Worst to Best - Mario Kart

The Mario Kart series is one of Nintendo's most successful franchises to date. A total of 8 games have been made across 8 different consoles and each Mario Kart game brings hours upon hours of fun for gamers to enjoy as well as being commercially popular with their respective systems. For example. with 35 million copies sold, Mario Kart Wii is the second best selling Wii game behind Wii Sports of course. More recently, Mario Kart 8 which came out a year ago has sold 1.2 million copies worldwide, becoming the best selling Wii U game so far.

These sales prove that the franchise is still popular 23 years on, and so out of all the Mario Kart games, I have made a list consisting of how I rank the Mario Kart games, from my least favourite to my favourite. So without further redo, in the words of Mario himself, Let's a go!

8) Mario Kart: Super Circuit (GBA, 2001)

Mario Kart: Super Circuit was the first game in the franchise to be released for handheld consoles and the idea of playing Mario Kart on the go was amazing at the time. Despite this however, there are some reasons as to why I believe this is the black sheep of the franchise. For starters, the controls on the GBA game pad are very fidgety as you are using the D-pad to control the racer. Also, the game hasn't aged particularly well when you compare it to today's Mario Kart games and it's a type of game where you have to replay it constantly to enjoy. Don't get me wrong, Mario Kart: Super Circuit is a good game with a dynamic track list, but looking back, it's just not as appealing any more.

7) Super Mario Kart (SNES, 1992)

Super Mario Kart was where it all began, This was the first game in the series and is viewed upon as a classic by many people. Since I was born in 1999, This wasn't the first Mario Kart game I've played and so my judgement is mainly based on how it holds up to today's games. Although the game is fun and visually stunning for SNES standards, the game feels very underwhelming when you compare it to later Mario Kart releases and much like Mario Kart: Super Circuit, the game has aged poorly, meaning it is not something I would keep revisiting in the near future.

6) Mario Kart 64 (N64, 1997)

I've got to be honest, When I first played Mario Kart 64, I absolutely hated the game because of how awful the AI was and so if I had made this list a few years ago, this game would've come dead last. However, I have recently been playing through it and I've got to say, it's really grown on me. The game has some of the most memorable tracks in Mario Kart history and the music is really catchy and fun to listen to. However, this game isn't without it's faults. Like I said before, the AI is awful and can overtake you with little effort, especially in 150cc where it just seems so unfair when you get cheated out of victory. Not only that but the game has aged the worst out of all the Mario Kart games. Despite this, Mario Kart 64 is still enjoyable when playing with friends, even if the single player mode is a tad dull at times.

5) Mario Kart Wii (Wii, 2008)

Mario Kart Wii brought a lot of new features to the franchise when it burst onto the scene in 2008. The addition of bikes, the stunt system and without a doubt the best online mode for the Nintendo Wii. Unfortunately, the game suffers the same problem as Mario Kart 64 in the sense that the AI are rubber-banding scumbags. Unlike Mario Kart 64 where the AI can over take you. In Mario Kart Wii, the AI appear to have an unlimited supply of red shells and blue shells, which is incredibly annoying when you're in first place and you suddenly bombarded with shells. This makes races in 150cc heavily reliant on luck as that is where the game really starts to become unfair. Despite this however, Mario Kart Wii is a great game and is chaos with friends, but the brutal single player mode is what prevents this game from climbing any higher on the list.

4) Mario Kart: Double Dash!! (NGC, 2003)

The most prominent feature ever to appear in the Mario Kart series was the addition of two players per kart in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! This feature means that one person is driving whilst the other person in the back of the kart is throwing items. This was a very big risk by Nintendo as the feature was met by mixed reviews from people. Despite this however, this makes races more crazier than ever and much like all Mario Kart games, is especially fun in multiplayer. Some of the tracks in the game are quite bland and annoyingly short, but others are really fun to play through, making Double Dash a joy to play, single player or multiplayer. 

3) Mario Kart 7 (3DS, 2011)

Mario Kart 7 introduced some of the most impressive factors the series has had, with the introduction of hand-gliding and underwater segments. Thanks to these new additions, the tracks in the game are some of the best the franchise has to offer as their creativity makes them very fun to play through in Time Trials. I also thought that the 3D visuals make the graphics really stand out on the 3DS and the retro tracks that were updated are better than they once were. However, I have one main issue with this game and that is the removal of the VS. Mode. Yes, the feature is available in multiplayer mode, but I wish I had the luxury of playing any course I wish with CPU opponents. With all that said, Mario Kart 7 is still a fantastic game and easily one of the series finest outings.

2) Mario Kart 8 (Wii U, 2014)

Even though Mario Kart 8 only came out last year, It is quite possibly the most addicting game in the Mario Kart franchise. Almost everything about the previous Mario Kart games are brought together here nicely. the bikes, the stunts, the hand gliding, the underwater segments and the new addition of anti gravity based courses. Not only does this provide fun filled and creative tracks but it is also one of the most enjoyable multiplayer packages the Wii U has to offer. The one thing that I dislike about this game however is the online mode glitches. Don't get me wrong, the online mode is fantastic but the communication issues can cause glitches in the gameplay which I hope Nintendo can patch up in the future. But aside from that Mario Kart 8 is another fine installment to the series and is all the more glorious now it's in HD.

1) Mario Kart DS (DS, 2005)

Mario Kart DS is without a shadow of a doubt the finest game in the Mario Kart franchise. Many people also consider it to be the best in the series as this is not without a good reason. Although the online mode is primitive compared to future installments, it is still a ton of fun to boot. The single player mode consists of lots to do for the gamer including a Missions mode which has not been introduced in any other Mario Kart game since for some reason. The controls are a massive improvement over Super Circuit as thanks to the DS D-pad. Racing could not be easier, This game was also the first to bring retro tracks into the picture, featuring 16 redesigned retro courses which would be a staple for future Mario Kart titles. In terms of difficulty, this game is by far the most balanced of the franchise and cheap losses are a rarity. Being able to play this all on the go is the icing on the cake and thus makes Mario Kart DS the best game in the franchise in my opinion.

Thanks for reading!