Mario Kart 7 Online Features Detailed

The Mario Kart 7 release date of December 2nd in Europe and December 4th in America will be upon us soon.

The upcoming Mario Kart 7 delivers more than just a glasses-free 3D racing experience. It gives fans frenetic racing fun by air, land and sea. Longtime fans of the franchise will encounter new features and customization options, while newcomers will love racing with their favorite Mushroom Kingdom characters against opponents near and far.

Here’s a video of Mario Kart 7 in action with Yoshi!

Multiplayer
At the heart of Mario Kart is multiplayer racing. Using a broadband Internet connection or local wireless built into the Nintendo 3DS, players can race against their own friends or even against opponents worldwide.

The new Community feature allows players to create groups with other Mario Kart fans while setting up specific rules to make customized racing environments. Easy setup allows players to quickly create a community and share with others via the StreetPass feature.

Leaderboards
Community leaderboards will also show the most up-to-date information from recent races.

Here’s an official trailer for Mario Kart 7.

Single Player
Solo players can race through the Grand Prix and Time Trial modes using either the Circle Pad layout or the motion-sensitive gyro controls of the system to steer their karts. The gyro controls also allow players to control their karts in a first-person perspective, a feature never before seen in the Mario Kart franchise.

StreetPass & SpotPass
Mario Kart 7 will also use StreetPass and SpotPass features built into the Nintendo 3DS system. Walking by other Mario Kart 7 players in real life with StreetPass enabled allows gamers to exchange racing scores, win/loss records, number of collected coins and other game data.

With SpotPass enabled, players will be able to receive ghost data to race against. Up to seven ghosts can be downloaded at the same time, allowing for a full eight-player race. Additionally, a Mario Kart channel will be a central location for players to view information collected through StreetPass and SpotPass.

New Characters & Power Ups!
Every iteration of the Mario Kart series introduces new twists and turns, and this newest Mario Kart game is no different. New Mario Kart 7 characters are playable including Metal Mario from the Super Mario 64 game and Lakitu, the spectacled cloud-riding Koopa. Players can also choose to race as their own Mii characters.

New power-ups include the Fire Flower and Super Leaf. The Fire Flower allows players to throw blazing balls of fire at other drivers, while the Super Leaf makes the Tanooki Tail appear on the back of karts to knock other drivers and items out of the way. And, of course, the karts come equipped with gliders for maneuvering through the air and propellers for underwater propulsion.

Courses
The Mushroom Cup and Flower Cup introduce eight new courses, including ones on Wuhu Island and one created by Retro Studios set in the jungles from the Donkey Kong Country Returns game. The Shell Cup and Banana Cup feature eight classic courses, including Luigi’s Mansion from the Nintendo DS and Koopa Beach from the Nintendo 64. There will be 16 new courses and 16 classic courses total.

All in all, Mario Kart 7 is set to be a feature-packed entry in this beloved, long-running Nintendo platform staple series, and will surely be a must-have, AAA, system-seller and high-rated killer-app for the Nintendo 3DS!