Grabbed Punch-Put for Wii!!

I got 2 more nunchuks for my Wii for Christmas as gifts, which totaled 4. I could not think of a good reason to keep all 4. The only thing I know that I could use 4 nunchuks for would be Wii Sports Resort Archery and you don't actually use them simultaneously, so I decided to exchange them for a game.

2 Nunchuks in Store Credit + $10 = Punch-Out as my newest game!

I played it a bit the first night, and tried with nunchucks and with turning the wii-mote sideways. Using just the remote seemed more intuitive because of the buttons one needed to push and leaning with the joystick on the nunchuck, much different then boxing on Wii Sports. I have not tried with balance board yet, I will do that soon.

I breezed through the minor cirucuit, and cruised pretty easily until I got to Great Tiger fight, it took me like 6 tries to beat him. So far a fun play, I look forward to trying the multi-player feature when some friends are over. More to come on this game.

Also, I decided that I really need a Call of Duty Game for Wii, so I am actively bidding on Wii titles on ebay to get a good deal on one.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

I knew it. I was just playing the New Super Mario Bros. Wii last night and kept dying in places trying to get those gold coins. Now dying for a reason makes more sense when going for these coins.

So far, only passing 2 worlds I give this game a 4.5 out of 5 star rating. It has the classic Super Mario Brothers game play, with new and updated multi-player aspects where you can play up to 4 players on the same screen at once, and new super powers you can get within the game that are cool too like Ice Power vs. Fire Power.

Also something to note, is that you can play with the remote sideways like the classic game, or you can attach your numchuck. I've only tried out the classic way, so I'm not quite sure of the benefits yet for using the numchuck.

Some of the new game play aspects are a little difficult at first to figure out, especially if you're playing multi-player. So I agree with Hellabass that you will definitely get a lot further playing on your own.

Definitely stay tuned for when we find the hidden treasures that are still placed at random points within each level. I think this game is a much needed homerun for Nintendo Wii.

Christmas Update

Jacon & I both got New Super Mario Bros. Wii for Christmas, so that will be the talk of the day for awhile on the blog. We both have dabbled a bit solo and played some multi-player. It's much easier and more productive to play by yourself, but it is still quite fun playing with others, just don't take it to seriously. ("That's what she said!") I would consider saving one of your save file blocks just for multi-player with your friends and family.

My biggest initial question was, what are the Special Gold Star Coins for?
Based on a little reasearch, you need to collect them all to open a secret 9th world when you finish the first 8 worlds, so if you are cruising through the game and not getting all the stars, at some point you will probably want to circle back and nab those coins!

As family, we also got the Wii Fit expansion pack, we have not opened it yet, but stay tuned for reports.

Wii Sports Resort - Downplayed Hype - Still Worth it!, Buy it!

Jacon's Review -- Downplayed Hype - Still Worth it!, Buy it!

Okay so I don't quite own the game yet, but from the 10-15 minutes worth of playing I already know that this game could most likely be a homerun. 

My only real concern is that Nintendo Wii is not promoting this game like they should be. 

Not even 6 months ago it was a rat race to Target or Best Buy to snatch up the 10 new Wii Fit's or Mario Kart's that came in on the new truck, but for some reason this game doesn't seem to have the similar "hype" around it like the other games. I'm not sure if it is just the timing and that they should have waited for the Christmas season or if this is a sign of the economy - however, I think Nintendo needs to use their own pointers from the past and promote this game some more, so that the lonely 10-15 games that I saw on the shelf the other day get purchased and played.

That said....as I wrote above, this game is pretty cool. It involves the Wii Motion Plus Remote Control, which attaches to the bottom of your current controller and comes with the game when you purchase it. 

This controller enables more "real like" game play. For example, earlier today I was playing a basketball 3-pointer game and it was more challenging since you have to actually hold the controller and shoot the basketball as if you were shooting a real basketball....so no more sitting on the couch while bowling..(yeah I've gotten lazy lately when it comes to that game). 

However I think this is genious on Nintendo's part. It brings a more interesting and challenging aspect into the simple games that everyone loves. I think this game will catch on eventually, but might need the help of some heavy promotion. 

Also interesting is that the game comes with a new jacket/sleeve for your remote, since the motion plus piece will not fit in a standard wii remote jacket....This will most likely cause some new cool Wii Accessories to come out on the market as well...we'll have to keep our eye out for those to see how they accommodate Wii Sports Resort and other games that utilize the Wii Motion Plus. 

Stay tuned for a full review on Wii Sports Resort when I purchase it in the next few weeks. But for now.... Jacon's review is Downplayed Hype - Still Worth it!, Buy it!

Jacon Strikes Yoga Poses

It's been a long time since I have posted any entries here, honestly I have been too busy fishing. Expect me to get back to playing my Wii this winter again. Until then, check out these great Standing Tree Yoga poses by Jacon!

My buddy even borrowed me Tiger Woods 2009 and still have not even tried it! Other then, I have participated in a few games of Mario Party 8, maybe Jacon can give his tips for success at that game, he seems to win most of the time!

Crazy Wii Girl Strikes Again!

I know the video quality is terrible, its from my phone, but it is still funny to watch her almost fall off the Wii Fit Board trying to trick off of ramps while playing Shaun White Snowboarding - Road Trip

Next time I will be ready with my better digital camera! So far this game has been pretty fun!

Worth it!!

I have been toying with the idea of buying component cables for my Wii to connect to my HDTV, rather then the standard AV Cables that the unit comes with. I have had several different packages in my had, whether it be from Best Buy, Target or GameStop, but never quite pulled the trigger.

One of my co-workers got the GameStop brand and said it was amazing the difference for many of his games. End of last week, I came across a deal on eBay that seem to good to be true. I got a pair for $6.99 Free Shipping. For $7, I was willing to take the chance.

They came in the mail yesterday, I tried them out on Super Mario Galaxy and Mario Kart.....

All I can say is... WOW!! Totally worth it, if you have a Wii and HDTV, get the component cables, makes the gaming experience so much better!

Circus Games - Jacon's Review

Circus Games

Published by Ubisoft

Released in October 2008

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars

This game seemed harmless enough when purchasing it about 2 months ago.

It was on sale at Target for 29.99 down from 39.99 (should've figured the price was lowered for a reason), and since we enjoyed playing Carnival Games, we decided to purchase it and give it a try.

It only took about 2 minutes to realize Circus Games was the worst game to date that I have purchased for Nintendo Wii. It only has 20 mini-games to choose from, and no competitive aspect to it. You basically just play each game against each other with no score keeping at all.

The non-competitiveness is actually not the worst part. The graphics are worse than a regular Playstation game. and the load time might be slower than a PS1 game as well- taking way longer than usual to load each aspect of the game.

The size of the gameplay is what is really mind boggling as well. You can't even read what is on the screen. You basically just have to guess what you're clicking on. You can really tell that this game was rushed to market without paying attention to the necessary details that make a game enjoyable to everyone.

So moral of this story is to make sure to research a Wii game that you are not familiar with, and to not just purchase a game because it is on sale.

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars - Do not Buy!

Check back often to http://nintendowiigamesmariokart.blogspot.com/ for more Wii Game Reviews.

Old Games are Still FUN!!!

I will let this hilarious Wii Sports Boxing video do all the talking!!!

Two New Games!

Since eBay was so good to me last time I wanted a new game, I started prowling around on for some good deals on two other games that I wanted.

I was able to get a brand new in the plastic wrap Shaun White Snowboarding - Road Trip for $27 shipped, what a great deal, save me over $15 off of retail when you count tax & gas to go get the game.

I also score a very lightly used copy of Super Mario Galaxy for $28 & change, a solid $10 savings off of what a used copy would go for at GameStop or other.

So the moral of the story, is check eBay for your game needs and come back to learn more about these games as I play them!!!

Other games I am considering are:

Call of Duty

Zelda

Madden

Tiger Woods 09

Do any of you have any good Wii game recommendations?

Carnival Games -- Good way to pass the time

Saturday night we were over at some friends and were playing wii sports bowling. I hadn't played in a while, since once you start getting games that are more robust, you sort of forget about wii sports. After a few games of bowling we were all kind of tired. 

We broke out Carnival Games, which is basically a bunch of mini-games (similar to Mario Party mini-games) that you would see at a Carnival. It's actually pretty fun, easy, and entertaining. There are a bunch of mini-games such as frog toss, dunk tank throw, ring toss, skee ball, etc...

It's definitely a good game to buy for the family, to add to your mix of wii nintendo games. It is something a little different than other games for when you want to play a more low-key but still competitive game. The graphics are good, and the gameplay stays interesting throughout most of it. It's also nice, that you don't get stuck in a long game, you could play 3-4 mini-games and decide to stop playing without feeling like you are quitting in the middle of something. 

Slip stream past your opponents

Slip streaming your opponent allows you to pass by them in a boost like style.

What is Slip Streaming??? Its like drafting and sling shotting in NASCAR, drive your kart or bike directly behind your opponents until you see blue blue/green lines begin to appear. Stay behind for even longer and eventually you will get a kind of bubble around your kart or bike which will then let you zip past your opponents.

The slip stream then lasts for a few more seconds and is similar to having a boost. Be careful when using a light character and bike combo though, because hitting heavier characters can throw you off course. Also, slip stream boosts in weird places such as in tight corners and around ledges can get you in to trouble and having you boost when you don't need it....

Linked In

Super Smash Bros. Brawl came in from the UPS yesterday, so after the rest of the family went to bed, I fired up the game. I had spent a bit of time reading through the manual, so I knew some of the controls before I started. I had never played any of the other Smash Bros. games on previous systems, so I came in pretty green.

I fired it up and selected Link as my character. I spent 10 or 15 minutes in the practice area, working on my moves against a defenseless Birdo. Then spent a few minutes with a single and two Birdos fighting back. I was now ready for some real game play.

In the solo mode, I pretty much breezed through the Normal difficulty, and only had to use one continue. Overall, I had fun, I think there is more fun to come, just need to dig in a bit. Not sure if its not that tough, Link is a bad ass or if I am a natural at Smash Brothers, more to come....

New Game!

I have been eyeing up Super Mario Smash Bros. for my Wii console. I have never played it or any of the predecessors, but I have read & heard a lot of good things about it. So I been snooping around ebay of late trying to find a good deal on this game.

I had looked at Game Stop and their used version was still $45, which is only a 10% savings, which I think says this is a good game if they can charge that much. And good Wii games never go on sale.

Yesterday at work, I finally won for what i wanted to pay, $26 shipped for Super Mario Smash Bros. on ebay, I feel good about this find! More to come on the game play and what I think of it. I am sure I will have Jacon over to play, we can report on our head to head results.

Speaking of head to head results, I beat Jacon quite regularly in head to head on Mario Kart :)

I also have been bidding on Zelda & Call of Duty games on ebay as well.

Get back on your wheels quickly

There is nothing quite as irritating as getting bumped off the track or POW'd as you approach a jump and you slide off into an abyss. While good drivers stay clear of falling off tracks, there are certain times that it is inevitable and out of your control.

So the next question is, how do you minimize the effects of when you are unfairly removed from the track by your competitors??

When are being dropped back on the track by Lakitu (the cloud guy), hit & hold the acceleration button at the exact time you hit the track and you will get a nice turbo boost to help you get back to full speed and minimize time lost.

Good Racing!!

Not so Wii Fit

I've owned Wii Fit for a week now. My initial startup age was 33, which I didn't think was that bad. Tonight was the first time I dove into all the categories of the game, other than just the balance games - which for me are the most fun.

I focused on a lot of the strength exercises, and quickly realized how out of shape I was. The push-up side plank exercise is going to leave me sore at work tomorrow for sure. It was pretty interesting doing a push-up on the wii fit board, but surprisingly worked pretty well. The side plank part of the push-up is what I'm going to feel tomorrow.

The other exercise that's going to leave me sore was the leg lunges, I haven't gotten that good of a leg work-out since I was in track in high-school. I like how it counts your reps for you, which really makes it so you can't cheat out of that last rep, not matter how much you want to.

I really think that if you are someone who doesn't like going to the gym, but still wants to work out, that the Wii Fit is definitely something you should try. It really works a lot of different core muscle groups, from Abs, to legs, to arms, all within one work out, and the game comes with your own personal trainer.

Mashing Buttons Locks in your Items Faster!

Have you ever been racing along, grabbed an item box, waiting for your item to lock in & get shot by a red shell before you get locked in??? Is the computer just trying to cheat you or do your competitors know something you don't?

Once you have picked up an item, repeatedly tapping the B or Left direction pad on the Wii wheel (left trigger on the Game Cube controller), will make locking in on the next item you get, much quicker. Careful not to press to many time or you fill deploy your new toy before you are ready. This is very useful if you know that one of your friends behind you has a Red Shell, or it could be useful for firing a shell quickly before the person in front of you locks in or if you think someone is about to win a race!

Hopefully you can surprise a few of your friends with this little trick!

Wii Fit Rules

After much anticipation, and months of waiting...I finally am the proud owner of Wii Fit.

It was seemingly sold out everywhere, and going for higher than normal prices online. Until one fateful day, we were shopping at Best Buy, and there was one sitting in the middle of the aisle on the floor. We instantly ran to it and picked it up.

If you are in the market for a Wii Fit, I would say your best bet, is to go to Best Buy everyday. jk. But if you're serious, you almost kind of have to. It's a decent amount of money, I think we paid $90 bucks or so for ours. So don't settle for paying double than that online.

Also, I asked the manager at Target when they normally get them in, and they usually get bigger shipments in on Sundays, and they said the Wii Fits are sold out after just a few hours.

So if you really want to get your hands on a wii fit, either stalk your neighborhood Best Buy, or camp out at Target on Saturday night...or you can just leave it up to chance, since sooner or later, you're bound to find one while casually browsing at the store like we did.

Started with a Wii Fit Age = 33
Looking forward to unlocking all the different levels, I'll keep updates on my Wii Fit Progress and anything cool I encounter.

Hoarding Item Boxes Helps

Typically you can drag one item (shell or banana, etc) behind you and have another up in your queue box upper left of you screen. When you hit items boxes it makes them disappear but you get no more items. You should still drive over them when you can....

It takes a bit for them to refresh, so by you grabbing it, that is one less item box for someone to grab behind you to get a bullet, star, red shells and all that goofy stuff. It will help you keep your lead. Also, if you are taking your normal fast line and grabbing the easiest ones, your fellow competitors may need to take wider corner or line, which will slow them down more to grab an item box.

You can also drop items behind you as you approach them to make room for new items, so you still keep the same number of items but not you have dropped some trash for them to work around or hit when trying to get their items. Often racers take similar lines, so you can throw them off by hoarding the easy boxes.

The only downside, is that Bananas & shells are good shields when dragged, if you drop a green shell and then end up with a fake dummy box, you lose your shield, so keep that in mind as you plan your item drop & grab strategy. Maybe it will help you keep the lead against your friends or gain you a few precious points on the WFC!

Beat The Game - Credits Roll - Why Wait?

When you finally beat the Lightning Cup and the credits start rolling, the peaceful mario music starts playing and it appears that you have to wait the 3-5 minutes or so for all the credits to roll, until it goes back to the main menu.


Some of us might go make a snack, or take some time to write a blog, maybe go outside and see the sun for 5 minutes...

However, if you just press the '+ button' on your wii remote, it skips through all the credits and brings you to the congratulations menu where your mii is standing there, then it shows what you opened such as a new kart or character. So to ensure you can continue right back into your Mario Kart playing just press +

Rosalina is Finally Mine!!!

Sunday afternoon I started playing Mario Kart with only the Mirror Special Cup to get a Star Ranking on and Rosalina would finally be mine. Since I was successful with Bowser Jr (not sure why, he is not really fast, quick or stable) & the Super Blooper, I decided to try it again. After about 3 tries, I won the cup with 60pts, had raced pretty clean and had not used much for Super Weapons.

I anxiously clicked through the screens and waited to see if I would get a letter rank or the Star I so desperately sought after.... That split second seemed to take forever, then there it was, a single STAR!!!!

After the obnoxious ending, the game reboots, I click on my license and finally Rosalina is MINE!!!!

I also went into my License details and saw the Star in place of the "A" that I had for so long on my Overall ranking. So it took me a total of 1305 races to get Rosalina. All using the Wii remote and all on Automatic Settings.

Since then I have jumped online and done a little WFC racing, just to see the Star next to my name online, got my WFC Ranking up to 7002 just last night.

So what is left..... Well I plan to put on an assault against my friends Time Trials and try to best all their times so I am leading on Mario Channel among my friends and to keep pushing my score up on WFC. Also, I would eventually like to add that 2nd or 3rd star next to my name on WFC!!

Maybe we should have a pool to see how long before, my Blog Co-Authour, Jacon can get Rosaline????

The Mario Kart Effect

First of all, I want to congratulate my fellow blogger on beating all the mirror modes with a star rating, which now leads me to a little phenomena called "The Mario Kart Effect".

For those of you who play Mario Kart, and are old enough to drive, you might already know what I'm talking about. For those of you who aren't as obsessed with playing Mario Kart as us, read on.

After spending a few hours last weekend playing Mario Kart, we were driving home from our friend's house when out of nowhere I get cut off by another driver. I instinctively pulled the trigger (aka windshield wipers), to try and throw a red shell at the driver, and then remembered I wasn't playing Mario Kart, but actually driving a real car.

This also happens if I play Mario Kart before going to bed. The next morning on my drive to work, "The Mario Kart Effect" will hit me without notice, someone will cut me off, and I will throw my banana I'm eating for breakfast out the window at that car. Just kidding, haven't done that yet, but you think that you want to throw it at them.

So, if your driving and you see a turtle shell fly past your car, you're either
a.) playing Mario Kart or b.) Someone's taken "The Mario Kart Effect" to the next level.

Closing in on Rosalina...

Friday night I played a little Kart before bed. I kept on playing the Star Mirror cup with my Mii and Super Blooper, kept getting A ranks, so close, finally I started switching characters and bikes to change things up. Finally with Bowser Jr and the Super Blooper, Star status was attained, then went on WFC and got my score up to 6800+. Overall pretty productive evening.

Saturday afternoon we spent some time on our Wii Fit with the family, after that since the Wii was warm, I slid in the Mario Kart disc. I used Funky Kong and the Flame Runner bike to get a star on the Lightning Mirror cup after about 5 trys.

Then some friends came over, we played some Super Mario Party 8. After they left, I fired up Mario Kart again. On my second try with Bowser Jr & Super Blooper I won the Special Mirror cup, but I only got an A rank, with 52pts, very close.

After the win, there was a special ending and a different commemorative photo. That also unlocked the Large Phantom Bike. So now I have everything unlocked except Rosalina. I just need to get that Star Rank on the final Special Mirror Mode cup. That will also give me a star next to my name when I race online. Who knows, maybe tonight I will get it done....

Crazy Video Mario Kart Glitches

Very little of this video is useful, but still fun to watch if you have played much Mario Kart Wii. The Dodging blue shell stuff is kind of useful and might be a shortcut on Warios Goldmine also.

Makes you wonder how much free time this person has....

Tempted by Snowboard Riot

Usually the WiiWare releases do not interest me much, but Snowboard Riot looks like fun. After unlocking the Snowboard Balance game on my Wii Fit, which is a simple but fun game in which you turn your Wii fit board 90 degrees and slalom through a time trial course.

Wii Fit Snowboard Screen Shot

Shaun White's Snowboarding looks very cool but that is $50! Snowboard Riot is $10 (1000pts) and has an online feature which looks really fun. Here is the description of Snowboard Riot.

It's snowboarding plus weapons. Enough said.
This snowboard racing and
battle game can be enjoyed by multiple players and is compatible with the Wii
Balance Board. In an intense scramble for first place, guide your character down
the slopes while snatching up items to attack and defend against rivals on the
way! Up to four players can battle and participate in various ranking modes via
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection!

Snowboard Riot Screenshot

Stay tuned to see if I get this WiiWare title, if you have it, leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Succesful Kart Sunday

I really did not race much Mario Kart this weekend as I was too busy following the live Internet coverage of the Bassmaster Classic. There was kind of a lull in action on Sunday morning, so I fired up my Wii console.

I had been trying to get a star on the Banana Mirror Cup, this time it I got a star on my first attempt with Toadette and her Magikruiser. So naturally I attempted to tackle the Leaf cup and got a star on my first attempt at that using Funky Kong and the Flame Runner. So with that win, I unlocked the Jet Bubble Bike for small characters.

Since things were going so smoothly this fine morning, I took a shot at the Lightning Cup with the Funky Kong / Flamer Runner combo. I won it, but I think I only got a B Rank. The win still unlocked the Blue Falcon Kart, which I can use with medium characters like my Mii.

The only things left to unlock are the Phantom Bike (Win Special Cup Mirror) and Rosalina (Stars still needed on Mirror Star, Special, Lightning), hopefully later this week!

Avoiding or Defending Against POW Blocks

Eluding or minimizing the effects of the POW Block is probably one of the best tricks you can master when racing WFC or Grand Prix mode, especially when you start to try to get Stars on 150cc or Mirror Mode Cups.

There are actually a few ways to defend against POW Block in Mario Kart Wii:

1. In automatic mode when using the wheel, by flicking the remote/wheel up on the third pound (or shaking it wildly after the second). You'll still spin out, but you'll keep your momentum, meaning you can stay in the race! The small blue shockwave that will appear under you will indicate that you've escaped.


2. Driving in manual mode on the 3rd pound, hit the right trigger with the game cube controller ('B' on the Wii Wheel) to hop off the ground. Note that you have to be moving to hop, otherwise your vehicle will try and reverse, because this button has two functions. What this essentially does, its make your character hop off the ground and therefore dodge the power of the POW.

The timing on the first two of these take a little while to master but it is definitely worth it!

3. You can also avoid the hit if you're in midair after launching off a ramp or other big jump. Note Anything that is off the ground when a POW hits will not be effected by it. So half pipe jumps, ramps, cannons, etc. There is not much skill to this, more luck of timing.

Learn these techniques and you will be winning many more races!

Lastly, I would like to recognize and welcome my new co-author Jacon (Jason). He will be helping me add fresh and frequent content on Mario Kart and other Wii titles.

Jacon Joins the Game

150cc - A lot harder than I thought it'd be. After boycotting Mario Kart for the past few days, (after almost throwing my wii remote at the TV for the 3rd time), I'm back in the game.
I was playing WFC on saturday night, and got my butt kicked and many of the points I had accrued stripped from my license.

I'm still in the stages of opening up characters and new karts/bikes.
When I first started playing mario kart wii, I didn't like using the bike.
However, that was until I found out how sweet it was, being able to basically power boost just about anywhere, enables you to be able to finish a race at your best. Now, all I use tends to be the bike, depending on the level of course.

Stay tuned for my Mario Kart journey...

My Mii got a new ride!

Monday night I took my Mii Outfit A with his Super Blooper and rung up a star on 150cc Flower Cup, so then I moved onto the Star cup. On the first attempt I was able to take the Gold but only got an A Rank, so I will have to take another crack at getting a Star Rank on this cup. But the win did unlock the Dolphin Dasher, which is a medium bike.

I then took it for a spin and re-raced the Star Cup, I won but actually got a D rank that time. It handled really well but was kind of slow. I think the old Dolphin Dasher could be decent bike, but it may take some getting use to.

Saturday Night Jetsetter

Friday night I was able to get stars on the 150cc Shell, Banana, and Leaf cups. I took one attempt at the Lightning Cup, failed and got tired. So Saturday night, I sat down determined to get that Star. On about my 3rd try with the combo of Funky Kong on the Flame Runner I got a 2 star score.




I actually used the Funky/Flame combo on all 150cc Retro cups except for the Banana, for that I raced Toadette on the Magikruiser bike. That combo seems to be best on off road, so it seems to good for that set of 4 tracks.


So at this point, I have at least one star on all the tracks I had raced, so I went on the WFC to see if I had a star next to my name. Nope!!! Guess I need to get stars on the Mirror cups as well. I got a single star on the Mushroom cup with Peach in the Super Blooper before I raced some friends in Regional WFC. Got my score up to around 6600 before bed.

Dry Bowser is Mine!!!!

Last night I finished getting stars on the 150cc Wii Cups, so last night I got the Star Cup in a single try and it took about a half dozen attempts at the Special Cup.

So my formula was the following for each Wii Cup Circuit:

Mushroom Cup - Diddy Kong with Mach Bike

Flower Cup - Peach with with Super Blooper

Star Cup - Mii with Super Blooper

Special Cup - Mii with Super Blooper

All this was with Automatic drift. Overall the bikes seem to be faster and I like to wheelie, but I was just getting pushed off the tracks too much with the bike, going with a quick kart seem to help with that respect. You can win and get stars with just about any character, this just worked for me.

So here is Dry Bowser, he is very bad ass looking and makes cool noises when you drive him. Now I just need to dig into the Retro 150CC cups, which I think are a little easier and open the Jetsetter. Then also I should have stars on all tracks that I have raced, so I then should have a star next to my name online. I have unlocked Mirror Mode but have not raced. I am resisting the temptation so that I can get the star rating and then just get one star at a time in Mirror Mode to preserve that ranking.

Over the weekend

I did not play much Mario Kart this weekend. Too much fishing and not much Wii, wait, there is never too much fishing. I did also play some Wii Sport and Wii Fit along with a little Mario Kart. I did get a Star Rank on my 150cc Mushroom cup on Saturday night and did a little time trialing. I also played some 50cc and turned some single stars into double stars, man 50cc seems slow after you have played 150cc

We had some friends over and played some 3 player Kart, which is a lot of fun, but I need a bigger TV for that. Hope to get more wheel time this week.

I just bagged Rapala Fishing Frenzy

I just picked up a new bass fishing game for the Nintendo Wii. Its the new Rapala Fishing Frenzy game. I thought this would help me get through another long winter. Check out the trailer for the game....


Also, I got a few screen shots for you to look at....





I have not had time to actually play it, but I did open the box, its nice that it comes with an adapter to fit the existing Wii controller, so you do not have to actually buy a specific controller for this game, a big plus in my book.

As soon as things slow down and cool off outside, I will fire it up and give a full review!!!!

Rich

Getting back into it & Star Ranking Info

Last night I sat down for a quick hour of Mario Kart. I as able to take my Mii character and the sneakster bike and breeze through the 100cc Retro cups (Shell, Banana, Leaf & Lightning Cups) and get 2 stars on the first three circuits and one star on the Lightning Cup. That unlocked Bowser Jr. I then spent a few minutes playing GBA Shy Guy Beach time trial and shaved about 3 secs off in two attempts. So I believe I am right around 1:33, which said it was an A rank, pretty close to beating the fast staff ghost.

This is the commemorative picture you can send to your message board after you complete and win all the cups!

More on Star Rankings and how to get them:

The following are requirements to get a "One Star", "Two Star", or "Three Star" rank:

Get a final score of 53 or better.
Lead most of the laps.
Stay in first place for a good period of time.
Do a lot of tricks on ramps and other jumps.
Avoid having to use Bullet Bills to catch up. (I have recieved a single star & used a single bullet)

Have overall fast completion time & avoid walls and other obstacles.
Use lots of techniques such as wheelies, avoiding POW Blocks, etc.
Do not fall off edges too much (one or two times is acceptable). If you get hit by a few Blue Shells and still win, this indicates that you are resistant and will probably have a high rank.
A perfect 60 is required for a "Three Star" rank. A "Two Star" rank ranges from 55 to 60. A "One Star" rank is 53 to 60 with most or all of these requirements.

Trying to decide if I want to work on my time trial times or start getting stars on the 150cc cups....

What do you think?

My own Mario Kart progress

On Friday night, I finally unlocked all the expert staff ghosts and unlocked my 2nd Mii outfit, I must say my Mii looks very good in overalls.

Time to go back and finish getting at least one star in all the 100cc Retro Cups to unlock Bowser Jr. Hopefully tomorrow night I will have some time to get into a Kart groove. Then onto getting stars on the 150cc.

I think it would be really cool to have a star or two next to my name during online WFC matches! If one gets one star in every Grand Prix cup, he or she will have one star by his or her name during online play. Similarly, if one gets two stars in every Grand Prix cup, he will have two stars by his name, and so on.

The Quest continues....

Automatic vs. Manual - Mario Kart Wii

This is probably one of the biggest question when it comes to serious Mario Kart drivers and one beginners actually ponder about when they first start racing. So what really is the difference & which is better?

Well, first off, manual and automatic have nothing to do with shifting, it actually refers to drifting. From what I understand, drifting has always been manual on previous Mario Kart, where you hold a button into a turn to create a drift until the sparks behind your kart change colors and you let go and get a speed burst. So new to Nintendo Wii is the Automatic drift, so Karts & Bikes automaticly drift into corners. From what I have read, Automatic turns and drifts a little better and faster to compensate for the lack of speed boosts, trying to make them somewhat equal.

You drift by holding the "B" or trigger on the back of the remote or wii wheel when going into and holding during a turn. First you will get blue sparks from kart & bikes, when you let go of B out of the turn, you will get a speed burst. For Karts, if you can hold the drift longer, you will get orange sparks and get an even bigger burst of speed. I think karts get that to make up for lack of speed bursts that bikes can get from wheelies.

The purists will tell you that Automatic is for "noobs" and beginners and that its no fun to drive in automatic and some automatic users will tell you there are just as good with Automatic when racing against manual racers.

For the most part, I have done most of my racing on Automatic setting. I have managed to unlock nearly all the staff ghosts and beat a few expert ghosts so far with Automatic (not spent much time doing so) and have an online WFC rating of 6400+ which is not great but respectable.

Its my opinion for all out speed, manual is faster, thus all but one world record comes from manual racres, Moonview Highway being the one exception. So if you are trying to really nail down time trials, manual will be the way to go in the long run.

As far as Grand Prix and WFC racing, I think Automatic can work very well. There are many more variables when playing with other players that may limit the benefits of manual and automatic may have some benefits, so try them out, use what works best for you!!

Below is a video of a guy somebody using their mii character in a wild wing kart on Luigi Circuit demonstrating the drift

Fun Wii Sports Bowling Trick

Just trying to add some variety the Mario Kart info, there will be plenty more Mario Kart info to come, don't' worry ;) This is to show you how to throw your bowling backwards and get a reaction from the crowd.

This especially fun when you have some friends over to show off a bit, you can roll your bowl backwards and make all the miis in the crowd jump, kind of fun. Below is a YouTube video of it


Basically you just let go of the trigger on your back swing and it should work for you, I was able to do it on my first try. Plus, it let's you re-throw, so you can show off during a game and it will not effect your scoring!

Racing Tricks & Tips for Mario Kart

So now you are racing, having fun, but trying to get a leg up in the Grand Prixs or on the WFC, here are a few trips to help you post more wins.

Get a Quick Boost from the Starting Line

Ever wondered how some players get a boost at the start of every race in Mario Kart Wii? By pressing and holding the accelerate button ("2" on the Wii remote) right when the number "2" on the countdown is disappearing, or watch his hand when its at about 11 o'clock position as he says 2.

Get a Boost After Returning from a Fall

In some cases, falling off the edge of a course in Mario Kart Wii can quickly send a player from first to last place. In order to make falls a little less painful to their position in a race, players can press the accelerate button ("2" on the Wii remote) at the exact moment they hit the ground upon returning to the course. This provides a temporary boost.

Do a Special Trick, Get a Temporary Boost

One of the best ways to the move to the front of the pack in Mario Kart Wii -- or to cut some seconds off one's Time Trial time -- is to do a special trick after any jump or bump in the road in Mario Kart Wii. This can be done by lifting up the Wii Wheel as one is going into mid-air. Special tricks aren't just for looks - they provide a temporary boost when one hits the ground.

Avoid Blue Shells

This is not that practical of a tip, because you rarely have a mushroom when in first. Blue shells (which cause the person in first place, and anyone around that player, to spin out of control) are one of the most annoying items in Mario Kart Wii. Fortunately, there is a solution -- if one is lucky enough to have a mushroom in his or her arsenal, using the mushroom at the exact moment before the blue shell would normally crush the player will allow the player to avoid the "dreaded blue shell." Also, if your time is right going though the cannons on a few of the boards can escape you from the shell as well. Another thing, sometimes you can slow down and let someone pass you and they will get hit or atleast get blown up by the explosion, so you share the pain.

Dodge POW Blocks

When players launch the "POW Block" power-up, most players will both spin out of control and lose their items. Though one will still lose items he or she does, one can prevent spinning out of control and thus losing speed by lifting up one's Wii controller (as if he or she were attempting a special trick) at the exact moment before the POW Block would normally hit the player.

Alternatively, those players in the middle of a long jump or a special trick will not be affected by the POW blocks.

Block Green and Red Shells

The people near the front of the pack get progressively worse power-ups -- generally, banana peels, green shells and red shells. However, one can use these weapons to his or her advantage by pressing and holding down the left or right direction button once one receives the power-up and, thus, dragging the weapon behind the kart or bike. This way, if one sends out a green or red shell at the player, the shell will be blocked.

Warning: Fake item boxes and bob-ombs can be dragged behind the player, but they do not block weapons. Instead, if the player is hit by a weapon, the player will then hit his own fake item box, or be blown up by her own bob-omb. You can also use the up or down button to throw most items forward or backwards.

Wipe out the Blooper's Ink

The blooper, one of the most annoying weapons originally introduced in Mario Kart DS and brought back in Mario Kart Wii, sprays ink on each player's vehicle, thus making it harder to see the screen. However, by activating a mushroom or hitting a boost in the road, one can wipe the ink off his or her screen.

Utilize these tips to dominate your friends!!!

Mario Kart Unlockables

So once you start playing you start winning a few Grand Prix tracks and the next thing you know you start getting new characters, new karts and new bikes to race with. Then you start seeing your friends or other people online with more & more characters and vehicles that you don't have and you wonder how get them..... Hmmmm...... Well, here is a map to unlock everything below.

Unlock all the Characters

14 characters in all can be unlocked in Mario Kart Wii, in addition to the 12 characters already available at the start of the game. The following characters can be unlocked by completing certain tasks:

• King Boo - Win the 50cc Star Cup


• Diddy Kong - Win the 50cc Retro Cups


• Mii (Outfit A) - Win the 100cc Special Cup


• Dry Bones - Win the 100cc Leaf Cup


• Daisy - Win the 150cc Special Cup


• Baby Daisy - Get 1 star in all 50cc Wii Cups


• Bowser Jr. - Get 1 star in all 100cc Retro Cups


• Dry Bowser - Get 1 star in all 150cc Wii Cups


• Rosalina - Get 1 star in all Mirror Mode Wii & Retro Cups (or, have a Super Mario Galaxy save file and complete 50 races)


• Birdo - Play 16 Time Trial Mode courses (or, win 250 WiFi matches)


• Toadette - Play 32 Time Trial Mode courses (or, win 1000 WiFi matches)


• Funky Kong - Unlock 4 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode


• Baby Luigi - Unlock 8 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode


• Mii (Outfit B) - Unlock 32 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode

Unlock all the Karts

Nine unlockable karts are also hidden within Mario Kart Wii:

• Piranha Prowler (large kart) - Win 50cc Special Cup


• Turbo Blooper (medium kart) - Win 50cc Leaf Cup


• Royal Racer (medium kart) - Win 150cc Leaf Cup


• Honeycoupe (large kart) - Win 150cc Lightning Cup


• Blue Falcon (small kart) - Win Mirror Mode Lightning Cup


• Cheep Charger (small kart) - Get 1 star in all 50cc Retro Cups


• Jetsetter (large kart) - Get 1 star in all 150cc Retro Cups


• Tiny Titan (small kart) - Unlock 1 Expert Staff Time in Time Trial Mode (or, win 50 WiFi matches)


• Sprinter (medium kart) - Unlock 24 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode

Unlock all the Bikes

Similarly, nine bikes can also be unlocked upon meeting certain requirements in Mario Kart Wii:

• Shooting Star (large bike) - Win 100cc Star Cup


• Zip Zip (medium bike) - Win 100cc Lightning Cup


• Quacker (small bike) - Win 150cc Star Cup


• Dolphin Dasher (medium bike) - Win Mirror Mode Star Cup


• Phantom (large bike) - Win Mirror Mode Special Cup


• Jet Bubble (small bike) - Win Mirror Mode Leaf Cup


• Sneakster (medium bike) - Get 1 star in all 100cc Wii cups


• Magikruiser (small bike) - Play 8 Time Trial Mode courses


• Spear (large bike) - Unlock 12 Expert Staff Times in Time Trial Mode

Unlock Mirror Mode

In addition to unlockable characters, karts and bikes, Nintendo also included an unlockable Grand Prix mode in Mario Kart Wii: Mirror Mode. To unlock Mirror Mode, one must place 1st in all races in the 150cc mode.

There are a few other ways to unlock some of these characters, for instance if just play online enough some of these characters can be unlocked as well. For instance you can unlock Rosaline by winning about 5000 races, or get Diddy Kong for a great value of 450 races. If you get all these done, you have put some serious time into the game. Also, you only unlock them for your license that you are playing.