September 26^th, 2005 (10:30am) - The Namco-developed Mario Kart Arcade GP will be arriving to U.S. shores this October. For the first time ever, Nintendo’s wildly popular Mario Kart racing series will be making its way to arcades! However, Nintendo has revealed that the game will be available in limited quantities, so it may not be as easy to find at arcades as most would think.

Mario Kart Arcade GP offers classic Mario Kart action with 11 characters. Familiar Mario Kart characters like Mario, Luigi, Peach and Wario tear up the track with characters available only in the arcade model.... Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man and Blinky. Each character has unique driving abilities so you’ll have to try them all. The Player Continuation feature makes that possible!

Mario Kart Arcade GP is a 2-player dedicated game. It’s an impressive attraction piece when two cabinets are linked for 4-player thrills and spills. Six worlds offer a variety of racecourses, 24 in all, to challenge both hard-core Mario Kart fans and casual players alike. Add in the variations of time and environment and you get 68 diverse courses! Plus, there are hilarious challenge stages available to those who wins the Grand Prix Mode tracks.

This dedicated model features a NamCam 2 to add to the excitement of the game play. You insert your face in the character image of your choice and BAM....an image of your marvelous mug appears on screen where your rivals can see you as you leave them in the dust.

The game play is fast, furious and FUN! You race around the course and collect crazy items to toss at your adversaries. There are 57 objects available, over 40 developed just for the arcade model! Some items can be thrown forward at the competitors racing in front of you on the course and others can be used to disrupt those who are hot on your tail. There are items that lock on your target and some that provide you with shields to reflect the rival’s attack, there’s even one that allows you to become invisible! While you’re trying to whip around the track and stump your friends you’ve got to dodge the stuff your buddies are tossing your way! The sophisticated feedback steering will have you wishing you never got hit by that blasted Needle Bomb, Thunder Cloud or Tornado. Gathering coins along the way increases your speed and helps you win the race. Advanced players will be thrilled when they discover the hidden moves and use them to their advantage.

Hopefully we’ll see Namco work on a next-gen Mario Kart for the Revolution.