MarioKart help needed!

[MeanMrMustardSeed]

I can not be the only parent being thrashed at mariokart by my two primary aged children every day of lockdown! Please give me your top tips to help me up my game. I prefer to be Yellow Yoshi, but would another character help me be faster? Should I use certain vehicles and wheels? How can I best use the things I get in question mark cubes?

All advice gratefully received! Or commiserations from fellow losers! Thank you!

Lots of practice on higher speeds than you play on against them.

I am always Peach as I can’t resist a crown, but I am told on good authority by our resident expert that you need to be one of the heavier characters like Bowser or Donkey Kong! There are websites dedicated to which are the best vehicle/wheel combinations - people have spent far too much time thinking about this! Good luck!

Have you got the smart steering on, it helps to start with. Also don’t go too fast as you fall off the track. slow and steady as the front runners often get hit by a shell

Thanks - my children are always dry bowser - now I know why! Will look into smart steering - thank you!

I swear by Rosalina on the scooter thing with aqua rollers. And smart steering on.

I always turn the smart steering off - I go much faster without it!

What got me fast enough to beat DH was learning to drift on the corners, and doing tricks on the jumps. Both things give you a speed boost.

I’m always wario so being bigger I can crush and knock people

Following with interest as this has become our daily family game after dinner. After four weeks I’ve gone from 12th in every race to 7th or 8th so quite pleased with myself but DCs and DH are nearly always 1st, 2nd and 3rd. I’m always Lemmy but looks like I need to change character!

Be sure to 'skid' around the corners for a speed boost😂

Practice moo moo meadows over and over after they go to bed. I like yoshi too but yep bowser might be better for you.

Dry Bones on the bullet bike!! start accelerating just before the green light is my only tip.

I love playing MarioKart with my children too. They are 11 and 13. I never win. We are re-playing the entire Mario 3D World on the Wii.

Practise when they are asleep 😉

I didn't realise playing as different characters made a difference. I always play as Toad just because I think he is cute. I am pretty rubbish and crash far too much. I think that's my terrible driving rather than my little man Toad !

My DH always plays as bowser and he ALWAYS wins!

What console? Guessing not an N64, but every level on that version had a cheat which guaranteed you to win. Not that I condone cheating, but maybe there are some shortcuts....

I think this is my favourite ever Mumsnet thread!

Not many tips, but as said above, accelerate before the light goes green. Get some practice in for how long you can go before, too early and your wheels spin and you can't start.
Also, really try to learn the tracks and find any shortcuts, some levels do have them.

You start accelerating right after the second beep, if you time it right you get a boost. Also press the drift button when you go off a ramp, you also get a boost then too. Find shortcuts but it might not let you use these with smart steering on

Agreed. Favourite Mumsnet thread. Total plus side of lockdown right here!

and always go for the double boxes to get 2 items.

Also avoid being in first place until the last lap, otherwise all of the homing shells get you! Stay just behind.

Power drifting! When taking a corner, press L or R so the cart "hops" and you need to steer slightly differently to counter-act the drift so you don't go off course. You'll see small sparks under your wheels, then let go of L/R to get a speed boost. You can do it multiple times in longer curves. Takes a bit of practise but gets much easier with time.

The heaviest characters like Bowser have the best speed and if you can get a head start then it's much harder for others to catch up. Good for racetracks that are relatively spread out or ones you're confident in. Tighter tracks with loads of items are not great as the low acceleration will trap you if you get hit too many times. Personally prefer a mid-weight character like Link or Peach with a good balance of speed and acceleration. Very light characters like Isabelle/Toadette/BabyBowser are no good. The fast acceleration is good for recovering from hits but the slow top-speed means you can never maintain pole position.

I spent far too much time playing MK online and noticed the best players are always heavyweight characters due to top-speed. Getting a head start is the best strategy (never drop back on purpose despite blue shell threat). If you manage to stay 1st or 2nd place for at least one lap then chances are you will win. Chances of getting hit by a blue shell are far lower.

I swear by Dry Bones or Toad on the bullet bike.

You can start accelerating as soon as the two on the countdown starts to fade and move off quicker.

I play on the wii and find if I jerk the control on ramps I get a boost.

I also hold down the button so that I hold a banana or shell behind me until I’m ready to use it. Takes out people driving into the back of you and means you can still pick up boxes.

I love this thread. That is all.

I'm always green Yoshi. I love Yoshi.
DH is always Mario, and usually wins tbh. DS is always Link, and sometimes wins. DD is often toad and sometimes wins.
I win least, but when I do it's spectacular.
I find some courses easier than they do for some reason- the one on the underground is the one I'm best at.