So it's losing quarter of a star for how rubbish the tour tracks actually are. Yes they come from well known locations and are gimmicky at first but their lack of any real anti gravity mechanics, good shortcuts or non super wide roads is boring. They all blend into one. Once again, quarter a star off.
It's also losing another quarter of a star for how important stats like Miniturbo, air speed , water speed etc actually are to your karts performance and how they aren't shown in game. Having to go online for an Excel spreadsheet to tell us the same information is not good design. I understand the need to not overwhelm casual fans, but put it in the game somewhere for more hardcore users. (https://www.mariowiki.com/Mario_Kart_8_Deluxe_in-game_statistics see here for stats on karts!)
Overall, 200 CC mode brings it closer to other kart racers in terms of the speeds you can achieve, difficulty in racing and overall playability and I love that they added it but it's not for the casual player so it doesn't impact the star rating.
150 CC is obviously the default way to play the game though and it feels relatively balanced if not a bit too slow. Karts are responsive, boosts feel satisfying and races feel competitive.
Of course, item balance is an issue but this isn't meant to be a super sweaty racing game. It's a party kart racing game and therefore bad-ish balance is allowed. Blue shells having two consistent ways to dodge them (Mushroom / horn) makes the balance better than previous games.
Everything that makes a Mariokart game good is on display here other than the aforementioned. Good base tracks as well as parts of the DLC, soundtracks are on point and memorable, character selection and kart customisation has decent options and game build quality (bugs, glitches etc) is excellent to the point where there are no bugs and glitches that I've encountered after 100s of hours.
Overall a must play/own for the Switch but it's rather a refining of a tried and tested formula rather than a game that's pushing boundaries and seeking to try new things.
It's also losing another quarter of a star for how important stats like Miniturbo, air speed , water speed etc actually are to your karts performance and how they aren't shown in game. Having to go online for an Excel spreadsheet to tell us the same information is not good design. I understand the need to not overwhelm casual fans, but put it in the game somewhere for more hardcore users. (https://www.mariowiki.com/Mario_Kart_8_Deluxe_in-game_statistics see here for stats on karts!)
Overall, 200 CC mode brings it closer to other kart racers in terms of the speeds you can achieve, difficulty in racing and overall playability and I love that they added it but it's not for the casual player so it doesn't impact the star rating.
150 CC is obviously the default way to play the game though and it feels relatively balanced if not a bit too slow. Karts are responsive, boosts feel satisfying and races feel competitive.
Of course, item balance is an issue but this isn't meant to be a super sweaty racing game. It's a party kart racing game and therefore bad-ish balance is allowed. Blue shells having two consistent ways to dodge them (Mushroom / horn) makes the balance better than previous games.
Everything that makes a Mariokart game good is on display here other than the aforementioned. Good base tracks as well as parts of the DLC, soundtracks are on point and memorable, character selection and kart customisation has decent options and game build quality (bugs, glitches etc) is excellent to the point where there are no bugs and glitches that I've encountered after 100s of hours.
Overall a must play/own for the Switch but it's rather a refining of a tried and tested formula rather than a game that's pushing boundaries and seeking to try new things.