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SUPER MARIO KART (SNES)
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Publisher: Nintendo.
Developer: Nintendo. Released: January 1993 (Europe). Genre: Racing. Posted 9th February 2021. By Tom Clare © 2021 |
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So successful would the Mario Kart series become, it’s peculiar to think that the original game was established as a spin-off and an accidental one at that. This most significant of 16-bit lynchpins began as an experiment to assess the viability of adding a multiplayer arm to F-Zero. However, developers discovered that the environment space allowed for whilst using Mode 7 was limited, so recreating the futuristic racer’s trademark sense of speed would prove a bridge too far.
However, Nintendo learned something else from these endeavours. Slow the racing, add a bunch of twists ‘n’ traps, as well as a slew of devious power-ups and you have an altogether different experience. Add one last potent ingredient, a ready-made all-star cast, and voila! You have Super Mario Kart and by extension, the birth of the kart racer. Events consist of eight competitors battling through five laps on breathless, action-packed circuits typically taking 20-30 seconds to circulate. Races are won by those who best navigate the chaos thrown up by fiendish course design and potent weaponry.
However, Nintendo learned something else from these endeavours. Slow the racing, add a bunch of twists ‘n’ traps, as well as a slew of devious power-ups and you have an altogether different experience. Add one last potent ingredient, a ready-made all-star cast, and voila! You have Super Mario Kart and by extension, the birth of the kart racer. Events consist of eight competitors battling through five laps on breathless, action-packed circuits typically taking 20-30 seconds to circulate. Races are won by those who best navigate the chaos thrown up by fiendish course design and potent weaponry.
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It goes without saying, Super Mario Kart really comes into its own with two players
There are eight different characters to race as, both heroes and villains from the Mario universe, and they provide an excellent, balanced mix of styles. Perhaps inevitably, Mario and Luigi are cast as the all-rounders. Toad and Koopa are nippy and compact, but their diminutive statures mean they’re susceptible to being pushed around by bigger competitors. On the other end of the scale, Donkey Kong and Bowser are the choice of the true Super Mario Kart connoisseur: heavy handling counterbalanced by strong speed characteristics. In theory, these are the ones who’ll lap the quickest, but to do so, you’ll first need to learn every inch of the courses and master the tricky drift mechanic. In the right hands, every character is a competitive choice, though they each suit different track profiles.
This beautiful, fine-tuned balance forms the bedrock of SMK’s always-surprising depth. Whilst ostensibly a family-friendly kart racer, it delivers both accessibility and a formidable challenge. By the time you unlock the 100cc Special Cup, competition is fraught. Deployable items, which could so easily have been used as a gimmick, are instead a huge plus point. Their presence is key to the kart racer as we know it, as this was perhaps the first instance of a meeting of minds between racing and a multiplayer party aesthetic. Super Mario Kart always strives to be inclusive, as players lower down the order are typically granted more potent items. Like every other aspect of the experience, these are easy to use but require plenty of practice to master. The Starman invincibility perk is handy taken as-is, but with some foresight as to where to exploit shortcuts, it can leapfrog the player four or five places. This can be incredibly satisfying, should the risk of going off-piste payoff. Equally, weapons like the pinballing green shell and the banana skin are useful defences for those eager to protect a lead, but there’s also the risk of the player coming a cropper on your own hazards.
This beautiful, fine-tuned balance forms the bedrock of SMK’s always-surprising depth. Whilst ostensibly a family-friendly kart racer, it delivers both accessibility and a formidable challenge. By the time you unlock the 100cc Special Cup, competition is fraught. Deployable items, which could so easily have been used as a gimmick, are instead a huge plus point. Their presence is key to the kart racer as we know it, as this was perhaps the first instance of a meeting of minds between racing and a multiplayer party aesthetic. Super Mario Kart always strives to be inclusive, as players lower down the order are typically granted more potent items. Like every other aspect of the experience, these are easy to use but require plenty of practice to master. The Starman invincibility perk is handy taken as-is, but with some foresight as to where to exploit shortcuts, it can leapfrog the player four or five places. This can be incredibly satisfying, should the risk of going off-piste payoff. Equally, weapons like the pinballing green shell and the banana skin are useful defences for those eager to protect a lead, but there’s also the risk of the player coming a cropper on your own hazards.
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Super Mario Kart’s most abiding legacy and the reason it would remain easily among the greatest 16-bit racers even as the years passed, is its superb two-player mode. More specifically, it’s the ability to play through the main game with a friend, against a full field of competitors. A masterstroke of design during a period when local multiplayer was a huge selling point, the power-ups and mad-scramble nature of the racing means it’s perfect party entertainment. It’s perfect for competitive racing, but even if you’re not quite on the pace of your friend, there’s the chance to be a co-op hero. Playing rear-gunner, hindering the A.I. and taking those all-important championship points away from your chief competitors can be just as crucial to winning a tournament. In light of how much it brought to the racing genre, it’s genuinely a mystery as to why such a setup wasn’t replicated reliably amongst other racers until considerably more than a decade later.
The circuits are brilliant and thanks to three progressively faster speed classes, you’ll come to appreciate that many of them aren’t as tame as they appear initially. The sensation of 3D is magic and there are many occasions when you have to thread the needle. Ghost Valley and the iconic, disco-floor frenzy that is Rainbow Road come with the abiding risk of the player dropping clean off the sides of the course, whereas many of the early tracks will lure the unprepared into run-off areas or barriers, resulting in a haemorrhaging of time and positions.
The circuits are brilliant and thanks to three progressively faster speed classes, you’ll come to appreciate that many of them aren’t as tame as they appear initially. The sensation of 3D is magic and there are many occasions when you have to thread the needle. Ghost Valley and the iconic, disco-floor frenzy that is Rainbow Road come with the abiding risk of the player dropping clean off the sides of the course, whereas many of the early tracks will lure the unprepared into run-off areas or barriers, resulting in a haemorrhaging of time and positions.
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Some of the Mode 7 tracks are less easy-on-the-eye than others, but Choco Island is still fun to drive
SMK is about as distinctive a SNES game as you’ll find. The pancake-flat, Mode 7 landscapes are a little discombobulating to begin with, as courses present 3D environments that rotate around 2D sprites. None of the scenery within covers any vertical space, meaning barriers, objects and items appear as flat as the roads. Consequently, it’s easier to judge lateral space than depth. The vast majority of the time though, it works a treat, particularly during the colourful Mario Circuit variants and the tricky but thrilling Ghost Valley. Bowser’s Castle would become a mainstay of the series, and it’s not hard to see why, thanks to its intimidating, lava-filled surroundings and treacherous jumps. Admittedly, Choco Island is a bit of an eyesore and Vanilla Lake would have benefited from clearer colouring, but there are few games as instantly recognisable as SMK. From the satisfying post-tournament podium celebrations to the iconic jump animations and the colourful, easy-to-follow menus. Impressively, the one-player mode gives the player a choice of display for the bottom screen: a live map to keep abreast of relative race positions, or a rearview mirror, something that’s almost unique amongst 16-bit racers.
Often imitated but never bettered during the Super Nintendo’s prolific lifecycle, Super Mario Kart stands as a timeless example of how effectively to marry challenge and accessibility. Technologically and thematically creative, but always aiming to deliver a fun gameplay experience. The series has since blossomed into an altogether more polished spectacle, but none of its successors can claim to have had as groundbreaking an influence as Super Mario Kart. Like Street Fighter II, it pushed the frontiers in dazzling fashion and just as with Capcom’s legendary brawler, smart design and supreme gameplay ensure it will remain compelling, ad infinitum.
Often imitated but never bettered during the Super Nintendo’s prolific lifecycle, Super Mario Kart stands as a timeless example of how effectively to marry challenge and accessibility. Technologically and thematically creative, but always aiming to deliver a fun gameplay experience. The series has since blossomed into an altogether more polished spectacle, but none of its successors can claim to have had as groundbreaking an influence as Super Mario Kart. Like Street Fighter II, it pushed the frontiers in dazzling fashion and just as with Capcom’s legendary brawler, smart design and supreme gameplay ensure it will remain compelling, ad infinitum.
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VERDICT
"Super Mario Kart stands as a timeless example of how effectively to marry challenge and accessibility. Alone, it's fantastic fun. With a friend, it's completely essential." OVERALL: 9/10 |