Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart 7 is a racing game for the Nintendo 3DS. It is the ninth installment of the Mario Kart series overall, the seventh in the main series (hence the game's title), and the third on a handheld console. This is the second (the first was Super Mario 3D Land) installment in the Mario series overall (excluding crossover installments) to be localized to Dutch, Portuguese, and Russian. Additionally, it is also the first Mario Kart game to be developed by more than one video game developer, 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. A follow-up, Mario Kart 8, was released in May 2014 for the Wii U.

The main new feature of this installment is the hang gliding and underwater driving which allows racers to glide through the air and race in underwater sections of the new and old tracks. Kart customization is also introduced instead of racing in pre-made karts like previous titles. In the game, players are able to exchange Ghost data and play online in multiplayer mode. Players can also receive Ghost data via SpotPass and race against other player's Ghosts from around the world. Nintendo stated that the game brings "a bunch of new elements" to the Mario Kart series.

Mario Kart 7 is the first Mario game to use the Nintendo Network service as it offers the ability to create custom communities, which would then become one of the features of the service.

Items
Many classic items make a return in Mario Kart 7. The game introduces three new items – the Fire Flower, the Super Leaf, and the Lucky Seven. The Thunder Cloud, POW Block, and Mega Mushroom from Mario Kart Wii are absent from the game. The Fake Item Box from previous installments is also absent, along with Boo. Similar to its predecessors, players receive items by driving through an Item Box found on courses. When players drive through an Item Box, the Item Roulette will select an item. In addition to Item Boxes, Coins can be found on the track. Players can collect the coins by driving through them. Picking up a coin increases a player's top speed. If players collect ten coins, their kart is at maximum speed and cannot gain additional coins. Players lose coins if they get hit by an item or fall in a pit. Collecting a certain amount of coins unlocks vehicle parts to select them in the vehicle's customization menu. Also, unlike in its predecessor, the item warning sound will only play if a Blue Shell or a Bullet Bill is approaching.

One prominent change to the classic items is that the Blue Shell now has been redesigned into a wingless form, similar to the one found in Mario Kart 64 and having a new sound effect. Its overall behavior is also changed as well; the shell now flies lower to the ground and is able to hit other racers on its path. In addition, the explosion is noticeably less powerful compared to previous installments.