is a 1992 kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). The first game in the Mario Kart series, it was released in Japan on August 27, 1992, North America on September 1, 1992, and Europe on January 21, 1993. Selling 8.76 million copies worldwide, the game went on to become the fourth best-selling SNES game of all time. Super Mario Kart was re-released on the Wii's Virtual Console in 2009, on the Wii U's Virtual Console in 2013, and on the New Nintendo 3DS's Virtual Console in 2016. Nintendo re-released Super Mario Kart in 2017 as part of the company's Super NES Classic Edition.
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 4 multi-race cups consisting of 20 tracks (5 in each cup) over three difficulty levels (50cc, 100cc and 150cc). 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 multiplayer 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.
Super Mario Kart received positive reviews and was praised for its presentation, innovation and use of Mode 7 graphics. It has been ranked among the greatest video games of all time by several magazines and organizations. It is often credited with creating the kart-racing subgenre of video games, leading other developers to try to duplicate its success. The game is seen as having been key to expanding the Mario series into non-platforming games; this diversity has led to it becoming the best-selling game franchise of all time. Several sequels to Super Mario Kart have been released for consoles, handhelds and in arcades, each enjoying critical and commercial success. While some elements have developed throughout the series, the core experience from Super Mario Kart has remained intact.
Gameplay
Super Mario Kart is a kart racing game featuring several single and multiplayer modes. During the game, players take control of one of eight Mario franchise characters, each with differing capabilities, and drive go-karts around tracks with a Mario franchise theme. In order for them to begin driving, Lakitu appears with a traffic light hanging on his fishing pole at the starting line, which starts the countdown. When the light turns green, the race or battle begins. During a race, the player's viewpoint is from behind their kart. The goal of the game is to either finish a race ahead of other racers, who are controlled by the computer and other players, or complete a circuit in the fastest time. There is a battle mode in which the aim is to attack the karts of the other human players. Some tracks feature chevron-shaped boost panels to increase speed for a brief moment. In addition, there are also short ramps that racers can use to launch themselves in the air. A combination of the two makes the player jump higher at a high speed.
Panels marked with question marks are arrayed on the race tracks; they give special abilities (power-ups) to a player's kart if the vehicle passes over them. Certain power-ups, such as the ability to throw shells and bananas, allow racers to hit other racers with objects, causing them to spin and lose control. A kart that obtains the star power-up is temporarily invincible. Computer players have specific special powers associated with each character that they are able to use throughout the race. Lines of coins are found on the tracks in competitive race modes. By running over these coins, a kart collects them to increase its top speed. Having coins helps players when their kart is hit by another: instead of spinning and losing control, they lose a coin. Coins are lost when karts are struck by power-ups or fall off the tracks.
The game features advanced maneuvers such as power sliding and hopping. Power sliding allows a kart to maintain its speed while turning, although executing the maneuver for too long causes the kart to spin. Hopping helps a kart execute tighter turns: the kart makes a short hop and turns in the air, speeding off in the new direction when it lands. Reviewers praised Super Mario Karts gameplay, describing the battle mode as "addictive" and the single player gameplay as "incredible". IGN stated that the gameplay mechanics defined the genre.
Modes
Super Mario Kart has two single-player modes: Mario Kart GP (which stands for Grand Prix) and Time Trial. In Mario Kart GP, one player is required to race against seven computer-controlled characters in a series of five races which are called cups. Initially, there are three cups available – the Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, and Star Cup – at two difficulty levels, 50cc and 100cc. By winning all three of the cups at the 100cc level, a fourth cup – the Special Cup – is unlocked. Winning all four cups at 100cc unlocks a new difficulty level, 150cc. Each cup consists of five five-lap races, each taking place on a distinct track.
In order to continue through a cup, a position of fourth or higher must be achieved in each race. If a player finishes in the fifth to eighth position, they are "ranked out" and the race must be replayed – at the cost of one of a limited number of lives – until a placing of fourth or above is achieved. If the player has no lives when they rank out, the game is over. Points are accrued by finishing in the top four positions in a race; first to fourth place receive nine, six, three and one points. If a player finishes in the same position three times in a row, then an extra life is awarded. The finishing order for that race will then become the starting grid for the next race; for example, if a player finishes in first place, then that player will start the next race in the same position. The racer with the highest number of points after all five races have been completed wins the cup. In time trial mode, players race against the clock through the same tracks that are present in Mario Kart GP mode, attempting to set the fastest time possible.
Super Mario Kart has three multiplayer modes; Mario Kart GP, Match Race, and Battle Mode. The multiplayer modes support two players and the second player uses the bottom half of the screen which is used as a map in the single-player modes. Mario Kart GP is the same as in single-player, the only difference being that there are two human-controlled and six computer-controlled drivers. Match Race involves the two players going head to head on a track of their choice without any opponents. In Battle Mode, the two players again go head to head, but this time in one of four dedicated Battle Mode courses. Each player starts with three balloons around their kart which can be popped by power-ups fired by the other player. The first player to have all of their balloons popped loses.
Characters Super Mario Kart features eight playable characters from the Mario series: Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, Bowser, Donkey Kong Jr., Koopa Troopa and Toad. Each character's kart has different capabilities with differing levels of top speed, acceleration and handling. During races, computer-controlled characters have special items, or superpowers, which they are able to use. These powers are specific to each character; for example, Yoshi drops eggs which cause players who hit them to lose coins and spin, while Donkey Kong Jr. throws bananas.
The characters are rendered as sprites portrayed from 16 different angles. Super Mario Kart was the first game to feature playable characters from the Mario series other than Mario or Luigi in a non-platforming game and the selection and different attributes of the characters is regarded as one of the game's strengths, IGN describing a well-balanced "all-star cast". All of the characters present in Super Mario Kart have gone on to appear in later games in the series, except for Donkey Kong Jr. and Koopa Troopa, who have only appeared intermittently after being replaced by Donkey Kong and Wario respectively in Mario Kart 64.
Tracks The tracks in Super Mario Kart are based on locations in Super Mario World such as Donut Plains. Each of the four cups contains five different tracks for a total of twenty unique tracks, additionally there are four unique Battle Mode courses. The course outlines are marked out by impassable barriers and feature a variety of bends ranging from sharp hairpins to wide curves which players can power slide around. Numerous obstacles themed from the Mario series appear, such as Thwomps in the Bowser's Castle tracks, the Cheep-Cheeps from Super Mario World in Koopa Beach and pipe barriers which are found in the Mario Circuit tracks. Other features include off-road sections which slow down the karts such as the mud bogs in the Choco Island tracks. Each cup track is littered with coins and power-up tiles, as well as turbo tiles which give the karts a boost of speed and jumps which launch the karts into the air.
The tracks have received positive commentary, with GameSpy describing them as wonderfully designed and IGN calling them perfect. When naming its top five Mario Kart tracks of all time in 2008, 1UP.com named Battle Mode Course 4 at number three and Rainbow Road – along with its subsequent versions in the series – at number one. The track themes in Super Mario Kart influenced later games in the series; recurring themes that first appeared in Super Mario Kart include haunted tracks, Bowser's Castle and Rainbow Road. Some of the tracks from Super Mario Kart have reappeared in later games, including the Game Boy Advance title Mario Kart: Super Circuit, which features all twenty tracks as an unlockable extra feature.
Development
Super Mario Kart was produced by Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto and directed by Tadashi Sugiyama and Hideki Konno. It began as a multiplayer prototype of the 1990 SNES game F-Zero. Masato Kimura, who worked on F-Zero, was the lead programmer. The team aimed to produce a racing game capable of displaying two players on the same game screen simultaneously, in contrast to the single-player F-Zero. This led to simpler tracks than those of F-Zero. Computer and Video Games suggest that this initial emphasis on creating a two player experience is the reason for the game's horizontal split-screen during single-player. Battle Mode was developed from the desire to create a one-on-one mode where victory was not determined simply by competing for rank.
One prototype featured a generic kart racer character; the team decided that characters three heads tall would best suit the design of the karts. They did not decide to incorporate Mario characters until a few months into development. The choice was made after the development team observed how one kart looked to another driving past it, decided to see what it would look like with Mario in the kart. Thinking that having Mario in the kart looked better than previous designs, the idea of a Mario racing game was born.