(Originally posted on February, 2015)
(1992, Super Famicom/SNES)
I can still remember playing this for the first time at a Wal-Mart demo kiosk. Despite the game being so universally well received, Super Mario Kart initially left a bad taste in my mouth, but only for the most superficial of reasons. The choice of colors didn’t sit well, the sprites looked messy, F-Zero was still cooler and Donkey Kong Jr. looked odd as ever wearing a white shirt!! Most notably, at 9 years old, I just couldn’t take half the screen being used as a map/rear view during single player. Ignoring the game, years later I went on to play Mario Kart 64 quite thoroughly, as well as complete the GBA’s Super Circuit, then gradually lost interest in the series afterwards. With the recent Mario Kart 8 re-enticing me with its graphics and course design, I felt an urge to first give the original another chance.
I should get this out of the way early on: Even though I tried my best to overcome it, the game’s particular implementation of Mode-7 literally makes me nauseous, beginning after 5 minutes and becoming unbearable after 15 or so. Though I had a good time, I could only take so much, retiring my kart (or should I say cart?) once I managed to get 2nd place in the 100CC Special Cup.
The content of Super Mario Kart may now seem bare bones compared to the many dozens of sequels and copycats it inspired, but I can still appreciate the immense novelty it offered back then. Super Mario staples such as collecting coins/items, evading enemies and ‘hopping’ over pits managed to be implemented into a racer without confusion. Every little coin (speed boost) and item you can squirrel away feels very valuable, not just something endlessly thrown towards players like in the later games.
The music is one of the game’s highpoints; most of it was new, playful, catchy and clean. I particularly loved the remix of the Super Mario World Ghost House, now with a thick, heavy string. The remix of Bowser’s music from SMW is faster, more complex and impactful. Rainbow Road sounds otherworldly and perfectly climatic. A perfect example of a 16 bit soundtrack, it’s all infectious and amazingly cohesive in matching the light-hearted but energized atmosphere of the game.
I never liked the graphics back then, and today they’re still confusing due to the camera angle being too low. The pseudo 3D makes enemy/hazard interaction difficult to gauge. While building the skill to complete the 100CC Special Cup, I nearly broke the controller/TV in rage from trying to drive outside the Thwomp’s danger zone. I become more persuaded to exercise extreme caution at these moments and lose a couple places, rather than challenge myself to continuously walk closer to the line and likely lose a ‘life’ or ruin the whole circuit. Outside of those brief frustrating moments, the game quickly gets surprisingly challenging, tense and is almost always fun.
Even if like me, you’re not a huge racer fan, the music alone makes the game worth checking out for cheap. With only 8 unique course settings (and 12 remixes), the lack of variety compared to later games will be very apparent, but it’s this game that launched the genre. Watch out for those Thwomps and Super Mario Kart is still good stupid fun, if you have the stomach for it.
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