Mario Will Soon Park His Kart Outside Of The Nintendo Switch

Mario Kart Tour is an upcoming mobile app that will be Nintendo’s second official Super Mario mobile game and fifth official mobile app overall sometime between April 2018 and March 2019 [3] [18]. After it was announced towards the end of January 2018, many fellow Mario Kart racers and Nintendo nerds began having their hopes and expectations [3]. Let’s face it. Mobile gaming has become more appealingly progressive, compared to how it was during the days of flip phones and slide phones. Since Nintendo’s fiscal year shall end sometime next year [3] [18], there is plenty of time to hope that kart racing with the iconic Super Mario characters on Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android will turn out to be as thrilling as kart racing with them on the arcade machines that were developed with the help of Bandai Namco Entertainment, the company that was previously known as “Namco Bandai Games” [14] [17].

The Mario Kart Tour logo. Looks pretty promising. [18]

Maybe the control system for the outcome of Mario Kart Tour ought to be quite similar to the control system of the ports of Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing and Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed for iOS and Android [1] [2] [11] [12] [13]. Or could it be similar Angry Birds Go! for the same platforms [10]? The option to tilt the smartphone or tablet in order to steer the selected character’s kart would give the player quite a realistic feeling of steering a kart’s wheel [2], similar to how someone who adored playing Mario Kart Wii would gain a realistic feeling of driving a kart with the Wii Wheel attachment [7] [17] [19].  Alternatively, some players may prefer an icon for steering the kart that can be dragged by a thumb or simply two left and right buttons while the kart is accelerating automatically [1] [2] [10]. Perhaps for a variety of mobile gamers who adore racing games, there might be more than one way of steering the kart in the right direction when Mario Kart Tour eventually parks at the App Store and Google Play Store.

Two optional control systems in Sonic and SEGA All-Stars racing for modern mobile devices. Something that Nintendon't? Not for long. [13]

In addition to a comfortable way of steering the selected character’s kart, a button to drift and a button to hit the brake could be practically placed within the HUD; perhaps at one of the bottom left corners of it [1] [2] [13]. Oh, and don’t forget about an icon that will activate an item from a shattered item box. Darn those blue shells. There might be a possibility that the developers will choose to let the kart accelerate automatically, so that there will be no need for a button to accelerate [10]. As long as the final design of the HUD turns out to be as practical and useful as the ones from the previous Mario Kart instalments [4] [5] [6] [7], the competitive spirit in the player would remain motivated. Hopefully, during or after Nintendo’s fiscal year, the developers at Nintendo would have carefully followed the five elements of user experience in order to make Mario Kart Tour faithful to what made the Mario Kart series memorable, including excellent controls and a very useful HUD [4] [5] [6] [7].

The HUD in Mario Kart Wii. [19]

Throughout the years, one of the ways that Mario Kart progressed was welcoming new competitors onto the tracks. It would be nice to let Birdo and Diddy Kong be unlockable racers again to make up for their absences from Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8 [4] [5]. Since Pauline, Mario’s original love interest made her grand return in Super Mario Odyssey as the mayor of New Donk City, Mario Kart Tour could be her first time as a kart racer [20]. If Metal Mario, Gold Mario and Pink Gold Peach ought to be unlockable for an update after the app’s release, they would be better off as skins for our main man and his blonde beauty in order to save some room in the roster for more of the Super Mario spin-off crew. As usual, the game could begin with a small selection of the loveable classic Mario characters that were licenced to race in karts since Super Mario Kart from 1992 [18].

Honestly, the lovely and talented mayor of New Donk City deserves a chance to be a kart racer. [20] 

Similar to how bird coins can be collected in Angry Birds Go! during a whacky race with those adorable and quirky birds [10], the traditional coins that Mario and Luigi collect on their quests to save Princess Peach could be the in-game currency that the player can collect during a race [4] [5] [6] [15]. In addition to this, a large amount of them can be earned, depending on the position the player finishes in. Well, it would be no surprise if our fellow Mario Kart racers discover a group of microtransaction offers for more in-game currency. Even though there were a list of challenges to do in order to successfully unlock more karts and characters in the 3D main Mario Kart instalments [7] [17], there would need to be some legitimate way that Nintendo can possibly make money from the app’s outcome. In-game currency that can be collected, earned and used to purchase more karts and characters could still be another way of making each experience of Mario Kart on the tracks rewarding.

Red, his allies and some of those devious pigs can gather a few bird coins in Angry Birds Go!, which could be like how coins can be collected in Mario Kart Tour. [10]

There ought to be a few things added to the mobile adaption of Mario Kart that can further increase its individuality. Of course, one shining example would be brand new courses for the Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup and Special Cup. It would be lovely if at least one of the locations of Super Mario Odyssey could be adapted into a whole new course, especially New Donk City [8]. There could also be a new vocal song for the app’s final outcome sung by Pauline’s new voice actress, Kate Higgins since she can sing beautifully [8] [16] [20]. After all, Super Mario Odyssey’s outcome seemed like a new era for Super Mario, along with the success of Super Mario Run for iOS and Android enhancing Nintendo’s mobile app cred [8] [9]. We are yet to discover what the app’s final outcome will proudly present. There is still plenty of time for our fellow Nintendo nerds and Mario Kart racers to hope and predict.

New Donk City would make a wonderful new racing course. The starting/finish line could be right at the entrance of its city hall. [20] 

In conclusion, it would be best if the first Mario Kart instalment for third-party smart devices would only be classified as a spin-off of the Mario Kart franchise. That way our fellow Mario Kart racers will know that developing games mainly and exclusively for the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo 3DS for the rest of the current generation of gaming is still Nintendo’s game. Perhaps there is still room in our hearts for the magnificent deluxe port of Mario Kart 8 that welcomed the Inklings to the tracks [6]. With the ability to technically balance the appeal of the Switch’s legacy with the approval from a new part of their audience, Nintendo could successfully offer an opportunity to delightfully succeed in a Grand Prix with the plumber in red, his allies and his foes outside of their first-party platforms, along with helping the ambitious Switch maintain its popularity.

The Mario Kart Tour logo with kanji. [18]

References:

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      Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Bandai_Namco_Entertainment. Last accessed 4th Mar                  2018.

15. Super Mario Wiki. (2007). Coin. 
      Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Coin#Mario_Kart_series. Last accessed 6th Mar 2018.

16. Super Mario Wiki. (2012). Kate Higgins. Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Kate_Higgins.                  Last accessed 4th Mar 2018.

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      Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Mario_Kart_(series). Last accessed 4th Mar 2018.

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      Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Mario_Kart_Tour. Last accessed 2nd March 2018.
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20. Super Mario Wiki. (2007). Pauline. Available: https://www.mariowiki.com/Pauline. 
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