Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Genre: Kart Racer

Players: 1-4 Competitive (Local Split-Screen) 2-8 Competitive (Local Wireless) 2-12 Competitive (Online)

.

Review:

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the latest kart racing game in the series of games that began the genre, and it may very well be the best one ever made, period.

I do not say this lightly, by the way – the Wii U game this title was based on, Mario Kart 8, was sooooo close, with superb gameplay, stunning graphics, tons of features and imaginative courses… but they stumbled at the finish line when it came to the series’ long-running battle mode, which was just awful thanks to courses that did not work for that type of gameplay. So any time I recommended the game, I had to add a caveat – “this is the absolute best game in the series, bar-none… except for this one thing that’s absolute trash”. No longer! Mario Kart 8 Deluxe chucks the Wii U version’s terrible battle mode courses in favor of the same sort of courses we’ve seen in… well, every other game in the series.

But it doesn’t stop there. While Mario Kart 8 was absolutely stuffed full of features as-is, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe ups the ante with more characters, more courses, more features, more game modes, more more more more… on top of including everything that was in the Wii U game (aside from the terrible Battle Mode courses), as well as all the DLC that was released for that game, all at a smooth 60FPS at 1080p (at least in docked mode with 1-2 players).

And in case you’re wondering, yes, this game still looks and plays amazing, with gorgeous, imaginative levels and tight controls, and they still impress to this day.

I think I can say that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is far and away the best Kart Racer ever made, and with the Switch version, not only does it fix the Wii U game’s few flaws, but it adds a bunch more content and gives the game a minor update to keep it up to date, not that it even needed it. This is a game every Switch owner should have.

tl;dr – Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is not just a Kart Racing game, it is the Kart Racing game, removing the few flaws the Wii U version had and adding even more content to an already content-rich game, making this arguably the best-playing, best-looking and all-around best period when it comes to this type of racing game. If you have a Switch, get this game.

Grade: A++

^{You can support eShopperReviews on Patreon! Please click HERE to become a Sponsor!}