Mario Kart 8 Title Theme Animatic (2014, Nintendo EAD)
5Music composed by:
Atsuko Asahi
Shiho Fujii
Ryo Nagamatsu
Yasuaki Iwata
Mario Kart 8 (Japanese: マリオカート8 Hepburn: Mario Kāto Eito) is a kart racing game and the eighth major installment in the Mario Kart series, developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii U video game console. First announced at E3 2013, the game was released worldwide in May 2014.
Like other games in the series, in Mario Kart 8, players control characters from the Mario franchise and participate in kart racing on various race tracks, using items to hinder opponents or gain advantages. While incorporating game mechanics originally featured in earlier Mario Kart games, Mario Kart 8 introduces anti-gravity sections that allow players to drive on walls or ceilings. The game features multiple single-player and multiplayer game modes, and incorporates Miiverse functionality and online multiplayer supported via Nintendo Network.
Mario Kart 8 was a critical and commercial success upon its release, currently holding aggregate critical scores of 88.52% and 88% on GameRankings and Metacritic, respectively. It was the fastest selling Wii U game as of June 30, 2014, with 1.2 million copies sold within the first four days of its release, and 2.82 million copies during its first month. It is the best-selling Wii U game with 7.70 million copies sold. The game continued to receive post-release patches and downloadable content, including additional characters, vehicles and tracks, and support for Nintendo's Amiibo line of figurines.
The game continues the traditional gameplay of the Mario Kart series, in which characters from the Mario universe race against each other in go-karts, attempting to hinder their opponents or improve their racing performance using various tools found in item boxes. Returning features from previous installments include motorbikes, and 12-player racing from Mario Kart Wii, as well as hang gliders, underwater racing and vehicle customization from Mario Kart 7.
Mario Kart 8's new features include anti-gravity racing, in which certain parts of a track can allow racers to drive on walls and ceilings. During these sections, players can bump into other racers or special bumpers to trigger a Spin Boost, which gives them an extra speed boost. New characters include the Koopalings, Baby Rosalina, and Pink Gold Peach. New items include the Boomerang Flower, which can be thrown to attack players, the Piranha Plant, which attacks nearby racers and obstacles, the Crazy Eight, which gives the user eight items, and the Super Horn, which can be used both to attack nearby opponents and defend against items, including the previously nearly unavoidable Spiny Shell. There are a total of 48 tracks to race on, consisting of 25 original tracks, and 23 which appeared in previous Mario Kart games. The base title features 32 tracks, with an additional 16 released later as downloadable content.