If you look at the Mario Kart franchise and the F-Zero franchise, it's pretty easy to determine which of the two has been more successful. On the one hand, Mario Kart has seen major releases all the way up to 2020 with Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, and will see a whole bunch of DLC launched for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe all the way through to the end of 2023. Then on the flip side, F-Zero - oh, our poor dear F-Zero - hasn't seen a major release in nearly 20 ruddy years when F-Zero Climax launched in Japan in 2004 - so we didn't even get it in the west! Grumble...
It seems strange, then, to imagine that Nintendo would think to implement a mode within Mario Kart to potentially help the game reach F-Zero fans. Well, that's what very nearly happened with Mario Kart 64 during development of the game in the mid '90s. According to director Hideki Konno, Mario Kart 64 actually once featured a 'no-item' mode that would allow players to focus on the act of driving and compete in "serious races". Eventually, however, the mode was dropped from the final game due to the fact that players demoing the title refrained from choosing the mode.
It sounds like the Mario Kart equivalent of 'no-item' modes in the Super Smash Bros. franchise, doesn't it? We're going to be honest, though, the very notion of Mario Kart without the likes of the Red Shell, Banana, and Lightning Bolt sounds kinda dire to us, so we're thankful Nintendo made the decision to remove it from the game.
Mario Kart 64 can now be played on the Switch via the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service. It's still a cracking game, too, garnering an 8/10 in our review, though at the time of writing, it is currently behind several other titles in our 'Best Mario Kart Games Of All Time' list.
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- Best Mario Kart Games Of All Time
What do you think? Would you have enjoyed a 'no-item' mode in Mario Kart? Share your thoughts in the usual place!
[source shmuplations.com, via twitter.com]
Comments 40
Using demo sessions can be short-sighted, and it doesn't examine the longevity of a game across multiple play sessions.
People beginning a game and playing on their first might have a preference for items, but over days or weeks may develop a preference for playing without them as they focus on the nuances and mastery of the race and the controls.
You know, like Smash Bros.
I would appreciate an online mode with no item mode, just to see how it would up as just a racer. and if the card would be shuffled differently...
I haven't played MK8D in a long while but I'm pretty sure you can turn off items in that game through some sort of custom play mode. Not sure it's available for online play but it can be done for local multiplayer.
Without items it simply wouldn't be Mario Kart IMO
Imagine using your actual skill instead of items and luck, can't see that working in a racing game 😜
That would have been really boring
No Items mode is decent in Mario Kart 8 with skilled opponents but Mario Kart was really designed with that chaos in mind, so it becomes a bit boring otherwise. Konno was right as in most people would opt for the No Items mode, so it probably wasn't worth implementing back then.
I remember F-Zero. Nintendo doesn't.
No item mode is like playing Initial D or Forza.
It will be very boring.
@seaboyluca Think you can create online tournaments with no items. Though I haven't raced in a "no items" one since the original MK8 when it was just Roys firehopping everywhere.
Guessing now such a lobby would be Waluigi Kart.
Nintendo gives zero F’s about F-zero it seems…
Such a shame
@RupeeClock Smash is a more technical game. Mario Kart is more chaotic. Not that Smash can't be. I do think no items is a good option, but I also don't think the game is as designed for it. Especially with the AI the way it is.
@romanista same it would make a nice change
@Friendly you’re right and that’s wrong
I really wish it did. This is the reason I dont play and if I ever do its just time trial mode.
Or like Super Smash Bros., they could at least make it so we could turn some items off.
I guess more options is a plus but probably would’ve been pretty boring. It’s not like F-Zero at all where the driving itself requires much greater skill and you have to maintain the health of your racer.
I at least appreciate Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for offering some sort of F-ZERO like mode, in the form of 200cc Mushrooms only. But the best way they can appeal to F-ZERO fans, as well as fans of Wave Race, 1080° Snowboarding, Excitebike, and Stunt Race FX fans these days is to stop treating Mario Kart like it's their only racing franchise!
...I guess they did release Cruis'n Blast...
@Member_the_game That's exactly how I feel too. There are plenty of other games that offer that kind of experience, but Mario Kart is all about the items and the ensuing chaos! I really feel that way about Smash Bros. too.
I'd happily play a version with a Blue Shell toggle — Red/Green shells I can handle, but that thing is just ridiculously unfair and joy-sapping; you end up having to drive like Dash at the end of The Incredibles.
MK8DX is very technical when you remove the items. The kart set up, racing lines, drafting, drift+boost, and avoiding mistakes are critical for winning without items. The time trial mode is an excellent example of how you have to learn the course and the fastest ways to push the kart through the track to beat the staff ghosts. And you're alone in that mode. If you race other karts without items, you have to employ all those technical skills to win and it's way more challenging.
Mario Kart without Items would be like playing Smash Bros without Items. If you don’t like the randomness that items inject into the gameplay, perhaps you’d have more fun playing a more serious racing game like Forza.
A no item mode would have been loved by tourney gamers, and I'm sure we'd be hearing about MK being professionally played. Personally I'm glad it didn't happen, and I wish that was the case for Super Smash Bros.-- It keeps the slapstick, whimsy fun within it, but that's just the style I like to play.
Mario Kart 64 was personally my most disappointing game of all time.
Super Mario Kart SNES was my favorite game of all time.
I bought the N64 just to play Mario Kart 64 at launch.
How disappointing.
The problem for me is that the game felt a huge slowdown. Everything was very slow, with a very low frame rate, much wider tracks....it lost the challenge that, at that moment, Super Mario Kart (SNES) had.
The SNES version was smooth, feeling of perfect speed, much more difficult corners, narrower tracks.
The Nintendo 64 version for me was terrible in every way. Bad graphics.
It is a pity. I hated my Nintendo 64, I never liked the graphic style of its games. I didn't like the 3d platformer genre that nintendo created. So I didn't have fun with Mario 64, DK 64, Glover, Gex 64, and any other 3d adventure game. And, i don´t like FPS games. So i did not like 007..Perfect Dark, etc..
The only games that I liked were: F-zero x, Xtreme-G and Ogre Battle 64.
I didn't like the Nintendo 64 controller either. I was a fighting game player at that time. Participated in international tournaments, including Street Fighter and King of Fighters. And the Nintendo 64 controller d-pad was terrible...so Killer Instinct was unplayable for me on that console.
I know many like the N64, but for me, it was one of the worst consoles I've ever owned. I just didn't sell it because I collect video games. But I played a lot more 3DO than N64.
Good thing Nintendo redeemed itself with the Game Cube, with the great Mario Kart Double Dash....much faster, smoother and more challenging.
I would probably enjoy that. Or at least remove JUST the blue shell. At one point in my life I was ridiculously skilled at F-Zero GX... I only wish that talent translated into Mario Kart.
Seems like it took them basically 18 years to bring F-Zero to Mario Kart...
MK 64 had the worst rubberband AI possible. Glad the mode got canceled 🤣 great game, but the rubberbanding is real
@sisodinr Mario kart is a game designed to be played with items while Smash bros is a deep fighting game where they threw items into the game. Mario kart without items lose a lot of its deep.
"The kart set up, racing lines, drafting, drift+boost"
Oh yeah, “Waluigi+ Wild Wiggler + Roller”, what a variety in kart set ups -_- Also, drafting is more "deep" because of the items.
Also, In trial mode you literally start with a triple mushroom and they are a core part of that mode XD And also it works precicely because you are alone XD
@Andee Agreed. It kinda punishes you for playing well... I'm glad they at least added an item that can neutralize it.
@Leuke Yeah but good luck getting one when you've been in 1st place for the past two laps
As an F-Zero fan, I actually would have enjoyed that very much! Haha!
NINJA APPROVED
Would have been a nice addition for those who want to play without items.
Love me some MK but, since MK8D, I've been more and more curious why Nintendo is so firmly stuck on the "Mario" part of Mario Kart.
I get it, to an extent but, come on, lets Smash this MF'r and get EVERYONE in there. Call it Mario Kart All-Stars or some such, and just load that thing with Nintendo characters. It's cool that MK8 got a handful of guest characters (Link and the Squid Kids) and obviously leave out the 3rd party license characters, but where's Ness, Olimar, Captain Falcon, Star Fox, Samus, Pokemon Trainer (or individual Pokemon), etc,. etc., etc.
Come on, Nintendo, get with it, that's just money left on the table!
@RupeeClock No items, Funky Kong only, Luigi Circuit. Go!
@Rykdrew That's too bad. You missed out on a ton of splendid games.
I would also have to challenge Double Dash being faster and smoother...
Fun fact: Super Mario Kart was actually originally developed as a multiplayer counterpart to F-Zero! I think it's even based on the F-Zero engine
Favorite racing games in order...
1.) TenEighty
2.) F-Zero
3.) Cruis'n USA
4.) Exteme-G
5.) Snowboard Kids
6.) Diddy Kong Racing
7.) Mario Kart
If that tells you anything.
@TenEighty Diddy Kong Racing and 1080. You forgot Waverace… 😂 These would be my top 3 Nintendo racers with F-Zero at No 5 after Cruisin’ USA at 4
@neolestat Oh! I did forget Wavereace. Awesome game!
It may not be worth the extra development time to include such an unpopular mode, but from the aspect of a game's quality, it's almost never a bad thing to include extra options.
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