Gizmodo Australia » mario kart

Mario Kart Micro RC Racer

Jesus Diaz — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:00:00 +0000

Desktop. Mario Kart. Desktop. Mario Kart. Desktop. Mario Kart. I’m going to keep repeating that until you understand the scope and significance of this toy. Especially if you are furry and have four legs. These will be great stocking fillers.
These diminutive radio controlled Mario Karts—made by Tamiya—are just 55cm x 35cm x 45mm and weigh 41 grams, which make them perfect for desktop racing. You can also buy a whole bunch of them to create a giant track that spans through all the the office. For $US90 each set—including two cars and a race track—however, it will be quite expensive. But totally worth it. [Firebox via Toylogy]

School Shows Students Dangers of Texting While Driving Using Mario Kart

Jack Loftus — Sun, 17 May 2009 17:00:00 +0000

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.

Mini Mario Kart R/C Racing Set Takes the Game Into the Real World

Sean Fallon — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 18:15:00 +0000

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.

[Brando]

Wii Wheel Mount Plays Mario Kart in Stereo(types)

Mark Wilson — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:00:00 +0000

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]

Blazepro Offers Realistic Wii Racing Wheel For Better Mario Kart Control

Sean Fallon — Thu, 22 May 2008 19:00:00 +0000

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]

Suck At Mario Kart? Build a Training Wheel in a Few Easy Steps

Sean Fallon — Wed, 21 May 2008 23:50:00 +0000

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.

[Wii Fanboy]

Gizmodog Drugs Addy, Attacks Jesus and Mario, Takes Over Sunday Column

Gizmodo US Edition — Sun, 18 May 2008 15:00:00 +0000

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.

Real Mario Kart Doesn’t Have Banana Peels, Power-Ups, It’s Very Cool Anyway

Jesus Diaz — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:00:00 +0000

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:

This one is available for $US34.99 but runs on 4 AA batteries.

[ThinkGeek and WowZzers!]

Video: Hands-on With the Nintendo Wii Wheel

Adrian Covert — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:00:00 +0000

I got up close and personal with the Wii Wheel at last week’s Nintendo Media Summit, where I (literally) played hours of Mario Kart Wii. I tried playing with the wheel attached and without, trying different configurations of play. And after spending a day with the peripheral, I can’t exactly call it great, but it’s not horrible either.

My first thought when this was announced last year was that I didn’t need a piece of plastic to hold my Wiimote in place; I’d steer the controller by itself just fine. But last Thursday came around, and I approached the wheel cautiously, got comfortable, and even warmed up to the little white circle. While the game can certainly be played without the wheel, there’s something that just feels right about holding it in your hands. There’s more room to grip with your hands, and you’re given a better frame of reference as to how much you’re steering.

There is also an elongated, horizontal button on the back that acts as a mechanical proxy for the B trigger button on the underside of the Wiimote. Hitting the B button is a key part of the drift element in Mario Kart. Without the wheel, trying to hold the Wiimote horizontally in two hands while pressing the 2 button for gas and the B button for drift was a bit awkward. Not so much with the wheel in the hand.

However, the wheel took a little getting used to. I found myself oversteering at first, forgetting to steer later, and waving the wheel in strange directions (also exhibited in the above video by Kotaku’s Michael McWhertor). But after awhile, I calmed down and found a sweet spot where I could play with a bit of skill. So the Wii Wheel may not be God’s gift to racing control, but it doesn’t make the experience any worse either. And as far as Mario Kart itself goes…go talk to Kotaku, they’re the game freaks. [Mario Kart Wii @ Kotaku]

Dusty Wii Syndrome Returns With Launch of Mario Kart

Gizmodo US Edition — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 22:15:00 +0000

They say smoking and squalor can kill a human, but that’s turning out to be equally true for the Nintendo Wii. The hardware’s disc-reading laser seems incapable of cutting through the grit, grime and second-hand smoke that accumulates on its lens’ glassy veneer. The issue first appeared with Super Smash Bros. Brawl double-layer DVD, and now reports about the launch of Mario Kart Wii this month in Japan show that game is no different. Nintendo will clean your Wii for free, but that will mean a week or so without it. [GameFront via GoNintendo]