On every Nintendo console since the SNES, the Mario Kart series has provided gamers a wacky and enjoyable experience that not only offers an intense racing environment, but provides fierce competitive battling through various zaney power-ups. The first major gameplay change to the series came with Double Dash!! for the Nintendo GameCube: Here, Nintendo introduced two characters per Kart- opening up the floor for non-so-successful tactical partnership combinations. Mario Kart DS brought WiFi play to the mix and allowed eight players to join the fray- four over the internet.

So there was no doubt that Mario Kart would also grace the Wii; most likely bringing motion controls similar to the other racing titles we've seen so far on the platform. And guess what? That time has almost come: Mario Kart Wii offers new characters, new tracks, 12-player online, and an innovative control scheme using the Wii remote. One thing thats keept the same as the traditional Mario Kart titles- and was unfortunatley not in the GameCube outing- is the single-driver racing... although a new type of vehicle has been introduced- we'll talk about that later.

Following suit with Super Smash Bros Bawl: There are five control schemes for Mario Kart Wii: the Wii Wheel, the Wii remote by itself, the Wii remote and nunchuk, the Classic Controller, and the GameCube controller. Mario Kart Wii's big push is the new Wii Wheel that will be packaged with the game (it's simply a piece of plastic shaped like a steering wheel in which your Wii remote fits into). This accessory allows for the Wii remote to be used on its side. Judging by initial reports from other websites, I assume the first two control methods will take some adjustment and practice. The other three control schemes allow players to take a more traditional route with the GameCube-esque controls; players should feel right at home with those.

Two major gameplay additions to the Mario Kart series are motorcycles and tricks. Although having inferior drifting, motorcycles offer greater speed and control than the karts, and they also have the ability to wheelie, which can provide a minor speed boost. Each character starts off with three motorcycles and three karts, with more availible to unlick for each character the further you progress. The new trick system is available for both types of vehicles and provides a speed boost similar to power sliding. These random tricks are pulled off while in the air and will land without fail; players cannot fail a trick.

The single-player gameplay- and probably 2-player too- features the traditional three difficulty setups: 50cc, 100cc, and 150cc. However, the 50cc is exclusive to karts, and the 100cc is exclusive to motorcycles. The 150cc will feature both types. The game will present four cups at the beginning and be similar to Mario Kart DS's presentation: two cups full of original tracks and two cups full of retro tracks from previous Mario Kart titles. However, it's been said that the game's pace feels considerably slower because of the wider tracks that accommodate 12 racers.

Multiplayer consists of the typical Mario Kart options: racing and battle. Racing can be done with up to 4 players locally and 12 players through the Internet service Wii-Connect 24. Battle mode returns with two variations: there's the standard Balloon Fight mode in which players try to pop their opponents' balloons, and the new Coin Runners mode in which players will try to get their drivers mits on the most of the coins that are scattered across the stage. Battle mode offers a whopping ten stages (hey, it's a lot compared to the previous titles), and it can be played with up to 12 players online.

Visually, Mario Kart Wii arguably looks exactly the same as Double Dash!!, which is disappointing given what we've seen in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy. The game at least runs at a smooth 60 frames per second, and it's good news that the action won't keep your eyes fixated on the lackluster environments and texture work for too long.

Mario Kart Wii is less than a month away, and it seems to be well worth the wait. It will include a separate channel called the Mario Kart Channel which displays global rankings and allows users to download ghost data and daily missions. The core Mario Kart experience seems to be intact and if that's present, there is nothing to be worried about. I just hope that the online experience is far improved from Brawl's online play.