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Since everyone seems to be talking about GTA IV and only GTA IV, I figured I'd throw out my initial thoughts on the latest Mario Kart.

- The new items...not so much. I hate the POW box, as I hate any weapon that can't be blocked. I just get annoyed every time I see it pop above my head, and I don't even get a sense of sadistic glee from using it. What's up with that? The Big Mushroom...meh. I really haven't seen it used effectively yet, and whenever I get it I just turn big and usually fall off of a cliff. The Thundercloud is the only semi-interesting item, but it takes too long to go off.

- The new tracks...big yes. They all have the legit feel of classic Mario Kart courses, and add plenty of new mechanics to the already solid gameplay. The ramps are sweet, and the extra boost you get for hopping up them is a nice plus. Adds a little more variation in the way you can drive the tracks. Plus, the tracks they brought back are all totally sweet, minus the fact that they didn't port rainbow road from the SNES. C'mon guys, that was my jam.

- Bikes - they don't seem too different from the karts in feel. The ability to do wheelies for a boost (while sacrificing control and stability) is nice, and does add some freshness to the racing. Other than that, I really haven't used them much, so I can't really comment.

- Online is way sweet. No lag, easy and fast connections, and lots of hectic battles. We swapped codes with our friends, entered them in, and were instantly racing online. No voice chat kind of stinks, but I don't expect that from the Wii, so I can let it pass.

So far the game is solid. Nothing really groundbreaking, but if you love Mario Kart, you'll love this game as it hit all those familiar notes.

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