I had my first Mario Kart 8 get-together tonight, and it was somewhat of an experiment just to test everything out. I’ll normally have these get-togethers on a weekend afternoon, but I couldn’t wait to give it all a try. So I opened up a lobby; Josh and Ash joined in. Mario Kart 8 supports voice chat in friend lobbies, but I wasn’t interested in using it. But oddly enough, if you turn your microphone off by pressing the “-” button, you’re also unable to hear anyone who may be talking (it plays music instead). I do not understand the logic to that at all.
There are about two dozen pre-selected messages you can enter, and those are helpful. But if someone is speaking to you when you have your mic off, you won’t know what they’re saying…and apparently, they won’t know you don’t hear them. The whole thing isn’t very intuitive. And unfortunately, the game does not support a USB keyboard.
When I was ready, I chose to start the race and an options screen popped up. The first option gives the host the ability to choose the mode (100cc, 150cc, etc.), and that is a welcome addition. I’m not a fan of the mirror tracks in general, so this means I’ll be able to avoid them in my get-togethers if I choose. Good deal.
You can also choose to have teams or no teams, and then there are a variety of choices for items. For example, you can choose to race with all items, no items, shells only, mushrooms only, etc. However, there does not seem to be a way to fully customize which items can or can not be used. I’ve heard that the game allows you to turn blue shells off, but I did not see a way to do that. If any of you know, please leave a comment below. The other options are for round time (I’m assuming this is for battle mode) and you can choose whether or not to have computer-controller characters race with you. I chose not to, at least for this time.
After that, we were able to select our courses. And thankfully, friend matches allow you to choose from all of the courses! You’re not forced into just three choices like you are in the random races.
Cup #1
The races began, and it quickly became clear that Ash and Josh are significantly better at the game than I am. I would occasionally get a 2nd place here or there, but I finished in last place most of the time. I definitely need a lot more practice, and I need to learn these tracks and their shortcuts. These were the results of the first cup (four races):
- Ash – 12 pts.
- Josh – 11 pts.
- Jeff – 5 pts.
Cup #2
We started another cup with the three of us again. But after the first race, Meli joined in too! The fact that people can join mid-cup is a big improvement over Mario Kart Wii. On Wii, if someone wanted to join in and just missed the start, they’d have to wait for the entire four races to complete before they could join. That would often take 15-20 minutes, so I’m glad to see this change. It also means I won’t have to wait around for people at the beginning of each cup, since they can join in whenever they arrive.
Anyway, I beat Meli for 3rd place in the first race with her, but even that limited success didn’t last long. I was soon back to getting last place most of the time. Even when I was having a decent race, like being in 2nd place in Moo Moo Meadows heading into the final corner, I’d get hit with a shell and finish last. It was not my night. I did end the second cup tied with Meli for third place though. Here are the results of the second cup:
- Ash – 19 pts.
- Josh – 11 pts.
- Jeff – 5 pts.
- Meli – 5 pts.
Cup #3
Ash won the third cup as well:
- Ash – 18 pts.
- Josh – 12 pts.
- Meli – 8 pts.
- Jeff – 6 pts.
Cup #4
In our fourth and final cup, we finished off with N64 Rainbow Road. I still hate how they turned the longest track into one of the shortest, though (by only making it one lap). I did get 2nd place on this final track though, and that was about my only bright spot for the night. Here are the results of the last cup:
- Ash – 20 pts.
- Josh – 10 pts.
- Meli – 8 pts.
- Jeff – 6 pts.
It was fun, so thanks to everyone who came. The next get-together will probably be on a weekend sometime, so hopefully more people can come. In the meantime, I need some practice. See you all next time!