Mario Kart Wii is a random occurrence- a Nintendo game released in Europe before the US, and even better, a Nintendo game with an online mode, a rare combination that no-one could've imagined from a mile off, especially with Nintendo's current track record of simply producing non-game tat like Wii Fit and Brain Age. MKW is by no means revolutionary, and to be brutally honest, there's no real innovation here compare to the other titles in the series. What MKW does do however, is simply remind you of why you used to love Nintendo, by building on the foundations of the Mario Kart series, and then some.

For much of it's development the title's been relatively low-key, with a real abundance of promotional work during these stages other than a few screenshots now and again, interestingly, a pretty similar dynamic to that of Super Mario Galaxy last year. Okay, so comparing it to that will make it out to be better than it really is, but Mario Kart Wii is thankfully a lot of fun, that doesn't disappoint. As ever it's got the staples of the other titles in the series- fast karts, weapon power-ups, grand prix etc modes and the usual lot of characters you've come to expect- but an early strength for the game is the new track design. With the new ability of being able to perform tricks in mid-air (and naturally, receive speed boosts upon landing) the new courses are littered with kicker ramps and half-pipes laden with speed boosters. It's obvious immediately of the improvement compared to past designs, and overall i'd say they're a lot more memorable.

The Mario Kart franchise though has always been about multiplayer however- no matter what feeble attempts Nintendo include to make the game a single-player experience, most of the lifespan comes from the multiplayer aspect, be it racing competitively with others directly or sharing time-trial records. MKW thankfully builds on this area remarkably with the inclusion of online features, that are, surprisingly for Nintendo, robust. Obviously the game is devoid of voice communication (surprisingly, a blessing in disguise) and friend codes remain, but the racing is just as fast as the single-player mode, with no noticeable lag or problems with the framerate. Additionally, the only way to quit out of online races is to physically switch the console off, meaning that while seemingly lacking to begin with, the online experience can be a lot better than that of certain Xbox Live matches. Continuing the new features even further, a continental and worldwide ranking completes the experience, while time-trial ghosts of champions and Nintendo staff can be downloaded to race against.

For a game that's seemingly come out of nowhere, Mario Kart Wii is surprisingly enjoyable. As the generational iteration of the Mario Kart series it's obvious immediately that 'Wii is better than it's Gamecube predecessor, but a comparison to it's DS cousin is a little harder to judge accordingly. While many will mark the game down on it's obvious lack of focus towards graphics, Mario Kart Wii is continued proof that Nintendo can expand it's game franchises to the interest of non-gamers (thanks in part to the funky Wii-wheel controller attachment, again, highly underrated) while still expanding the frameworks of game design by including an online mode for the 'hardcore' gaming audience. Finally proof that the Wii can do online successfully, and also, that it can compete with it's now-gen bigger brothers the Xbox360 and PS3, on multiple levels.