Vail Christian High School is taking this texting-while-driving thing seriously. So seriously, in fact, that they’ve brought in one of the most realistic driving simulators ever conceived to teach kids the dangers of this practice.
The giant Mario Kart R/C racer was cool, but Mario on Mario races don’t do a great job of bringing the game out of the Wii and into the real world (even the slot racer set doesn’t quite do the trick). However, these new mini R/C toys from Brando are a different story. Each rechargeable, iPod shuffle-sized racer comes with a 6-direction IR controller and shell and banana accessories. Plus, it comes in Mario, Luigi, Koopa and Yoshi varieties. Available for $US24 each.
For those who don’t like the floating steering wheel of Mario Kart Wii (because it lacks the realism of driving around a banana-spewing bulletmobile), this wheel mount by JTT isn’t a bad solution. Using a suction cup to attach the wheel to any flat surface, the top tilts 120-degrees so you can compete old-lady or bus-driver-style. But for US$28, we really wish it had the famous Chinese-girl-driving-wrong-on-one-way setting. Oh well. I guess good old fashioned psychotic “don’t-cut-me-off”-motherfucker-Caucasian will still serve me as well as it always has. [JTT via GoNintendo]
If you haven’t quite earned a licence for Mario Kart driving, you can bypass the tacky training wheel and head straight for a realistic, grown-up solution. Blazepro is now offering a beefed-up racing wheel for the Wii that promises better driving accuracy. And, since the base can be attached to any desktop for better stability, chances are it can deliver on that promise. When your skills improve, you can even detach the wheel for traditional in-air gameplay. Available for only US$5.87. [Superufo via Wii News]
At first glance I thought that this homemade wheel mount was absolutely ridiculous—and with good reason. However, the fact that I recently played Mario Kart with my novice girlfriend leads me to believe that their could be a place for a mount like this. Using only a couple of 36-inch bungie cords and a plastic crate you can build what is essentially a traning wheel for the game that helps beginners settle down with the wiimote and master the basic steering movements. Just don’t let any of your gamer friends catch you using it. A video of the steering wheel mount “in action” is available after the break.
woof woof woof woof woof jones here. i am addy and jesus’ dog, and today i am doing what master jesus does everyday, sitting in front of this big screen and going bang bang bang on this flat thing that makes clicking noises, heh heh. addy’s no better you know. lies in bed or on the sofa with this square black thing on her lap going tap tap bang bang click click and ignoring nice doggies. so jones has had his revenj yes he has. drugged blindfolded and out cold, addy is tied up in the bathroom and i’m going to have some fun doing the bang bang click click thing on the black square thingy. i’m here, fellow webmongrels, to tell you about my favourite shiny things—no, not turds, but gadgets that are better than the iphone. and then youre going to see me play smackdown with mario racing cart oh yesyesyes jones the dog ftw.
Mario Kart for the Wii is available today in all US stores, but if you want the real thing, you can pass on the lame wheel and get this Nintendo-licensed real-life Mario Kart Slot Car Racing set, with cute 1:43 Mario “B-Dasher” and Wario “Brute” cars, 20.34 feet of track with fly-over sections, power transformer, and controllers with a “Turbo Speed” button for “added racing bost.” Sadly no instant enemy shrinking, calamari ink or banana peels are included. Looking at the size, it’s probably fully compatible with Donkey Kong, Yoshi and classic Mario cars from the Nintendo Mario Kart DS Track Race Set:
