Saturday 7 April 2012

The Great Playthrough: Game 5 - Mario Kart: Super Circuit


In keeping with the racing theme, today I've been playing Mario Kart: Super Circuit! 

Mario Kart: Super Circuit
Originally released on: Gameboy Advance
Played on: Nintendo 3DS (via the Ambassador Program)
Release date: 2001

Mario Kart and I have a strange relationship. I have at various times owned just about every iteration of the long running game (except for Mario Kart 7 - the most recent of them), and I enjoy them all. But I seem to be out of step with most fans - because I prefer the later games, and I enjoy racing on a motorcycle in Mario Kart Wii (which is apparently not the popular response to the motorbikes). But due to never owning a Game Boy Advance, I'd never played this version of the game until just a few months ago.

And you know what? As much as 16-bit versions of games tended to be my favourite, that's not the case here. I'm sorry, super circuit, but you try to match the wonder of the original Super Mario Kart with the variation of later iterations. But sadly, it doesn't quite manage it. It doesn't help that consistently holding down the A button on the 3DS wasn't the most comfortable position for me, causing my hand to tense up in a few minutes and making the playing a little uncomfortable. 

But it wasn't just that. It's tough to put my finger on what I found unimpressive with Super Circuit. It has a good number of tracks (and you can unlock the original Super Mario Kart tracks as well), it has coins you can pick up on tracks, which is a feature I always enjoyed in the original Super Mario Kart, and it plays well. It just all feels a bit... similar to everything that came before (and that has come since). This, coupled with the fact that I have always preferred Mario Kart on a big screen TV, rather than a handheld, meant that by the end of my playing time, I was playing because I had to, not because I wanted to.

And maybe that's the problem. Because I missed this game at the time, and I've played later versions - both on consoles and handhelds, this game just feels like a stop-gap. Maybe I've just come to it too late, but as is often the way with game series', there are some weaker instalments than others, or just some that don't innovate as much as before. 

A bit of a disappointment for me then, as if I'm in the mood for an old-school Mario Kart challenge, I'll dig out my SNES, and if I want some newer, more innovative Mario Karting, it's Mario Kart Wii all the way for me. As for Mario Kart: Super Circuit? Well I'll play it for a few minutes here and there probably, but I doubt it'll ever become a staple of my life the way the original did when I was younger or the way MK Wii did when I bought it. It's a nice try, Nintendo, but it just doesn't do it for me.

Rating: 6.5/10
Time Played: 1 hour 3 mins
Would I continue playing? As I said earlier, I might dip into it occasionally, but it's not a game I'm going to play constantly for weeks. 

Next time on the great playthrough, we're entering the current generation for the first time, as I re-play the definitive Wii launch game - Wii Sports. Quick question - should I employ additional players for this game? It is after all designed to be a group experience... answers on a postcard (or alternatively in the comments below!)

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