Dear Nintendo, Please Axe the Spiny Blue Shell

nesjess

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Great article: http://bitmob.com/articles/dear-nintendo-please-to-stop-the-spiny-blue-shell

I'm up to 100cc in Mario Kart 7 and I'm seriously annoyed with the Blue Shell. First of all, why punish a player for being in first place and reward the losers who can't keep up?

It didn't seem like that big of an issue in previous Mario Kart games, but in Mario Kart 7, they seem to pop up more frequently. In one race, I got hit with one THREE times! Once right before the finish line on the last lap. 1st to 4th, just like that.

Honestly, I'd like to meet the guy who invented the Blue Shell as well and slap him in the face. :mad:

Blueshell.jpg
 
This version is seriously aggressive. On one of my laps I was just about to cross the finish.. I'm talking about. 2 seconds and I got hit by the blues shell, lightning, bumped by browser and the run over by someone towed by the bullet. I had 10 coins, lost them all and went from 1st to like 6th place.
 
This version is seriously aggressive. On one of my laps I was just about to cross the finish.. I'm talking about. 2 seconds and I got hit by the blues shell, lightning, bumped by browser and the run over by someone towed by the bullet. I had 10 coins, lost them all and went from 1st to like 6th place.

Sounds like a typical day on Mario Circuit. :lol:

Really I don't think the blue shell is that bad, I've dodged more than a few of them with a well timed mushroom / star / bullet (in Wii). To me it's all about strategy; maybe you can take 1st right from the start of the race, but maybe that's not the smartest way to play.


I have actually won quite a lot of races by purposefully lagging behind in 3rd or 4th just to take first at the last second on purpose. I've probably made a few people rage quit, but if they can't stand the heat, get off the track I say! :)
 
Sounds like a typical day on Mario Circuit. :lol:

Really I don't think the blue shell is that bad, I've dodged more than a few of them with a well timed mushroom / star / bullet (in Wii). To me it's all about strategy; maybe you can take 1st right from the start of the race, but maybe that's not the smartest way to play.


I have actually won quite a lot of races by purposefully lagging behind in 3rd or 4th just to take first at the last second on purpose. I've probably made a few people rage quit, but if they can't stand the heat, get off the track I say! :)

No, I get that you need to use a certain strategy to overcome the blue shells. The reality is that they are there with a vengeance. Though, I'm not sure if mushroom works against it in MK7 and you don't get the bullet if you're in 1st place. Purposefully falling back may be the only answer, but that's my point.

Isn't the point of the race to be in 1st place? Doesn't make sense that in order to have a better chance at winning, you need to fall behind the whole race so that others can get nailed by a blue shell. The issue isn't just that the blue shell exists, but that you can get hit by it multiple times in one race. It makes being 1st pointless.

But this is just me venting and complaining. It's time to master the game regardless. :D
 
No, I get that you need to use a certain strategy to overcome the blue shells. The reality is that they are there with a vengeance. Though, I'm not sure if mushroom works against it in MK7 and you don't get the bullet if you're in 1st place. Purposefully falling back may be the only answer, but that's my point.

Isn't the point of the race to be in 1st place? Doesn't make sense that in order to have a better chance at winning, you need to fall behind the whole race so that others can get nailed by a blue shell. The issue isn't just that the blue shell exists, but that you can get hit by it multiple times in one race. It makes being 1st pointless.

But this is just me venting and complaining. It's time to master the game regardless. :D

Yes you can do it with a Mushroom in 7, I verified this on someone else's 3DS.
Also, I know it's next to impossible to get a bullet in first, but if you use the strategy I have outlined, you can lag behind on purpose, get a bullet, then regain a top position without using your bullet (just have better racing lines), then you are in first place with a bullet in reserve... This assumes no lightning strikes.

Remember, Mario Kart isn't always about top speed, it's about mental fortitude, mind games and pure grit! :D

This is why in Wii, I love beating the Funky Kong users who are only choosing him on a Flame Runner just for the speed boost, then I beat them with a medium kart using the wii wheel and then they quit... These youngins miss the point!
 
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Yes you can do it with a Mushroom in 7, I verified this on someone else's 3DS.
Also, I know it's next to impossible to get a bullet in first, but if you use the strategy I have outlined, you can lag behind on purpose, get a bullet, then regain a top position without using your bullet (just have better racing lines), then you are in first place with a bullet in reserve... This assumes no lightning strikes.

Man, I feel that takes away from the flow of the game to be honest. It's strategy and I'm sure it works, but some tracks are super fast and you can't help to get ahead. It seems like it would be a downer to purposely lag behind the majority of the race. Oh well, you could always just try to stay in 1st and hope no blue shells show up which is a possibility (but highly unlikely).
 
I thought the same thing about MKDS, honestly. Though the snaking BS was what ruined that game, I think. Not that I couldn't do it - because I could - but I spent so much time perfecting it that I got burnt out on the game way too fast. I'd get reamed by multiple blue shells on the DS as well, though.

Looking forward to MK7, but I don't know when I'll get around to picking it up.
 
I loved MK on SNES and N64, but the DS version made my hand cramp (only DS issue I've ever had that problem with) horribly. I won't be picking up the 3DS version.
 
I loved MK on SNES and N64, but the DS version made my hand cramp (only DS issue I've ever had that problem with) horribly. I won't be picking up the 3DS version.

Try playing MKSC on a GB Micro! :D
 
Not a chance. I want to have a useable hand, not a gnarled claw.
 
Man, I feel that takes away from the flow of the game to be honest. It's strategy and I'm sure it works, but some tracks are super fast and you can't help to get ahead. It seems like it would be a downer to purposely lag behind the majority of the race.

It's only a downer until you finish the race in first with the happy music and a overjoyed character. Then the world is suddenly sunshine, unicorns and lollipops. :)
 
It's only a downer until you finish the race in first with the happy music and a overjoyed character. Then the world is suddenly sunshine, unicorns and lollipops. :)

Haha. That may be, but I'm strictly talking gameplay here, not the victory. Sure, it's possibly satisfying knowing a strategy worked and it's great to win, but if you have no fun doing it, what's the point? If it's fun for you to lag the whole race and then attempt to burst and win at the end, that's cool.

It's like if the Flash (or Superman or some other fast superhero) went out for track and decided he'd let other runners lead the whole race until the final leg. Does he win? Yes. Is it satisfying and thrilling for him? Probably not.

Okay, bad analogy, but I just wanted to compare myself to the Flash. :D
 
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I'm up to 100cc in Mario Kart 7 and I'm seriously annoyed with the Blue Shell. First of all, why punish a player for being in first place and reward the losers who can't keep up?

Cause Nintendos a bunch of socialists.

I always liked the N64 spike shell cause it took so long to catch up to first and could hit other players on the way there. But ever since it sprouted wings its become annoying and frustrating. I havent played 7 yet, but I hope its better than the Wii version which I thought was by far the worst MK made.
 
nesjess said:
Haha. That may be, but I'm strictly talking gameplay here, not the victory. Sure, it's possibly satisfying knowing a strategy worked and it's great to win, but if you have no fun doing it, what's the point? If it's fun for you to lag the whole race and then attempt to burst and win at the end, that's cool.

It's like if the Flash (or Superman or some other fast superhero) went out for track and decided he'd let other runners lead the whole race until the final leg. Does he win? Yes. Is it satisfying and thrilling for him? Probably not.

Well, it is possible to gain such a far lead that even a Blue shell won't make you lose your spot. Once, for some odd reason, I was placed in a room with people who I'm fairly certain just bought the game yesterday, and I came pretty close to lapping the whole bunch... I was blue shelled three times and never lost 1st.

Now not many people are that easy, but hey play with the best, risk losing -- adapt or die. :lol:


I always liked the N64 spike shell cause it took so long to catch up to first and could hit other players on the way there. But ever since it sprouted wings its become annoying and frustrating. I havent played 7 yet, but I hope its better than the Wii version which I thought was by far the worst MK made.

The Blue shell in 7 is practically identical to the one in Wii, just the timing of the dodge is a bit different, and I think the explosion is a bit larger, so it has a slighty higher chance of affecting the top two or three racers.
 
Well, it is possible to gain such a far lead that even a Blue shell won't make you lose your spot.

Yes, this happened to me last night and I still won the race. So that was fine.

However, it's things like this that makes me want to throw the game in the trash:

I'm up to 100cc Star Cup. I won the first three races with the maximum 10 coins. [Side note: The game awards you upgrades for grabbing coins and I think it affects your overall rating (up to 3 stars) for the cup.]

It's the last race, I'm leading the whole way and right before the finish line...BOOM! Blue Shell and I end up getting 3rd place and my 3-star rating is down the toilet. Now tell me that wouldn't annoy you.

If you slow down at that point, it's not going to change the racer it's locked onto, it's going to hit you. How is that avoidable unless you have a Star/Mushroom powerup which aren't granted to you if you're in first place?
 
Having a blue shell show up 3 times in a match defeats the purpose of having it be an equalizer... if someone is so good that they need 3 shells to knock him out of first then the game's handicaps is destroying the gameplay and purpose of the driving game.

ALL Driving games have the same goal. Get to first and hold that position. Lagging in 2nd is a lame strategy that destroys the gameplay in racing games. That's just poor design period.
 
nesjess said:
It's the last race, I'm leading the whole way and right before the finish line...BOOM! Blue Shell and I end up getting 3rd place and my 3-star rating is down the toilet. Now tell me that wouldn't annoy you.

It would (and has) annoyed me, but you and I both made the same mistake... If you're leading the whole race, then the computer will up the odds of blue shell specifically for that reason. Use the strategy I outlined and that won't happen.

Having a blue shell show up 3 times in a match defeats the purpose of having it be an equalizer... if someone is so good that they need 3 shells to knock him out of first then the game's handicaps is destroying the gameplay and purpose of the driving game.

ALL Driving games have the same goal. Get to first and hold that position. Lagging in 2nd is a lame strategy that destroys the gameplay in racing games. That's just poor design period.

Okay a couple of things:

1) I'm not lame, so it must not be a lame strategy.

2) Mario Kart is not a typical racing game, that's precisely why people play it.

The Blue shell really isn't meant to be an equalizer, it's meant to be a mixer-upper, that keeps the guy in first on his toes instead of having the "ho-hum I'm in first I win" attitude that all those other racing games tend to have; and I think it does that very well.

P.S. I don't always sandbag in 2nd, sometimes it's 3rd. :p
 
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Having a blue shell show up 3 times in a match defeats the purpose of having it be an equalizer... if someone is so good that they need 3 shells to knock him out of first then the game's handicaps is destroying the gameplay and purpose of the driving game.

ALL Driving games have the same goal. Get to first and hold that position. Lagging in 2nd is a lame strategy that destroys the gameplay in racing games. That's just poor design period.

I get your point, but MK isn't really a racing game as much as it is a battle racing game. I'll admit I get pissed too. Just last night on my first time playing, I got nailed with a red shell, then right as I get control some bastard smashed into me, spinning me out, then I get a green shell to the face, then smashed again, into the drink. But then I kicked all their sorry AI asses and got first. But that was 50cc, so...
 
Mario Kart created it's own sub category yes... but still it's a racing game.
For that very reason they have their own GP and TT's... to punish the race leader for leading the whole time is lame, plain and simple.

I'm a huge fan of the series. I've completed each version and I played MK SNES for pretty much 3 months straight every night with my brother. I found N64 to be a horrible version but have EVERY single version of MK but the Arcade one. I'm not typically a Racing game enthusiast although I have the mastered certain racing games like Ridge Racer. I'm not just making this up cause I got mad at the game for knocking me out of first. I think it's a blemish on the game design which is otherwise superb and very well refined.

Although not actually in racing games, I have done some professional game design before.

the Blue shell isn't meant to mix it up as it's to equalize the race leader against the lowest positions on the track. They didn't need it. They already have the lightning and the bullet. It singles out the race leader (when launched) specifically and in that way handicaps you for being out ahead and or trying to be out ahead of the pack.
 
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Man, I loved the 64 version. I've probably played more multiplayer hours of that game than any other game ever. The original was great for the time, but when I play it now, I can hardly stand it.

Super Circuit was good and very much like an updated version of the original. Hell, having all the original tracks was freaking awesome of Nintendo to include.

I lost interest in the Game Cube, Wii, and DS versions pretty quickly, but that may be more because I didn't have people around to play very often and I don't care much for playing people online. MK is one of those that's more about the live interaction - being in the same room with those you're playing against. The snaking BS In the DS version really ruined the game for me, at least online.

I've seen the arcade ones but never actually got a chance to play them. I heard they weren't too great, though.

Back on point, though, it's just a matter of opinion. Yeah, the blue shell has gotten beefed up over the years and is a hell of a lot more annoying than it used to be. But to be honest, that makes the game last longer. I've played the 64 version so much, it's not a challenge at all anymore - ever. I've literally played races by sound alone - and won. Seriously, with the video feed off. And I was drunk too. Go figure. If that one has the current blue shell, that'd never have happened.

Too bad there's not a setting that could allow you to play with power up/item customization. As in like you could use sliders to adjust the chance percentage of each item (friend multiplayer games only) or something. That way we could play with blue shells only if we really wanted. Imagine having that kind of control.
 
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