• Go-kart action with Super Mario characters

• Play as one of many different characters

• Race against friends in Battle Mode

• Slow down your opponents with banana peels and more

• For 1 or 2 players

From the Manufacturer The first Go-Kart Racing game to come out for the SNES. Featuring all of the Super Mario bunch like Mario, Luigi, King Koopa, Toadstool, and the almost forgotten Donkey Kong Jr. Collect many power ups like mushrooms to speed you up; throw Koopa shells or banana peels at your opponent's to slow them down, plus many more items. The Battle mode is an excellent two player game, use the split screen view to watch both players battle it out. Super Mario Kart is fun and exciting addition to family of Mario games.

In Super Mario Kart, you can choose from many of the famous Nintendo mascots. They are: Mario, Luigi, Princess, Bowser, Donkey Kong Jr., Toad, Yoshi, and Koopa. Each of the racers are equipped with a go-cart, and they all have their own sets of strengths and weaknesses. For example, Toad has fast starts, but is weak and will get bumped around a lot. Bowser is big, so he has slow starts, but doesn't get bumped around that easily. And Mario doesn't have any major ups or downs, he's average in all aspects.

The trend that Super Mario Kart began in racing games is being able to use unlikely weapons such as turtle shells, bolts of lightning, banana peels, and more, against the other racers on the tracks. Each of these weapons have different effects. When a racer runs over a banana peel, or when a turtle shell hits them, they will spin out and come to a complete stop for a few seconds. Lightning causes all the players to shrink, which slows them down and makes them more vulnerable to being run over and flattened flatter than a pancake. Stars give the racer temporary invincibility, mushrooms allow for a short burst of speed, ghosts allow you to steal somebody else's weapon, and feathers will make you jump so high that Michael Jordan would even be jealous.

There are at least 20 tracks that are available to race on in Super Mario Kart. The tracks all have great variety. There are beach tracks, chilling ice tracks, normal dirt tracks, a road made of rainbow, haunted ghost tracks, and many more.

There are a few modes that are available in Super Mario Kart. First is the Mario Kart GP mode. This is the mode that you can race in a one-player game or a two-player game, in which you go up against several computer-controlled players. Once you complete a few laps and finish the race, the standings will come up. If you come in a good enough place overall, you have the chance of winning a bronze, silver, or gold trophy, and possibly opening up new tracks. That brings me to my next point.

In GP (Grand Prix) mode, there is a 50cc, 100cc, and a 150cc mode. 50cc is the easiest, with 100cc and 150cc getting progressively harder since the computers will get much faster. While racing in the GP mode, you can use the various weapons and powerups I described earlier, and you just need to come in first place if you can.

Next is the Time Trial option. In Time Trial, it's just you against the clock. When you complete a race, your overall time will be saved on a list of the best times if you were fast enough.

In the VS. mode, you and a friend can race against each other on any of the tracks in a two-player game. This is a good way to bring up a lot of trash talking.

Finally and best of all, is the Battle Mode. In Battle, you and somebody else (it's two-player, you can't go up against the computer in Battle Mode), go to one of four specially designed tracks and duke it out against each other using the turtle shells, bananas, stars, and more. Both you and your opponent have three balloons circling your go-cart. Every time you get hit, you will lose a balloon. The first player to lose all three of their balloons, is the loser.

Everything about Super Mario Kart is simply classic. The graphics are colorful and well-rendered. This was the first game to use the Mode 7 graphics chip, and it was definitely a plus. All the characters are well designed, and the tracks themselves look detailed for a 16-bit game. The sounds sound just like a Mario game should, which is different, but great nonetheless. The music is very catchy and classic. As for control, it's a cinch to make your racer/battler do anything that you need them to do, without any frustration included.

Super Mario Kart is simply one of the best video games ever made! It's one of those games that NEVER gets old no matter how much you play it and it's so fun that fun isn't a good enough word for it. Whether you like racing games or not, you will love Super Mario Kart! I'm not a huge fan of racing games and it's one of my 10, if not 5, favorite video games of all time!!

If you have a Super Nintendo and don't have Super Mario Kart yet, get this game now!! Your SNES collection isn't complete without it!

10 of 10 found the following review helpful:


A Classic Racing Game for a Classic System  Apr 28, 2002 By ffootballguru27
Ever since Super Mario Kart came out it has been a favorite SNES game of mine. Super Mario Kart is the best racing game ever made for the Super Nintendo.

There are 3 different modes you can play in this game: Mario GP (Grand Prix), Time Trial, and Battle Mode. In Mario GP you can choose form eight different characters form Nintendo games: Mario, Luigi, Princess, Yoshi, Toad, Koopa, Donkey Kong Jr. and Bowser. Then you can choose to race in the Mushroom Cup, the easiest, Flower Cup, or Star Cup, the hardest in 50cc, 100cc, or 150cc mode. 50cc mode is the easiest to race in, but in 100cc and 150cc the computer gets a lot faster and more challenging. After you win a Cup you will earn a trophy. If you beat every Cup you will unlock a secret cup which is very difficult. In GP you can play one or two players.

In Time Trial mode you race in any course from the Mushroom, Flower, Star or Special Cup and try to set records for the fastest lap and/or race.

In battle mode you and a friend choose a character to battle against each other. You drive around a course trying to pop each other's 3 balloons. You pop their balloons by shooting green or red shells at them or throwing banana peels at them. This mode is very fun especially if you get tired of GP mode.

If you are looking for a great classic racing game for the Super Nintendo, Super Mario Kart is the game to get.

11 of 12 found the following review helpful:


One Incredibly Fun Rat Race  Nov 25, 2003 By Mark Baker
Racing games have been a staple of the video game world for years. This game combines just the right mix of silliness with racing to be fun for everyone.

You can choose to be one of 8 Nintendo characters, from Mario and Luigi to the Princess, Donkey Kong Jr., or Yoshi. The object is the same as any other racing game, be the first to complete the race, in this case five laps. Along the way, you can pick up objects to help you and hinder others like turtle shells, banana peels, or the invincibility star. Keep winning, and you move up.

There are three sets of tracks and two speeds for each, so there is plenty of variety to keep you entertained for a while. Plus you can race the computer or one other human opponent. The head to head races are the most fun because your friend will offer some surprises that a computer won't. Finally, you can always battle it out and try to be the first person to knock your opponent off the battle field.

The controls are easy to get used to. I may not be as good at it as my friends, but I've spent many happy hours driving around these tracks.

4 of 4 found the following review helpful:


Race,Race,Race!  Apr 30, 2002
Super Mario Kart is a highly enjoyable game.

Choose from Mario,Luigi,Peach,Toad,Bowser,Yoshi,Donkey Kong Jr and my favourite Koopa.Each driver has his or her own unique driving abillitys.

There are a few tracks to choose from but before you do that you must choose one player or two player.If you select one player you can choose from G.P or Time Trial.Two player lets you select either G.P ,Match Race or Battle Mode.G.P lets you race the other drivers and Match Race or Time Trial is just you and or the other player.Battle Mode lets you try to burst the other players three balloons in either one of these courses:field,beach,ice or cement.

The courses vary from Donut Plains to Mario Circut Bowser Castle to Choco Island and Vanilla Lake to Koopa Beach.Oh yes who could forget spooky Ghost Valley?There are also three cups Mushroom,Flower and Star.

Should you manage to complete those three circuts?Then in 100cc a Special Cup will be open.Can you reach it?To find out just Race,Race Race!

4 of 4 found the following review helpful:


The best racing game on the Super Nintendo!  Oct 27, 2001
This is a brilliant game. I have had this game for 7 years and I'm still not bored with it. I think its even better than Mario Kart 64 because this has more challenge and excitment. Nice music and funny 2 player make this game so good, I couldn't think of a better racing game.

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