racers, and by going out of bounds by using a feather.

There are three additional items that are only used by computer-controlled drivers in Grand Prix mode, but they are not to be used by the player-controlled drivers. This was to give them some sort of advantage because AI algorithms were rather limited at the time.

  • A Fireball is set down behind a kart or thrown in front of a kart. This weapon strafes from left to right, increasing the likelihood of a collision. In Grand Prix mode, the computer-controlled Bowser has an infinite number of these at his disposal.
  • A Shrinking Mushroom is set down behind a kart or thrown in front of a kart. Any racer who hits one of these will shrink, as though struck by a lightning bolt. A player that has been previously shrunk by a different mushroom or a lightning bolt will regain his original form if he hits one of these mushrooms. In Grand Prix mode, the computer-controlled Princess Peach and Toad have an infinite number of these at their disposal.
  • A Yoshi Egg behaves like a placed green shell. In Grand Prix mode, the computer controlled Yoshi has an infinite number of these at his disposal. While a player that runs into a banana tends to slide forward after impact, a player that runs into a Yoshi Egg stops instantly on impact.

Cups and tracks

There are four cups available in the game, each consisting of five courses.

Mushroom Cup Flower Cup Star Cup Special Cup
Mario Circuit 1 Choco Island 1 Koopa Beach 1 Donut Plains 3
Donut Plains 1 Ghost Valley 2 Choco Island 2 Koopa Beach 2
Ghost Valley 1 Donut Plains 2 Vanilla Lake 1 Ghost Valley 3
Bowser Castle 1 Bowser Castle 2 Bowser Castle 3 Vanilla Lake 2
Mario Circuit 2 Mario Circuit 3 Mario Circuit 4 Rainbow Road

The tracks in Super Mario Kart are also available in the Game Boy Advance game Mario Kart: Super Circuit as unlockables, albiet 'trimmed down', with many course-specific obstacles not present. Super Circuit features five cups with four tracks each, so the track arrangement is significantly different. Four tracks are also available in the Retro Grand Prix of Mario Kart DS, which are much closer to the originals than the versions in Super Circuit, even including the old backgrounds.

Super Mario Kart is still widely played today by many "karters". The main form of competition is in the Time Trial mode. Karters submit their fastest records to a main records site and are ranked according to these times.

Other games in the kart genre

Trivia

  • MarioKart DS uses a similar HUD system to that seen in Super Mario Kart, with the race screen on the top and the map on the bottom screen.
  • Psygnosis’s successful game franchise Wipeout was initially intended to directly emulate and compete with the success of Nintendo’s Mario Kart product, with the difference of aiming at an older demographic. As the game development progressed, design similarities became less noticeable, however relics such as the pad which are driven over to provide shields, weapons and other items can be directly traced back to this original design.
  • Super Mario Kart placed #15 on IGN's Top 100 Games.
  • There is an unofficial modified version of Super Mario Kart (Japanese) known as Super Mario Kart Turbo. In this version, players are given an infinite number of the first powerup they collect. This version is NOT a commercial product and probably only exists as a ROM image, or perhaps as very rare pirate cartridge or on a multi-game cartridge.
  • When producing the European version of Super Mario Kart, Nintendo increased the game speed to compensate for the fact the European version runs at 50hz (PAL) - 17.5% slower than the American 60hz standard (NTSC). Due to this optimisation, the PAL version of Super Mario Kart appears to run at the same speed as the NTSC version.
  • If the PAL version of the game is run on an NTSC SNES, gameplay gets speeds by 17.5%, which is faster than what was intended by Nintendo.
  • There are various unofficial course editors (PC programs) for Super Mario Kart. mKedit (latest version at time of writing is Beta v.3), made by Aaron Jacobson, and Track Designer (latest version at time of writing 1.10) by Bouche are two that I know of. Both allow for editing of course layouts, but sadly do not yet allow you to alter the race path followed by the computer controlled opponents.

Template:Mario Kart series