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Mario Kart 8 Introduces Expanded Item Customization

javac

Member
The thing is...I'll end up leaving everything in because otherwise I'd feel like I'm on easy mode and not getting the full undiluted Mario Kart experience...even if I hate blue shells. I'll just throw my blue shell that comes with the limited edition at the TV when pissed.
 

Ataru

Unconfirmed Member
Considering the star ratings they give to you after a race, blue shells and similar randomisers are absolutely not fine in multiplayer.

LOL, the whole game is about randomness. Random item boxes.

Skill is still more important than luck, but luck has it's role. Honestly, it would be boring if I won every race I have against less skilled opponents.
 

Ataru

Unconfirmed Member
We've always been at war with Eastasia.

Never said I actually agree with the whole "Blue shells aren't useful to inexperienced players" line. Because I think they are.

But ironically, it's always the less experienced players that complain about them. Rarely hear people with 50,000 VR complain about blue shells.
 
Haven't read the entire thread so don't know if anyone's said this yet.

In Mario Kart Wii you could already set items to basic (shells, mushrooms, bananas etc only) or frantic (blue shells, bullet bills, lightning etc only) or turn them off completely in local multi.
 

Yoshi

Headmaster of Console Warrior Jugendstrafanstalt
LOL, the whole game is about randomness. Random item boxes.

Skill is still more important than luck, but luck has it's role. Honestly, it would be boring if I won every race I have against less skilled opponents.

I made a big mistake, because I was talking singleplayer, but wrote multiplayer instead. The star rankings are what you get for cups according to your performance - being hit by random items kill your performance though.
 
C'mon... items are what make MK timeless. People my age (mid-twenties) STILL play MK64 all the time with groups of people. I've always played DD with items set to "frantic", and my buddies and I still play it to this day. That's the only way to enjoy MK, with the most items at the highest frequency. Otherwise it's up to each person's skill level that determines who wins, but if there's no items it's always going to be the same order and then it gets boring. Items in MK introduce the element needed to make things fun and unpredictable. That way you never play the same race twice. Hence, the extreme longevity of Mario Kart.
 
Looks like MK8 will become the next Smash in terms of eliminating items from tournaments. Hmm, what's the equivalent of Final Destination in this series?
 

Metal B

Member
It's designed so it doesn't give the person who uses it an advantage because you get it when you're near last place. It exists solely to troll whoever's winning and as far as I'm concerned that's not a good design choice.
You get the blue shell wrong. The point of the thunder and the blue shell is do tighten the field. If the racers at the front fight each other, they will lose speed and the people in back can catch up. You don't want the people in back slow each other down or they never will have a chance again, so you give them speed ups, all-out and pole-position attacks.
 

TreIII

Member
Because those games were designed from ground up with it in mind. Nintendo doesn't want to compromise the core experience.
Or more than likely, Nintendo doesn't want to take a chance with player-made content, after what happened with Emblems in MK DS.
 

Somnid

Member
Fine you can have your (lack of) blue shells. But in exchange I don't want some tournament lobby for all items off.
 
LOL, the whole game is about randomness. Random item boxes.

Skill is still more important than luck, but luck has it's role. Honestly, it would be boring if I won every race I have against less skilled opponents.

I haven't played a Mario Kart in quite some time but isn't this not the case? Depending on your character and current position in the race some items are weighted to drop more frequently, aren't they?
 

Pociask

Member
I... cannot believe they spend that much time balancing items. How much thought goes into the same formula they use every release? If rank = 1, then item = banana peel or green turtle shell. If rank = last, then item = awesome. if else, item = random.
 

KHlover

Banned
Blue Shells? Lol, the real enemy in Mario Kart are the Lightning and the Thundercloud. Fuck those things to hell.

Still have nightmares about lightning being used while I jump over a bottomless pit or getting a Thundercloud in 3rd place in MKWii D:
 
I... cannot believe they spend that much time balancing items. How much thought goes into the same formula they use every release? If rank = 1, then item = banana peel or green turtle shell. If rank = last, then item = awesome. if else, item = random.

There are other factors that affect item distribution such as how much time has elapsed since the beginning of the race, how much time has elapsed since the last thunderbolt/POW block/Blooper, how many other people currently hold a specific item, how many players in total there are in the race/battle, but I understand that one may find it odd that a Mario Kart game has complex systems if one doesn't actually try to understand how it works.
 

reKon

Banned
They would have to make a set of tools completely different from the ones they used to make the game. It would take a lot of time and effort. Other developers who did this made the track editor the entire game and the official tracks weren't anything special. Assuming that they had the time and resources without hurting development of the official tracks, the track editor would be vastly inferior to the official tracks.

I liked some of your modnation tracks more than some tracks from other kart racers including Mario Kart btw..
 

Davey Cakes

Member
If it's anything like Smash Brothers with no items, it'd be a boring husk of a once-fun game. To each his or her own, but I've never understood the need to suck all of the fun out of these games.
Some people find "fun" in the basics.

I can go either way. I do enjoy randomness on top of rewarding skill. Sounds like they're trying to balance MK8 as best as possible while still including what makes Mario Kart..,Mario Kart.

It all sounds good. I'm looking forward to concrete feature confirmations as opposed to vagueries.
 

zoukka

Member
If it's anything like Smash Brothers with no items, it'd be a boring husk of a once-fun game. To each his or her own, but I've never understood the need to suck all of the fun out of these games.

For competetive play you reduce randomness as much as possible. It's a simple concept really.
 

Nibel

Member
I already can imagine the videos with
Let The Bodies Hit The Floor
soundtrack

c63PHsN.png
 

Yoshi

Headmaster of Console Warrior Jugendstrafanstalt
This.

Mario Kart isn't like Smash where items enabled or not makes is still fun. No items just makes Mario Kart some normal racing game.
Some normal arcade racing game with (especially in this game) slightly crazy course design. What's not to like?
 
Everyone hates the blue shell until they're in last place and get blessed with one. The only thing I want turned off (if it's in 8) is that damn thundercloud.
 

Teknoman

Member
Allowing players to play the way they want is stupid?

I think he just doesnt want every race to have "no items" set. Once people have a certain mode setting seen as "pure" everyone tends to follow. At least thats how it was with halo and "shotty snipers" or rifle only.

That being said, Smash Bros is still 2x more fun with items.
 
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