Rank the Mario Kart games

[JaegerDice]

This comes off of a discussion from the main boards, after Holtby wrote (or dictated, whatever) an article in the Players Tribune that included a story about the team coming together over Mario Kart 64.

… And Then We Got Mario Kart Tattoos | By Braden Holtby

Include as much or as little explanation as you like.

My list would be:

Mario Kart 8/Deluxe
Mario Kart DS
Mario Kart 7
Super Mario Kart
Mario Kart: Double Dash
Mario Kart 64
Mario Kart Wii
Mario Kart Super Circuit

Click to read more...

 

[rangerssharks414]

Double Dash... not close.

Fight me.

 

[NyQuil]

64.

 

[kingsboy11]

I have only played Double Dash, Wii and 8 Deluxe. But out of the 3, Double Dash is head and shoulders mainly due to the sheer nostalgia. I couldn't tell you how many hours my dad, sister and I played that game.

 

[Pilky01]

1. 8”D
2. DD
3. MK7
4. MK DS
5. MK 64
6. Super Circuit
7. Super Mario Kart
8. MK Wii
9. MK Arcade

GBA game is massively underrated. It is the actual good version of OG Super Mario Kart. Which only outranks Wii because of nostalgia and the fact that pretty much every worth while track from Wii has been done better in newer iterations.

8 Deluxe is the divinitie version of Mario Kart.

 

[The Burdened]

Of the ones I've played extensively:

1. Double Dash
2. MK Wii
3. MK 8
4. MK DS
5. MK 7

MK Wii was fun don't @ me.

 

[Unholy]

Double Dash
8
64
Wii
7
Super Mario Kart

 

[Wild11MN]

64 was incredible back in the day, but it has aged horribly imo. Of what I've played (since I somehow have still never played DD):

Mario Kart DS (I was extremely good at snaking, basically never lost online)
Mario Kart 8
Mario Kart Wii (had it above 8 because it was actually fantastic, but it made me rage sometimes)
Mario Kart 64* (could be #1 for nostalgia)
Mario Kart 7
Super Mario Kart

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

64 is the only one I’ve played

 

[Big McLargehuge]

1. 8/Deluxe
2. 7
3. Super
4. 64
5. DS
*giant chasm*
6. Double Dash

I've never played Super Circuit or Wii. I adored Super & 64 when they were newer...as with most things involved with the N64 I don't enjoy going back to that one, though. Super is a mega dosage of childhood nostalgia for me. Double Dash is the only one of them that I didn't enjoy and is the one I've played the least of. DS ranks lower for me almost certainly because it's the only one that wasn't the 'current' MK when I played it on my 3DS.

8 pretty much laps the competition for me as it's the only Mario Kart that I've wanted to play for more than 30 minutes at a time. The Mario Kart series has always been the perfect 'well I have ~15 minutes to kill, what can I play' type of game for me. That said, Double Dash is the only one of them that I don't have a positive opinion of.

 

[Hammettf2b]

Nothing, and I mean nothing, beats Super Mario Kart Battle Mode

 

[KingBran]

Grew up with Super and playing my brother all the time. Not much beats that game for me.

2nd would be MK 8

Hard to decide after that for me.

 

[WarriorOfGandhi]

only ranking the ones I've played a lot

1) N64 -- this one had everything. Brilliant maps, great weapons, fun (albeit monolithic) battles. It was one of the great games of the N64 and remains fun to play today. Drifting, boosting, and drafting meant it was complex enough to be honed to a high degree of skill, but a 6-year-old kid can pick up this game and have a ton of fun. It's hard to argue a better desert island video game than MK64.
2) Wii -- the introduction of the wheel was an interesting twist but most of the fun of the Wii version was had with standard controllers. Nintendo pulled out all the stops to make a great platform and it shows: the new weapons are really neat, the levels are colorful and intriguing, and mechanics like jump boosts really picked up the pace of the game.
3) DS -- this one always impressed me because I didn't think it was possible to make a good MarioKart game on a Gameboy. It succeeded in a lot of ways, coming up with lots of cool maps (my favorite was the clock level) and a few new items without reinventing the wheel. I only played single player, not sure how good the multi was.
4) SNES -- the OG game is, in many ways, still very good, but it's much more challenging than any other on the list. It's hard to control the kart, especially at high speeds, while the weapons can hurt just as often as they help. It's not Mariokart's fault that the SNES could only have two players, but it nevertheless makes it harder to enjoy as a group/party game.
5) 8 -- solid, fun game, with neat introductions of elements like anti-gravity. But never felt like a major step forward in the way of its predecessors.

 

[PullHard]

Objectively there are better games (namely 8) but the SNES and 64 versions are just so important

 

[Engebretson]

Recently started playing Super Mario Kart again after I bought the SNES Classic. It's nice, but it still doesn't hold a candle to Mario Kart 64. The Battle Mode in 64 was great and was one of the favorite multiplayer games of that era for my friends and I (along with GoldenEye).

 

[bambamcam4ever]

Mario Kart 8/ Deluxe are far and away the best.

64 was fun at the time and still has a good battle mode, but controls like you are dragging the cart by a string behind you.

 

[S E P H]

Easily Double Dash then N64.

Newest Mario Kart game is loaded with content and difficultly is real, but the problem is that the difficultly is more frustrating/cheap as AI will get better items than you will.

 

[RandV]

I sometimes get the titles mixed up so lets just say I've played extensively the SNES, N64, and Wii Mario Kart, and some playtime on DS and Gamecube. That said while everyone will have their nostalgia pick I think this is like the one series where you can't 'rank' them because mobile versions aside each new game on a new console is legitimately better than the last one.

 

[Shareefruck]

I don't feel too strongly about this franchise, but I think that while there are arguably minor inconveniences that later ones moved away from-- like ugly Mode 7 tracks, mechanics that were trickier to wrangle and less family friendly-- Super Mario Kart was the only one that had any sort of charm or that was designed with any kind of tastefulness/grace/restraint (which for me are the most important factors in a videogame). It's just exactly a minimalist representation of what works about the franchise and nothing else, with great sprite-work, sense of personality, and music. There's a real inspired mood to it that isn't just the typical Disney-ified factory-vomited Mario Party aesthetic.

I've never gotten past the visuals of the N64 in general, although I somewhat respect it, and I despise Mario Kart 8s bloated approach of having dozens of random characters and tracks, and the ability to customize equipment. It's all so unnecessary and excessive, mostly existing entirely for fan-service (this is what I hate about the Smash Brothers franchise as well). The franchise feels completely generic and by-the-numbers now, even if it is easier to get into and runs/controls more smoothly.

I wouldn't be too surprised if a better one existed besides these three, but I'm not too knowledgeable about all the different iterations that are out there.

 

[Commander Clueless]

64.

Absolutely agreed.

And that's it.

Although I never played Super Mario Kart...

 

[Beau Knows]

I'd put Super Mario Kart last, I don't think it has aged well. I prefer F-Zero on the SNES to it, holds up much better in my opinion.

Charm and minimalism are all nice, but that game just isn't as much fun as it's sequels.

 

[Shareefruck]

I'd put Super Mario Kart last, I don't think it has aged well. I prefer F-Zero on the SNES to it, holds up much better in my opinion.

Charm and minimalism are all nice, but that game just isn't as much fun as it's sequels.

I never really understood the appeal of F-Zero and why it's still considered a classic. If we're talking about retro alternatives, I actually largely preferred Top Gear 2 over F-Zero or Super Mario Kart. That game still holds up beautifully. I usually hate racing games, but the way nitros are managed in that game is so simple, satisfying and challenging.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Having played Super, 64, Double Dash and 8; as far as the racing goes 8 is the winner.

Battle mode goes to 64.

 

[rangerssharks414]

HI, I'M DAISY!

 

[HanSolo]

I don't let nostalgia change that Double Dash has objectively worse handling than 7 or 8. MKWii that element goes without saying.

8
7
DS
Super
64
Double Dash
GBA
Wii