Mii support, bike wheelies, and an April date for Mario Kart Wii
by Eric Caoili 
{ Feb 6th 2008 at 12:00PM }
Three pages packed with Mario Kart Wii info and screenshots charged out of Famitsu this week, rounding the corner into someone's scanner and speeding right to your computer screen. In addition to revealing an April 10th release date for Japan, the magazine shows our mascots pulling off aerial tricks and racing against Miis! Will these personalized characters be a new standard for multiplayer games on the Wii? If it's easy to implement, why not?
Mario Kart Wii will also have GameCube controller support, multiplayer for up to twelve people online, online leagues, global rankings, time attack sharing/rankings, ghost uploads/downloads, and 32 different courses -- 16 of which are new, the remaining 16 being classic tracks. We're sure we spotted Delfino Square in at least one of the screens! You can have a look at the scanned pages yourself after the post break. The first one of you to identify the figure drifting past Luigi on the top left of the first page wins a cookie.*
Gallery: Mario Kart Wii
*A cookie made of lies.
Click the resized scans for the full images:
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Barry @ Feb 6th 2008 12:13PM
I have never lost a race on Moo Moo Farm. Regardless of what system I've played it on. It will be nice to continue my tradition online.
Sonic_13 @ Feb 6th 2008 12:16PM
Have you not played Mario Kart DS? MKDS features Moo Moo Farm online.
Dave A. @ Feb 6th 2008 1:53PM
@Sonic_13: I don't think you quite understood Barry. He did say he wins in Moo Moo Farm "regardless of the system", so I do believe he has the DS version. Either that, or uses Download Play to do multiplayer.
But in reality, just as long as one of the "classic tracks" isn't Yoshi Falls. I don't like how short it is.
Sonic_13 @ Feb 6th 2008 3:30PM
That is true. I was just mentioning it though because he said "It will be nice to continue my tradition online." which suggested he hasn't played MKDS online.
Tom @ Feb 6th 2008 12:14PM
So Donkey Kong?
jpc168 @ Feb 6th 2008 12:15PM
interesting... let's hope this doesnt disappoint. april 4th is awfully close, a lot sooner than i had expected.
Tom @ Feb 6th 2008 1:02PM
April 4th? It says April 10th for Japan in the article. Maybe I read it too fast somewhere. So if it is April 10th in Japan, that means like mid May? Fair enough. That gives me two solid months of Brawl before buying another game.
Sonic_13 @ Feb 6th 2008 12:15PM
Hmm. To me the figure appears to Donkey Kong...only glowing a little orange.
I am definitely looking forward to this game. Racing as your Mii seems like an interesting idea. I had not heard about the GCN controller support - I doubt I'll use it though, as I love ExciteTrucks' control scheme and I am assuming MK would feature something similar. I'm glad they will be featuring ghost downloads and world records, etc.
I read on IGN that Mario Kart may also feature a separate channel (ala Wii Fit) for viewing World Records, etc. without actually having to load the game.
I really hope that you can race online with four people per console. That would be great since my friend down the hall has a Wii and we could then do 8-player races.
Nigeria @ Feb 6th 2008 12:24PM
I hope it controls more like the DS version rather than Double Dash. Controlling karts which manoeuvre like bricks with wheels is not fun, even if you place a two-rider gimmick on top of it.
The Mii idea sounds cool. I can unleash some of the Penis Mii's I've downloaded from the Mii channel onto the real world - by real world I mean Mario's world.
gevenstaines @ Feb 6th 2008 8:38PM
second that!
Billwhit @ Feb 6th 2008 12:28PM
Looks like Bowser to me.
Kenofthedead @ Feb 6th 2008 12:57PM
It's Donkey Kong (technically it's DK Jr.), you can tell from it's barrel kart.
Oh and I've had one of those cookies made out of lies, needs more sugar.
sketchampm @ Feb 6th 2008 1:29PM
It's not Bowser. It's not DKJr.
It's just Donkey Kong.
Sorry guys.
Shadow31 @ Feb 6th 2008 1:39PM
I think Kenofthedead is referring to it as Donkey Kong Junior in the original sense. By that, the fact that the original Donkey Kong was Cranky Kong by the DKC games, and the DK we know nowadays is the former DK Junior. No idea why he had to use that reference there, but yes, Kenofthedead is in fact correct.
Matt @ Feb 6th 2008 5:43PM
Donkey Kong Jr. last appeared in the original Super Mario Kart (SNES). Since then, it has been simply "Donkey Kong" in every Mario Kart game. The modern Donkey Kong was originally the GRANDson of Cranky Kong (from Rare's Donkey Kong Country Series for the SNES), and thus, presumably (and confusingly), the son of Donkey Kong Jr.
This should make the modern "Donkey Kong" technically "Donkey Kong III," right? It would, except, in Donkey Kong 64, they changed it around to make Cranky the father, not the grandfather (which would bring Donkey Kong III back to Donkey Kong Jr.). The truth? Does it lie somewhere lost in the translation between Donkey Kong's original conception in Japan and his later rebirth in a UK development house? Perhaps. Or is there something more sinister going on? Chinatown comes to mind.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Kart
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranky_Kong
Thanks for helping me procrastinate from doing homework :)
burgerbat @ Feb 6th 2008 7:12PM
Wow, Matt. Just...Wow. Thanks for the clarification.
Calvin @ Feb 6th 2008 1:02PM
Since Brawl is almost here, this is the game that I'm currently excited to get. (Still need Brawl moar)
Brett @ Feb 6th 2008 2:02PM
It looks like some sort of dog or fox-like creature and the cart its driving has big mouth full of teeth. Could it be Star Fox or perhaps Poochy from Super Mario World 2?
Brett @ Feb 6th 2008 2:06PM
It could also be some character from Animal crossing, but I've never played that game so not sure.
Mr Khan @ Feb 6th 2008 2:15PM
I still say there's no way that this is going to get in by that point, considering how they had playable demos of Super Mario Galaxy back in May 2006...
Oh, and that figure is almost definitely Donkey Kong,
ChrisCanberg @ Feb 6th 2008 10:07PM
This game is so not gunna get to the April 4th date.
Mario Galaxy got delayed like twice, Brawl got delayed like 4 times, there's no way this isn't gunna fall victim to the same thing. At least once.
I'd say I'll have this game when it comes out in like June or July.
hvnlysoldr @ Feb 6th 2008 2:38PM
I guess that means Raw Meat Cowboy was right in saying 16 new and 16 old courses.
Dopple Boppler @ Feb 6th 2008 3:01PM
Delfino Plaza; YES~! One of my favorite Mario Kart tracks ever~
Edwin @ Feb 6th 2008 4:55PM
That's so Donkey Kong... how can people not see it? He probably is getting hit or has an invincibility star or something, that's why he's orange.
TheOverlord#2 @ Feb 6th 2008 4:24PM
Baby Peach, Miis, and Motorbike tricks seem to be the only new things I see. This games graphics are great. The online looks great also. The May Release is awesome! Though...how will I balance Brawl and MK? >_
Jonathan Tran @ Feb 6th 2008 4:28PM
So, is Sonic confirmed or what?
They should just put Sonic in every Mario game now.
gevenstaines @ Feb 6th 2008 8:40PM
can't forget snake either
Co @ Feb 6th 2008 4:36PM
I'm really doubting the validity of the GC controller support.
jp @ Feb 6th 2008 4:43PM
yeaaa.. April doesnt really help those of us not living in Japan. anyone have any news of a North American release date?
TboneMTH @ Feb 6th 2008 6:47PM
Tanooki Mario?
I swear I see a mario hat there... somewhere
ed @ Feb 6th 2008 7:12PM
baby peach!
Haohmaru @ Feb 6th 2008 7:34PM
It's DK all right.
ArmorForVictor @ Feb 6th 2008 8:37PM
just played Mario Kart Arcade GP the other day at an arcade for the first time and fell in love with it. if this game is anything like that or better it's a definite buy for me.
TVGenius @ Feb 7th 2008 10:16AM
I'm rockin' it Wavebird style, then. Can't have any slack in the steering on those turns, and to me ExiteTruck veers all over the place. But will Baby Park make a comeback? Me, my wife and her brother have marathon sessions on Baby Park (first to 25 wins).
Bombinater @ Apr 24th 2008 9:06AM
how do u change into ur mii to race?