Comments on: I'll race! To feel the wind in my face! And I'll race! To feel like I own this place!

I'll race! To feel the wind in my face! And I'll race! To feel like I own this place!

ignignokt — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 21:55:28 -0800

Mario Kart Wii friend code filter: Let's drive through malls, smashing our cars into each other! If you've got Mario Kart Wii: 1. Drop your friend code here. 2. Register the friend codes listed there in your Friend Roster. 3. MeMail the people you register so they can register you back. This didn't work so well with Smash Bros. Brawl, but hopefully, knowing about step 3 up front this time well help.

By: empath

empath — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 22:03:48 -0800

Can we make this a GTA IV thread, too?

By: Burhanistan

Burhanistan — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 22:30:52 -0800

Does anyone want to just skip the silly video games and go straight to imitating the movie Crash (the good one, not that recent tripe Oscar bait one) ?

By: amyms

amyms — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 22:57:33 -0800

Burhanistan, are you talking about the people-who-like-to-have-sex-as/with-car-crash-victims movie? *shudder* I'll stick with video games, thanks.

By: Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America

Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:05:52 -0800

Who has GTA IV? It comes out today, right?

By: amyms

amyms — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:14:44 -0800

It does, Mr. President, but Mario Kart Wii has been out since Sunday (April 27), aaaand, it has the Wii Wheel. Take THAT, GTA-ers!

I really have no dog in this race (Mario vs. GTA or otherwise), I just follow video game news because my son is an addict.

By: Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America

Mr. President Dr. Steve Elvis America — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:21:46 -0800

Yeah... I also keep up with it because of my son...

By: amyms

amyms — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:46:36 -0800

pshaw

By: flatluigi

flatluigi — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:53:46 -0800

GTA4 has friend codes?

By: Metroid Baby

Metroid Baby — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 06:43:43 -0800

I didn't think anyone was actually friends in GTA, anyway.

By: cortex

cortex — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 07:08:40 -0800

My son plays a tremendous amount of video games. He was thinking about suggesting a Mario Kart meetup, in fact, and when I told him about this thread he was very pleased.

By: robocop is bleeding

robocop is bleeding — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 07:46:30 -0800

I just picked up my copy of GTAIV thanks to the help of Mayor Menino's Boston Morality Squad (with an assist from the Petty FYE Powertrip Brigade). I had not pre-ordered or anything, but decided at the last minute that I could use a stout metal box and other swag that comes with the Special Edition.

So I rolled down Beacon Hill to the local FYE. This FYE is one of the closest places to City Hall where you can buy video games. The FYE Line Wrangler on patrol made folks waiting in line show ID because the Mayor is cracking down and thinking of the children. The group of kids ahead of me shows their IDs and are uncovered as being 17 year olds! The Wrangler has them leave. One of the bright minds of the new generation points out that M games are for 17+, so they should be okay.

A very involved and vigorous debate ensues. Does 17+ mean 'Seventeen and Up' or 'Over 17'? I'm still waiting behind this group budding lawyers, some of whom lack pre-orders and wish to buy one of the few remaining Special Editions. With the Wrangler occupied, the line grounds to a standstill. The registers are empty. Being aged, I am waved around the group and get the last Special Edition for the 360. As I leave, the group is kicked out anyways for making a ruckus, even though I think they were in the right. I walk off, treasure in hand, the final words of the group's Head Age Arguer and Reading Comprehension King ring in my ears: "Fuck this shit. Let's go to Best Buy."

Fuck this shit, indeed. This is how Menino's mushmouthed reign of terror will end, with the loss of the vital sideways wearing hat demographic.

By: Grither

Grither — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:16:21 -0800

Hey, is MarioKart for the Wii any good? I haven't had the chance to pick it up yet....though I am definitely picking up GTA IV on the way home today (crosses fingers for an early day)!

By: owtytrof

owtytrof — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:40:50 -0800

I'm really digging Mario Kart Wii. I'll have to register my friend code in the list when I get home today.

I love the wheel, but I'm rather broad shouldered and using it for an extended period of time gives me a lot of tension right between my shoulders. I'm not sure if it's the wheel or my posture. Possibly both?

By: Blazecock Pileon

Blazecock Pileon — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:50:15 -0800

I'm just relaying this thread on behalf of my son, my dad, my brother, and our immediate uncles. They're really interested in this, and will forward codes tomorrow when their respective copies are shipped simultaneously.

By: ND¢

ND¢ — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:54:25 -0800

I am going to smoke all y'all's children!

By: tkolar

tkolar — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 09:08:05 -0800

I love the wheel...

I hate it. I've been playing with a GameCube controller, but I'm thinking of moving over to the controller/nunchuck combination.

It's going to take me a bit to get over the motion sickness that comes when I play new 3D games, but once I'm up to speed I'll register and kick all yer asses.

By: ignignokt

ignignokt — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:12:56 -0800

grither: I think it's pretty much pure fun so far.

The motion controls add a lot. It's way more gratifying to tilt the remote hard on a sharp turn than it is to press the Gamecube stick hard to the left or right. It just makes me smile, somehow. (I use the motion controls, but I don't use the plastic wheel molding. I just hold the remote in my hands directly and tilt it.)

The level design is just super refined. There's challenging courses, but they're not like some of the challenging courses in previous Karts, which made you hate life. Part of it is that the karts generally handle sharp turns better, but I think that the indoor courses are less claustrophobic overall. Many of the courses have quite of bit of the wow factor. My favorite courses so far are the snowboarding one, the one where you drive through the mall, and the one where you're driving on humongous tree branches. Plus, they seemed to be packed with Fahrvergnügen. Maybe it's just more ramps and half-pipe stuff?

The biggest criticism so far seems to be about the "rubber banding" - if you're in the lead, there's a lot of mechanisms available to knock you out of it, which frustrates a lot of people. Having played a lot of board and card games, I'm already used to people ganging up on the leader and can deal with it, so it's not a problem for me. So far.

The online stuff is really slick. It's a step above what Smash Bros. has.

Everyone else: I look forward to bumping you (and your children) off of cliffs!

By: Grither

Grither — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 10:36:28 -0800

Rubber Banding is where it's at. Mario Kart 64 wouldn't have been much fun if all the newbies and people who weren't as good as me (pretty much everyone ;-) weren't able to catch up and win every now and then!

By: owtytrof

owtytrof — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:45:56 -0800

WRT the "rubber banding" - I can't help but be frustrated playing Grand Prix in 150cc, being in 1st place for ~2.8 laps, and then, all of a sudden, just before the last turn, every other racer hits you successively with items and you cross the finish line in 6th place or worse. Several times this has happened to me and I've finished last.

Playing against people, it's not as frustrating, but when it's just me vs. 11 CPU controlled characters it feels like being cheated.

By: porn in the woods

porn in the woods — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:41:26 -0800

Just arrived today. Looking forward to some top-drawer racing with fellow mefites.
I'm racing as Walter Sobchak - except on shomer shabbos. This means I don't work, don't get in a car, etc...

By: danb

danb — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:41:55 -0800

Regarding rubber band AI: I think the problem is that every MK iteration has had more items that are both instant and unblockable. Now there's the blue shell, the squid, the lightning bolt, and the POW block. It's one thing to give good items to those in the back, and another thing entirely to give them the ability to immediately ruin everyone else's shit. :)

I'll come back with a friend code later!

By: cortex

cortex — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 20:07:29 -0800

Got my friend code up on the wiki. Heck yeah.

By: mrzarquon

mrzarquon — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 23:36:36 -0800

I'm up, and i friended everyone who was on the wiki when I added mine.

And now I have to go to bed before I play anymore, I already cleared the 50cc course.

By: porn in the woods

porn in the woods — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:22:36 -0800

After only a little bit of playing, it seems that this game is 100% awesome. Don't care for the wheel one bit, but guests will want to check it out. I'm using the Wiimote/Nunchuk combo but might try the GameCube controller later - this is the best way to go on Super Smash Brothers.

I've friended everyone on the wiki, so let's crash cars without the help of David Cronenberg. You won't get to boink Holly Hunter, though.

By: blasdelf

blasdelf — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:38:16 -0800

I'm up on the wiki now too.

I've been playing the PAL version for a couple weeks, and it's pretty damn good — if there were a way to turn off the computer players (and/or the unbalanced items) in local multiplayer matches it would be perfect — without it local battle mode is useless!

I just got the US version and had to start a new save game, so I downloaded a complete one — don't worry, the unlocked karts aren't unbalanced (especially since you can't switch without quitting (and you can only quit at the end of a race)).

By: blasdelf

blasdelf — Thu, 01 May 2008 00:42:03 -0800

Oh, and I use the Wiimote/Nunchuck combo — with the Wiimote alone it's hard to consistently powerslide in the right direction, and with the gamecube controller you have to take your thumb off the joystick to trick-jump.

I prefer the sideways Wiimote in Brawl, I'm a weirdo, I know. I'll probably get a Classic Controller or two to try out soon…

By: mrzarquon

mrzarquon — Thu, 01 May 2008 10:53:01 -0800

we already know you are a weirdo.

Apparently you can remove the additional bots in the battle modes, but I haven't found out how yet.

By: flatluigi

flatluigi — Thu, 01 May 2008 22:04:04 -0800

I'm adding my MK code to the wiki right now; I'll memail everyone soon.

By: flatluigi

flatluigi — Thu, 01 May 2008 23:55:59 -0800

Everyone's in.

By: Otis

Otis — Fri, 02 May 2008 04:50:18 -0800

Added mine to the Wiki, will add everyone in tonight.

By: ikahime

ikahime — Sun, 11 May 2008 18:42:41 -0800

I hope it's not too late - I just got my copy of the game today. Added code to the wiki, but in the Wii world I run as "squiddy."