Mario Kart 8 is the best game on Wii U, but it's not perfect. We've already taken a look at the basic gameplay (which is amazing), the tracks (which are great), the online multiplayer (the best Nintendo has ever had), Battle Mode (awful) and a few other things, so now let's wrap up the loose ends and talk about a few of the smaller problems of the game. I've had the game for a week, and these niggling annoyances are only getting worse, small though they are.
Here goes: Mario Kart 8 has a few interface problems, which is truly surprising from a game of such importance to Nintendo. These are some basic issues that should have been caught during QA, and make me wonder whether Nintendo rushed it out the door a little bit. Let's take a look at each of them in turn.
Mario Kart 8 Interface Problems: No Map
If you're playing local multiplayer on Mario Kart 8, you'll quickly notice something: there's no minimap. In single player and with just a few players in local multiplayer, the GamePad shows a map of the track, but with three or four players you lose even that, and regardless it's only visible to the player with the GamePad. There's no way to tell where on the track you are, or how the track is laid out, especially if you don't have the GamePad. This is more problematic because of Mario Kart's second UI problem.
Mario Kart 8 Interface Problems: No Player List
Hand-in-hand with the lack of a map, Mario Kart 8's lack of an on-screen player list is a serious problem. Again, this doesn't apply to single player, in which case this information is shown on the GamePad. But in multiplayer, there's no way for all players to see some pretty basic information. Past Karts let you see where other players were in the race, i.e., how far ahead of you they were. The ability to look behind you mitigates this for opponents who are right on your tail, but other than that, there's no way to estimate a given player's lead. Nor can you see what items other players or computers have.
These are serious drawbacks, and they make Mario Kart 8 racing feel like it takes place in an information vacuum. Racing is fantastic, as previously discussed. But not knowing where your opponents are or what items they have unless they're immediately visible leaves you out in the cold. Again, this only applies to local multiplayer. And, while you can peek at your opponent's corners of the screen, that still doesn't help with tracking the computers.
Mario Kart 8 Interface Problems: No Times In Time Trials
Time Trials is all about beating timed records. And yet Time Trials in Mario Kart 8 don't even show your best times. The best you can see is your best ghost time. Past games in the series listed the five or so best times you had set for each track, with the racer you used. That's long gone. Now all you can see is the ghost, the Nintendo ghost, and any ghosts you have downloaded. A simple chart of times is all I ask for. Come on, Nintendo. It's called Time Trials. At least let us see our times.
Mario Kart 8 Interface Problems: Wii Remote Defaults To Tilt
This one's a little more basic. In Mario Kart 8, if you play with a Wii Remote without a Nunchuk or Classic Controller attached, the game will default you to tilt mode controls. This requires you to quickly pause the game at its outset and switch to conventional controls. The ideal way to play the game is with the GamePad or with a Wii U Pro or Classic Controller, clearly, but that is not always an option, especially if you are playing with four. And defaulting to a particular control method-one that I would certainly argue is harder and generally less desirable-is quite irksome. Especially if you forget and immediately crash into a wall.
The problem would easily be alleviated if players could set individual preferences for control styles, but alas, they can't. Nintendo, could you just patch this real quick by adding a more robust options menu? Please?
On the plus side, lest I complain about the interface all day long, Mario Kart 8 does have one fun interface feature: it adds an icon next to your player if you are racing using tilt controls, you lunatic, you. It's a nice treat for those who dare to play the game at its hardest.
Luckily, these interface problems are at least theoretically patchable, but I'm afraid they won't get the attention they deserve. And Nintendo's future support of the game is very much unclear; this is a game that really cries out for DLC (at the least, it will have a Mercedes). Downloadable content-from battle arenas to new tracks or characters to UI upgrades-could fix just about every problem with the game.
But even if this is it, the Mario Kart 8 that we have right now is a truly fantastic game. It's easily the best local multiplayer game on any console in years. Its online multiplayer is fantastic. It has great tracks, great items, and great gameplay. It isn't perfect, but man, it's reason enough to buy a Wii U.
Mario Kart 8 (Wii U): 9/10
