Community: Finding the Best Mario Kart

The Semifinals are Upon Us

Community: Finding the Best Mario Kart | Round 5 26815210

In our ongoing quest to find the greatest and most beloved Mario Kart game, we've wrapped up the first portion of our bracket, with four titles having advanced on. Mario Kart 64 took a victory lap along with Double Dash!! and Mario Kart Wii. In the fourth round, the most landlside decision yet, Mario Kart 8 crushed Mario Kart 7, in an 87% vote for the HD version, and advanced on to the semifinals.

The next two rounds will be crucial to determining a winner, and will face Mario Kart 64 off against Mario Kart Double Dash!! in Round 5, with the Wii and Wii U games battling it out next round. If one thing has been made clear by voters, its that the console versions are more of a crowd pleaser than the handhelds- a fact supported by sales for each game. In fact, only console versions have won in voting, with their only loss coming from a console versus console vote. Mario Kart 8 even won, with the Wii U's low sales comepting with the 3DS' higher numbers, further driving the point that the console versions are more appreciated in the long run.

Community: Finding the Best Mario Kart | Round 5 Mario_10

The Nintendo 64's version of Mario's kart racing craziness was a true showcase of the system's power, allowing for noticeable upgrades to the series which weren't possible before. Most noticeably, the game allowed players to race around in 3D graphics, with moving obstacles and item boxes being included to spice up the tracks. The game also introduced the series staple of having 4 cups with 4 courses in each- which was later doubled as an abundance of older courses came into play, but not for the N64 version.

Community: Finding the Best Mario Kart | Round 5 Mkdd0110

Taking those polyogonal graphics and building on them, Mario Kart Double Dash!! on the Gamecube also sought to spice up the series in a new and interesting way, by adding two characters onto one Kart. Across 20 courses, a minor change from the N64 version and the GBA version inbetween releases, players could actually work together in order to win races, with essentially one person driving and one controlling items.

While both of these games are classics in all of our hearts, which one is your go to version of Mario Kart? Be sure to give your vote in the poll located at the top of this article- the winner here is crucial as it advances on to the finals of our adventure. The poll will be up for one week, so be sure to check back for the result then!