Lucky #7 strikes again; Mario Kart 7 might just be the best game in the series
The basic gameplay and structure is once again unchanged from its predecessors. When starting with grand prix mode you are given the choice between 50cc, 100cc, and 150cc which determines the difficulty level. Choose one of 16 of your favorite Mario characters, choose your tracks and off you go. The standards haven't changed for grand prix, it's just try to win or place very well in each race and get the highest score after all 4 races. Completing each set of tracks on 150cc (hard) will unlock a new character for you to use. The babies, Birdo, Waluigi and many others have unfortunately been booted but newcomers include Metal Mario, Honey Queen, Wiggler and Lakitu. I am personally not a fan of the newer characters but there are still plenty of other great racers to choose from, though the only thing the affect is the weight of your kart.
Other modes are available to you as well such as time trial mode, which as always let's you race against the clock and even staff ghosts to try to get the best time. Next is battle mode, which is set up similarly to the Wii's battle mode where you must hit your opponents with items and get the highest score in one of 6 arenas. Lastly, there's coin runner in which you must collect the most coins before time runs out. These other modes are decent to play against the AI but they're even more fun to play against your friends and there are plenty of ways to customize the rules and settings.
As with previous games, you can also use items on your opponents in hopes of catching up or defending yourself. Items returning include the red/green shells, banana peels, the dreaded blue shell, the lightning, the invincibility star, the squid, the bomb, and bullet bill. There are also 3 new items; the first is the raccoon tail which allows you to whack anyone that gets close. The second is the fire flower which lets you shoot fire balls in front of or behind you and slow down other racers. Lastly, there's "lucky number 7" which gives you 7 items to take out your opponents. These items all have their uses and the new ones are welcome additions that don't make the game feel cheap. The game is mostly balanced but the blue shell is still a bit of an annoyance and will still hit you 50 yards from the finish line, leaving you to watch other racers pass you by.
The track design in Mario Kart 7 is probably one of its stronger qualities. In fact, these are debatabley the best designed tracks in the entire series. Each track feels fresh and unique as you race through the beautiful countryside of Maka Wuhu to driving on the highway of Neo Bowser City to racing through space on the new and improved Rainbow Road. Each track is fun and full of surprises. New to the series are even longer tracks that loop around and last one lap instead of 3, which are a welcome change of pace. That's not all, in addition to driving comes sections where you take to the skies and hand glide or race under water. Hand gliding adds to the fun as you decide whether it's better to land as soon as possible or stay in the air to avoid obstacles, get items or even take short cuts. Under water races are a cool idea too but they don't add as much as they can occasionally slow some races down. Both make the game stand out from the rest though, in the 16 new tracks OR the 16 retro tracks. That's right, these retro tracks from the SNES, N64, GBA, GC, DS and Wii aren't just total rehashes of the originals. They have been slightly altered to make way for these new mechanics and they work great. These old favorites have never been more fun.
What about the karts? Well, instead of pre selected karts or bikes like the last games offered, now you can create your own in a combination of the kart body, wheels and gliders. Each part affects your stats in speed, weight, handling, acceleration and off road. Try many different combinations until you find the combination that best suits you. I'd like to point out that characters also influence the kart's weight, which can also add to your strategy.
Online is fun too, but sometimes it can be frustrating. When you choose online mode, you can play with your friends only in grand prix, single races or battles or you can play with randoms in single races or battle only. When in a server, everyone chooses a track and the game randomly picks out of the selected tracks. The items are just as balanced here but it is also much more difficult due to racers being much more skilled and aggressive this time around and the blue shell is more infuriating than ever. So the best racer will not always win, but the different outcome every time isn't so bad I suppose. Depending how you do, you are rewarded with a little VR which are points to show how well you're doing, coming in last will cost you 3 VR. Although occasionally frustrating, online can be a blast and has proven to be very addictive. For the most part, it runs very well too, but sometimes you may have to be patient for the game to load.
Although the design in the Mario Kart series has not changed over the years, the series continues to improve. Mario Kart 7 may just be the best game in this timeless franchise with 16 brilliantly design tracks and 16 retro courses, exciting gameplay, loads of unockables and plenty of customization at your disposal. Other additions like gliding and under water are also just as welcome and help MK7 stand out from the other games. Whether you're playing online or in grand prix mode, Mario Kart 7 is the top of its class and is a must have for your growing Nintendo 3DS collection. Be warned though, you won't be putting it down for a long time.