'Offensive' gesture removed from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in latest patch

By Jon Martindale May 18, 2017

Nintendo has updated one of the female Inkling’s animations in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, following complaints that it could be seen as offensive. She didn’t flip the bird, but she did grip her bicep a little like Rosie the riveter, which in some European cultures can be construed as saying “up yours.”

Although there are a few games which might opt for what some would consider, ‘offensive’ gestures — like Duke Nukem — it’s rare to see something like that in a Nintendo game. In Mario Kart 8, the harshest it tends to get is Luigi giving his patented death stare, but in the Deluxe release of the game on the Nintendo Switch, some considered the female Inkling’s hand on her bicep potentially offensive in its own right.

Because of that, Nintendo’s latest patch for the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has now altered the animation so that the Inkling no longer places her hand on her bicep and instead just pumps her fist. It’s a small change, but one that keeps Nintendo’s game squeaky clean and family friendly, just as the Japanese game maker likes it.

While to U.S. audiences this might seem silly, the gesture actually does carry quite some weight in other cultures. Known as the bras d’honneur, Iberian slap, or Italian salute, the gesture is the equivalent of the middle finger in many countries. Recognized in Europe, it also extends to Mexico, Turkey and Malta, where the implication can be the insult is aimed at the recipient’s mother.

Other updates in version 1.1 of the latest Mario Kart include displaying opponents’ names in rear-view mirror view in online matches, the invincibility period after a spin-out is now longer in online play, starting positions in online games now reflect the order in which players joined, and driver Miis now show the correct facial expressions during play (thanks Kotaku).

On top of that, the tournament clock now shows the correct real-world time, up to two players can spectate friend groups while waiting to join, and you can now make a friend lobby even if you have more than 100 friends.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Computing Coordinator

Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…

Gaming

Nintendo’s mobile games are more influential than you might think

Alear and Marth open a door in Fire Emblem Engage.

Nintendo’s mobile games don’t get enough credit. While Nintendo had some undeniable hits like Pokémon Go and Fire Emblem Heroes, many consider the rest of its mobile efforts fairly underwhelming and even somewhat disappointing for a video game company of Nintendo’s stature. While nothing ever quite reached the high bar Pokémon Go set in 2016, Nintendo’s mobile games are a bit more influential than they get credit for.
Over the past few years, games like Pokémon: Let’s Go! Pikachu and Eevee, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe have built upon their mobile counterparts. Then, during the September 13 Nintendo Direct, Fire Emblem Engage’s announcement and main gimmick cemented that Nintendo isn’t just viewing mobile games as a mostly failed side experiment. While they might not be the most successful games out there, their DNA is creeping into the Nintendo Switch’s bestselling titles.
Mediocre mobile returns
Nintendo’s mobile gaming efforts kicked off in the mid-2010s. Niantic created the AR game Pokemon Go, which quickly became a smashing success in 2016. In the six years since, the game has generated around 678 million installs and $6 billion in player spending, according to data from Sensor Tower.
While working with Niantic proved fruitful for The Pokemon Company, Nintendo partnered with DeNA for most of its initial mobile games. Unfortunately, none of these quite reached the heights analysts and Nintendo expected. Super Mario Run was a smash hit at launch but failed to sustain much interest and consistent revenue, so it’s considered a disappointment by Nintendo.
Meanwhile, other games like Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, Mario Kart Tour, Dr. Mario World, and Dragalia Lost launched, and while they’ve still made lots of money for Nintendo, most haven't matched the success of the most popular mobile titles. The biggest exception to this is Fire Emblem Heroes, a gacha game where players can summon classic Fire Emblem characters. It’s had over $1 billion in player spending alone as of June 2022 and is Nintendo’s “flagship title on the [mobile} platform,” according to Sensor Tower.
More recently, Nintendo tried to recapture the success of Pokemon Go with Niantic’s Pikmin Bloom, although that game has reportedly disappointed as well. Overall, it’s understandable why some people are surprised to see only a couple of surefire mobile hits from a company with the pedigree of Nintendo and consider it a side venture that never realized its full potential. If you look closely at the console games in these series that Nintendo put out since, though, it isn’t ignoring everything learned while making mobile games.
Mobile's monumental impact
Nintendo has the masterful ability to find the strongest elements of an idea, draw those out, and then expand upon them to create something uniquely memorable. We’ve seen it do this time and time again with subsequent entries of its flagship series, but it’s a mindset it has applied to its mobile games upon closer inspection.
As far back as 2018, Pokemon: Let’s Go! Pikachu and Eevee recognized the charm of not needing to battle a Pokemon to capture it, and incorporated that into a traditional RPG experience. More recently, items and mechanics like gardening and cooking from Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp made their way into Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe was able to revive its live service offerings by repurposing the best tracks and assets from Mario Kart Tour.
Fire Emblem Engage – Announcement Trailer - Nintendo Switch
The legacy of Nintendo’s mobile games could also be felt in the September 13 Nintendo Direct. The showcase’s first announcement was Fire Emblem Engage, which is turn-based strategy game where the main gimmick is being able to summon classic Fire Emblem characters with a ring. While it doesn’t look like Fire Emblem Engage goes full gacha, it’s clear that Nintendo recognized how people liked collecting and using classic Fire Emblem characters in a new adventure, so the developers drew and expanded upon that idea for Fire Emblem Engage.
Before the announcement of Pikmin 4, Shigeru Miyamoto also took a lot of time to highlight Pikmin Bloom. While we don’t know much about Pikmin 4’s gameplay, Nintendo could find some aspects of that game’s exploratory experience, weekly challenges, or something I’m not even thinking of to freshen up the next mainline game. The same could even happen with Super Mario Run the next time Nintendo decides to make a 2D Mario game.
While watching Fire Emblem Engage’s reveal during the latest Nintendo Direct, it became clear that Nintendo’s mobile games have quietly become influential forces in the company's console games. Nintendo has slowly plucked the best ideas out of them and brought them into Switch games without extra monetization. While the future is cloudy for Nintendo's seemingly stalled mobile push, I hope the company can still find a place for its games on mobile, using the platform as a space to experiment with its beloved series.

Gaming

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is getting eight new tracks, including Waluigi Pinball

Waluigi Pinball.

Nintendo has announced the second wave of new Mario Kart 8 Deluxe tracks are due to arrive on August 4. The list of new tracks includes fan favorites like Waluigi Pinball.

https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1552640466243489794?t=pB_HQPDAWwxnPgLdvRq1Ng&s=19

Gaming

Mario Strikers: Battle League beginner’s guide: 8 tips and tricks to get started

Mario and his team pose in Mario Strikers: Battle League.

Though it looks and has many similar rules to soccer, Mario Strikers: Battle League isn't as simple as the world's most popular sport. Mario always puts his own unique spin on whatever sport he tries his hand at, whether it be tennis, golf, or even the Olympic games. You can obviously expect the Mario cast to add their own flair and personality to the game, but there's a lot more depth to this game than you might expect.

Whether you played the last game in the series or not, Mario Strikers: Battle League changes things up enough that everyone will need to essentially start from scratch when learning how to properly play this fast, high-energy, action soccer game. You can eventually pick up all the skills you'll need over time, but having a few essential tips and tricks in mind right from the start can get you to the fun parts that much faster. While you're lacing up your cleats and equipping your gear, make sure to check out our beginner's guide for Mario Strikers: Battle League.