It retains Mario Kart series game mechanics, where players control Mario franchise characters in kart racing, collecting a variety of items to hinder opponents or gain advantages in the race. It has single-player and multiplayer modes, including online via the Nintendo Network. Mario Kart 8 was a critical...
It retains Mario Kart series game mechanics, where players control Mario franchise characters in kart racing, collecting a variety of items to hinder opponents or gain advantages in the race. It has single-player and multiplayer modes, including online via the Nintendo Network. Mario Kart 8 was a critical and commercial success. It was also a success, with critics lauding the expansion of the battle mode, and became the best-selling Switch game. Mario Kart 8 has sold a total of more than 55 million copies on Wii U and Switch, making it one of the best-selling video games of all time. Like other Mario Kart games, Mario Kart 8 sees characters from the Mario universe race in go-karts, attempting to hinder their opponents or improve their performance using power-ups found in item boxes. Returning features from previous installments include motorbikes and 12-player racing from Mario Kart Wii, as well as hang gliders, underwater racing and vehicle customization from Mario Kart 7. New features include anti-gravity racing, in which certain parts of a track can allow racers to drive on walls and ceilings. There are four new items: the Boomerang Flower, which can be thrown to attack players, the Piranha Plant, which attacks nearby racers and obstacles and provides a speed boost, the Crazy Eight, which gives the user eight different items, and the Super Horn, which can be used both to attack nearby opponents and defend against items, including the previously nearly unavoidable Spiny Shell. Miiverse features have been removed from the game, although downloading ghost data from friends or top players is still possible. The Wii U version is compatible with the Wii U GamePad, Wii Remote and Nunchuk, Wii U Pro Controller, Wii Classic Controller, and Wii Wheel. The Switch version can be played with an individual Joy-Con turned on its side, the Joy-Con Grip controller shell, the console tablet with both Joy-Con attached, or the Nintendo Switch Pro Controller and the Nintendo GameCube Controller with the Nintendo GameCube Adapter. A free software update to the Switch version was made in June 2018 that allows players to use the Toy-Con Motorbike from the Nintendo Labo Variety Kit as a compatible motion controller. Initially confirmed in a January 2013 Nintendo Direct presentation, Mario Kart 8 was unveiled at E3 2013. The "8" in the logo was designed to resemble a Möbius strip, as was Mario Circuit, one of the tracks.