The item balance in 8 is the best it's been since Super Circuit. It's much closer to random than in the games in between. I got a blue shell in second place in 8. You're not guaranteed to get a useless item if you're in third place, and you're not guaranteed to get a crazy item or three mushrooms if you're in ninth. This makes the game much less predictable for each player and thus more exciting.
It is true that the person in first place doesn't get hit by as many items as the people beating each other up in the back. That's pretty much how it's always been. I do think the coins exacerbate this; they really didn't need to be brought back.
The item balance is more annoying. What is so bad about a legitimate good win.
still don't get the "unbalanced items" point - care to explain without me going through 198 pages in the official thread?!
Whenever I play online I still see good players winning and bad players losing - and whatever happens to you happens to any other player, so how is it unbalanced?
Items are rubber banded so the best items go to players in the back (less experienced players) while the person in first tends to get the worst items. So a player can be legitimately better and in first the entire race, and then a less experienced player near the back of the gets a blue shell and BAM!!! The skilled player loses his lead right at the end of the race. Yes, horns can block it, but it's perfectly normal to go the entire race without getting one. Many skilled players hate the rubber banding because it favors the less skilled players... But many skilled players also hate items in Smash Bros due to the same luck factor. Personally, I'm not bothered by any of it, yes I'm annoyed when I'm clearly better than someone and I get item screwed at the last second, so what I do is... Play another race. I see no reason to care, it's a game and who needs a perfect win record? If losing a game is that upsetting... Well, I just think who will want to play if they can't ever win a single match? I like that games like these give everyone a chance.
There's an Extra Creditz video somewhere talking about this exact thing and how it doesn't make a game uncompetitive. Just because a less skilled player CAN win doesn't mean a more skilled player won't. Yes, the more skilled player will occasionally lose, but the less skilled player still has a chance. This is extremely important for keeping a large appeal. The thing is, Mario Kart offers players methods of escaping or adapting to hard situations. It's not a death sentence to get a blue shell unless you're really close to the finish. In fact, for a skilled player, it's typically just a minor annoyance.
What the Extra Creditz episode talked about, though, was that you can make a better decision based on skill by playing multiple matches. In a balanced game, the more skilled player may not always win, but with enough plays, his win percentage will beat out the less skilled player. I've seen this time and time again in Mario Kart and Smash Bros, so I really don't get why the competitive community complains, when all it takes is a 2 out of 3 or a 3 out of 5 to find who's likely the better player. IMO, it's just a case of players not wanting to change how the system works because they can't accept that single elimination tournaments are unfair.
I think the way All Stars Racing Transformed works is the best. There is some luck but it is less important than knowing the tracks and how to use the items well. (Which the substantial World Tour teaches perfectly).
A balanced game is one where the results only depend on the skill of the participants. Anything other than that is unbalanced. (Which is desirable for a local multiplayer party game but not for an online game).
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No, Mario Kart Wii is more balanced, because people in the lower spots actually got helpful items, and people in front just got green shells and bananas.
Giving the guy in last place a Bullet Bill/Lightning Bolt/Blue Shell every time and allowing him to jump ahead 4-5 (or more!) spots on the final half lap does not mean the game is "balanced". That is as unbalanced as it can get!
Have you ever played Mario Kart? That's the point of the items, to keep everyone close together so it's a surprise to see who wins. In MK8 the people in the front get speed boosts, while the people in the back get useless items, meaning the race is no longer fun because it's plain obvious who's gonna win and lose.
So what you are saying is that the best players (those in the lead) deserve to be punished and have some bum in last place be able to always get a powerful item and blast past half the racers on the last lap? That just rewards the worst players.
Glad people who think like you don't design video games for a living.
No, Mario Kart Wii is more balanced, because people in the lower spots actually got helpful items, and people in front just got green shells and bananas.
Giving the guy in last place a Bullet Bill/Lightning Bolt/Blue Shell every time and allowing him to jump ahead 4-5 (or more!) spots on the final half lap does not mean the game is "balanced". That is as unbalanced as it can get!
Have you ever played Mario Kart? That's the point of the items, to keep everyone close together so it's a surprise to see who wins. In MK8 the people in the front get speed boosts, while the people in the back get useless items, meaning the race is no longer fun because it's plain obvious who's gonna win and lose.
So what you are saying is that the best players (those in the lead) deserve to be punished and have some bum in last place be able to always get a powerful item and blast past half the racers on the last lap? That just rewards the worst players.
Glad people who think like you don't design video games for a living.
Well seeing as how that isn't how the items work, yes Mario Kart 8 is balanced.
People keep saying the Xbox One doesn't have Backwards Compatibility.
I don't think they know what Backwards Compatibility means...
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No, Mario Kart Wii is more balanced, because people in the lower spots actually got helpful items, and people in front just got green shells and bananas.
Giving the guy in last place a Bullet Bill/Lightning Bolt/Blue Shell every time and allowing him to jump ahead 4-5 (or more!) spots on the final half lap does not mean the game is "balanced". That is as unbalanced as it can get!
Have you ever played Mario Kart? That's the point of the items, to keep everyone close together so it's a surprise to see who wins. In MK8 the people in the front get speed boosts, while the people in the back get useless items, meaning the race is no longer fun because it's plain obvious who's gonna win and lose.
So what you are saying is that the best players (those in the lead) deserve to be punished and have some bum in last place be able to always get a powerful item and blast past half the racers on the last lap? That just rewards the worst players.
Glad people who think like you don't design video games for a living.
THAT's the point of the items that's why they exist. You would probably be more interested in a "No Item" race, but for people who want to play with items in unbalanced.
IMO mkw was more balanced because in mkw the worst item you could get in last place were triple shrooms which in itself is bad luck. Just the thought of getting bloopers and single green shells in last place is stupid because you have no chance of recovering from it. If you get pushed off or if you drift too early you cant catch up at all. Also bullet bills and mushrooms are a lot slower and rarely help you catch up. Also MKW had more strategy; if you thought you could win by being as fast as possible by always getting good starts and stuff is boring so the aspects of of items likelihood is a strategy of its own.
He could be fire hopping. It's the totally broken tactic that everyone uses online. I wish Nintendo would get rid of it, but good luck with that...
Don't forget "demon sliding" (if I remember correctly, that's what it's called). It's what some people use to set WRs and is quite hard to master but annoys me a LOT.
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Topic: What the heck happened? (Mario Kart 8)
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