Mario Kart coming to Japanese arcades
Namco will bring new version of Nintendo's racer to the Triforce arcade system this fall; will feature Pac-Man.
TOKYO--After a two-decade absence, Mario is returning to his arcade stomping grounds--and he's bringing Pac-Man with him. At the Amusement Operators' Union (AOU) show, taking place February 18 and 19 in Japan, Nintendo revealed that an arcade version of Mario Kart, called Mario Kart: Arcade GP, is slated for release this fall in Japan.
Visitors to Namco's booth could play a demo of the game, which showed Pac-Man racing alongside Mario. Namco is developing Mario Kart: Arcade GP for the Triforce arcade system, which was developed by Namco, Sega, and Nintendo in 2002 and is based on the GameCube's architecture.
Crowds gathered to see what Mario Kart: Arcade GP looked like and to listen to a video message from Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto. "The Mario Kart series has been enjoyed by a much wider age range than we had originally anticipated," Miyamoto said in the address. "It's a racing game, but it plays a lot like a party game... I was worried about how Mario Kart: Arcade GP would turn out [since it's based on a home console game], but it's very well balanced for the arcades."
Miyamoto addressed some of the ways in which Mario Kart was adapted for arcade gameplay. "Players take their time [and play over and over] when they're enjoying Mario Kart at home, but it's different for arcade games, and it's not ideal for anyone to be seriously lagging behind. The Mario Kart series features an item system so that players can catch up by using them when they're trailing behind, but with the new rubber-band system that Namco implemented [in Mario Kart Arcade GP], the races become a really close-pitched match," he said.
The Nintendo pioneer added that he is honored to have Namco's Pac-Man as a guest in the game. "Having the two companies' characters appear together is really something that makes us take a look back at the history of the video game business. It's the first time since in a long while that Mario will appear in an arcade game. I'm happy that it's happening together with Namco [characters] on the Triforce."
Content you might like…
-
MarioKart Arcade GP Gameplay Movie 5
Take a look at this promotional trailer for Mario Kart Arcade GP.
- Feb 18, 2005
Users who looked at this article also looked at these content items.
Hot Stories
Newsmakers
-
World of Warcraft target of latest suit from PSN plaintiff
San Jose man adds Activision Blizzard to growing list of courtroom opponents, takes issue with MMOG fees, alleges ill effects on mental health, seeks $1 million. Full Story
- Posted Nov 24, 2009 4:58 pm PT
- 774 Comments
-
Top US Nintendo PR exec resigns
VP of corporate affairs Denis Kaigler leaves after less than two years at Nintendo of America; no replacement yet named. Full Story
- Posted Nov 23, 2009 4:26 pm PT
- 114 Comments
Featured Stories
-
Assassin's Creed II slays 1.6 million in one week
Ubisoft says internal sales reports shows critically lauded sequel outselling original by 32 percent. Full Story
- Posted Nov 24, 2009 9:22 am PT
- 309 Comments
-
Microsoft patents in-game guide system
Researcher's 2008 patent for "User-Powered Always Available Contextual Game Help" shows Microsoft is considering an in-game guide similar to that of New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Full Story
- Posted Nov 24, 2009 5:13 pm PT
- 253 Comments
-
2 million Xbox Live users Facebooked, a-Twitter
Microsoft announces around 10% of its subscribers log onto social networks during first week of 360 integration; 1 million check out Last.fm, 1.7 million peruse Zune video store. Full Story
- Posted Nov 24, 2009 11:27 am PT
- 141 Comments
-
Datel suing Microsoft over memory-unit lockout
British maker of high-capacity, low-price storage units takes legal action against software giant, accusing it of antitrust violation. Full Story
- Posted Nov 23, 2009 5:28 pm PT
- 517 Comments
-
Modern Warfare 2 classification appealed in Australia
South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson says game allows players to be "virtual terrorists;" Classification Board says no appeal has been received to date. Full Story
- Posted Nov 23, 2009 9:05 pm PT
- 266 Comments
Submit News
Related Game
Related Games
Recent News
-
Blizzard game design chief Rob Pardo and lead designer Jeff Kaplan discuss acclaimed fantasy franchise's long history, from Orcs and Humans to the World...
0 Comments
Sign in / Sign up