A month ago, all the Nintendo characters got together in Smash Bros. Brawl to beat the pixels out of one another. And now, they're getting together again—Peach, Bowser, Shy Guy, Yoshi, and of course Mario, among others—for the latest installment in the on-going Mario Kart series.

Fans of the series want to know one thing: Is this the best Kart yet?

The answer: Yes.

The always-colorful game is even more colorful on your dad's high-definition television. With a wide range of vehicles to choose from, including, for the first time ever, motorbikes, this Kart certainly doesn't have the bottomless garages that games like Burnout Paradise or Gran Turismo 5: Prologue have. But I also don't remember either of those games allowing you to temporarily turn into a giant bullet that allows you to plough through your competitors.

(Sports Gamer Pro Tip: Keep an eye on your vehicle's stats and be sure to pick the right tool for the job; a lighter vehicle with good speed might not be what you need on the game's snow and ice-centric tracks. If you lose a race, it might have less to do with your driving skills and more to do with the fact that you're driving the wrong vehicle.)

Kart users tend to be very fussy about their controls, and Nintendo has aimed to accommodate them all with a wide range of schemes. Even if you're a big fan of Mario Kart on the GameCube, Nintendo's got you covered. Dig those old GameCube controllers out of the back of the hall closet, dust them off, and plug them in. (The SI Kids controller of choice for Karting: The Classic Controller, which plugs directly into the Wii remote.)

Oddly enough, for all of the chatter that goes on between characters during races—you'll be hearing Wario's distinctive laugh in your sleep at night, trust us—the real stars of the game are the tracks. The game includes sixteen all-new tracks. (Along with sixteen classic tracks recycled from previous games in the series.) And holy Mario, are these tracks ever fun to race.

From the underground roller-coaster ride known as Wario's Gold Mine to the up/down escalator mayhem of Coconut Mall, these tracks are easily the goofiest, most creative tracks you'll navigate in any racing game this year. That Daytona 500 oval found in Gran Turismo 5: Prologue is nap-inducing by comparison.

And stay on the lookout as you drive around the game's various courses, because whatever Miis currently wandering your virtual Mii Plaza on the Wii's hard drive will automatically migrate to the game. Not only will they cheer you on curbside during races, they'll also show up in billboards in the mall and as statues along your routes. Cleverly done, Nintendo.

Of course, anyone who's played a Kart game before knows full well that the only way to play is with friends or frenemies. Split-screen (up to four players) works fine; but the game also features a surprisingly polished online component that makes it easier than ever to find your fellow Kart racers around the world online, 24-hours a day. Simply click on the Wifi menu at startup, and within seconds, you'll be looking at a map of all the Karters available for racing in your region.

Trust us, you've never seen turtle shells and banana peels fly so fast or so furiously until you've raced against eleven other people online. Now this is the kind of racing-game chaos we live for.

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