An unprecedented game in the racing genre is undoubtedly Mario Kart, and it is that since the release of its first video game in 1992 it has won the hearts of people who have ever decided to try any of its titles, it is without a doubt an excellent game to play in company.
Taking this into account, and the immense number of games that have tried to replicate the formula that has made this franchise so successful, how is it that I consider Mario Kart the best game of this style? First we have to focus on one point, and that is how we define a racing game and the evolution it has had.
The racing genre is one that we have had in mind for a long time in video games, it has always known how to renew itself, from arcade games to today with new simulators, it has had a path that, although it has given us great jewels, there always comes a point where they stagnate, they do not know where to direct the genre, and that is something that has been happening for a few years now, or even for much longer than we think.
This is where Mario Kart enters the equation, with its kart racing and its random system of items available to win us, it enjoyed enormous popularity from its launch, until it became the phenomenon that it is today.
Despite being really fun games, they have their detractors, and a good part of the fans of the genre see this style of play with disdain. This happens more than anything because of how random they can be, they are not highly competitive games as you would think. And in fact that is not the idea either, Mario Kart has never been a really competitive game, it has many rules that are unfair, and it does not have that balance that so many games of the genre have.
Mario Kart is a family game, it does not need to be competitive, it is a game that anyone can play. Anyone who takes command and decides to have a game can easily get used to it, find the rhythm and have a good laugh. They are random and very chaotic games where many times nothing can make sense, and there is the joke.
However, with everything and everything, it continues to have a great fan base behind and very competent among them, you just need to see the videos posted on the internet that show you how someone plays a track at a certain time taking all the shortcuts or tricks to be the best in the game. Something similar happens with Super Smash Bros Melee, Melee was a game that was not made with the intention of being competitive, on the contrary, it was designed to be a familiar and fun game, but that became one of the most fighting games seen every year in eSports. Although with Mario Kart nothing of this style happened or at least not to that extreme, it is still competitive in its own way, they are games that adapt to any type of player, and to a large extent it is what has made them successful.
Mario Kart is a franchise that over time has gotten bigger and bigger, it has never really had a competitor in sales when it comes to genre. Crash Team Racing was a great competitor as a game, Diddy Kong Racing was also excellent, or games like Sonic All Stars Racing Transformed that also stood out. Something that influences a lot is the fact that it is Mario, it is something that everyone knows, and like it or not, it has a lot to do with it.
In short, even though it is the most famous game of its genre, it seems to me the most fun and accessible racing video game for most people, and how I emphasized at the beginning, these are family games, to play with friends or family, even the others of his style are, although it is something obvious many people do not understand. Since its first game it has always known how to renew itself and show itself fresh in each generation, something that seems incredible to me given the genre to which it belongs.