Canons and Tubes and Ramps, Oh My!

[Toblet]

What do you guys think of Cannons and Tubes etc...? Ramps probably aren't the best example, but they do show elements of similarity. Just in case you don't know what I'm taking about, here's a few more clues:

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Rainbow Road and DK maps are probably the most well known for these things. Here's a video to get you in the mood:

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC0fPOVAeLM

I absolutely LOVE them! They're epic, exhilarating, and my favourite parts of all racing games (That have something similar)! What's not to like about getting sucked up by a cannon/tube and shot out at 90mph to the other end of the map? I don't know how anybody could dislike them (apart from the protection from items like thunder, which I find very useful ) However, I knew someday Nintendo would eventually remove part of the fun. In MK7, people can literally fall off the map if hit by an item just before or during the blast-off. Oh well, I guess I can't complain too much as I thought they would have removed them all-together by now.

Though Mario Kart 7 has a couple of maps with cannons/tubes (Waluigi Pinball and Maple Treeway), both of them are retro tracks. The closest thing to them I found in the new tracks, was the end part of Wuhu Mountain and Bowser Castle while gliding their way to the finish line (which was fun, but not that fantastic). Could Nintendo no longer be making tracks with them? I hope not. They're the best part of all tracks in my opinion.

For now though, I'll just have to watch videos with custom maps and hope that more will creep into future tracks. An example of a great custom track:
Cannon City, Custom track for Mario Kart Wii
IT LOOKS LIKE SO MUCH FUN! I want some maps like this to be created - Hard, yet tons of fun.

Any thoughts?

 

[H-J Kaabii]

Would MK7 RR count as a tube? (a very dizzy one as well, lol)
I'm inclined to think the launch ramps for MK7 sort of overtook some of the function of the cannons and tubes. A little disappointing I guess. (Also I've accidentally jumped OVER the launch ramp into nothingness a few times, pissed me off =P)

Back to cannons and tubes, they're pretty sweet but I just wish there could be kart/kart interactions on them so you can bump a lighter racer back a bit if you're heavier and such XD

 

[chaosshadow123]

The ramp/cannons on the DK courses are one reason why my sister loves those ones so much, they're pretty cool I guess, a little goofy the way the characters tend to react in Double Dash. But yeah, they're fun.

 

[Toblet]

Would MK7 RR count as a tube? (a very dizzy one as well, lol)
I'm inclined to think the launch ramps for MK7 sort of overtook some of the function of the cannons and tubes. A little disappointing I guess. (Also I've accidentally jumped OVER the launch ramp into nothingness a few times, pissed me off =P)

I count it as a rotating cylinder. It's not really what I'm talking about. Traveling on a few speed boosts isn't really thrilling compared to getting blasted at max speed to the other side of the map. Maple Treeway and Air Ship Fortress' cannon, and Waluigi's tube worked a treat though. Why couldn't they make just one cannon/tube on one of the new tracks?

 

[Toblet]

So after a good few years, I finally got bored with all of the Mario Kart Wii tracks. With boredom setting in and nothing else to do, I decided why not at least try download some custom tracks onto my SD card. I thought, surely it couldn't be that difficult. It was actually quite easy (thank you Mr. Bean for being in the UK and having the same Wii version as me ). It made the download so much easier.

I tried to load the hacked version. Success! O...m...g... One of the best decisions I ever made. There's many cannons, tubes and ramps. I get to play a whole range of tracks, some of which are even more fun than the official ones! I failed miserably for my first session online cause, it was my first time on like every map, and stuff. These people know everything there is to know about all the custom tracks. I don't regret going online straight away at all though, as this has been one of the best day's I've had for a long time. It's so fun playing against three starers on new tracks and because of playing them, I'm now a bit more experienced on the custom tracks. I'm glad that I'm almost good enough to match up to some of the best Mario karters in the world!

The last track I played was Incendia Castle and I got an impressive third in a room full of 12 people mostly with 3 stars. I was pretty chuffed. But yeah, Funky Kong usually makes up about 50% of any room which is very annoying. I hope he doesn't return in the next Mario Kart because he's getting on my nerves. Rosalina > Funky any day.

Anyway, unfortunate souls of MPL, this is what you're missing out on: (These aren't my vids btw)
Mario Kart Wii - Mystery win at Incendia Castle

Mario Kart Wii - Custom Tracks Worldwides! (RedFalconGames, Sword0fSeals, Wrath19001) Stream!

I'd love some company if anybody would like to join me sometime, but you really need to have at least a two star rating otherwise you'd just be walked all over. Nonetheless, it's TONS of fun and I'd recommend for anyone to try it!