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Joystiq Streams: Mario Kart 8 Joystiq vs Engadget! [UPDATE: Relive the stream!]
It's all come down to this! The Hells Shells have hugged their corners, held their banana peels behind them for entire laps, and surged through the finish line, never giving a damn who waited in the wings with a blue shell. We've trained up and we're ready to bring the noise to any rivals. You think the Joystiq crew is afraid? The only thing we fear is winning so many times that the children of our enemies will adopt us as their new parents. An all-star team of Joystiq racers offered up a challenge to the good people at Engadget and now, dear friends, it is time to race. Six racers enter, and it will be a miracle if even one leaves Rainbow Road alive. The Mario Kart 8 Joystiq versus Engadget Hells Shells Showdown starts at 4PM EST on Twitch.tv/Joystiq and right here on Joystiq.com. Come on down early for a heaping spoonful of pre-show smack talks as Mike Suszek (@MikeSuszek), Richard Mitchell (@TheRichardM), Danny Cowan (@db_cowan) bring the ruckus to Ben Gilbert (@RealBenGilbert) and Tim Seppala (@TimSeppala). Joystiq Streams broadcasts every Tuesday and Thursday at 4PM EST on the Joystiq Twitch channel and here on Joystiq.com. [Images: Nintendo]
Mario Kart 8 takes a turn for McDonalds Happy Meals
If you're willing to eat McDonalds in exchange for gaming-themed desk accessories, a Mario Kart 8 pack will soon reach its Happy Meal finish line. The final turn makes for a pretty long drift through, so we'll need to wait for How To Train Your Dragon 2's toy set to finish up before we can start taping MK8 figurines in gravity-defying places at our workplaces. The miniature roster will consist of Yoshi, Peach, DK, Toad, Mario, Bowser and the mild-mannered Luigi, but you can also channel Mario while weaving through commuter traffic by wearing a visor reminiscent of his iconic cap. Unfortunately, it probably won't help you drive on the walls of buildings on your way to work, but it'll almost certainly establish your status as the coolest adult stuck in a gridlock. [Image: McDonalds]
Mario Kart 8 quadrupled Wii U weekly sales, says Fils-Aime
Looks like Mario Kart 8 was just what the doctor mechanic ordered for Nintendo's struggling Wii U; Nintendo of America president and COO Reggie Fils-Aime told Polygon that, compared to the week prior, Wii U sales quadrupled the week after the game's release. Fils-Aime also noted that 18 percent of Wii U owners purchased a copy of the game in its first weekend, but this number likely includes sales of the game from the bundle that was offered upon release. Still, the numbers are nothing to sneeze at, as the game topped 1 million on release weekend, making it the fastest-selling Wii U game to date. Now we wait to see which game for Nintendo's console, if any, will knock Mario Kart 8 out of first place with a well-timed blue shell. [Image: Nintendo]
Nintendo's Amiibo figurines explained, smashing retail this holiday season
Nintendo issued a trailer explaining the Amiibo figures it revealed during its E3 2014 livestream today. In the first Amiibo-compatible game, Super Smash Bros., players set the figures on their Wii U to bring their respective characters into the game to do battle with both other figures and human opponents. With each battle, the figures level up their attack, speed and defense powers. Players will also be able to customize their figure's special powers over time. The first series of roughly ten NFC figures will debut with the Wii U version of Super Smash Bros. this holiday season. Among the games Nintendo confirmed Amiibo compatibility with are Mario Kart 8, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Mario Party 10 and Yoshi's Wooly World, with more to come. The company is also planning a NFC reader/writer device for 3DS, scheduled to arrive in 2015. [Image: Nintendo]
Watch Dogs connects with UK audience, Murdered: Soul Suspect charts
Watch Dogs broke UK sales records for a new IP last week and, despite an 80 percent drop in sales, kept its spot the top dog status on the UK charts again. Mario Kart 8 grabbed the silver cup as Murdered: Soul Suspect had a surprisingly strong debut, selling only 400 copies less than the kart racer. Minecraft Playstation 3 Edition and Minecraft Xbox 360 Edition will be with us forever.
Joystiq Streams: Blood spilled in Mario Kart 8 Joystiq Grand Prix [UPDATE: Relive the stream!]
It all comes down to this: the inaugural Mario Kart 8 Joystiq Grand Prix. A murder of video game journalists enter, only one leaves the track a bonafide champion. Will it be Richard Mitchell, who's really good at video games? What about Earnest Cavalli's tight blue spark turns or Mike Suszek's hypnotic smack talk? Perhaps Danny Cowan's dedication to retro gaming has left his skills honed to a frightening razor edge! Only by tuning in to the Joystiq Twitch channel at 4PM EST will you be able to witness this gorgeous automotive bloodletting, where no one on the crew will be spared a blue shell's wrath. Yes, Joystiq Streams is back for more Mario Kart 8. Right here on Joystiq.com and at Twitch.tv/Joystiq, the crew will face of in MK8 's multiplayer for the first time. Hang out with us, cheer, jeer, and question our driving skills in the chat as we play at 4PM EST. Joystiq Streams broadcasts every Tuesday and Thursday at 4PM EST at Twitch.tv/Joystiq. [Images: Nintendo]
Mario Kart 8 races past 1.2 million sales in debut weekend
Despite first appearing last Friday, Mario Kart 8 has already managed to attract 1.2 million sales, a figure that earns the mascot kart racer the title of "fastest selling Wii U game to date." Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime greets this news with all the excitement of an over-caffeinated puppy. "The early response to Mario Kart 8 demonstrates that the best days for Wii U are still ahead," said Fils-Aime. "This year's E3 is just days away, and it will be all about the future games for Nintendo platforms. This milestone is a great place to start!" If Fils-Aime's enthusiasm doesn't immediately convince you to give the game a shot, take a look at our Mario Kart 8 review. Thomas awarded the racer a nearly perfect, 4.5 of 5 stars, and though he feels the game doesn't do much to introduce new ideas to the franchise, the combination of series-first high-definition graphics and classic Mario Kart gameplay make for yet another first-party Nintendo classic. [Image: Nintendo]
UK charts: Watch Dogs hacks up records, Mario Kart 8 boosts Wii U
Watch out Glenn Beck, because Watch Dogs is turning Brits into hackers too. The Ubisoft game broke the UK charts record for most copies sold by a new intellectual property at launch, toppling previous holder L.A Noire by a chunky 58 percent. No surprises it's Ubi's biggest ever week 1 seller in the country, beating Assassin's Creed 3 by 17 percent. That means Mario Kart 8 has to settle for the silver trophy, with sales-compiler Chart-Track saying it was "no contest" for top spot. The racer was still the proverbial super mushroom to the country's Wii U sales, which rose by a whopping 666 percent from the week before. With no hard numbers to hand, it's hard to assess if that says more about the new game's impact than the sales from the previous week. Either way, it's the highest we've seen a Wii U exclusive in the UK charts since Pikmin 3, even if it couldn't blue shell its way to the top.
Nintendo launches Mario Kart 8 replay hub website
Nintendo has unleashed the official website for Mario Kart TV, a web-based replay hub for Mario Kart 8, which launched today. Players can watch and share races uploaded from the Mario Kart 8's TV mode at MarioKart.tv. The site allows players to filter content based on character, courses and race types. Find an especially devious red shell-laden match? Replays can be shared via Facebook and Twitter. Connecting to the site with a console's Nintendo Network account allows players to view their own uploaded content. While no mobile app was released for the replay viewer, GameSpot reports the site's videos are optimized for smartphones and tablets. In the Joystiq review, weekend editor Thomas Schulenberg said Mario Kart 8 "is a solid extra lap on a series with a great foundation." As part of a promotion for the game's release, Nintendo is offering players a free digital copy from a selection of Wii U titles for a limited time. [Image: Nintendo]
Joystiq Streams: Woo-hoo it's a me, crushing Mario Kart 8 [UPDATE: It's over!]
There's nothing else quite like it. Flashing blue sparks as you perfectly hug a corner, watching the item wheel come up with that surprise shell, nailing that hard turn into a shortcut you've never quite been able to manage; Mario Kart's pleasures are legion and exclusive. In fact, the only thing that equals those delights is Mario Kart 8's capacity to inspire fury, madness, and utter rage. Oh, right, it's at the end of a perfect Grand Prix run when I get hit by a four red shells in a row and one perfectly placed banana peel. OF COURSE IT IS! NATURALLY! A POX ON ALL YOUR HOUSES, MARIO KART, YOU UNFORGIVING MONSTER! I hate you as much as I love you, Mario Kart 8, hence why every failure is met by an immediate restart. That is also why we'll be streaming your luscious races today on Joystiq Streams. Starting at 4PM EST, we'll be streaming a solid chunk of 150cc Grand Prix brutality on Twitch.tv/Joystiq and right here on Joystiq.com. It's one more chance to get a look at the Wii U's big spring exclusive before it hits shelves on Friday. It will also be an opportunity to hang with the Joystiq crew and mock Anthony John Agnello's driving skills. Tune into Joystiq Streams every Tuesday and Thursday at 4PM EST on the Joystiq Twitch channel and right here on Joystiq.com. Plus: keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter pages for myriad contests and giveaways tied to Streams. Who doesn't love free games? [Images: Nintendo]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Mario Kart 8, Ittle Dew
Let's face it, if you're a Wii U owner you're well aware Mario Kart 8 is out tomorrow. It's the series' first HD entry, when you register it online you get a code for a free game, and you know this. But, maybe for some foul reason you're less Mario Kart 8 and more Mario Kart Hate. Luckily for you, you fiend, there are other games out on Nintendo systems this week. First off there's Ittle Dew, a familiarly heroic adventure that's making a far too appropriate jump to Wii U. The influx of GBA games for Wii U continues with Klonoa: Empire of Dreams, and retro fans can also grab Mega Man Xtreme 2 on 3DS. Sales-wise, a 33-percent cut pushes 3DS games Pushmo and Crashmo down to $4.69 and $6 respectively. That offer ends on June 13, a week before Pushmo World drops on Wii U.
Real-world Mario is kind of a creep...
You know how some things you expect to be sacred, but then it turns out that even Nintendo is prepared to bulldoze your childhood in exchange for some cash? Welcome to 2014, where you can drive a Mercedes-Benz in Mario Kart 8 and witness the horrifying nightmare that is real-world Mario in the advert below.
Mario Kart 8 bringing Mercedes DLC to Japan, shocking imagery to all
No, it isn't the end of the world and frogs are not falling from the skies. That really is a real-life car in Mario Kart 8. As part of a surreal collaboration between Nintendo and Mercedes Benz, Japanese players are getting the Mercedes GLA as a DLC kart this summer. The DLC is reportedly free, and there's also word of a GLA tournament in the fall. The news is only for Japan so far and there's no confirmation we can expect the DLC in the West. A Nintendo UK spokesperson told Joystiq, "The announcement this time was made by Mercedes-Benz Japan regarding their collaboration in Japan with Nintendo Co. Limited." However: "As for the information relating to the distribution of the GLA kart for Mario Kart 8 outside Japan, we will be able to announce in the near future." So let's wait and see. That kart is gonna take some getting used to, but the commercial Mercedes is using Mario in to promote the GLA may be even weirder. Check it out below the break.
Mario rides the hood of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth
Mario can drive in pretty much whatever direction he wants in Mario Kart 8, but today he'll be practicing left turns on the hood of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth's No. 20 car. Kenseth will be racing in the annual, 200-lap History 300 at the Charlotte Motor Speedway, a track with a disappointing lack of gravity-shifting sections. Really though, if we could at least throw some item boxes down, we'd have a pretty decent replica of Baby Park. If you're actually heading down to the Charlotte Motor Speedway instead of just tuning in from home, Nintendo will be there with MK8 kiosks for fans to test drive. Mario and Luigi will be around too, in case you'd like photographic evidence that the Bros. are real, just like Santa and everything else you've ever loved. Both the game and the Bros. will be present in the Fan Zone today and tomorrow. Best of luck to Kenseth today, but we think the competition's just lucky that Josh Wise isn't using his No. 98 car. Can you imagine coming up to his bumper and getting that unflinching Doge staredown? [Image: Nintendo]
Joystiq Weekly: Xbox One's Kinect, Mario Kart 8 review, Godzilla's past and more
Welcome to Joystiq Weekly, a "too long; didn't read" of each week's biggest stories, reviews and original content. Each category's top story is introduced with a reactionary gif, because moving pictures aren't just for The Daily Prophet. If machinery works the way The Brave Little Toaster suggests, you gotta feel for the Kinect - the solid experiences it supplements are often drowned in complaints about its underwhelming games, as well as its general inaccuracies as a listening, motion-tracking controller. We imagine Microsoft reassured the device about its playground reputation by including it with every Xbox One out there, but then ... well, this week happened. Kinect might be destined to just stay at home now, waiting for a band of appliance-shaped adventures to accept his flaws so it can tag along with for their straight-to-Blu Ray sequel. Hey, on the upside, at least that terrifying air conditioner died off before Kinect was ever able to meet him. Can you imagine being left alone in a house with that thing as a kid? Talk about new legitimate fears. Anyway, now that we're done painting a bleak picture of Kinect's secret social life, there's a lot more to this week than technological popularity contests. It's financial season, with Ubisoft, Take-Two and the NPD Group throwing numbers everywhere, we've got reviews for Mario Kart 8 and Super Time Force, and there's also a dip into Godzilla's past of ruining virtual metropolises. It's all stacked neat and orderly for you after the break!
Metareview: Mario Kart 8
Nintendo turned on the nitros with the new Wii U bundle for Mario Kart 8, not forgetting how every copy of the racer bundles in a code for a free game. Good thing, then, MK8 itself is a 4.5 stars winner according to Joystiq's Thomas Schulenberg. From his review: "Despite an unfortunate change to its battle mode, MK8 is a solid extra lap on a series with a great foundation. The gravity-shifting sections spliced into existing and new tracks feel like a natural extension of the series rather than a gameplay-changing revelation, but it's a strong complement to an already enjoyable experience. The social features are surprisingly solid and may even outlive the total course selection, but it helps that the new tracks feel as worthy of a revisit as the series' standouts." Of course, we're not the only kart lined up on the reviews grid. Head past the break for a quick ride through what others had to say on Mario Kart 8. [Image: Nintendo]
Mario Kart 8 review: Hover conversion
The Mario Kart series' frantic, anything-can-happen style of racing has always been an interesting alternative to complex, serious driving simulators. Its accessible aesthetics and mechanics make first-time players feel welcome, but what's under the hood can fuel rivalries with pinpoint drifting and mastery of the rock, paper, scissors essence of countering items. It isn't exactly chess, but Mario Kart caters to all skill levels, encouraging competence while still throwing item-shaped bones to racers near the back of the pack. Mario Kart 8 lifts that winning formula from the blurred, blocky home of Mario Kart Wii, providing a drastic boost in visual quality in the series' first lap in HD. From rippling, Cheep Cheep-infested waters to the marks left on the pavement from sharp turns, Mario's brand of racing looks the best it ever has. Beyond the welcome boost in visuals, the experience fits comfortably in line with expectations. Mario Kart 8 isn't a radical gutting of the ride series fans have grown to love, but its tuneup to the established experience is largely welcome.
Mario Kart 8 commercials make "flippin' fun" a reality
There's something very 1990s - albeit spruced-up - about the new real-life commercials for Mario Kart 8. I'd say it works, too. 90s game ads were big, bold, ridiculous and above all fun, and hopefully that's what the Nintendo racer proves to be when it hits Wii U on May 30. Also, look at that spiny little nightmare shattering into tiny little pieces, thanks to the super horn. How good is that? While you're basking in the glory of blue shell death, head past the break for a few more ads including a couple of Mario Kart classics from down the years. [Image: Nintendo]
Mario Kart 8 test drive days at GameStop this weekend
Want to test drive Mario Kart 8? Better yet, wanna test drive a Wii U? GameStop will have playable demos of the game at 2,700 retail locations in the States between 12-4PM on May 17 and 18 (this weekend). Those who show up at the dealership for the test drive and decide to pre-order the game will receive a double-sided poster. Specific locations for the event can be found on the GameStop site. The game will race into retail and the Nintendo eShop on May 30.
Joystiq Discussion: How do you like your Nintendo?
Nintendo isn't in peak condition. The 3DS recovered from its debut slump back in 2011, but the Wii U hasn't found a sizeable audience. As the House of Mario announced on Wednesday, it's sold just over 6 million Wii Us since the console hit in November 2012, significantly less than the PlayStation 4 managed to sell in just five months. Even with Super Smash Bros Wii U and Mario Kart 8 on the way, Nintendo only expects to sell 3.6 million Wii Us by the end of fiscal year 2015. Maybe that's not such a bad thing. Market defining sales of the Nintendo DS and Wii as well as the popularity of mascots like Mario may have skewed the world's expectations of Nintendo. Not just in terms of the scale its business, but as a creative force. Machines remembered as mighty hosts for genius games like the Nintendo 64 and Gamecube sold roughly 33 million and 22 million consoles apiece over their entire lifetimes, just a fraction of the 101 million-selling Wii. Both had scant few third party exclusives, but they did have an arsenal of spectacular Nintendo-made games, games far weirder and arguably more lovable than the bland exclusives like Wii Party and Wii Fit that fueled Wii's ascendance. Working on a smaller scale and as an underdog, Nintendo gave us Animal Crossing, Wind Waker, Super Smash Bros, Doshin the Giant, and many more. Maybe, just maybe, Nintendo is at its best when it's not in peak condition, when it's smaller. Little Mac rather than Mike Tyson, if you will. The question, then: How do you like your Nintendo? Do you want the market giants of the Wii and DS era, raking in cash like never before and pumping out massive family hits like Wii Sports Resort? Or do you want the scrappy weirdos that came up with WarioWare the same year they reported their first ever fiscal loss? Take the poll, talk in the comments. How do you prefer your Nintendo? [Images: Nintendo]
