I don't know, I just have a knack for that sort of thing.   But to be fair, you did only get Mario Kart 8 a couple days ago and 150CC is pretty fast. I started in 50CC and worked my way up even though you don't need to in MK8. I think it helped me commit the track layouts to memory. Last night was actually the first time I did really well with Bowser in online MK8. I just so happened to unlock that bike the night before and it's working out great for me. I'm probably the most surprised out of all of us to be honest. I was expecting to consistently get 6th place unless I used Lemmy. It goes to show you how important finding the combination that works best for you is.



Now, challenge me in Sonic and SEGA All-Stars Racing Transformed and I'm hooped. I can't do the Super Monkey Ball tracks to save my life.  

 

In a sense I'm doing too bad for only playing since yesterday, I hadn't even unlocked all the cups, last night in the tournament was my first time on those tracks.

I just wished I could cross the finish line on my own is all.

 

I completely understand that. You will get there eventually. You still have a lot to unlock and probably haven't found what works for you. My first few online matches went horribly wrong because I was still figuring out how to get Bowser to turn the way I want. The Traction stat seems to affect a lot so I try to keep it relatively high (three bars for Bowser) and after I started doing that I started to do better.



I think a part of why I know a lot of the little tricks I do is from keeping such a close eye on the guy infront of me. I noticed that the AI cuts a lot of corners on Cheep Cheep Beach so I started to do that. Bowser is just as fast in the water as he is on land so I lose barely any speed while doing so. (I have the guide book so if you like I could tell you the hidden stats for your character of choice.)


I also noticed that whenever I take that boost ramp near the end of Moo Moo Meadows I end up in the grass and slow down so I started skipping it and sticking to the left.


So a lot of it is learning what messes you up and how to avoid it. Sure, shortcuts are good but if you can't do them then they're a waste of time.


Those are the only tips I can give because a lot of my doing well is just me being good at memorizing track layouts and patterns and stuff. I also lucked out with items a lot when I did fall behind. So luck will always be a factor along with memory. Along with using items. I never hold and item for very long unless I see that the three people behind me have Red Shells on the map. Then I will clutch onto that Banana or Shell until the Red Shell vanishes.



EDIT: I forgot about this! GameXplain did a video showing the majority of the shortcuts in Mario Kart 8. So that may also help a bit. I dunno, so far I only used the one to beat a ghost in time trials.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KWMiKleB9g

 

Jas is the Dark Lord of Mario Kart 8.

 

Will we be doing this tommorow night again?

I got a bit better.

 

Oh darn if you guys are doing it again then it's 2 weeks in a row that I can't make this. Everyone here is going to get so far ahead of me in the rankings.  

 

I'm up for it. But maybe we should use the other room? It doesn't have rotations so we will in theory be less likely to end up in lobbies with one other person.

I should practise tonight because I've been going through Mirror Mode and that completely screws me up.  

The rankings stack? I think that's even more of a reason to use the other room. I'm currently 38 points ahead of second place and I'm sure that I won't do as well this time. I've been feeling not-so-great lately so I haven't really been playing.

 

so tonight the same time we used for last Saturday?

 

If you're using the same community, I think so.

 

I think 8:15PST would work a bit better for me tonight. I'm eating a bit late and I have to get my little pup all settled before I venture online.

Oh, okay then. I guess I could also double check in ProtonJon's room since that's been staying active thanks to his large fanbase. I'm just surprised since I figured that they'd reset each week. But I also never dabbled with communities in Mario Kart 7.

 

I modified the Tournament so that we won't be split up into smaller races again.

 

I'm in. This is for tomorrow right?

 

Ah, good. Now I can REALLY be in last place!

 

I hope Haloid and Eric join in again too.

 

I probably won't this weekend. Destiny alpha is only good until Sunday and I wanna put as much time into it as possible (plus I want my Pro controller to not break when I continually come in second to She Who Must Not Be Named).

 

Can I squeeze into this?

 

So what time is it for us Eastern folks?

 

In first post

 

Sorry I missed it last night, was too tired after playing TF2.

I'll be here tonight.

I wish we had a chat/speak option.

 

Nah, it's fine; don't worry about it. I had to start the game up to relearn non-Mirror Mode anyway. Boy, do I ever get confused by the anti-gravity stuff in Mirror Mode Wario Stadium.


Also, there is a chat function the lobby for Friend Matches. But only the lobby which is fine by me since I don't think you need to hear me curse like a sailor and yell "sonofagun AGAIN" when I hit my own banana peels.   For whatever reason Mario Kart always brings out that side of me. I'm having a blast of course so I'm not even frustrated.