Gold Trophies in Mario Kart all Grand Prix Events

At long last, I finally managed to make gold in all events in Mario, woo! I hope Laura has newfound respect for me. Of course I don't have even close to a decent grade in any of those races, but hey, once step at a time. At least I unlocked a bunch more stuff.

Only took a year and a half.

Trouble With 150cc Lightning Cup

I've tried to get 1st place on the 150cc Lightning Cup no less than a dozen times without success. Stupid Toad just rocks me every time. The Grand Prix game mode on 150cc just feels like a 1 vs. 11 team mode. One time I even got first place on each of the first three races, only to take 11th place in the last race and lose to Toad by 3 points. Ugh.

I think I'm just bad at Mario Kart. I have been having a lot of fun with the time trials. I enjoy that game mode more since you just compete against a ghost and there are no items to deal with. It's a more pure driving mode, and that's what's really fun about the game, stringing together a huge set of drifts, hitting the perfect line, jumping over obstacles and doing tricks.

I'm going to be a sucker for Gran Turismo 5 when the full version finally releases. I hope it has aerial tricks, too.

May Video Game Sales Figures; Nintendo on Top

As I once again lament my failure to invest in Nintendo stock nearly two years ago when I predicted the Wii would blow the competitors away, May 2008 video game sales information indicate Nintendo has massive leads over Sony and Microsoft. These sales data come at a time when most US economic factors indicate slowing growth, while video games buck the trend. Similar data from last month tell a similar but not as drastic tale.

According to ArsTechnica, for the month of May, the top two hardware items in terms of volume, the Wii and DS, combine to sell over one million units in May alone in the US. This in the face of the number one game released this month, Grand Theft Auto IV, which is not available on either platform. As a comparison, the PS3, PSP, and 360 sold just under six hundred thousand units combined.

Software sales tell a similar story. While GTA IV is tops, with the 360 version selling nearly nine hundred thousand copies, Nintendo rounds out the rest of the top ten with seven titles; second and third are Mario Kart Wii with just under eight hundred thousand sold and the pricy Wii Fit with nearly seven hundred thousand units shipped. Fourth is GTA IV for PS3, and the rest, six through ten, are all Nintendo titles; Wii Play, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, Guitar Hero III for Wii, and the twin Pokemon Dungeon Explorer titles. It truly is a Nintendo renaissance.

With the exception of the recently released and excellent Metal Gear Solid 4, Sony and Microsoft may be having a tough time with pushing consoles in the next few months. Until the holiday season, Nintendo may rule the US markets, and likely overseas as well. But many titles, including Force Unleashed on Wii with lightsaber battles, the rumored Spore for Wii in the next year, COD:5 finding a home on the Wii along with Sonic Unleashed, the new Sonic RPG for the DS, Rock Band Wii, along with the very exciting The Conduit first-person shooter, make Nintendo's future bright.

I sure wish I had bought that stock...

Mario Kart and More

We've decided to make this Saturday a mandatory day of rest after the crazy time we had last weekend. Even if the mandatory day of rest does include laundry, dishes, or other chores, it's still easier than preparing for a wedding.

I was playing a little bit more Mario Kart online this afternoon with my son online, which is still the most fun to be had with the game. Mario Kart is now to me even more enjoyable on my new 32" Samsung LCD TV. It's a huge difference now, definately with two players, and I'm sure when you crank it up to 4 per screen it's a world of difference. Also with the newly aquired Wii component cables along with the widescreen mode on the Wii, all gaming on the Wii is greatly improved.

I'm also excited to try a little bit of PC gaming on the new TV as well. I've heard that Sins of a Solar Empire looks amazing on the big screen, so I'm going to have to get that set up.

150cc's of Frustration

I've tried the 150cc Grand Prix on Mario Kart several times now, and it always ends in me throwing my Classic Controller, more often than not rebounding on the cable attached to the Wii Remote that I'm sitting on, returning careening into my balls. Ouch.

Seriously, 150cc is hard and not fun. The CPUs always gun for you, and the number of items flying is silly. I was hit, not a dozen yards from the finish line on the new Mario Circuit, by a red shell, blue shell, POW block, and lightning bolt. Luckily I was so far ahead I finished first, but that's not always the case.

On the other hand, playing online is still a lot of fun. I played maybe a half-dozen matches and never finished lower than 4th place. I even got second on Rainbow Road! Human players can make the same mistakes I do, and aren't all gunning for me. Unfortunately the only way I know how to unlock all the characters is to do the Grand Prix competitions. Maybe I can get Greg to do them for me.

Greg's Bachelor Party Gaming Fun

We played a crazy gaming session yesterday. It was the day of Greg's bachelor party, and we spent much of the day at Splatterpark doing paintball. It was an experience, and a lot of fun. My first paintball shot ever tagged Greg right in the shoulder. He maintains it was the hardest hit of all day, and I believe it. He's quick and hard to hit when you aren't lining up Civil War style.

We played several game types, including Capture the Flag, Downed Pilot, and more. Mike's moment of glory came on the Alamo where after patiently sneaking down one side made a dash to the flag and captured victory for his team. I had several great shots, including the killing blow to the pilot's (Kyle) lens on Downed Pilot and another lens shot to Victor's face in our final Ironman bash. Had a great time and we definitely plan to go back.

Afterwards we indulged in pizza and beer and played some Mario Kart and Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Both games are just made for big groups in mind, and it was a lot of fun to play with everyone, even on my stupid small TV. I guess to me it's a lot more important to have a group of friends to play with on a tiny TV than play all alone on a huge TV. Pretty easy choice there.

But it was a great day of gaming, got to meet lots of new people, and it was a proper celebration of Greg's last few days of bachelorhood. Let's hope the gaming experiences don't change too much when he's a married man!

Your Mii in Mario Kart

With only limited time to play the game, I've finally managed to unlock the ability to play as your Mii within Mario Kart. My son just absolutely loved it, and I get a big kick out of it as well. It essentially gives you the ability to play with an unlimited amount of characters within the game. It's especially fun online where you have people that may pick several characters at the same time, so you can avoid having four Yoshis or something on the same map.

Mario Kart continues to be a lot of fun, and should be even more fun as my friend list grows. Just got codes from Mike and Laura, as well as Greg, so we should get some games with friends going soon!

An Evening With Kart Online

I played some Mario Kart over Nintendo WFC for probably longer than I should have last night, but it's just too fun. Random pickup groups are a blast, cause for shaking fists in anger and pumping fists in satisfaction. There's just nothing quite like running people over when you're a massive Bullet Bill, or just massive when you pick up a Mega Mushroom.

The game tracks your online progress using VR points, among other statistics. I have no idea what VR stands for. But you gain points for coming in the top three or four finishers, depending on how many people are in each match, and lose for coming in the bottom three or four. I've gotten up to about 5400 points, as I win more than I lose. But those 10th place finishes are still possible, and hearbreaking, especially when you see your rating plummet.

The game also tracks a number of other statistics, including your first place finishes, your bumps and item launches, all kinds of stuff. Really cool to watch and see just how many times you've ran into someone.

Online play is just a blast, it's the core of the game, and it shows. Multiplay Kart is where it's at.

Mario Kart Wii Online

Last night I tried to play a match through Nintendo WFC on Mario Kart Wii, and I was not disappointed.

Online, you can play with participants worldwide, within your region, or on your friends list. Because I don't have anyone's friend code yet, I just did a match in my region. When starting a match, you get a cute visual of who is joining the match, what their Mii looks like, and where approximately they are in the world. It seems to leverage the same look as the world in the Weather Channel. Additionally, those matched have a score close to yours -- you start with 5000 points, and win or lose points depending on your score at the end.

Once twelve participants are gathered -- and it looked like I was pulled into an existing match with 10 others, as I could spectate on another match as I waited to join -- the match initiates. You can chose your racer and kart, and then vote on a track. Then you're ready to go.

I also have to say this is very quick. It took less than 30 seconds from clicking the region menu item to the start of the race. Perfectly suited to fast play, and much more satisfying than the matching services on SSBB.

The race itself was great. Zero lag at all, even with two racers on the screen -- my son played with me. Thankfully we played on Mario Circuit from the SNES kart game, and I managed to edge out my competitors to take home the gold on my first online match!

In the end, the multiplay on Mario Kart Wii seems to be the best online experience that can be had on the Wii.

Mario Kart Wii

I picked up Mario Kart Wii yesterday night at the Gamestop midnight launch. I waited until this morning, however, to open the packaging because I knew my son would just flip over it. And I was right.

The steering wheel was his main focus; he just thought it was fantastic. And it is very clever, and pretty easy to use. It offers a very direct input method, great for beginners. Also, as I suspected, the game supports a wide array of other input methods, including the Classic Controller and the Gamecube controller. Classic all the way baby.

The game itself is fantastic. I was first greatly pleased by the excellent menus system. Easy to use, pleasing to look at. Very good in a game that just has loads of options.

We jumped right into a game, and it's a blast. The action with twelve participants on the map at any one time is crazy. The items of course are insanely overpowered. Maintaining a lead is difficult, and you're never quite certain you can even stay on the track -- but that's a hallmark of the series. The action is very fun, and the twelve-player multiplay (with up to two on a single system) offers the best online experience you can get on the Wii.

Mario Kart Wii serves up so much fun, so many maps, characters, and karts, with so many game types both on and offline, it's a shame not to pick it up.

Those Are Some Wacky Wheels

Although Mart contends that Mario Kart ripped off Wacky Wheels -- video below -- I think the Mario Kart franchise has enough original content that it's worthy of my attention. I guess I'll let him play it with us though, even though he kind of hates all over it. After all, it probably gets lonely all the way up there on his moral highground.

Enjoy the wacky video -- and judge for yourself!




And, by the way... Mario Kart for SNES came out in September of 1992. The above Wacky Wheels came out in October of 1994. Mart insists a time machine was employed.

Mario Kart Wii Releases in Under Two Weeks

A week from Sunday -- or Saturday night for those midnight launches -- Mario Kart Wii becomes available in North America. Gamespot has an updated hands-on and some new screens, and man this looks like fun. I'm very much looking forward to playing some huge online matches, and the leaderboard channel, whatever they're calling that these days, is sure to be a great place to follow the online play. Less than two weeks remain until it comes out!