Topic: Where should Mario Kart go from here?

Since there's a discussion about future DLC and the Mario Kart 8 thread is a collection of so many different topics I decided to open a thread on something I thought about the last days: Where should Mario Kart go from here?

MK8 is the first MK with DLC so basically it could end up being the perfect MK with all retro tracks for example. The next one should give you the chance to download every single MK1 - MK8 track instantly for a small amount of money I also want to create my own cups with my favorite tracks. They shouldn't be limited to four races but as many as you want. More options would be great like having 5 or 10 rounds instead of 3.

But what I really think it that now's the time to be brave: Change things up and make Mario Kart Nintendo Kart. They already started with Animal Crossing and Link so why not have the whole Smash roster on the road? It would be a chance to create tons of new interesting tracks from different worlds. More of the same would be boring I think. It would also open the door for some new weapons. The latest additions have all been kind of meh to me.

Also: Would anyone like them to go back to two players on one kart, Double Dash style? I don't really know what to think. I guess on in this style is enough.

Are you hoping for Ammibo support? What would be a nice way to use them?

The best option I'd say is let the series take a break and F-Zero take over as the main Nintendo racing game series. Mario Kart 8 has been a lot of fun but given that I can't even play the 2 best F-Zero games on my Wii U (X and GX), I think it's time for a change of pace!

Those are some really nice ideas. The custom cups are great and would be a blast if they would be shareable online.
And yes, "Nintendo Kart" would be a breath of fresh air. Something like "Wii Party U", which was basically Mario Party without Mario characters.
With Nintendo Kart, they open up a much much more broad range of assets to use and maybe even go the Sonic Allstars Racing / Diddy Kong Racing route and introduce more vehicle types.

Youll always have the purists complaining about changes, sure, but i too would like a more diverse Kart game, to dust off the old formula a bit.

agreed. The next system would have MK9 i bet. Personally, the whole anti-gravity thing was interesting but I want more customization options. Streamline the characters. No pink gold peach or cat peach or metal mario. Just give peach/mario several skins like they did with yoshi/shy guy colors. Same with Mario. Poll the fans and ask who they want included in the next one or poll them after the next release. Allow for custom cups and names to go with it. A basic track creator so that I can make my own courses and add whatever fun obstacles. MarioMaker is a good first step as an example.

i really do not like the idea of a nintendo kart. the amount of items it would have would be way too much. the game has to have some kind of simplicity to it. guest racers are fine (if it is just a small number) but do not touch the gameplay with 100 new items.

the DS and wii mario karts had challenges or what ever they were called. that was quite cool. also a single player campaign like in crash team racing would be funny.

I wish it was more like All Stars Racing : Transformed (Without the bugs).

Fun tracks of all types. (Some where learning the track is essential like Burning Depths).

More variety. Good single player that teaches you to play the game pretty competently.

Bigger focus on racing.

As much as I love the idea, they're not going to sideline MK for F-Zero. MK is always one of their biggest sellers, and F-Zero is nowhere near being one. FX failed to crack a million, and Nintendo isn't interested in stuff that doesn't break that million barrier. They recently released lists of sales figures for all their hardware and software... provided the software had sold at least a million.

I want to see a track editor.

That aside... I wouldn't 100% mind a Nintendo Kart. I just hope they don't forget about Mario characters in their desperation to include every Nintendo A lister instead...

I'm willing to bet Link and the AC characters are testing the waters to see how people like non-Mario IPs throwing shells around. I think the answer is obvious but nonetheless I feel the DLC is a possible pre-courser to, as some have already suggested, Nintendo Kart.

In fact I was hoping some of the amiibos would've unlocked the specific character to play in MK8, but alas it was merely Mii costumes...

I mostly just want them to add more cool features from past Mario Karts/other racing games. Bringing back missions or Diddy Kong Racing's story mode would be great. Track editor would be cool too.

A new Double Dash might be cool too and it seems like everyone wants that.

track editor is the best idea. but it would be hard to pull off because every mario kart track has a specific theme and features.

I think 8 is going to have a long life, and after that, I think the series should take a bit of a break. Someone said to bring back F-Zero as the next big Nintendo racing title, and that would be a good way to give everyone some time off from Mario Kart to recharge.

I think they might do a Nintendo Kart type thing, but it would still be called Mario Kart for brand recognition. I also imagine because of this a decent portion of the roster may still be Mario characters.

I would also love to make my own cups, but a full Smash roster would take a lot of time. If they did that, the next installment would probably be for the next console.

Hmm.. I don't know. I would love that but I bet many would bicker at that feature. What I would like is a Double Dash mode.. special tracks and character-specific items.

TBH I just want the same thing they've done with Mario Kart 8. I can't think of anything new they could add to improve it beyond that. The only thing I'll say is that they need to bring back the leaderboards and rankings for time trials from the Wii version and they need to bring back battle mode.

The time trial thing in particular annoys the hell out of me. I mean why is it that on the Wii they managed to have a proper leaderboard including my times ranked against friends. Even with the Wii which was pretty bad at that sort of thing. But they haven't managed to get it right since. Mario Kart 7 at least had the "race against 7 dudes in a similar skill range" thing, Mario Kart 8 doesn't even have that. Instead you just drop your time on MiiVerse and it's lost in the void.....

Nintendo Kart, simple enough.

Two modes like Smash Bros - remove say 80% of the luck from one of them and make the tracks harder. (Make it something that becomes most enjoyable after a certain level of skill is attained).

There are many things that bother me about Mario Kart, so I'm very much in favour of changes to the series. Ideas include:

• Make tracks crazier! Double Dash!! had loops, DS had loops, Wii had loops, 7 had loops, but Mario Kart 8 with its antigravity gimmick didn't! They should stop playing it safe and go all-out with mechanics. And then a good number of high risk-reward type shortcuts, where you either lose a lot of time or cut past several opponents! We need more challenge and craziness on the road!
• Stop giving every character absolutely everything! Double Dash!! and DS had the right idea with their character-specific restrictions, but they had to abandon that from Wii onward, for who-knows-what-reason. But these limits not only give the character selection a meaning beyond the freaking weight class, it also invites players to experiment with combinations other characters might not have. Also, character-exclusive items should return as well, but not as poorly balanced as in DD.
• Bring back Grand Prix Mode! Driving every track in a randomized order as part of ONE humongous cup is simply a thrill unlike any others! It's a test of challenge, focus, patience, and stamina all in one, and having such a challenge again would definitely expand the overall replayability of the game!
• Keep it Mario, or at least don't be cheap with DLC cameos! Hate me, but unless they actually provide a unique addition to the gameplay (be it vehicle parts with stats no others have, or a new item or two that aren't reskins), non-Mario characters flat-out don't belong in there, period!

As for the idea of a "Nintendo Kart", I'll quote myself from a topic discussing exactly that:

A new Mario Kart will inevitably happen, as soon as Nintendo comes up with a new mechanic/gimmick to base the next entry on.

However, if they truly go for a general Nintendo racer, they better step up their presentation. Mario Kart is a very cartoonish and lighthearted series of games, something that inevitably clashes with some of the more serious games and characters Nintendo has.
So, instead of making Nintendo Kart, they should go for Nintendo Drive (tentative title), which isn't centered around karts, but bigger vehicles (cars, monster trucks, spaceships, stuff like that) that give it a more serious vibe. That wouldn't make characters like Fox, Samus, or Captain Falcon look out of place, while still having the means to get the more cartoonish characters in - by giving them the Brawl treatment (more detailed models, darker color palletes). Vehicles could be centered around transformations similar to Sonic & SEGA All-Star Racing TRANSFORMED, but more detailed and visually impressive.

That said, even if Nintendo were going to do that, Mario Kart won't just disappear. It's too big of a brand to just abandon. If they're smart, Nintendo would keep Mario Kart and expand it differently from a universal Nintendo racing game.

I'd be down for a Nintendo Kart game as long as it is completely separate from the Mario Kart series. Seeing the MARIO Kart series end like that by throwing other Nintendo characters in just really stick with me.

A completely separate Nintendo Kart game would be nice though, as long as the long-running Mario Kart series still continues. Also, if there was only a Nintendo Kart we'd have less of a chance to see the characters we wanted. Since Smash Bros. usually only has the main characters from the Nintendo series, then that would be the same for Nintendo Kart.