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Mario Kart Wii Revs Up on April 27
With Super Smash Bros. Brawl having just launched Nintendo is now preparing its next big title, Mario Kart Wii. The race begins in a little over a month.
Posted by James Brightman on Wednesday, March 12, 2008


Nintendo of America sent word today that Mario Kart Wii will officially leave the starting gate and race to store shelves on April 27. As one of the few Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection-enabled games, Mario Kart Wii offers online multiplayer gameplay with up to 11 other drivers from around the world. In addition, Mario Kart Wii will receive its own channel on the Wii Menu, which "builds on the huge online community of Wii owners and lets players compete in tournaments, check worldwide rankings, see when their friends are playing and download ghost data."

The game also comes packed with the Wii Wheel (which will also be sold separately for people who don't purchase Mario Kart) – a plastic housing, similar to the Wii Zapper, which effectively turns the Wii remote controller into a steering wheel. And if you're not comfortable with the Wii Wheel, the game can also be played using standard controls, the Wii's Classic Controller or even the old GameCube controller.

"Mario Kart Wii transforms one of our most popular franchises into a race that every member of the family can join," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "Driving with the Wii Wheel could not be more natural, and this is one place where speeding is encouraged."

In total, Mario Kart Wii features 16 new courses and 16 classic courses from previous games in the franchise. Furthermore, the game introduces motorbikes for the first time in the series, and gamers who are really attached to their Mii characters can use them in game.

Mario Kart Wii retails for $49.99 and has been rated "E" for Everyone by the ESRB.