ChromeKiller's Full Review: Mario-Kart Super Circuit for Game Boy Advance
Back when RPG games went mainstream, back when fighting games were still used in a 2D perspective, there was one title released that changed the future of racing games as we know it. Nintendo's most prominent driving game has returned with an entire fresh set of levels, controls, and overall...fun. I just want to be the first to say welcome back to Mario Kart!
In the early days of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (arguably the best console ever created) there was a racing title with the Nintendo name all over it. For years, Nintendo had starred their featured characters, Mario, Luigi, and the gang, in platform sequels. But it was time to give their rehashed world a new life. With highly enjoyable results, Super Mario Kart -- one of Nintendo's first racing games -- stunned crowds for years to come. It wasn't until years later after the company released their successor in consoles (Nintendo 64) that they decided to make a sequel. And that game was Mario Kart 64. While both were equally addictive, they had shared different gameplay qualities. In the third (and hopefully not final) Kart racer, Nintendo has decided to combine their best racing game into one smash pack for Mario fans everywhere.
The story...huh? There is no story behind Mario Kart: Super Circuit. That is, unless, you are not familiar with the history of Mario's coming to be. Mario and Luigi are two Italian brothers (the Mario Bros.) who by the way are also plumbers. An evil King Koopa usually schemes up a plot from time to time to take Princess Toadstool (Princess of Toadstool Kingdom and Mario and Luigi's dear friend) and lock her up for Mario to come and rescue her. All the racers in the game have something to do with Mario. For instance, Luigi is his brother, making him one of the playable characters. Yoshi is Mario's pet lizard that starred in the Super Nintendo release of Super Mario World. Even Donkey Kong, who hasn't even been related to Mario much other than in the days when he was called, "Jumpman" also makes an appearance.
Since the first Super Mario Kart and the Nintendo 64 versions were combined into one, the new look to the level design and graphics of the game are strange, and yet fit just right. It's an interesting racing world where the Mario video game themes have all been added in to decorate level designs. For instance, in the ghost house level, you'll notice floating ghost characters and creaky floor boards that were found from the original days of Mario. There's fire races set in theme after Bowser's castle. Such faults like falling into the lava can be hazardous to your rank, as other races can easily pass you up.
Certain levels don't cover all of the ground, and therefore, you've got to try not to fall and slip. Falling off of a racetrack also brings out the famous Lakitu (floating guy with a fishing pole) who will fish you out from the dark depths of underneath the racetrack. Those stone blocks that crushed the life out of the Mario Bros. are even in the game and part of the Bowser level, as in most levels, the themes cannot only be fun to play around with, but also sometimes deadly. Just like a stone block would crush Mario in the original Mario games, interactive objects like these crush all of the other racers too. Other interactive Super Mario Bros. characters make racing cameos. The moles from Super Mario World and the Venus fly traps from Super Mario Bros. too appear in the game; most of the game's racing shows off plenty of cameo appearances. All I can say about the levels is that if you've ever been a fan of Mario, the game itself is ALL MARIO...in a kart.
The levels breath life into the game, and the graphics -- fine tuned and reminiscent of the original -- bring the pleasure. Mario Kart: Super Circuit is like controlling a cartoon, only the TV set is a million times smaller. All of the characters are nicely detailed to their original format. The animations are smooth just as well. Playing is half the fun as looking at the game can be, or sometimes even better. Although, I find it hard to believe that I'm playing Mario Kart all over again on a smaller system, the backlit screen again gets in the way of having to look at the screen. Be sure to play this, and all of your Game Boy Advance titles, in pure sunlight (or anything that equals).
Each racer in the game is suited differentially in user preference. Characters like Yoshi, Luigi, or even Toad will race quicker, unlike some of the rest of the cast. That reason is because of Nintendo's creative thinking in how each character should handle. Toad, being a relatively small guy, can speed greatly. Bigger, badder, and meaner characters like Wario and Bowser have a hard time at keeping up. Their body weight is bigger, thus, they won't move as fast. Though, the characters each have a flaw in their usage. Quick characters don't normally round turns as good as slow characters would. Turning corners are essential to the levels, as many tight or twisted turns can at times appear. The slower characters have the flaw of not being able to keep up in a race. These status features cancel each of the character data out, as you'd probably want the quickest guy chosen. But really, is speed the only thing important to a race?
The gameplay mechanics are nicely done, as the list of evil villains and good guys’ range in different handling. Yet, there's still more. Most of the racetracks are made up in a lot of tricky turns. The best option to resolve turning usually has to do with how well a character can use traction to the best of their ability. While slow characters don't need much of traction to make a tight turn, the quick characters most of the time will have to depend on it. Other than that, it's pretty fun moving the little guys around. And, for the most part, the game's fairly easy to control. Even if you've never played a Mario Kart title before, you'll feel as if you don't need to. That's because moving characters around, and using the simple button layout doesn't take much, except for the fact that memorizing which keys do what can help out.
To explain how playing the game works, here's the gist. After starting a race, in one player mode for example, you'll notice you're not alone as seven others will be on the raceway too. As one of the eight selectable Nintendo characters, you'll find things like coins, or most importantly, pickups that increase the advantage of winning significantly along the way. These pickups can vary in either offensive or defensive objects. Red Turtle shells, for instance, are used as homing devices. Whoever is in the way, using the shell will automatically make your racing rival spin out of control. Other objects like stars can increase your invincibility, or mushrooms that increase your speed. Whatever random object is chosen, the effect is always crucial to another player.
The sound found in the game I feel could've been worked out better. Most of it sounds new...and slightly mixed from the other Mario Kart games. Still, the music is what it is for...a child's...I mean Kids to Adults video game. Luckily there's a volume control switch on each Game Boy Advance, that's if, and a BIG IF, you can't stand the cute tunes coming out of your hardware.
Some of the game's extras involve using the Game Boy Advance's multi-link cable (which is sold separately by the way) at game retailers everywhere. With the cable, you will be able to go head to head against three friends when connecting three separate handhelds put together. The previous Mario Karts had a multiplayer option, where in it, you'd be able to enter an arena that pits players against each other to see who's the real racing champion. While this arena option has nothing to do with actually winning a race, it does allow players to find multitudes of pickups throughout, and use them against the other player in order to decrease their three lives to zilch. Racing with the multiplayer link cable can be just as enjoyable. If you're looking for a great racing game to play with friends, this SHOULD be it! Even with the Time Trial mode, the game brings out the fun in, uh…funtastic? Time Trial is set up for single player races allowing you to try and beat the top times of other players.
It's really nice to finally have a Mario Kart game to play again, after all of these years. If you're new to the land of gaming, and have never even heard of Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo, or Mario Kart 64 for the Nintendo 64...forget about them: Get Mario Kart: Super Circuit! This time, Mario Kart is on the go, and so should you be...to get the game of course. Buy it, rent it, whatever...certainly, I find no other racing substance more creative or fun than Nintendo's own Mario Kart!
Side Note: I just want to point out that this review is done on my one-year anniversary here on the site. Thanks again to everyone, who's read my work, and further helped me to become a better writer!
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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