Mario Kart 8: 6 Reasons It's Game Of The Year So Far

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rating:5

It's now been out for a couple of weeks, but Nintendo's newest addition to the Mario Kart family knows no sign of losing any of its appeal. Having pulled in a cavalcade of perfect and near perfect scores, the game has also seen an uplift in Wii U sales - something that was at times seemed unthinkable for the Japanese gaming giant's much maligned, but still brilliant next gen console - and can easily lay a claim to be the best game, and certainly the most essential, on the console to date. There's a good reason why Mario Kart 8 sold more than a million copies in the first weekend of launch: it is a truly great gaming experience, and one that will endure well beyond the traditionally limited longevity of games. It all boils down to entertainment: while some other games this year will cost more, and will require grander scope in their open worlds and expansive storylines, there's something almost primally appealing about Mario Kart, without anything like the same scope of gaming. It isn't a small indie game at all, and though the size is comparatively limited, the game types and capacity for online play with friends is so broad that it's the kind of game that will endure well into next year. Which is probably a good thing considering how slowly Nintendo appear to be taking their approach to game releases for the Wii U.

7. Luigi's Death Stare

You know you've done well with your game release when there's already a meme dedicated to it within days of the release, and in Luigi's Death Stare Nintendo scored an unlikely, and probably unintentional victory that will ensure that a certain type of gamer will stick with the game for a long time after launch. There have been few experiences as immediately hilarious - or disarmingly chilling - as seeing Mario's unfairly lesser-loved brother surveying a scene of devastation with ice cold satisfaction, but that of course is the least of this incredibly well made game's best bits.