When Nintendo announced that they were bringing one of their most popular games of all time, Mario Kart, to mobile devices, expectations were incredibly high and people were very excited about getting the chance to play.
While Mario Kart: Tour has now been released worldwide, the game has been met with quite a poor reception, with many fans being disappointed with the mobile version of the game.
However, there are certainly still positives to the game, after all, the charm of Mario is undeniable, and within this list, we will break down the five best things about the game, as well as the five worst.
10 Worst: Where's Luigi?
When it comes to any Mario Kart game, there is a certain list of characters that you expect to be able to play as with. The likes of Mario, Princess Peach, and Bowser are all characters that should be available.
Another one of those is Mario's brother, Luigi. The green plumber is a fan favorite but for some reason in Mario Kart: Tour, you do not have the option to play as Luigi, with the character being nowhere to be seen on the starting roster.
Of course, there is a chance Nintendo has held him back in order to have a big push at a later date as an extra downloadable character, but Luigi is a core member of the Mario franchise, making this a big mistake.
9 Best: The Courses
It should go without saying at this point, but Nintendo certainly knows what they are doing when it comes to making the courses on Mario Kart challenging, varied, and most importantly, fun.
Every time Nintendo brings out a new version of the game you can guarantee there will be some fantastic new courses, and Mario Kart: Tour is no different, with some fun new courses being brought in exclusively for this game.
However, the real credit here is the way that Nintendo made the retro courses fit perfectly onto mobile devices, which is something that could have been a major fail if they had got it wrong.
8 Worst: The Controls
When you think of Mario Kart controls, they are pretty basic, so it is surprising how the game got things so badly wrong here, with the controls being quite frustrating for most people.
While the game does allow for tilt controls, it is quite erratic and difficult, with the drifting feeling very annoying, and tilting offering little to no benefit. Although the longer you play on either control setting the more you begin to get used to them.
However, that is the case with any game you play, and this doesn't make it any better, with the fact that the control system is so important making this quite a big issue.
7 Best: New Characters
While the lack of Luigi is certainly a contentious issue amongst diehard Mario Kart fans, something that the Nintendo did do well is adding new characters to the game.
Characters such as Mayor Pauline and Peachette breathe new life into the title, giving fans new potential favorites, with new design vehicles and a different look to the game, which is always welcomed.
On top of that, the game is doing event characters so the chances are high that Nintendo will be adding more new characters as time goes on, keeping things fresh.
6 Worst: Extra Charges
Unfortunately, Nintendo fell down the trap that winds up being the failure of many good mobile games in that it is absolutely full of additional charges and extra costs once you start getting into the game.
From having to buy the pip that allows you to unlock more characters to the monthly pass, the game is full of ways to make even more money from the consumer.
You would expect a little better from a major company like Nintendo, which is using a huge brand in Mario Kart, but sadly this game does feel like its sole purpose is to make as much money as possible.
5 Best: More Than Just Racing
While Mario Kart is obviously all about the racing, with that being the most important aspect of the game, it's always nice to have some extras that offer a break from simply driving around a track.
That is something that Mario Kart: Tour certainly provides, with several extra options being available including challenge mode which is jam-packed with different quests to complete once you've cleared a certain amount of cups.
The extra games are going to keep people occupied for hours, with Nintendo going above and beyond to make sure there are tons of things for people to do in order to stay on the game.
4 Worst: No Multiplayer
One of the reasons that people love Mario Kart so much is the multiplayer option. Playing alongside friends, trying to prove who is the best, catching each other with items to get the upper hand.
However, for some bizarre decision, Nintendo released the mobile version without a multiplayer mode, which just seems like the most illogical decision ever, holding back multiplayer until the 28th.
While they could just be wanting to get some bugs out of the way, it seems strange to not have the most popular mode of your game available at the very start.
3 Best: Character-Specific Items
One element of Mario Kart: Tour that has been praised heavily is the character-specific items that have been brought back for this game, which makes everything feel far more personal.
The games new abilities add an extra element to be focused on that wasn't there before, making the idea of choosing which character to play as a little more complex, with every character actually having something unique about them.
That added ability is one of the highlights of the entire game and certainly makes things a lot more fun and competitive, giving gamers a real reason to play as each character to try them out.
2 Worst: The Graphics
Quite obviously, nobody was expecting the same detailed level of graphics that come with a console game, as that just isn't realistic when it comes to mobile gaming, but the graphics in this game are really quite poor.
The stills that Nintendo shared may have looked impressive, but when you get down to actually playing the game, things just look very plain, with the character models in particular looking strange.
Mobile gaming may still be behind consoles as far as graphics are concerned, but they have certainly improved vastly compared to the past, and therefore they could have done far better here.
1 Best: It's Fun
At the end of the day, Mario Kart isn't a game that should be taken overly seriously. It is a fun, family-friendly video game that is meant to provide a good time when you play it, which is what this game does.
It is enjoyable to play and the fact you can now do it on the move, wherever you go, is something that many gamers will be happy with. While there are certain problems that need to be addressed, the game is still enjoyable to play.
The avid gamer might pick apart the faults and struggle to enjoy the game because of it, but the casual gamer who is simply a fan of Mario Kart is going to have a great time playing.