TEST
We put on his best plumber's cap, we make the tires of his kart crunch and go! At the bottom of the balloons on the tracks filled with traps Mario Kart ! 27 years after the first game, it was on Super Nintendo, the cult series of racing games in the world of Mario continues to enthrall big and small children, good and bad players. And for the first time, she invites herself ... on mobile: Mario Kart Tour is available for a few days on all smartphones. The wait was strong: the game was downloaded 90 million times in a week!
The magic of Mario Kart in the palm of your hand
The fans are at the rendezvous, but does that make Mario Kart Tour a good game so far? Let's start by saying that if you like Mario Kart , you will not be homesick. We really find everything that made the success of the series. The characters first: the brothers Mario and Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi the little dinosaur, the adorable Toad with his mushroom head, the terrifying Bowser or the monkey Donkey Kong. All are in the game, even if it will unlock one after the other.
And then, there are some historical circuits of Mario Kart : the Jungle Dino Dino, the castle of Bowser, the beach Koopa ... So many circuits which made the happiness of the players of GameCube, DS and today of Switch, the Nintendo's latest console. They are today in the palm of our hand, even if they are not numerous enough for our taste. But other circuits should be added later. Finally, there is music, still groovy. It is to all this that we recognize a cult game: just a race to find his feelings and rejuvenate a few years.
Once on track, Mario Kart Tour requires a little time of adaptation. Without a joystick, you have to relearn how to drive without buttons or joystick. Everything is done on the finger, which limits the possibilities. The only choice available to the player is to turn with their finger or turn the phone to the right or left. To compensate, the steering has been simplified to the extreme: the kart accelerates alone, we skid automatically and it is almost impossible to get off the road. Handling is quite limited and that somewhat dampens our pleasure. Too bad, because otherwise the game is very pleasant. One just wonders why Nintendo opted for a vertical format without a virtual joystick.
To avoid going around in circles, you have to pay
Once we have done some shopping, Mario Kart Tour reveals its operation a complex hair. Behind a progression in the form of cuts of four circuits, as on the console versions, the game hides a rather aggressive system of integrated purchases. Mario Kart Tour is free to download but it adopts the economic model of games that need to pay for things and progress: we talk about "free-to-play". In this case, if you want to unlock all the characters, have the fastest karts or the most stylish, it will have to pay ... in hard currency.
It is important to specify that it is not mandatory to pay, it is quite possible to advance in the game without paying a dime. But it's long. Very long. To put it simply, to unlock more powerful and stylish characters and karts, you have to collect coins from the circuits. Except that at the rate of ten pieces per race, you have to play a lot to buy characters that sometimes cost 3000 pieces! Especially since Mario Kart Tour includes a limit to the number of coins accumulated per day. Vicious and not very fair.
Moreover, in addition to the pieces, Mario Kart Tour has added a level of complexity with the rubies, rewards offered to the trickle by the game and used to operate a "pipe" to rare gifts. Except that these rubies are very rare and this is where there is no alternative to the blue card. Even if there is still a need to buy rubies, the game multiplies the calls of the foot to induce the player to pay. To give you an idea: 10 rubies cost 6.99 euros and offer two random gifts and not necessarily very interesting (characters, whether you have them or not, karts, tickets to improve drivers and vehicles ...).
An outdated business model
But where Nintendo surprises even more is by offering packs and a subscription. Side pack, for 21.99 euros, you can offer 45 jewels (9 random gifts), Mario - which is paradoxically very difficult to obtain, and a star (accumulated, they unlock the cuts). It's very expensive for a virtual character who, basically, if he is iconic, does not go faster than another. In addition, Mario Kart Tour offers a monthly pass, the Gold Pass: for 5.99 euros per month, you have access to various rare rewards, additional challenges and the 200cc category (the fastest kart speed).
In short, Nintendo has planned integrated purchases for everyone, the hard-working player who absolutely wants to have all the characters and all the karts and will be ready to pay a subscription for this, the casual player frustrated not to move faster and who will crack from time to time for some rubies. Except that this model seems completely anachronistic at the time just released Apple Arcade, a subscription that gives access to a hundred games full and high quality on iPhone. All for 4.99 euros per month, less than the subscription to the only Mario Kart Tour ...
Our opinion :
The wait was great for this Mario Kart Tour and our impressions are mixed. Certainly, the game is very pleasant and it emerges greedily in the subway or the waiting room of the doctor. And it should be even more fun when the multiplayer is open. But the bottom is not less disappointing, especially if you have a Switch with Mario Kart 8 : the mobile version is much poorer in content, including circuits. And the free-to-play model supposed to fill that void is frankly annoying.
But we recommend you to download Mario Kart Tour , especially if you do not have it on console. If only because for zero euro, you have a lot of fun, and nothing requires you to pay if you are not afraid of the repetitive aspect of free content. And for those who do not know, this is the opportunity to discover the magic of Mario Kart without paying a dime.