Editing Mario Kart 7

|developer=[[Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development|Nintendo EAD]]<br>[[Nintendo SPD|Nintendo SPD Group No. 3]]<br>[[Retro Studios]]

|publisher=[[Nintendo]]

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|genre=[[Genre#Racing|Racing]]

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'''''Mario Kart 7''''' is a [[Genre#Racing|racing]] game developed by [[Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development|Nintendo EAD]] and [[Retro Studios]] for the [[Nintendo 3DS]]. It is the seventh console installment in the [[Mario Kart (series)|''Mario Kart'' series]] (hence the game's title), and the second (the first being ''[[Super Mario 3D Land]]'') installment in the ''Super Mario'' franchise overall (excluding crossover installments) to be localized to Dutch, Portuguese, and Russian. Additionally, it is the first ''Mario Kart'' game to be developed by more than one video game developer, namely Nintendo EAD and Retro Studios, and the second ''Mario Kart'' to have a different video game developer (not including the ''Mario Kart Arcade GP'' series), the first being ''[[Mario Kart: Super Circuit]]''.

''Mario Kart 7'' was the first [[Super Mario (franchise)|''Super Mario'' game]] to use the [[Nintendo Network]] service, as it offered the ability to create custom communities, which would then become one of the features of the service; however, the service was terminated on April 8, 2024, making the game no longer playable online.<ref name=Shutdown> {{cite|author=@NintendoAmerica|date=October 4, 2023|title=As of early April 2024, online play and other functionality that uses online communication will end service for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U software. Thank you very much for your continued support of our products.|url=https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1709418623566020975|publisher=Twitter|accessdate=October 14, 2024}}</ref><ref name=ShutdownUpdate> {{cite|author=@NintendoAmerica|date=January 23, 2024|title=Update: as of 4/8, online play and other functionality that uses online communication will end service for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U software. Thank you very much for your continued support of our products.|url=https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1749963072998166670|publisher=Twitter|accessdate=February 17, 2024}}</ref> Once Nintendo introduced retail games that could be downloaded via the [[Nintendo eShop#Nintendo 3DS|Nintendo eShop]] until its discontinuation on March 27, 2023, ''Mario Kart 7'' was released in 2012 for the eShop, where it required 635.38 MB (5,083 blocks) to download.

==Gameplay==

===Features===

====Battle====

In Battle Mode, the player can select one of the two types of battles available in ''Mario Kart 7'' and one of the six battle courses that appear in this mode. There are three new courses, and the remaining three are from the previous installments in the series. This version of Battle can be played with any vehicle like in ''[[Mario Kart: Double Dash!!]]'', as opposed to ''[[Mario Kart DS]]'' and ''[[Mario Kart Wii]]'', in which players could only use the [[Standard Kart]] or the [[Standard Bike]].

=====Balloon Battle=====

[[File:Balloon Battle - MK7.png|thumb|left|Free-for-all Balloon Battle]]

===Online multiplayer===

With the Nintendo 3DS's online capabilities, players could look for other users for online play, local, or global range. Players could choose a worldwide competition to race against other users who are connected, race with friends that were met via StreetPass, or play in communities formed by users with customized rules for the races. Just like in ''Mario Kart Wii'', ''Mario Kart 7'' had the [[Wii#Mario Kart Channel|Mario Kart Channel]] that showed updates of online activity automatically through the SpotPass and StreetPass modes. With StreetPass, the users can exchange their Miis, Ghost Data from Time Trials, players' names, and information about communities, while the user would only receive Ghost Data from other users and community recommendations via SpotPass.

====VR====

When players take part in online races or battles, points are added to or removed from their VR (short for VS Rating) based on their finishing position. The main purpose of VR is to determine the skill of players, to match them with players of a similar skill level. Players start with 1000 VR (rather than 5000 VR, as in ''Mario Kart Wii''). Online play in Communities does not use the VR system. Also, a player's VR counts for both races and battles, as opposed to ''Mario Kart Wii'' with races affecting VR, and battles affecting BR (Battle Rating).

==Characters==

[[File:Mario Kart 7 Character Select Screen.png|thumb|250px|The character select screen, with all characters unlocked.]]

''Mario Kart 7'' includes seventeen total drivers (eight starting drivers and nine unlockable drivers). New playable characters to the ''Mario Kart'' series in this game include [[Metal Mario]], [[Wiggler]], [[Honey Queen]], and [[Lakitu]] (with a red shell as opposed to the [[Lakitu (Mario Kart referee)|Lakitu referee]] which wears a green shell), with Lakitu and Honey Queen also making their overall playable debuts. Additionally, this marks the first ''Mario Kart'' game where [[Shy Guy]] is a normal selectable driver, after only being available in ''[[Mario Kart DS]]'' to players who were playing in Download Play without a game card; in addition to being playable in single player, multicolored Shy Guys retain this previous role in download multiplayer. Also, this is the first installment in the series for a handheld console where [[Koopa Troopa]], [[Rosalina]], and [[Mii]] are playable, after previously being playable in at least one home console installment. The player's Mii never appears as a CPU driver, but Miis the player has obtained via StreetPass for this game's Mario Kart Channel can occasionally appear as a CPU driver during the standard Grand Prix mode.

Each driver is categorized into any of five weight classes: '''Feather''' being the lightest, followed by '''Light''', '''Medium''', '''Cruiser''', and finally '''Heavy'''. There are also three kart frame sizes that generally correspond with the five weight classes, with the exception of Metal Mario due to his medium size and high density. All characters in any given weight class share the same statistic boosts, both displayed and internal.

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