You know that an event for a racing game is going to be good when you arrive at the venue to be greeted by a couple of high powered Mercedes doing lazy four wheel drifts in front of the building! Inside, huge huggable versions of Mario and Luigi greet guests with a wave., where racers and fans alike are gathered together to witness the finals of Nintendo's national Mario Kart tournament, called… Mario Kart Grand Wii. See what they did there?

Nintendo really have made an effort, it has to be said. As well as the aforementioned power-sliding Mercedes, there are oversized stars, mushrooms and banana skins all over the place, mimicking Mario Kart's power ups. Most impressively though, F1 commentator James Allen was present to provide commentary for the semi-final and final. It sounds strange to hear someone who's been commentating on Formula 1 events for over eight years talking about mushrooms, banana skins and blue shells. It feels unreal somehow, like Nick Cave interviewing a pub band.

The actual matches were pretty spectacular. Mario Kart on the Wii is as hectic as its prequels- four human players and eight AI opponents race go-karts and motorbikes round a selection of themed tracks at breakneck speed, all using various power-ups to boost themselves ahead while pummelling their fellow racers. The sheer number and variety of power-ups is bewildering at first, but once you understand the game it's pretty spectacular to watch. The races constantly fluctuate, with one player rarely holding first place for long. Even James Allen has trouble keeping up, with the constant occurrence of dozens of incidents. Players launch shells, spin out, fall over edges, get stuck in snow drifts, take spectacular corners, win, lose... it's all happening too fast to see everything!

This is trademark Mario Kart; fast, frenetic and highly confusing. The alliteratively named Robbie Robinson eventually won the day in a victory very well fought for - his fellow competitors should feel proud of the fight they put up. You can check out our photos for shots of Robbie looking alternately triumphant and terrified with his winnings - a custom VW Beetle - his fellow finalists and racing celebrities Jennifer Metcalfe and Jodie Kidd.

Watching the races wasn't the only treat available to the crowd, however; there were also several dozen Wiis set up, all running Mario Kart. Impressions of the game were almost universally good; there is an astonishing amount of content, with sixteen new tracks and sixteen classic tracks. There are some iffy ones, but there are a number that will surely become fan favourites in the coming years. The Wii's motion sensors are also put to good use in this latest version of the world's greatest kart racer; tilting the Wiimote to steer a kart or bike feels incredibly natural to me. The other control styles are also well conceived, and in fact most of the competitors in the Grand Wii ended up using the Wiimote/nunchuck combination without the motion sensor functions.

The addition of bikes was also remarked upon with interest. Many gamers seemed worried about using them, opting for the classic karts, but those who branched out were treated to ultra manoeuvrable speed demons that, when ridden with care, can outdistance most other racers.

There were a few aspects of the game that weren't quite as well received, however; the graphics were remarked upon as being far from cutting edge. Criticising the Wii for having substandard graphics is usually an exercise in futility, but the visual quality of Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Mario Galaxy have led us to expect a higher standard from the Wii's flagship games. Mario Kart Wii's tracks also allow for twelve racers rather than the more traditional eight, allowing for more frantic online multiplayer but making the tracks feel slightly empty for local four-man matches races.

These points aside, Mario Kart Wii is all ready a phenomenal success, both commercially and critically. Everyone I spoke to at the event had nothing but praise for Nintendo's powerhouse and on its day of release it leapt straight to number one in the UK charts, with reports of it selling over 300,000 units in the first twenty-four hours in Japan. So, congratulations to Robbie Robinson for his spectacular win and congratulations to Nintendo for not only putting on such a great event, but for creating yet another classic game that on its own can justify the purchase of a Wii.

Written by Mike Morwood for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).

Read the FULL REVIEW here