Mario Kart has been around for over 20 years now and in that time it's been almost entirely consistent in its quality - but its eighth game raises the bar even further. It's not just a good Mario Kart. It may very well be the best in the series' history. The transition to the HD era has been handled very smoothly by Nintendo and MK8 really shows off the benefits. The beauty is in the details; the visible stones in the road, Mario's little moustache fluttering in the wind - it's titles like this that really show what the console is capable of. So what makes MK8 so great apart from the eye candy? The track selection is phenomenal, with a perfect mix of old and new tracks. The old tracks have never looked or felt better to drive round either, while new ones like Sunshine Airport and Mount Wario are so creative they're some of the best in the entire series. Better still, there's still more to come in DLC. The first pack released in the closing months of 2014 and added a whole new cup - with tracks themed around The Legend Of Zelda, Excitebike and the mighty F-Zero. The Legend of Zelda's Link is also a playable character - another first for the series. With all the new bells and whistles, MK8 still follows system traditions. Four player split-screen is still an option, but online is as well and Nintendo's really stepped up its game here. Finding a race to join is easy as pie and lag is rarely an issue. Players also have the option of saving, editing and uploading replays to YouTube - a very nice touch that resulted in one of the biggest gaming memes of 2014 - the Luigi death stare.
