Mario Kart. A legend in its own tyre tracks. There isnt a gamer alive during the SNES era that doesnt hold a special place for the Mode-7 classic in his/her heart. True gaming bliss and a massive franchise, a genre-defining move by Nintendo, and leagues of dedicated fans all in one cartridge. Can it ever be topped?

Not by Mario Kart 64 thats for sure. Although a cracking game and arguably the best in its class (though some will argue for Diddy Kong Racing all day long) it was dogged by slow-player catch-up routines that ruined the game for the more experienced driver.

Anyway, that was then, this is now, and now things are different.

The old system has been scrapped and upgraded, perhaps explaining what Miyamoto was on about when he told us three years ago, Mario Kart for GameCube is the game that troubles me the most.

Replacing the standard 'one kart, one driver' set-up, players now get to choose two characters and one of a selection of karts all with different properties. The premise is simple enough in that one character drives and the other handles weapons, with the option to switch between the two at any point.

This gives you the option to choose your favourite character, (it has to be Toad, doesnt it!?) whilst still being able to have a say in your speed and acceleration stats. All good.

This is just pure Mario Kart, a true update, riddled with innovation. Its true Nintendo genius and a welcome addition that will no doubt do Nintendo a great service in its continued efforts to make to GameCube more popular in the face of some alarmingly stiff competition.