Does Super Mario Kart Hold Up?
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- čas přidán 3. 03. 2023
- The Mario Kart series is one known by literal millions, but not many people talk about the Mario Kart game that started it all, before Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, before Mario Kart Wii, and even before Mario Kart: Double Dash, we're going all the way back to the original on the SNES, Super Mario Kart. In this video I explore every aspect of the game and try to answer the question of if, after over 30 years, does Super Mario Kart still hold up?
big credit to @AntoG for the thumbnail, and thanks to my friend owen for helping me record the 2 player footage!
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#nintendo #mario #mariokart - Hry
The reason the cpu players had unique items is actually pretty interesting. The SNES didn’t have enough power to randomly select and keep track of item choices for each of the computer players so the developers chose to have each computer controlled player have one set item they used. It’s also the same reason the computer controlled players all take fixed paths through all the courses.
I've heard that excuse, but honestly they'd have to be down the very limit of ram to not have enough for 7 more hex values or 7 more 4 digits of binary. It's not impossible that's actually the case but it's pushing on improbable believably.
@@TheJadeFist I think you are minimizing the amount of scripted code it would actually take to have every single CPU randomly get an item
@@THEEJONESY I’m in no way an expert but I’d agree the limitation here might have more to do with running concurrent random number generators to select the items than being able to store those item choices.
Apparently they change the odds for which item you get based on what position you are, what lap it is, etc, to make the game a closer match up. There's a big table of values online if you are curious. As far as I know, CPU drivers originally got items but when they had to process the distribution based on the variables, it became too much for the snes.
Back then it was far more common for consoles to barely run the games, cutting this mechanic or that feature to get the game to run smoothly, but they struggled all the time.
Even if Super Mario Kart DIDN’T hold up after all these years, the legacy it left would more than make up for it. Can’t wait to hear about Double Dash wahoo. :]
Double Dash!! easily holds up today. It's just great. Imagine if they did a remake with better graphics and maybe some slight changes to the controls
@@pixel3042 Double Dash looks incredible upscaled to 4K and using a widescreen hack on Dolphin Emulator.
@@Bubba__Sawyer It does look really nice, but MK8 still looks a lot better, if they could keep the same style as in Double Dash but just make it look a bit more refined it would be a 10/10 for visuals
SMK and Mario Circuit 2 are the best.
Fkkd at the ramp
@@nebwachamp
Look out, the sloppy peasants in here are busily gibbering their cack-handed takes.
You'll be outvoted be the new class of ignorant.
I mean, as a general rule of thumb a great franchise is the one where the worst entry is the first one, and if it's not then you know there's an issue with either the game or the franchise. This talks so well about Mario Kart that kinda explains its monopoly on the racing genre.
Pikmin has entered the chat (a series where, at least imo, the first game holds up while the others are great as well)
I don't disagree with your comment in general, but saying Mario Kart has a "monopoly" on the racing genre is wildly inaccurate. It does have a near-monopoly on the "arcade racer" genre, but there are plenty of more realistic driving games that are extremely popular.
I think the reason the boo item isn't in Grand Prix is because of the "unobtainable items" from CPUs.
It's was incredible. Hours and hours of perfecting the tracks with a friend. Got more use out of this game more than any other
THANK YOU OMG!
Lets be fair, a lot of youtubers just demonize SNES Mario Kart ignoring the time it was released. God, it was 1992!!!
I had so much fun with this game in my Childhood and seeing almost everyone beeing alfuw with this game is heartbreaking.
Of course, the franchise evolved, the controls is not too good for today standards and have it's flaws, but still an amazing game and had so much value in video game history.
I loved your vídeo, you give it respect, and I admire you for that.
It's the dweeby waffle of a weaksauce, dilettante critic. It'd almost be preferable to hear doofus disses, than this damning with faint praise, that doesn't begin to get it said.
Gaming needs a better calibre of critique. At least in this genre.
Great video, but I want to point something out.
Yeah, Super Nintendo cartridges can get to 6MB in size. But those types of cartridges were not available in the first years of the console's lifespan and we're also expensive.
Super Mario Kart is an early SNES game and, similarly to Super Mario World, space limit was a problem. Late NES games, like Super Mario Bros 3, could easily nab 300kb of memory. Early SNES games only had about 100~200kb more of space to use, while having to look better and being bigger
That’s what a lot of people don’t seem to understand.
Super Mario Kart was pretty unique for its time.
It's unique for every time.
The biggest problem in this game for me are these rectangular corners, that push you back and absolutelly ruins your momentum all the time you go out of the road and hit them. Since this may be very frequent, it looks like the game is always pushing you back and this is very annoying.
I played it the other day on switch and Bowsers castle 2 was absolutely infuriating for the 90° corners. The section about 3/4 into the lap requires 3 of them in short succession. I dunno how I did it as a kid without getting angry.
learn how to drift 🤨
I used to play this game as a kid a lot and I used to run into that problem until I started to understand the mechanics of drifting better through trial and error. If you are drifting while at full speed and on the moment you hit the edge or a corner you hop and bounce back into a drift, which will allow you to maintain your momentum and you don't loose all your speed, so you are able to recover much faster. Give it a try as it would change the way you approach playing the game :)
@@yikes6969 You likely was drifting which would allow you to overcome those tight corners on Bowser castle 2 more easily when you was a kid. I had to re learn how to do them on the original game in recent years as they behave differently to the newer games on the franchise.
Get good
Back when I first got this game, I developed this theory that the player could unlock the items used only by the CPUs (Bowser's fireball, Yoshi's egg, Toad and Toadstool's poison mushroom) after unlocking 150 CC Special Cup. It took me a week or so to get gold in all the 150 CC cups, and I was ecstatic when I finally completed the 150 CC Special Cup. Unfortunately, after the credits rolled, the CPU items were still inaccessible. I was bummed, to say the least. I did, however, find out later that you can have your character drive, permanently, under the effects of the poison mushroom. There were a couple of ways to do it. One involved pressing a combination of button before selecting your character on the character select screen, and the other involved simply unplugging the SNES controller from the player one side and inserting it into the player two side. It was a shocked discovery! I then proceeded to get run over by the CPU racers... a lot. Haha.
I remember running into that by mistake once and scratching our heads on how we managed to do it hahaha.
Those button combos usually were like a phsyical debug console for the devs
I had a similar problem with super mario world, I spent maybe a year searching for the final exits, I couldn't accept that it wasn't 100.....
Mariomikestar:Out of all the entries in this series is there's one I rarely hear people talking about
Me: Have you played 7
After trudging through a sea of folks parroting the same negative opinions on this game, it's refreshing to see someone actually give this game a fair shot, no less deride enjoyment out of it! SMK is truly a great game to play with deceptively fast-paced action, an engagingly high skill-ceiling and super rewarding to master. Yes, it takes time to get used to due to how drastically different it is, but its combination of uniqueness, challenge, and simply being so damn fun to play (seriously, once you master the drifting and start blazing through courses, you get a rush like no other!) go a long way in separating itself from the pack and make it a title worth investing in, even today!
God I love Super Mario Kart. And I enjoyed your video. Thank you for uploading this!
also vanilla lake sucks lol
SMK the only mario kart that seperates the men from the boys...
mario kart advance also on gba since it blends smk n mk64.
drifting in these game is pure skill and crucial. sad they nintendo never attempted to make SMK2 tho. weird.
I am *so* glad that I'm not the only one who really enjoys this game!
While this one can still be fun with a friend, and I think the flat tracks have a certain charm to them that's lost in 3D, I personally find it pretty difficult to go back to, especially with Super Circuit as a much better take on the same idea... (Super Circuit is underrated AF)
I love Super Circuit. Always felt like the true successor to the original and improved on every aspect on what made the original great!.
Nice video! Glad I came across it, as last night, my friends and I were having a difficult time deciding whether this or Super Circuit was better (or less worse).
Super Mario kart controls aren’t limited. They’re exactly what you’ve got in a real go kart , you can turn left or you can turn right and if you’re screaming on the gas the whole time ur gonna spin out
I love your enthusiasm and postive tone 😊
It's great to see this review series on the Mario Kart saga, I loved the ones of the New Super Mario Bros series and I loved this one. Amazing job man ❤
Super Mario Kart has got to be my favourite of the series! mostly due to Nostalgia, My brother and I have played it for years and we still play it from time to time, in my opinion the absence of overpowered items and especially Bullet Bill and Blue Shell, makes it such a skill-based game.
I don't know if you played 150cc on this but it is way harder than on other releases especially if your rival is Mario/Luigi or Yoshi (for the accuracy of his throws)
Anyway great video man! you've earned yourself a sub :)
Is it really your favorite outside of that nostalgia. If you like it good. But the best one? I don’t think so. All the tracks outside of rainbow road have 2, 3, or even 4 variants and compared to a verity that the other games have I don’t see how anyone chooses this one as the best.
150cc kicked your ass. As the CPU worked as a single unit to screw the player over, even to if you manage to sink the main CPU leader. They would speed up massively and get back into the lead in double quick time. Sometimes I think the T2 movie theme was actually written for Mario Kart SNES 150cc...
At the time it was the most fun ever. Watching it back these days after all the other games that have come out is kind of surprising to see. I had such fond memories of the game! Good video watching your content inspires me to get better at mine!
Some people say DS isn’t good, but I have to say one thing: mission mode. Why isn’t that a staple?
*Albert Boris would like to know your location*
I hope I’m not too late but, I think the reason the ghost was exclusive is because there could be a chance you get one of the unattainable items? I hope you see this! Love the vids 🙂
7:42 Those sizes did not exist at the time of development. Check out The Gaming Historian’s video about this game.
I love your channel, man.
Love the videos
For me, the racing game of the SNES is F-Zero. (Stunt Race lmao) Maintaining speed and managing health is more engaging to me than hoping for an item to win you the game.
Idk how people say “this game doesn’t hold up” I think it’s the best one if you want a high skill floor. Like you can’t be a scrub and beat special cup 100 cc nonetheless 150cc.
It’s because the tracks are all completely flat
I question the age of anyone who says the OG Mario Kart is the worst or that it doesn't hold up. OG MK is still Great
Super Mario Kart is still the best pure DRIVING experience in Mario Kart history. It feels TIGHT and responsive. Everything else feels super loose and, well, arcadey.
Everything else is close to garbage especially the last version like 8.Let them talk.
Found the players among the clowns.
Mario Kart is like Highlander. Really, there's only one.
Donkey Kong Jr was included because it was the 10 year anniversary of his arcade game
Is this a new entry for "stuff on the internet making me feel old"? I think if you asked people who played it in the 90s, you might hear a lot of people saying Super Mario Kart is the best one and none of the subsequent ones ever clicked for them. Now get off my lawn!
Personally, I'm actually meaning to get back into the series and look into the entries I missed, from times that I wasn't paying attention.
The original holds up if you played it on release, otherwise it doesn't captivate new players much
agreed 100% - I was about 7 when this came out and played it all the time
Because they're mostly coddled by crappy, pandering game design
this was literally one of the first kart racers... not sure how you came to that conclusion :) @@pathogeneration5138
When Super Mario Kart came out most other kids from my neighborhood and school were transitioning from NES to SNES and Sega Genesis. Yes there were some cool arcade racing games at the time, but for home consoles it was F-Zero and then Mario Kart that kind of impressed most kids at the time as there wasn't anything like those 2 games on home consoles. I got to play it first because my neighbor got it for Christmas and we all on our neighborhood wanted to borrow the game for the weekend. So my sister ended up getting it for her birthday and other neighbors got it too as we were filling awkward asking to borrow the game every other weekend :D . The game was appealing for a lot of people at the time. I also feel this first entry was a true Kart racing game and also felt that to win you needed to improve on your racing skills as a player rather than relaying on the items which was seen as a layer of fun that would allow the game to stay more competitive when playing against more experienced players. It's multiplayer aspect made it very popular at the time for parties and other gatherings. This game was so memorable because it was so unique for it's time. The soundtracks for this game also were so memorable too. This and Mario Bros 3 are the games I played the most as a kid. I would never get bore of them. Pure joy this game is!
I’d love another Mode 7 style Mario Kart game.
“From humble beginnings”
SMK is basically the only online emulator available on my iPad which can run, and given SMW is my favourite mainline mario game, I really liked it when I first played
I love the stories behind these old games. Sure, they were making money, but they were also trying to make something as fun as possible with limited hardware, redefining entertainment, and changing the lives of so many people with their work.
Keep in mind for Vanilla Lake, crt screens were WAY darker than modern LCD screen
Great game for it’s time, but Mario kart is one of those franchises that just works best in 3d.
DK Jr got in bc his white shirt made him stand out more against the brown colors of the Choco Island stages than DK would have.
DK Jr. was chosen because was the 10th anniversary of his game.
The true drift king is back!
Hey, at least it controls a little better then super circuit
Hey Super Circuit is better
The drifting in Super Circuit sucks. Crash Team Racing on GBA has much better drifting.
@@Bubba__Sawyer we don't talk about sony garbage that fans only like because of Nostalgia, Super Circuit is still fun
I'd say it holds up, like it's still fun. But it's definitely dated and was outclassed by all of its sequels.
The greatest MK PERIOD.
The original Mario Kart was the first one I played, and honestly if you loved it when it came out, odds are you're going to think it's the BEST Mario Kart game. I STILL love Mario Kart 1, and still haven't played a Mario Kart since that I enjoyed. The sprite graphics are superior, the lack of stupid comeback items like blue shells or bullet bills, and the simple, minimalistic track design put it miles ahead of all the other entries in my book.
Great vid! Do u think that you can do mk8d
The Courses could have been Made more Fun. Examples of Bad tracks is Vanilla Lake 1, Koopa Beach 1, and Mario Circuit 3.
It runs better on an actual SNES
The only reason I play this game is to play a Mario kart with no blue shell
I’m getting tired of the ‘it didn’t age well’ trope.
If it was good then, then it’s good now!
I remember when this game came out, I was 8 years old and my friends and I played this for hours. Was a favorite.
you know, super mariokart is pretty charming and it has great ideas! But the reason why I don't like it much is because of the actual race being only half the screen. It's hard on the eyes for me, and I wish they just did the minimap thing like they did later on in super circuit. Because of that, I could've really liked this game, but I ended up not enjoying it that much.
And that's really dissappointing, cause this game has so much to like about it
Well this game is the worse of the bunch but yeah the half screen is bs. Now DS and 3ds did that perfectly in 7 showing what characters have a item
As someone who's poured in a ton of time to most of the entrees in the series (excluding Super Circuit, which I haven't gotten around to yet), Super Mario Kart definitely holds up. Personally, I find it charming, and enjoy it more than some of its successors (most notably Wii, and 64). Mario Kart 64 is, without a doubt, my least favorite in the series-
DK Jr. was chosen because was the 10th anniversary of his game.
Same reason R.O.B. was added to MKDS. It was his 20th anniversary.
"imagine if it was like this in mario kart 8" [it's like that in mario kart 8]
I played this for the first time when it arrived on NSO and from a dev perspective I'm deeply impressed by how many techniques they had to use to make this game possible in the first place, seriously its nuts. But imma be honest here in regards to visuals, controls and obstacles I think this game is an absolute stinker (definitely use the CRT shader, otherwise the game looks so messy). Outside of its legacy I really didnt enjoy it. I happily play it over MK64, tho that isnt saying much...
Donkey Kong and junior are two of Nintendo's oldest ip's. They were introduced long before the release of this game. Hell, Donkey Kong is what made Nintendo in the early 80's.
11:25 I mean double dash has a similar system with the character specific items
Hey are you going to do the luigi's mansion series?
I fucking LOVE THIS GAME like adults loved Corey Haim behind the scenes on Lucas
Honestly I’d say the weakest mario kart games wouldn’t really be smk. Tour, arcade gp vr & home circuit seem like weaker games. Tour is tour, enough said. Arcade gp vr from what I heard is a very basic experience & home circuit is extreamly difficult to get a great experience out of if your in a small room/ cramped room.
Mario Kart DS on top!
I can’t believe your sub count for the amount of views you have. You should have wayyyyy more subs!! 😭
The Boo wasn't in Grand Prix because of how the CPU items worked.
i love youre videos
I played the hell out of this game more than any on the SNES. Probably Street Fighter 2 second.
Early gang. Love your channel
You would think that playing on this would be difficult and annoying.
While showing the best-most comfortable video game controller ever created.
I think the boo item wasn't in grand prix was because of the cpu only items
I hope they bring back the super leaf from mario kart 7 in battle mode! That would be fun!
It always creeped me out that Yoshi's model in this game consistently has his tongue sticking out, it looks like he is in pain.
Can you make a mario kart and Mario party retrospective? Please 😅
The boo ear probably not in the GP mode so that the unobtainable items would stay that way.
Let me power solide to the win 😅
Best party game to this day. Despite playing other video games with my friends, this is our go to game, when we get bored with the others.
We always need at least one snes track in new Mario kart games to show some respect
you need more subs
I played this game to death as a kid and haven't gotten into any newer Mario Kart gsmes since 8 (which for me captures the original essence unlike the others). As much as i loved it, the GP mode was basically 7vs1 or 6vs2 if you have a second. Especially on 150cc you were fighting the entire field who united agsinst you. Rubber band sticking to your bumper if you were ahead or all 7 leaving you for dust if you were behind. The cheating CPU is still something i haven't forgiven Nintendo for however. I was on 150cc Special Cup Rainbow Road. I had to win it l, last corner i was in second place with a Green shelll behind Yoshi. I land a perfect shot which would have won me the race. Except Yoshi bounced off invisible barriers and actually sped up like he had used a Mushroom...
IMO Super Mario Kart is a great game!
I still think that snes mk still is a fun game to play! and it was my first game being born in 1992
I actually really like Super Mario Kart, I find it very fun and enjoyable. It’s definitely the worst in the series, but that’s only because each new installment improves on its predecessors.
And yes, Tour is way better than this game, you don’t need to pay for anything to have fun in the game, you just need to be patient.
Also I recommend switching the settings in Tour to manual drift and steer/drift button display, it controls much better that way.
SNES music slaps
It would be a lot better to me if everything was unlocked for multiplayer at the start. Grinding through the grand prix with cheating ai is a pain.
Super mario kart is the only mario kart game i can play right now cuz it’s the only free mario kart game 😢
The classic
i really like super mario kart but the boo item in grand prix would bring this game very down.
i play this one all times 1992
yes
nah SNES mario kart was just too primitive to enjoy anymore, mk 64 was the first good one
Hard disagree
100% agree with you
It's just a game for nostalgics. Compared to MK64 et MK8, it doesn't hold up anymore...
Everyone forgot about super circuit, honestly my least favorite one
Speak for yourself
@@EWOODJ "my least favorite one" That _is_ speaking for himself, dummy.
I am the Princess! ❤❤
Mario Kart Wii is still the BEST Mario Kart!
I think it has the best base selection or tracks but I hate the handling
Meh
I'll say this Fzero controls better
obviously the life system disappeared to make the game easier. no one wants to be frustrated anymore.
whats up with captain falcon and getting replaced by some other nintendo franchise? first it happened with mario kart then with smash bros. no wonder he never gets anymore games
also I know smash didn't start out with captain falcon but they used the place holder characters for his model so it counts
Super mario kart may not be the best msrio Kary game and it may have not aged well super mario kart is still a fun and enjoyable game I would only play super mario kart only if I'm bored or I got nothing else to do I rather play super mario kart instead being bored to death
Personally I think the oldest Mario Kart that still holds up pretty well is Mario Kart 64
People say Super Mario Kart is better than Mario Kart Tour which would be false if MKT didn’t greed for money all the time
even then it wouldnt be false lol
You don’t even know how to play Tour kid
the original mario kart has the best battle mode even by todays standards if you ask me.
The slide, red shell, ,scale of casted items, and hop physics have yet to be replicated and it makes a super dynamic play space
seriously, the trick shots you you could do with red shells were insane. They didn't just follow a path, they went straight to the target with long arching curves and actually didn't care what the target was after a few seconds.
Blocking with green shells was way more viable, red shells took effort, and you could even force red shells to target their own thrower. It was WAY more zany
The first Mario Kart is the WORST Mario Kart!
But man does it have some iconic music!
Meh on that first sentence