Nintendo Details Forthcoming Mario Kart Wii

Nintendo has officially announced that the latest in its seminal Mario Kart series, Mario Kart Wii, will be released on April 27th in North America, with its own exclusive Wii channel, Mii and online support, and the Wii Wheel peripheral. First announced at E3 of 2007, Nintendo says the game will include online support via the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection for multiplayer races of up to 12 players. The game will include 16 new and 16 classic courses, motorbike as well as Kart races, and Mii support for personalized drivers, and will support a number of controller configurations, including the Classic Controller and GameCube controller. Nintendo has also announced the addition of a new Wii channel to accompany the launch of the game -- the aptly titled Mario Kart Wii Channel. In it, Nintendo will track and support the online community of players with tournaments, worldwide rankings, online friends lists, and downloadable ghost data. Said marketing executive VP Cammie Dunaway, "Mario Kart Wii transforms one of our most popular franchises into a race that every member of the family can join. Driving with the Wii Wheel could not be more natural, and this is one place where speeding is encouraged."