I got the chance to play the game about 10 times, each race is an 8-player wireless race of 3 laps.
Character selection is not possible, you are automatically assigned a random character. So far the characters present in the game are:
- Mario
- Princess Peach
- Wario
- Bowser
- Donkey Kong
- Yoshi
- Luigi
- Toad
Gameplay-wise, it plays very similarly to a mix between Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, and Mario Kart: Double Dash. Powerslides are possible, as well as the mini-turbo feature as seen in Double Dash.
So far Ive seen at least 5 different tracks, based loosely on previous games. Theres a track akin to Double Dashs beach circuit, one based almost exactly from the Super Mario Karts first track (Mushroom Cup, my memory is failing me at present), one based on a Ghost town, and another similar to Luigis Circuit.
Winners of each race are given a prize, a radio-controlled Mario or Yoshi kart! Ive won 4 times already! :)
The framerate is very smooth, if a little on the slow side, Im sure it will be improved by the time it launches.
No launch date or timeframe has been given, but I will be probing further into this in the next two days.
More as it develops. Watch this space.