Mario Kart Tour Beta Impressions

Many lucky Android owners who signed up for the beta of the upcoming mobile game that is Mario Kart Tour have been tearing up the raceways this past week.  As one of those fortunate few, I too have gotten plenty of hands-on time with this aspiring mobile take for the series and am here to share some personal impressions with those unable to play at this time.  Those eager to join in, worry not as the game is poised to exit beta and fully release later this summer.  Until then though, strap in and let's drift into some turbo-fueled hot takes:

It's A Gacha Game

First and foremost, most everyone will want to know: How is this game structured?  Well, it's free to play, but it implements the Gacha system as has been popularized in their other mobile games, such as Fire Emblem Heroes and Dragalia Lost.  For those unfamiliar still, a Gacha game is one that has players spend certain in-game currency for chances of scoring particular characters or items of varying rarity.  In Mario Kart Tour's case, this involves unlocking racers, karts, and gliders.  It's a thrill to unlock a "rare" prize, but becomes deflating when you instead start receiving common duplicates for all the effort poured in to obtain that currency.  That is the nature of a Gacha game though.

I should also note that the game uses a stamina system, in which each track costs one heart of stamina to race.  This is rarely a problem as they frequently reward stamina in the early game, but will slow players down once they've progressed further (probably around the 7th cup or so).

Well Represented

With all that in mind, Mario Kart Tour does a surprisingly effective job at translating the essence of Mario Kart to a mobile device.  The tracks are bright and colorful, and just about one to one as per to their original designs.  The controls though simple in execution, using one hand to steer left and right and tap / swipe to use items, prove satisfying to maneuver with.  And the sound effects and music all tie it together for a nostalgic and engaging experience to be had.  All in all, this well captures the spirit and fills the need for a quick Mario Kart fix on the go.

Chaos Over Racing

One notable difference in this is that winning the races doesn't matter as much as earning a high score to unlock stars.  While netting 1st place certainly earns plenty of points, it alone is often not enough to earn all five potential stars.  Instead, players also earn points through means of coins, drifts, jumps, and hitting players with items.  In this way, Mario Kart Tour focuses less on the racing and more on the chaotic party nature that is Mario Kart's other half.  This can still be enjoyed as a casual experience, but it unfortunately also means many high scores are near unachievable without the better characters / karts, as each track grants certain characters and karts more items / other benefits.

Fun Challenges

At the end of each Cup comes a fun challenge that offers a unique objective for players to tackle, such as collecting so many coins or achieving so many jumps.  Many of these tracks are given extra obstacles and the like to make for a more interesting and fresh experience.  Though not particularly challenging, they do add a nice variety and are fondly remembered, much like the missions found in Mario Kart DS.

Repetitive Halt

By stark comparison, it's very odd that the Cups, though only being three tracks each, start repeating tracks from previous cups with no changes to be found.  Furthermore, once further into the game, cups begin to be more challenging to unlock, requiring more stars.  Unfortunately as alluded to before, earning those high scores for stars requires better characters / karts.  As such, it becomes a bit of a repetitive affair racing on the same tracks over and over, or else waiting for daily-check in bonuses until one can afford to attempt to maybe get some better characters / karts (Gacha!).

Pay to Win

The game also rewards players with various tickets that can be used for temporary gains in character / kart stats, as well as random items during the race.  In a way, it offers a workaround for not having the best characters / karts, but it feels weirdly like cheating and yet another means in which the game wants you procure more tickets so you can "win".

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So come the finish line, Mario Kart Tour delivers an admirable Mario Kart experience as best can be expected for a free to play game, but of course at the cost of some less than favorable practices to recuperate those costs.  If you can ignore such and enjoy it for the casual experience it is, there's a decent amount of fun to be found and enjoyed in short spurts.  Otherwise, you may want to steer clear for now.

Have any other questions about this shell-infused mobile spin-off?  Ask away in the comments below and I'll try my best to answer for you.  Stay tuned for more gaming coverage and of course E3 2019 news to come soon.  Until then, happy gaming!