Super Mario Kart

Super Mario Kart (スーパーマリオカート, Sūpā Mario Kāto) is a 1992 go-kart racing video game developed by Nintendo EAD for the Super Famicom (SFC) and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The first game of the Mario Kart series, it was launched in Japan on August 27, 1992, in North America on September 1, 1992, and in Europe on January 21, 1993. Selling nine million copies worldwide, the game went on to become the third best selling SNES game of all time.Super Mario Kart was re-released on the Wii's Virtual Console in Japan on June 9, 2009, North America on November 23, 2009, and in Europe on April 2, 2010.Super Mario Kart was re-released again on the Wii U's Virtual Console in Japan on June 19, 2013, Europe on March 27, 2014, and in North America on August 6, 2014.

In Super Mario Kart the player takes control of one of eight Mario series characters, each with differing capabilities. In single player mode players can race against computer controlled characters in multi-race cups over three difficulty levels. During the races, offensive and speed boosting power-ups can be used to gain an advantage. Alternatively players can race against the clock in a Time Trial mode. In multi-player mode two players can simultaneously take part in the cups or can race against each other one-on-one in Match Race mode. In a third multiplayer mode – Battle Mode – the aim is to defeat the other players by attacking them with power-ups, destroying balloons which surround each kart.

Mario Kart 64

Mario Kart 64 (マリオカート64, Mario Kāto Rokujūyon) is a 1996 go-kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It was the successor to Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and is the second game in the Mario Kart series. It was released first in Japan on December 14, 1996, and in North America and Europe in 1997. In January 2007, Mario Kart 64 was released as a downloadable Virtual Console title on the Wii.

Changes from the original include the move to polygon-based true 3D computer graphics for track design, and the inclusion of four-player support. Players take control of characters from the Mario universe, who race around a variety of tracks with items that can either harm opponents or aid the user. The move to three-dimensional graphics allowed for track features not possible with the original game's Mode 7 graphics, such as changes in elevation, bridges, walls, and pits. However, the characters and items remained 2D pre-rendered sprites.

Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 (Japanese: マリオカート8, Hepburn: Mario Kāto Eito) is a 2014 kart racing game and the eighth major installment in the Mario Kart series, developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U video game console. First announced at E3 2013, the game was released worldwide in late May 2014.

Like other games in the series, in Mario Kart 8, players control characters from the Mario franchise and participate in kart racing on various race tracks, using items to hinder opponents or gain advantages. While incorporating game mechanics originally featured in earlier Mario Kart games, Mario Kart 8 introduces anti-gravity sections that allow players to drive on walls or ceilings. The game features multiple single-player and multiplayer game modes. The game incorporates Miiverse functionality and online multiplayer supported via Nintendo Network.

Mario Kart 8 was a critical and commercial success upon its release, currently holding aggregate critical scores of 88.52% and 88% on GameRankings and Metacritic, respectively. It is the fastest selling Wii U game as of June 30, 2014, with 1.2 million copies sold within the first four days of its release, and 2.82 million copies during its first month. It is the best-selling Wii U game with 7.24 million copies sold. The game has continued to receive post-release patches and downloadable content, including additional characters, vehicles, and tracks, and support for Nintendo's Amiibo line of figurines.

Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart 7 (マリオカート7, Mario Kāto Sebun) is a 2011 racing video game. It is the seventh major installment in the Mario Kart series and the third to be released for handheld consoles. It was developed by Nintendo EAD and Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. Similar to previous games in the series, players participate in go-kart racing on various Mario-themed tracks, playing as one of seventeen different Mario characters. While racing, the players make use of power-up items that hinder opposing characters. New additions to the game include hang-gliding attachments for karts, the ability to drive underwater, the ability to drive in first-person, and the ability to fully customize the vehicles' builds.Mario Kart 7 supports both local and online multiplayer for up to eight players. The game was released worldwide in early December 2011.

It is the second 3DS game to sell over 5 million units after Super Mario 3D Land. Nintendo announced that they would re-release the game, along with some of their earlier published games for the Nintendo 3DS, as a downloadable title via Nintendo eShop. The downloadable version was released in the PAL region on 4 October 2012, 18 October 2012 in North America, and 1 November 2012 in Japan. At 13.03 million copies sold as of December 2015, it is the second best-selling 3DS game of all-time, behind Pokémon X and Y. Mario Kart 7 received positive reception, gaining aggregate critical scores of 85% and 84.96% on Metacritic and GameRankings respectively.

Mario Kart DS

Mario Kart DS (マリオカートDS, Mario Kāto Dī Esu) is a 2005 racing game developed and published by Nintendo. It was released for the Nintendo DS handheld game console on November 14, 2005 in North America, on November 17, 2005 in Australia, on November 25, 2005 in Europe, on December 8, 2005 in Japan, and on April 5, 2007 in South Korea. The game is the fifth installment in the Mario Kart series of video games, and the first to be playable via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection online service; the service has since been terminated , along with other games playable via the service. Like other games in the series, Mario Kart DS features characters from the Mario series, and pits them against each other as they race in karts on tracks based on locations in the Mario series.

The game was very well received, receiving an aggregated score of 91% from Metacritic. Praise focused on the game's graphics and gameplay, while criticism targeted its repetitive single-player mode. Mario Kart DS received several awards, including Editors' Choice Awards from GameSpot and IGN, G-Phoria's Best Handheld Game award, and IGN's Best Racing/Driving Game and Game of the Year awards for 2005. In the United States, Mario Kart DS was the best-selling game in its first month of release, and also held that position the following month. Overall, Mario Kart DS is the third best-selling game for the Nintendo DS as of March 2015, with 23.59 million units sold worldwide.

Super Mario

Super Mario (Japanese: スーパーマリオ, Hepburn: Sūpā Mario) is a series of platform video games created by Nintendo featuring their mascot, Mario. Alternatively called the Super Mario Bros. (スーパーマリオブラザーズ, Sūpā Mario Burazāzu) series or simply the Mario (マリオ) series, it is the central series of the greater Mario franchise. At least one Super Mario game has been released for every major Nintendo video game console and handheld.

The Super Mario games follow Mario's adventures in the fictional Mushroom Kingdom, usually with Mario as the player character. He is usually joined by his brother, Luigi, and occasionally by other members of the Mario cast. As in platform video games, the player runs and jumps across platforms and atop enemies in themed levels. The games have simple plots, typically with Mario rescuing the kidnapped Princess Peach from the primary antagonist, Bowser. The first title in the series, Super Mario Bros., released for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) in 1985, established gameplay concepts and elements prevalent in nearly every Super Mario game since. These include a multitude of power-ups and items that give Mario special magic powers such as fireball-throwing and size-changing into giant and miniature sizes.

List of Mario television series

Several television series were produced that were based on the Mario series of video games, developed by Nintendo.

Series

Anime

Film

Characters

See also

External links