Game Debate #180: Super Mario Kart

[Reed Rothchild | 9,526]

[Webhead123 | 675]

Hooo boy! This is a tough one for me to be objective about. It's no secret to anyone that knows me that since December 1991, the SNES has never left my side. Super Mario Kart, then, is probably one of my most-played games on SNES, making it a strong contender for one of my favorite and most-loved games on my favorite and most-loved console. Thinking of the countless hours of battle mode with my brother and with friends and the countless GP and Time Trials both solo and multiplayer...There were entire sleepovers that revolved around this game.

I can appreciate that, by modern Mario Kart standards, the original can feel simplistic and I hear some people claiming issue with the controls for some reason. I'm not going to pretend that improvements weren't made as the series went along but to say that this diminishes the very first outing...well...the argument just doesn't land with me. I'll tell you a little not-so-secret secret: I was never that impressed by Mario Kart 64. Tried it and found it...meh. I thought then and still think today that SMK is the superior game of the two. Yeah. I said it.

So, even though it isn't as robust a game as Double Dash, 7 or 8 Deluxe, it impresses me that I still want to return to the original and I still enjoy it just as much. Not as many partners to play it with anymore and that's a shame but this game still sings.

I was tempted to (and probably should) give it a perfect "10" but I docked it a point mostly because it won't get played like it used to thanks to the series generally being so consistently excellent over the years.

9/10

Edited November 22, 2023 by Webhead123

[TDIRunner | 2,737]

I also wanted to give it a 10, but later releases of Mario Kart have done it better.  But it's very easy to give it a 9.  I played this so much back when it was new and I have so many good memories.  I think it has aged better than Mario Kart 64 which I sort of have a difficult time playing now.  I'm not nearly as good at Super Mario Kart as I was years ago, but I can still play it well and have fun with it today.  

[TDIRunner | 2,737]

It's also worth mentioning that this game has some of the best track design and music of any Mario Kart game.  All of my favorite courses in MK8D are based on courses from Super Mario Kart.  

[ikk | 560]

I played it for the first time on the SNES mini, so I have no nostalgia for it. While it was fun to experience the start of a great franchise for a round or 2, I probably won't revisit it.
If I want my Mario Kart fix, I'll go to either Double Dash or the most recent entry.

[JamesRobot | 5,800]

One of the best kart racers.  Defined (originated?) the genre and I can instantly pick up an play all subsequent Mario Karts with a solid understanding of controls.

[koifish | 556]

I love this one but I give it an 8 because it's not for everyone. To me it is the best Mario Kart for single player. No other game makes for as much fun during 150cc. You feel like an animal dominating the tracks. Special cup 150cc is a special kind of hell, but the kind that grows on you with continued subjection (like castlevania for gameboy). For multiplayer however, I wouldn't recommend it. It had its day, to be sure, but I can't give you a reason to play vs or battle in this over the other games, even 64, which is far inferior for the actual racing quality. Simply having 4+ players is a huge deal for this game series. I just wouldn't pick SMK for multi. But for solo and clearing the cups, it's the most fun and the only one that doesn't eventually devolve into stuff unlock drudgery. I'm glad it doesn't have clear rankings because I would rage my face off trying to 3 star the 150cc courses (I guess super circuit has them but that game is too cruel to bother with). Incidentally I would pick DS as best Mario kart overall, and 8 Deluxe as best for multiplayer, in case anyone wants to know from where I'm drawing my position.

[mbd39 | 2,020]

The multiplayer aspect is a 10 and the single player experience is an 8 or 9. I gave it a 9 overall.

[GPX | 1,369]

Racing games were never really my thing back then but I can’t deny the multiplayer was what made me appreciate Mario Kart. Genuine innovation with balanced mechanics makes this game as iconic as any, I’d say.

[DarkTone | 984]

7.

[DefaultGen | 5,405]

I grew up on F-Zero which probably shaped my preferences as a faster, twitchier game. SMK rewards drifts, jumps, and little shortcuts a lot more. It's kind of amazing how little they have in common considering they're both SNES mode 7 racers.

On SNES, N64, and GC I always compare the Mario Kart to F-Zero and F-Zero comes out ahead. That's why they had to stop making them, they were outshining their own Mario games

8/10 still

[DefaultGen | 5,405]

1 hour ago, JamesRobot said:

I can instantly pick up an play all subsequent Mario Karts with a solid understanding of controls.

I dunno what kind of non-newtonian physics SMK has, but I feel like the I'm drifting on the moon compared to other Mario Karts, or like I'm getting pulled outward in my drifts. It sure has a learning curve.

[Brickman | 3,984]

Went with an 8. It's a great game and one I used to rank in my top 3 but I think it has dropped a little for me. Mario Kart on the Switch has perfected the Mario Kart formula imo. Mario Kart 7 and Double Dash come in second and third for me I'd say.

The physics are a bit archaic now compared to other Mario Karts, the CPU just uses an item assigned to them and I don't like the drifting compared to other Mario Kart games. The multiplayer was pretty fun at the time but I'd rather play 8 or N64 multiplayer. Good for a trip down memory lane but hasn't aged as well.

[Hammerfestus | 3,844]

Never played this back in the day but playing it years later it’s a’ight.  Everyone else really enjoys it.  It pales in comparison to Mario Kart 64 though.

[twiztor | 851]

liked this enough BITD, but it was surpassed many times over with every later iteration.  have tried to go back and play it a number of times and it just doesn't do anything for me whatsoever.

MK Wii > MK8 > MK64 > Double Dash > (handheld titles) > SMK

F-Zero > SMK, all day every day. 

[Bearcat-Doug | 5,105]

On 11/22/2023 at 4:40 PM, DefaultGen said:

I grew up on F-Zero which probably shaped my preferences as a faster, twitchier game. SMK rewards drifts, jumps, and little shortcuts a lot more. It's kind of amazing how little they have in common considering they're both SNES mode 7 racers.

On SNES, N64, and GC I always compare the Mario Kart to F-Zero and F-Zero comes out ahead. That's why they had to stop making them, they were outshining their own Mario games

8/10 still

Same here. I like F-Zero better, but it's still a solid 8/10.

[Tanooki | 4,933]

I'd put this up there with the N64 game in being debatably the best in the franchise.  One thing I look back on this one for and enjoy about it is the fact that it was a good split between solid driving skill and item use.  One really didn't trump the other which is how it should have stayed.  The stages are fun, the selection of drivers has enough variety to be solid too.  There are items, but not too many to get bogged down, and they all have a good equal fair use of some twist to either save or harm a driver.  Back then you really had to be pretty solid at both, as we got more to the present it turned into Mario Party on wheels, way too many overpowered and utterly abusive items that punished being good at driving changing the dynamic towards the worst.

[koifish | 556]

4 hours ago, twiztor said:

liked this enough BITD, but it was surpassed many times over with every later iteration.  have tried to go back and play it a number of times and it just doesn't do anything for me whatsoever.

MK Wii > MK8 > MK64 > Double Dash > (handheld titles) > SMK

F-Zero > SMK, all day every day. 

I know Wii has a following, but I am curious, why is it number one for you? I remember it as the most frustrating game in the series by far, and as the one with an endless supply of tryhard funky flame runners. My one friend got good at it and could just shred anyone he played against, but to me the game always just felt like a gimmicky mess of loss of control (on various jump stuff) and of the AI spamming blue shells.

[twiztor | 851]

19 minutes ago, koifish said:

I know Wii has a following, but I am curious, why is it number one for you? I remember it as the most frustrating game in the series by far, and as the one with an endless supply of tryhard funky flame runners. My one friend got good at it and could just shred anyone he played against, but to me the game always just felt like a gimmicky mess of loss of control (on various jump stuff) and of the AI spamming blue shells.

it's really quite simple: i had the most fun with it. 

i played the FUCK out of the n64 version. tons of multiplayer with friends when i was in high school. dominated all the single player. had an awesome time with it. I rank it at #3 because of that nostalgia, but also because the graphics make it very hard to go back to.

fast forward to the Wii version. the graphics are better. there are a ton more courses and racers. i played this almost exclusively multiplayer with friends. no matter who i was hanging out with, EVERYONE played this and everyone had fun. None of us were super hardcore about it, so each person would pick their favorite character (rather than the consensus best) and we would just have fun. Yes, this is when the items arguable got out of control, and this was (IMO) when the rubber banding was at its utmost ridiculous, but it really did serve to balance the best of us versus the newbies. Ultimately, it all just comes down to having the most fun. 

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

Best Mario kart of all time

[docile tapeworm | 4,198]

F zero is the better game technically but the fun factor of super mario kart makes it the better game overall imo

[fox | 1,667]

Good but later entries did it better

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,013]

This is a rare event where each entry in the series gets better but also stands out from each other in different ways. I love this game and will stand by it being among the top entries in the series. This really started off the party mechanic in a previously series genre.
 

[T-Pac | 7,543]

23 hours ago, twiztor said:

it's really quite simple: i had the most fun with it. 

fast forward to the Wii version. the graphics are better. there are a ton more courses and racers. i played this almost exclusively multiplayer with friends. no matter who i was hanging out with, EVERYONE played this and everyone had fun. None of us were super hardcore about it, so each person would pick their favorite character (rather than the consensus best) and we would just have fun. Yes, this is when the items arguable got out of control, and this was (IMO) when the rubber banding was at its utmost ridiculous, but it really did serve to balance the best of us versus the newbies. Ultimately, it all just comes down to having the most fun. 

And don't forget the best part about Mario Kart Wii - the WIIIIIII WHEEEEEEEEL!

[T-Pac]

[Rhuno | 107]

I respect it for starting a great franchise, but the original doesn't hold up that well. Mario Kart 64 is my favorite in the series; I feel it just solidified things going forward.