E3 2012: Examining Nintendo’s 3 Big Announcements

2. Mario Kart 8

Mario Kart 8 This game was inevitable given the Wii-U doesn€™t have a Mario Kart title yet, but that doesn€™t stop its announcement being a big deal. Regulars Mario, Toad, Peach, Wario, Luigi, Toadette, Waluigi, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Bowser, and Daisy all make an appearance in the trailer, though they€™ll doubtless be joined by a range of other well-known (and some not so well-known) characters. While that€™s not spectacular news, the trailer did showcase a few exciting features new to the series, including the ability to drive upside down on corresponding roads and glide using an attachment on top of your car. Whether every vehicle can do these things or if they€™re specific to certain karts hasn€™t been verified, but keeping in mind unique perks aren€™t available in the previous games it€™s likely the features will be available across the board. Other additions shown by Nintendo include a range of new maps, the most interesting of which being set in Ancient Rome/Greece and an island made of Ice-cream, and new vehicle designs that show this isn€™t just another copy-paste of earlier titles. If you don€™t own a Wii-U and weren€™t inclined to buy one, this game isn€™t likely to make you change your mind, but it€™s a sign Nintendo are finally pulling their finger out and starting to release some quality exclusives rather than continuing to port games that don€™t quite translate.
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Oldfield is a journalist, reviewer, and amateur comic-book writer (meaning he's yet to be published). He's a man who'll criticise anything, even this biog, which he thinks is a bit crap. For notifications on when new articles are up and game related news, follow him on his Twitter account @DunDunDUH