Regardless of if you’re keen for the festive season. The majority of the world is at it’s coldest right now, so you’re more likely to be in doors.
Now you could sit and feel blue about how much money you don’t have this time of year, or the fact there’s less daylight…
or!
Why not invite a friend or 3 round and play Mario Kart. Plan b, for those lacking a Nintendo (I feel for you) just send your Nintendo having friend a message and get some Mario Kart scheduled!
Look it’s Mario Kart. I’d be a patronising pokey if I was to write an article explaining what Mario Kart is and why it’s good. It’s already proven simple maths.
Mario Kart + Friends = Good times.
Their are some advanced Mario Kart math classes such as “Friend + Blue Shell = Asshole”, but I’m not here to teach math.
No matter what a persons skill level is, if their is a TV with Mario Kart on, and 4 controllers are on the floor, and one of them is not in use… someone will gladly fill that spot.
If you’re having more people over to your house than usual, or you want some perfect crowd entertainment to drink along too at a party. It could even work magic on making some of that forced family time more upbeat. The magic of Mario Kart.
If you wish to specifically test your skills (and luck) in the ice and snow within Mario Kart to keep things wintry then here are your options to date across the series:
- Super Nintendo – Super Mario Kart – Vanilla Lake (x2)
- Nintendo 64 – Mario Kart 64 – Frappe Snowland
- Nintendo 64 – Mario Kart 64 – Sherbet Land
- Game Boy Advance – Mario Kart Super Circuit – Snow Land*
- Gamecube – Mario Kart Double Dash – Sherbet Land
- Nintendo DS – Mario Kart DS – DK Snowpass*
- Nintendo Wii – Mario Kart Wii – DK’s Snowboard Cross*
- Nintendo 3DS – Mario Kart 7 – Rosalina’s Ice World*
- Nintendo WiiU – Mario Kart 8 – Mount Wario*
- Nintendo WiiU – Mario Kart 8 – Ice Ice Outpost+
- Nintendo WiiU – Mario Kart 8 – Animal Crossing^
* – indicates the game also has a retro winter track(s) within it
+ – indicates the course is downloadable content
^ – to specifically have Winter in Animal Crossing you must hold down ‘zR’ as you manually select the track
Not included in the above list is Mario Kart Arcade GP’s “Snow Panic” stage which is in both the original and the 2nd iteration of the game. Undoubtedly a fun arcade take on the series if you come across it. Though unfortunately most of times I’ve found the machine in the wild at least 1 of the 2 players is usually damaged somehow. In part due to the popularity of Mario Kart, kids, and a lack of attentive quality control by some public arcade owners.
At the time of writing we’re in the calm before the storm of new information on Nintendo’s upcoming console named “Switch”. Although it is already confirmed that Mario Kart 8 will be getting ported to the Switch in an enhanced form. Not only will this surely include all the paid DLC that was in Mario Kart 8 to come with it for free, but we know their will be new characters and it’s safe to assume a few extra tracks too. I’m very confident Nintendo will have “Mario Kart 8: Switch’d” (title guess) out before Christmas next year because each new console generation gets a truly new Mario Kart entry, and re-treading Mario Kart 8 won’t be that experience.
I’d be willing to bet that in another 3-4 years down the line we’ll have the true 9th entry into the Mario Kart franchise, on Nintendo Switch. So why not take in the pasts offerings till then.
