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New Mario Kart and Wii Wheel revealed
New. Mario. Kart.And it's online.At the Nintendo press conference, Reggie hinted at the possibility of massive online races. "More racers means more fun. How many more? Stay tuned." In addition to online races, Nintendo revealed an official steering wheel accessory, not too different from the ones used by Ubisoft at the system launch. The cleverly named Wii Wheel will come packaged with the upcoming Mario Kart, to be released in the beginning of 2008.
Nintendo packing Wii Wheel with Mario Kart for Wii
Let's not bandy about here, we're pretty much God's gift to green shell snipes, and hook us up with a few red shells and perhaps a banana or two and you can pretty much kiss your Flower Cup goodbye. Nintendo just announced some extensive online functionality for its upcoming Wii-based Mario Kart title, including an undisclosed amount of "more" online competitors, which is always a plus. Nintendo is also packing a free Wii Wheel with each copy of the game to help ease the newbs into the Kart action. No word on how much the new wheel will cost on its own, but we'll be seeing both it and Mario Kart in the first quarter of 2008. More pics after the break.
'Invisible Harleys: A Mario Kart Parody' short film
Ever zoned out playing Mario Kart, only to find yourself driving down an interstate some time later, eager to bypass your fellow motorists with the aid of a few well placed turtle shells? Yeah, us neither, but we can totally imagine it and we imagine a similar sentiment contributed to the creation of Invisible Harleys: A Mario Kart Parody by UCSB students Michael Figge and Jess Rigel, part of a short film contest sponsored by Harley Davidson. Keep a close eye peeled for non-canonical weapons like the Giant Magnet™ and Super Hammer™ ... what, Chomps not good enough? [Via Wii Fanboy]
Invisible bikes in Mario Kart parody are really funny
We've seen some Mario Kart parodies in our time, but this one is by far the best. It was created for a Harley-Davidson contest in conjunction with the University of California. The amount of polish on this video causes us to think it took very long to make and therefore deserves to win.Head past the break to watch the video. Just be careful you aren't sipping anything while you watch it.
Rumor: E3 to bring Smash Bros, Mario Galaxy release dates, Mario Kart Wii to be unveiled
According to Jeux-France (who cite rumors that "appear credible"), Nintendo is planning to drop several bombs at the upcoming min-E3 in mid-July. Release dates for Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy will be divulged, and the company will also unveil the next Mario Kart game for Wii. Also on the mystery roster is a vague hardware-related announcement that Jeux-France describes as a "large revelation". Could it be the Nintendo Revolution headset we've been waiting for?!Release dates for Smash Bros. and Mario Galaxy are a no-brainer, and even our grandmother could tell you that Nintendo is working on another Mario Kart game. But with the company's other major franchises already dominating the scene, is it too early to show off another big gun?[Via Nintendo Wii Fanboy]
Rumors: Mario Kart Wii, dates for Smash and Galaxy at E3
French gaming site JeuxFrance is reporting on a few rumors involving the house that N built, mostly revolving around a portly plumber. They're stating that Nintendo is planning on whipping out some big guns at the show, revealing the next installment in the Mario Kart franchise for the Wii, as well as solid release dates for Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Mario Galaxy. As if that weren't enough, they're also reporting that Nintendo will have some big hardware news for us.Maybe they're going to reveal a headset add-on for the Wiimote? As for the other rumors, it's a safe bet that Nintendo will be giving us the goods on release dates for its hottest games this year, already providing us a release date for one of this year's most anticipated games, but the Mario Kart news is anyone's guess. It would make sense for Nintendo to bring a Mario Kart game to the Wii, but is the timing right?
Nintendogs escape cartridge, still cute in reality
Those Nintendogs are adorable creatures. Sometimes they seem almost ... real. Well there's at least one guy in Japan having serious trouble distinguishing life outside the screen from life inside the screen. No dogs were harmed in the making of this video, but one carpet needed a damn good clean. After the credits we go for a little drive Mario Kart style.Check the video after the break.
Critic's choice: The top five DS games
All week, we've been sharing our favorite games with you, as well as snippets of our personalities outside the fanboy sphere. Now you know that some of us weren't really huge handheld fans before the DS, that at least one of us is terribly silly, and most of us seem to dig cats, in some way or another. But forget the trivial details -- how do our favorite games stack up against the critical darlings? We offer this side-by-side comparison to wrap up Fanboy Favorites week, and we hope you've enjoyed this closer look at not only the DS Fanboy staff, but some of the best that the DS has to offer.
DS Fanboy Favorites: Eric's top five
All this week, the DS Fanboy staff is letting you in on a few of their favorite titles. Each day, a different member of the staff will present their personal top five DS games along with a snapshot of their gaming paraphernalia and habits, in an effort to provide our readers with a little more information on the tastes and personalities of our writers. When my afternoons aren't busied by hours of photoshopping cat heads onto pictures of my friends, I pass the time with puzzlers and plumbers on my DS Lite. But those kitten-free days are few and far between, so I end up being able to only fit either the most polished or the most eccentric games into my packed schedule. Wario: Master of Disguise? Sorry, I've got things to do and feline faces to retouch. Lost in Blue 2? I'll have to pass -- I'm already lost in trying to get these whiskers to look perfect. My collection is a mishmash of AAA titles and niche releases, their cases piled atop one another like a Jenga stack of mismatched blocks, threatening to topple over at any moment. Just pulling a game from the middle of the shaky structure is an act preceded by hours of anxiety and self-doubt. Having my wife provide commentary during the ordeal, remarking "Oh god, it's going to crash this time for sure, I just know it. Why'd you even try, Eric?! Game over, man! Game over!" as I tug out my copy of Advance Wars DS doesn't make the challenge any easier. So when I do manage to put aside the pussycat photos and secure a game to play, it better damn well be worth it. Journey forth and read which of those titles have captured a place not only on my top five list, but in my heart.
DS Fanboy Favorites: Alisha's top five
All this week, the DS Fanboy staff is letting you in on a few of their favorite titles. Each day, a different member of the staff will present their personal top five DS games along with a snapshot of their gaming paraphernalia and habits, in an effort to provide our readers with a little more information on the tastes and personalities of our writers.If there's anything that can be said about my life -- and that includes my gaming life -- it's that it's messy. I'm messy. I have all this organizational garbage that's supposed to make it easier to store and find all my stuff, but see, I keep accumulating more stuff, and so I need more organizational items ... it's a vicious cycle, and it's part of why I love cartridges. I know where the box is for Clubhouse Games. It's about three feet away as I type this. I could get it, but why? Clubhouse Games goes in and out of my beloved handheld so often, I usually just leave it here on my desk along with the other games I'm interested in at the moment, and I don't have to worry about it getting all scratched up because it isn't delicate like some pansy disc. This makes me happy. I have to be more careful with CDs and DVDs ... but that doesn't mean there aren't a few stacks of discs around my workspace. Believe me, if it's at all stackable, I'm gonna stack it, and to hell with the consequences.Of course, the problem with the size of DS carts means that sometimes I lose my Clubhouse for a while, and that makes me unhappy to the extreme. Luckily, there are other games that can distract me ....
Video of Mario Kart Arcade GP in action
Remember that weird arcade version of Mario Kart that we posted about just a few days ago? Turns out, one of our readers made a trip to the city of lights, Paris, recently and found one of these arcade units there. Doing as any great reader would, he took video of himself playing it.We've gone and embedded said video past the post break for your viewing convenience.[Thanks, NETCHRIS!]
Mario Kart GP tosses shell at arcade
Personally, we're amazed that this thing has been out in arcades since 2005, because you can bet we've never seen one in the flesh. That doesn't take away any bit of how impressive it is (in our eyes, at least), but we would like to know why Namco and Nintendo can come together for arcades, but not bother to hook us up on our console? If you can have Pac-Man duking it out with Bowser in an arcade, why not in our living rooms? And, for those keeping score, this puppy has spawned a sequel this year. For any of you intrepid readers out there who find said sequel (or even this machine) at your local arcade, take some pictures and/or video and send it in!See also: Mario Kart in real life scarier than you may think
Mario Kart DS slot car set is designed to prevent snaking
"Sunday, SUNDAY, Sunday, come on down to the Mario Kart DS Slot Car Race Track for some wild, no-rules racing action! Bring the whole family for an afternoon of Mario Kart-style toy racing excitement! Watch some of the best drivers in the business, including YOU and YOUR FRIENDS, take on one of the toughest tracks there is! You'll see twists and turns, thrills and spills, only at the Mario Kart DS Slot Car Race Track! Pay for the whole seat, but you'll only use the edge."Wow, we didn't even buy one of these slot car sets and we're already having fun with it. Anyone up for simulating the Mario Kart experience in ... well, not real life, but miniature fake real life?[Via NeoGAF]
The top five "traditional" DS games
var digg_url = 'http://www.digg.com/gaming_news/The_Top_Five_Traditional_DS_Games'; The DS is well-known for its unusual design features, the two-screen format and the touch screen. Many of the DS's most popular games make good use of these features, and there are many outstanding games, like Meteos, that make strong enough use of them that they could fairly be said to depend on these features. There wouldn't be too much to Brain Age without the handwriting input, and it is hard to imagine Elite Beat Agents existing at all without either the unique interface or the simultaneous cutscene/gameplay presentation. But for as much attention as the DS gets for its unique features, many of its best games use them in only the most cursory of ways. Some of the best-reviewed, most popular DS games have only optional touch-screen use, or some function that is nonessential to gameplay. Some games squander their second screen on inventories and maps. Many such games not only could have worked just as well on other systems, they are from long-standing series that worked just fine back in the dark ages when game systems only had a single screen and controls were mapped only to buttons. The games on this list are the highest-ranked games according to Metacritic that fall under the category of "traditional" games. In fact, the top four DS games according to Metacritic are all traditional. Each game on this list is an excellent DS game that is excellent independent of the DS' inherent advantages.
Mario Kart DS hits the meatspace
If you've had your fill of tossing virtual turtle shells at hapless virtual victims while racing around a virtual track, you can finally take your favorite Nintendo mascot for a spin around a real life track, thanks to the Nintendo Mario Kart DS Track Race Set. Unfortunately, we're guessing the novelty factor here is going to last for a good five laps or so before you realize that this thing is just as boring as every other slot racing set ever built.[Via Crave]
Mario Kart in real life scarier than you may think
The idea of a couple of friends getting together to act out Mario Kart in real life is the kind of idea that is quickly followed up with a suggestion of medications along with the names of a couple of good therapists. For the Panda Smash crew, however, it seems there is no sanity anchor in their lives to inform them that while their goal is admirable, they're making us laugh for all the unintended reasons. We won't comment any more on the video, instead pointing you past the post break to comment on it yourself.[via 1P Start]
Today's sketchiest game video: Real Life Mario Kart
Real Life Mario Kart, created by Panda Smash, is our pick for today's video. While this comedy short runs a little long at six minutes, we laughed at this group's Mario Kart race staged with tricycles. Our favorite part was finally recognizing one of the players as Fishin' Lakitu, resetting the racers after the many times they tipped over.See the video after the break.
DS Fanboy presents: Game Night 3/15/07
We've tallied up the votes and our Game Night title has been chosen. We'll be meeting up in the same room as last week, at the same time. All of the details, including the results of the poll determining what game we'll be playing tonight, are after the break.
DS Daily: What's your favorite WiFi game?
According to our Game Night polls, Mario Kart DS is probably the most universally popular DS game -- or maybe it's just the one more people have. But what's your favorite? Which DS game really makes you want to get in there and fight it out online? Do you like fragging in Metroid Prime Hunters, or the versatility of Clubhouse Games? We'd love to hear about it.
Nintendo not planning on addressing Mario Kart 64 ghost data issue
According to Nintendo, they have no plans on addressing the issues all of us face when trying to save ghost data in the recently released Virtual Console title Mario Kart 64. According to a Nintendo spokesperson, by way of Pro-G, "Due to unavoidable technical reasons unfortunately it is not possible to save ghost data." Turns out, gamers are warned of this issue before downloading the title. With the steep price of 1,000 Wii Points, shouldn't consumers expect a little more effort on Nintendo's part? How hard would it be for someone to implement code into the game informing it to save the ghost data to the Wii's memory? We really hope that this doesn't set a trend for future N64 VC releases that used Controller Paks to save data.
