You SHOULDN’T hate the Blue Shell

The Blue Shell is Mario Kart's most HATED item. In every single Mario Kart game since 1996, this one item attacks players and causes RAGE. But if everyone hates it, why won't Nintendo get rid of the Blue Shell from Mario Kart? Well, it turns out that the Blue Shell fixed one of the biggest problems in Mario Kart 64!
PATREON - / thomasgamedocs
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SOURCES
Super Mario Kart
guiguilegui.wo...
www.mariowiki....
shmuplations.co...
Polygon’s History of Fun Podcast - Super Mario Kart
Mario Kart 64
shmuplations.co...
www.mariowiki....
kotaku.com/the...
web.archive.or... (Mention MK64)
• Mario Kart 64 - Rainbo... (Cheating CPU video via superluigikart)
Mario Kart 8
www.eurogamer....
CREDITS
• Longplay of Super Mari... (Super Mario Kart Footage)
• Nintendo 64 Longplay [... (Mario Kart 64 Footage)
freesound.org/... (Explosion Sound Effect)
www.deviantart... (Kalimari Desert Train Diagram used with permission)

[@ThomasGameDocs]

WARNING: There are spam accounts in the comments pretending to be me. Please do not call any phone number or follow any link from the comments, unless it's pinned at the top like this! ALSO before anyone corrects me, I know that the "official" name for the Blue Shell is actually the "Spiny Shell" but nobody on the entire planet calls it that. Nintendo have even accidentally called it the Blue Shell before, so I think that Blue Shell is fine! Also follow me on Twitter because I'm trying to get to 10,000 followers!! twitter.com/thomasgdocs

[@Cliffordlonghead]

Awesome video

[@Cliffordlonghead]

First

[@cliffordlongheadkidfriendly]

I9k

[@cliffordlongheadkidfriendly]

Yes

[@supersabobros]

I call it the blue shell as well

[@Juan_blooms]

The blue shell isn’t there to help the last player win it’s there to help the first player lose horribly

[@brads8143]

This is true, because a star is usually more helpful at catching you up.

[@luigichampnumber1867]

@@brads8143 yup

[@Diamondsigmaspaceb]

@@brads8143 bullet bills and piranha plants too

[@bplionel2]

*Dunkey entered the chat*

[@YoshiCHEEP]

Lol

[@scaridaghostly]

What's more frustrating than someone else's blue shell, is your own green shell.

[@mikusama646]

The ultimate betrayal 🤣🤣

[@mikesendec3972]

Lol real talk right here

[@Whodjathink]

Like I always tell my friends "It be your own items"

[@Speedster428]

Own

[@EmilWall]

I disagree, green shell is the most reliable item. Red shells will often target the wrong player or get destroyed to a wall whereas green shells just becomes better the better you are.

[@dead_channel_lol]

Blue Shell: screw the best Red Shell: screw the next Coin: screw yourself Lightning: screw everybody

[@greninjamariokartpokemonfan]

Blooper and POW Block: screw everyone ahead of you Thunder Cloud: screw you

[@ernasetiyomurti9938]

Ghost:screw unlucky cpu/player and gove it too the stealer

[@RAS2525]

Green shell: Screw the nature

[@HHGamingOfficial]

@@greninjamariokartpokemonfan Getting bumped into by someone with a thunder cloud feels like they're giving you the middle finger.

[@LaterXavier-TX]

I feel like the other items like the Bullet Bill, Super Mushroom, and Star, were always more fair slingshoting. The thing with blue shells is that they often benefit the player in third and second more than the player who actually got it in sixth. It makes it one of those items where you might just be better off holding onto it and trying to get much closer.

[@hb-robo]

Not necessarily in 8 and 8DX, seeing as how the blue shell also hits players in its path before exploding on the 1st place racer.

[@Springbayoutrackman2]

@@hb-robo true but its very easy to dodge so it still benefits 2nd and 3rd unfortunately

[@hb-robo]

@@Springbayoutrackman2 Sure, but not every item for those racers 4-9 need to directly benefit their immediate standing. disrupting the top along with the bevy of other items they get like triple reds, bloops, triple mushrooms, etc adds up to an equalizing effect.

[@Cj-cv4wb]

If it smashed along the ground like it used to homing a bit as it went like in 64 it would disrupt the mid pack way more

[@CTGReviews]

But unfortunately even that isn’t foolproof, the lightning can hit you on their way and prevents it from benefiting anyone.

[@Iron_Stigmata]

I had no idea people wanted to remove the blue shell. I always saw it as an iconic and hilarious item in-game

[@Ser-ee4jf]

Same here

[@mariokarter13]

It's the absolute worst in Mario Kart Tour since that game's all about combos and high scores.

[@ianbelletti6241]

Exactly. I'm the kind of player who will run other players off the track in Nascar just to get an unfair advantage. The blue shell is there to give the less skilled players some additional assistance when racing a better skilled player. It also allows for some stupid gameplay hilarity like trying to shell yourself as you cross the finish. Time it right and you'll get hit at the completion of the race.

[@joshlikesfood1673]

I guess you were never in first place lol

[@ianbelletti6241]

@@joshlikesfood1673 and I guess you were never in last place. It's usually hated when you're in first and loved when you're behind. It kind of encourages the ones behind to not pass first place until the end but the first place player can hold one just in case someone overtakes him.

[@maxwell_edison]

I like how Nintendo's solution to feeling unfair is.. making other players feel unfair

[@jaredpatterson1701]

Exactly!

[@Firemarioflower]

Well said. Same thing that's happening F1..... winners should remain winners, losers shouldn't be given unfair advantages cuz their ego can't handle that they're slower

[@ToaArcan]

Not really surprising. They got rid of the Fake Item Box in 7 because it was frustrating to get it when you're in first, as it's useless as a shield. Then they added the Coin.

[@arcticpossi_schw1siantuntija42]

they decided to follow their vision and make the game dynamic instead of leaving a static, mostly unfun system where the fast cpu or the luckiest player always wins

[@agustinnarvaez5251]

it defeats the purpose of a racing game IMO, but at the end of the day, thats for sim racing. MK is an arcade game, its expected to have the dynamical factor. You can always find a group of people who think the same as you and host item-less races.

[@aus3342]

The most annoying part is when the blue shell targets you, you fall behind, and it still hits you even though your 2nd or 3rd place

[@carolinepence7565]

I know! It is so anoyyinggggggggg

[@TheRealMonnie]

Yes

[@pnut3844able]

It only does that if you're in 1st place when it passes the person in 2nd. I've hit the brakes, let the shell hit the dude that was just in 2nd, and then take first again.

[@Broockle]

I thought it can switch target after fired. This never happened to me before 🤔

[@joeladam659]

Bots in the finish didnt get hit, they retarget you right before the finish😑😑

[@RodrigoDavy]

When I played Mario Kart 7, I remember I took a look at the bottom screen from time to time, because it displays every character's item list. So if I saw someone got a blue shell, I'd intentionally fall behind in 2nd place so I wouldn't be targeted by it

[@madelynpalmentieri2258]

omg i used to do this alllll the time

[@nicholasspring]

Same on mk8!

[@sam365iv9]

I did the same on Mario Kart DS

[@emilysmyth4590]

Omg same I love trolling the person in 2nd and let them take the blue shell and laugh at their defeat it's makes happy when the person in 2nd gets hit before me

[@euvo_sound]

i actually do this unless im in the final lap where i accept my fate lmao

[@KindredBrujah]

The blue shell is a chaos item. It's not there to benefit those at the back, but to ensure the person in first can never feel totally secure. I think that's fine, it fills a role.

[@epiconyoutube]

it’s like the F-ZERO 99 skyway, prevents the person in first from just cruising along and gives them a reason to stay focused

[@naverilllang]

You can get it in the middle of the pack too, and there it's absolutely useful. Throw it from 4th place, it nails 1st spins 2nd, and now you've passed them both. Useful

[@Tatanka0110]

Heyyyy! My version of MK8DX uses the custom items, so I can remove the blue shell from any VS race.

[@tomshackell]

Indeed, I think this is the design idea of Mario Kart in general: it is designed to promote chaos. The creators of MK say the goal is that anyone can win from any position. If the design really took that goal to the extreme then the game would be completely random. It wouldn't matter what you did in the race, the outcome would be down to chance, and there would be zero skill in MK. MK doesn't go this far, but the design does deliberately introduce randomness and reduces the chances that the more skilled player will win.

[@algotkristoffersson15]

Well why is it those at the back who get it when second and third actually benefit from it

[@Luisito073]

Fun fact: In Yoshi Valley, the blue shell will sometimes go to the wrong path and will go in circles until it finds the first player. Another fact: the blue shell will still hit you if you're holding it in 1st place.

[@sebastianderry]

ye it happens to me

[@appleducky5234]

Funny, so does the game not know who's in first since the leaderboard is filled with question marks?

[@mohawkmaster5728]

There's also the chance that it'll time out and despawn entirely

[@superdreamsgames4587]

@@appleducky5234 in Mario kart 8 the blue shell always follows a specific path, so if you're not on that path it's not gonna be able to find you and it keeps going on until it completes a lap and eventually disappears without hitting you

[@thepersonwhoasked9475]

@@mohawkmaster5728 This happened to me in Mario Kart 8

[@Naturenerd1000]

Mario Kart 8 has pretty cool tactics to avoid the blue shell. Like jumping off the course so Lakitu hovers glides you to another spot and helps you avoid a blue shell explosion on certain courses. Or spinning out on a banana peel to avoid a worse blue shell explosion.

[@Luke-pp2lw]

And the blue shell was also nerfed compared to MK Wii

[@Juan_blooms]

Or you can let second place take first for a little bit

[@nicholasspring]

Or going backwards into second place or farther before the target is locked in!

[@nicholasspring]

@@Juan_blooms hey you stole me method kind of

[@kaykansan9135]

@@Juan_blooms Actually, it'll still go to you I think

[@endstoneninja3845]

9:37 I love how they made an entire speech to justify the blue shell’s existence

[@79discombobulation]

It aint even a good item 🥲

[@nathamiell]

I actually think the lightning bolt does a much better job of even-ing out the game for lower placements. It effects players in a lower placement for a shorter duration than those in a higher placement, giving everyone in a lower placement more time to catch up. A lot better than a singular "fuck you, first place" item.

[@chrisn.8322]

Lightning's purpose is helping you overcome your low position, but it goes about it in such an overcorrective manner that just comes across as unfair and toxic, especially since it indiscriminately attacks everyone, even those behind you, and the "shorter duration" against players in lower positions is generally inconsequential given the time/space difference from 1st Position. When we have options like the Golden Mushroom and Bullet Bill that do wonders for the user's position, Lightning being so absurdly overtuned and indiscriminately caustic just makes everyone but the user feel bad, especially if they didn't do anything to warrant it, and don't have any means to counter it.

[@goober4347]

Lightning needs a nerf like the feather should be re-added to main races

[@chamab.6800]

I’m happy that you said this. I thought I was crazy. I would get hit with lightning and it seemed like my blast would last so much longer than other players. It didn’t occur to me that it was because I had a better placement. Thanks for that tidbit.

[@blazingkite8983]

the lightning is well balanced for lower players but its doesnt account for those who get back in position while holding the lightning a simple solution would be that any player ahead of you gets shocked and their duration will last depending on position, basically how it currently works WITH AN ADDITION that ANY PLAYER behind you does not get shocked similarly to how ink does not affect any player behind yourself and only those ahead

[@galeforce47]

As the first place player, I vastly prefer getting hit by blue shells

[@turbocharged_penguin]

Funfact: There is a speedrun category called "Blue yourself" where you try to hit yourself with a blueshell as fast as possible.

[@GeorgeJonnie]

I’m afraid I prematurely shot my wad on what was supposed to be a dry run, if you will, so now I’m afraid i have something of a mess on my hands. Anyone get the reference?

[@earthUSOA7705]

​@@GeorgeJonnie no leave.

[@draghettis6524]

The Blue Yourself category is currently optimized as hell. Why ? Because you can only obtain a blue shell if you pick an item box 30 seconds or later into the run. And the current world record is around 34-35 seconds.

[@ABlueyFan]

I wasn’t speedrunning but I was playing with CPU’s and I threw a blue shell, only for it to come back right at me and I get knocked out, I almost threw my joy-cons

[@leonsgameplays5804]

@@ABlueyFan . HAHA LMAO, but seriously, if that's a bug, Nintendo should deal with it as SOON as possible

[@Irsu85]

That's why I love the honk honk item in Mario Kart 8 so you get super excited when you get it and can dodge the blue shell

[@mooky01]

I feel like we should really consider calling unfair moments in life a "blue shell". "And then, for no reason, she dumped me! Didn't I do everything right, Eric?" "Man, you absolutely did. That's such a blue shell."

[@mahoneys64]

A blue shell right to the balls.

[@felipeluna9597]

Lmao

[@creepermyeeper]

Haha lol

[@rashidisw]

Blue shell = non-racist version affirmative action

[@rosedollll7199]

this is genius

[@gechoman44iwantahippo]

I don’t think Nintendo should outright REMOVE the blue shell, but I do think they should give us the option to turn it off, like how items in Smash work

[@informationnotavailable6433]

That’s an amazing idea.

[@kadachinova5302]

Tbh I just want more customization in Mario Kart in general. Let me pick the items that're on the course, or let me pick the CPU characters so I can have a themed Team Mario VS Team Bowser battle, or something like that.

[@BeDatAPickle]

@@kadachinova5302 that's a good idea, with options like that, I'd take out the lightning item everytime 😂

[@informationnotavailable6433]

@@kadachinova5302 Yeah. Smash did a great job with that, MK could and should, too.

[@seyguh4177]

That already exists…take MKWii for example. You could adjust the settings to allow for “All Items” , “strategic items” (only allowing for things like mushrooms, stars, green shells, etc.) or just outright turn items off. I could see the appeal if you could do this online, but it would really make matchmaking times skyrocket trying to match you to people with the same settings.

[@tyon4187]

The thing that makes me upset about the blue shell is how frequently someone can get it, like bro at the end of the day, the guy benefitting from it the most is the one in 2nd or 3rd

[@franceskinskij]

exactly. It's not the fact I got hit by it that makes me mad, it's how MANY times someone throws a blue shell. In Mario Kart DS it happens 1 to 3 times per race and that's fine and all of that. In Wii, however, it almost feels like the computers are spamming it. It goes from 2 to 5 times in a single race. And lastly, in 8 deluxe it feels more balanced because it gets thrown 1 or 2 times per race. But if you play 50 or 100cc expect A LOT, and I mean A LOT of lightning shocks. They are really spamming it

[@tzarg]

@@franceskinskij ik, i've seen the person infront of me get blueshelled and then I take 1st cuz of that, then I get blueshelled, and then get blueshelled again on like... atleast 3 occasions

[@officertom6751]

I would rather remove the Item in the Mario Party series which takes you directly to the Star. I always felt it was cheap to get a Star that way, even though that Item costs a lot of money in shops. But in some Mario Parties you can even get that Item for free, even though this rarely happens!

[@justanormalaccountnothingt1571]

I think both items are fine. At least as of superstars it doesn’t get introduced until more than halfway through the party (if that), and I think it’s a very good reward for people who happen to win a lot of minigames, since that’s the main way of getting lots of coins. I think at the very least though they could increase the cost of it or introduce it a bit later

[@FiresplitterSpeedrun]

The star teleport item is one of the few tactical tools a good board player can use to prevent RNG from deciding the game almost entirely The star teleport item is awesome and adds far more to the skill cap of the game than one might think at first glance.

[@Mykasan]

depends on the kind of runs you do. it's really entertaining sometimes.

[@lukijez]

@@FiresplitterSpeedrun This. Items that bring players to the star have actually incredibly high skill ceiling. They arent just a cheap, cop-out star. They also move the player across the board in a very defined, non-random manner. They change the location of the star. The very existence of these items is very important to the game's economy, allowing richer players a strategic outcome rather than depending on dice multipliers, which are heavily reliant on random rolls. I've seen and played many games where multiple players sat and strategized "should I use it now, or wait till someone moves the star into a better position" or "if I use it then don't buy the star, i might manage to reach boo with just the right amount of coins before the game ends". No other item has this level of strategical depth. If you wanna complaing about free stars, then hidden blocks are right there. Welp, anyway, thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[@justanormalaccountnothingt1571]

@@lukijez exactly. Hidden blocks are the absolute worst and have literally no balance at all. In a game of heavy rng, hidden blocks are WAY too heavy on rng and just feel like a complete copout

[@lockmckeldrick134]

The Blue Shell does not do the job they say it does. The Shock does. It's a much better item to bring the pack in closer together. The Blue Shell is just there to ruin your vs. CPU attempts to get 3-stars on every cup.

[@clowntown5768]

It's made to keep the races entertaining, and not have one person dominate the whole race. It does exactly what it's meant to do, but because you are better than the computers, you always get hit by it.

[@R.O.T.C._SEEM]

​@@clowntown5768 You can only dominate if you are good

[@Teknanam]

@@R.O.T.C._SEEM I don't get the point of this comment.

[@R.O.T.C._SEEM]

@@Teknanam Read the first comment. He says it's to keep one person from dominating the race but the only reason why a person would be dominating the race is because they are better

[@Teknanam]

​@@R.O.T.C._SEEM Mario Kart is explicitly designed to go against "the better player always wins" thanks to its item system favoring lower placed racers and especially the blue shell. That's why I'm not getting why you're responding with "only good players dominate". Its true, but its not really saying anything IMO.

[@CyanideCarrot]

Blue Shells add too much comedic value and must never be removed

[@Firemarioflower]

They should be. They're stupid and clownish.

[@LSSTyranus]

It's part of Mario Kart culture, it is Iconic.

[@thesemicolon7269]

“The Blue Shell is the most hated item from all of Mario Kart” Thunder Cloud and Coin: am I a joke to you?

[@bjp4869]

Seriously, I don't get why people tend to hate on the blue shell so much when the thunder cloud is easily 10 times worse.

[@gamertypeawesome]

i think the coin item is fine but this is for the lightning item: 🖕

[@BeDatAPickle]

Exactly, the lightning removes your items, slows your speed, and has a longer effect on higher places plus you can't even see it coming.

[@aigeneratedwauigi2696]

Lightning is worse than thundercloud

[@Robbie_Haruna]

​@@BeDatAPickle Lighting fucks everyone though. The blue shell used to fuck first place with a heavy amount of stagger, but in addition to that it caused first place to lose their items. So even if they don't lose first place they're then a sitting duck for any red shells second place has.

[@kip258]

The limitations you describe really impress me with just how much power developers were able to squeeze out of the N64 later in its lifespan. They went from 8 2d sprites running at 20fps to THIRTY fully 3d machines running at 60FPS in F-zero X. And that's not because f-zero has simpler tracks than mariokart. There are often more polygons on screen in f-zero X than mariokart 64 at any one time. They figured out how to optimize the rendering and code so much by that point that it was amazing what they could get the n64 to do.

[@Yolwoocle]

Never knew how complex F-Zero was. That's fascinating! I'm curious as to the technicalities of how they pulled if off :O

[@giorgiomoroder604]

Also, F-Zero X had to streamed the music from the cartridge to save on CPU resources because N64 didn't have a dedicate audio chip.

[@kip258]

@@giorgiomoroder604 That's the same for all games that stream audio. I think what're you're thinking about specifically is how some earlier games used a section of what's technically the gpu for audio processing. For later games, almost every developer just opted to pay nintendo for the cartridge audio chip to make their games more impressive and more competetive. (I don't remember where I read this so take it with a grain of salt, maybe.)

[@flamespear86]

It's annoying because at first Nintendo made a true racing game F-Zero. Mario Kart followed and was still pretty much a true racing game. But then they didn't make another F-Zero game for 19 years...and even F-Zero 99 is just a rehash gimmick. I wouldn't mind the blue shell if Nintendo still made a real racing game or allowed options in Mario kart like turning off items, and not just Ghost races.

[@benberry1165]

It's one thing to be frustrated over one spiny shell, but it's quite another when you're getting blasted by 5 of them from the AI. Maybe not at the same time but getting hit in 5 incremental moments is a tad extreme.

[@Swiftbow]

Yeah, I was about to get first place on mirror Bowser's Castle when a red shell came at, but blocked it with a banana peel. Then the blue shell hit me. All on the last cliff before the finish line. My first place became 3rd, which was enough to kill my chance at getting the stars I needed for the cart unlock. Argh.

[@NinetyLegos]

*ahem* Mario Kart Wii *ahem*

[@inesnobre2703]

ITS A BLUE SHELL!

[@thunderd7904]

Okay, but I feel like the thunderbolt does the whole equalizing thing better since the further ahead you are, the longer you’re shrunken. Plus the player in first usually doesn’t get completely screwed; they just come closer to every other player. Equalization without frustration.

[@rayzuke1232]

Okay the video did a horrible job explaining why the blue shell is important. The 1st place is a very powerful position to be in terms of game state and making progress similar to the last places. Now in the last places you get very powerful power ups that ensure that you catch up as long as your driving is okay. In first place you primarily get items that slow down players behind and block disruptions. Now if it is a close race between 1st, 2nd and 3rd place there is no problem. HOWEVER should the player in first place manage it to get a solid lead then he will have plenty of time to react from disruption attempts from 2nd place. This makes it a easy to task to keep a banana at the ready to block red shells. So the first place gets to drive at their own pace without having to worry about any form of disruption. Meanwhile the 2nd place is unable to slow down the 1st place and is stuck in a constant war with 3rd and 4th place. 3rd and 4th place are constantly slowing each other down and 2nd place allowing the 1st place to get a even greater lead. Eventually it boils down to being a impossible task to finish a race with 1st place and you have to be content for fighting for 2nd place despite the race having barely started and the 1st round is about to be finished. This is were the blue shell gets in. It massively disrupts the 1st place while also getting rid of their defenses against further minor disruptions from 2nd place. This will allow 2nd, 3rd and 4th place to catch up and maybe even pass the formerly 1st place. This ensure that the player in 1st place gets dragged back down into the battle and helps slow down the players on the front.

[@thunderd7904]

@@rayzuke1232 Ok, but still Nintendo seems to love to punish you for playing well which makes no sense. Why not just make mushrooms a more common pull in second or third? That way, they can take shortcuts and catch up to first. Better than just saying “hey you’re winning? How about no.”

[@rayzuke1232]

@@thunderd7904 The problem is that not all race tracks have meaningful shortcuts and any distance you can gain from the mushroom can get taken by a red shells. Make the boosts too powerful for 2nd to 4th place and it becomes unfair for 5th to 8th place to catch up and so on. A better solution would be removing the ability for first to block all minor disruptions and even then the effect will be more limited and it would basically remove the entire itempool for 1st place. And now that seems like a weird design decision on its own. So even then the blue shell is still the best bet. As unfair and unfun as it is I truly can not think out of the top of my hat of any solution for this problem that would in theory effectively work. Not with the current game mechanics in place that is but I also can't think of a game mechanic that would work WITHOUT triggering the effect that trying to be in first place is counterproductive when you are not about to finish the race within 3 seconds. The only other way I can think of is removing literally all items that can cause disruption in the first place until all we are left with are different numbers of mushrooms. But who would want that?

[@thunderd7904]

@@rayzuke1232 maybe make it so that mario kart 64 computer rubber banding is applied to the players? Kinda like rage in Smash Bros; the farther back you are, the higher your max speed becomes. Think that could work?

[@CaedmonOS]

I think an item you could get in second place that when it hits it makes the person drop all their items and slow down a little bit for a second then you can capitalize on that by then throwing a red or green shell

[@owenwalters5505]

Another kart racer that pulls off a similar style of item is SRB2Kart and its Self-Propelled Bomb. It's like a blue shell, but it can only hit you when you deviate from your top speed. It increases the pressure of frontrunning while also rewarding skilled gameplay!

[@TheRealRidley12]

That's.. pretty smart design, actually.

[@yumecoca]

There is a mario kart game where the blue shell functions exactly in that matter-super circuit for the GBA. If you're going top speed with a blue shell on your tail, it will keep following you and strike the moment you mess up, but if it can't get you in time it just disappears.

[@Forzamon42069]

@@yumecoca Oh of course it's the worst Mario Kart that has the best blue shell

[@aluigiFromKart]

@@Forzamon42069 MK7 is right there reintroducing grounded blue shell to spite anyone that isn't first

[@aluigiFromKart]

ALSO YEAH GO PLAY SRB2KART

[@sweeteyes7]

You know what's more annoying than a blue shell? A lightning bolt, *just as you hit a ramp.* You'll fall straight into a death pit and go from 1st to 7th in a span of 4 seconds. Worst part is that it's nearly unavoidable.

[@Vendavalez]

Strangely, the blue shell is not there to make the person in last place have a chance to win because, if you think about it, it shouldn’t make a difference for you. There are other items that are there for that. The blue shell is there for something that is mentioned only once in the video which is to make the player in last feel like they have some agency in the race and not give up halfway. That would have made a very short video though 😂

[@thesimpostor6251]

Yeah Mega Mushroom, Star power and Bullet Bill are infinitely better at recovering lost ground. Blue shell is really only satisfying if i see the guy get hit or if it hits like two other people

[@MrGreen-jx2kw]

The blue shell is really only useful when you’re in 2nd.

[@Geno2733]

Lightning bolt. Slows everyone else WAY down and allows you to jump 4 spots if you're not far behind.

[@Geno2733]

​@@MrGreen-jx2kw drop rate for it in second place is terrible

[@Vendavalez]

@@Geno2733 which is precisely my point. The lightning bolt can actually have an effect in your position in the race. The blue shell is there to do nothing but tickle your spite.

[@Kurayamiblack]

I like that the Blue Shell has been around for so long that most people have learned to hate getting hit by it without hating the item itself. Plus, the counterplay game is super fun. I love watching people hit the brakes to take the 2nd or 3rd placeman with them, or find other ways to dodge the hit. Sometimes having an incoming Blue Shell turns into a "Watch this Flex" moment 😆

[@RaindropsBleeding]

Bananas. Used to flex on my buddies by tossing a banana. Fun fact, the game can only process one animation at a time. The blue shell hits you and finishes its animation in less time than it takes for the "I've just hit a banana" animation to run. But the recovery from a banana is much much faster than the recovery from a blue shell. Incoming blue shell? Toss a banana forward and drive over it. Watch your buddies' jaws drop when you brush off a blue shell like Luke Skywalker from The Last Jedi because your banana spinout was still playing, but still win because you recovered before ot could matter.

[@Arachninja752]

@@RaindropsBleeding You sir, are a genius.

[@xx4twunkn33xx]

Or hold on to the horn it breaks up the shell

[@BrandyvanderVeer]

In some new versions you can get rid of the blue shell with that loudspeaker item when its right above you

[@The_Jovian]

@@RaindropsBleeding it's not that the game can't process multiple animations, it's that you get invincibility frames when you take damage to prevent you from being constantly hit by items

[@PlagueOfGripes]

You could probably just have the blue shell's stun scale with the distance between players, so it's way more effective if the lead is absurd but barely noticeable if it's neck and neck. Then give the user of the blue shell a speed boost that also scales with their placement to a lesser degree.

[@LordofdeLoquendo]

Or just make the blue shell advance you to the first place instantly.

[@alden8038]

The Blue Shell is a poorly balanced item because it doesn't help the user. If you are in last why would hitting the person in first help you?

[@shannonmikko9865]

They changed it so it can hit any user in the way now

[@MasterOfTruck]

@@shannonmikko9865 that still doesnt make it balanced because its still just as easy to avoid since its presence is marked on the map. just dont be at the center of the track. not to mention the knockback received is no different than getting hit by a shell, vs the 1st place racer who would receive explosion knockback which lasts more than twice as long. the blue shell rarely ever benefits the user. at best all it does is shuffle the first 3 positions. but what good does changing the podium do when youre still trailing a half lap behind in 6th? just seems like an item to use out of spite above all else because you arent good enough to keep up.

[@FLE3TING_2NDS]

It's about sending a message

[@ashtray4344]

That isnt really how it works

[@smirglepapier531]

That's so my father and my mother who are both god awful at Mario Kart have the chance to 'get back' at their children who are occupying the first place. They are always so proud of themselves when they are lagging so much behind but manage to hit the on in 1st place. Especially if that person lost their spot because of the shell

[@Phoenax]

The thing about blue shell is it doesn't really help you get back in the race. It helps whomever is in 2nd or 3rd/4th. Super Star or Billy do a way better job at placing you back on track, but it's still hard. Maybe what we needed was a speed up, being bigger the farther you are from the first (not saying like this HUGE increase, just a little boost, or maybe bigger boosts, to compensate the good players that actually know how to use them. Oh, and the thunderbolt item as well, the one that makes everyone small for some time depending on your position. Blue shell feels just like "Well I'm may not be winning, but neither will you, random dude!"

[@eljaminlatour6633]

And the good thing is that players in a high position have less effective power-ups and low position players have more effective power-ups which gives them a chance to use the spiny shell.

[@steveman7183]

the bad news is that mari kart 8 items are also based on distance. i saw a character in 2nd place get lightning once

[@OmarAlikaj]

There's a reason players shouldn't be comfortable being in 1st place for too long. Also, we have the horn in "Mario Kart 8" that can break all shells.

[@breadisyummy_]

Yeah the horn that’s impossible to get in first place. You only get bananas and coins in first place

[@OmarAlikaj]

You don't get good power-ups in 1st or 2nd place in MK8. You'll need to be in 2nd place or lower for better items.

[@itsdidone]

@NickyAm not really, that's kinda unfair to have overpowered items in 1st don't you think?

[@bjp4869]

@@breadisyummy_ That's not true. I'm pretty sure I've gotten the horn in first place several times.

[@gamertypeawesome]

WAIT THE HORN CAN BREAK BLUE SHELLS?!!!

[@PartyMain]

The thing is, I'm usually in the front of a race so getting hit by blue happens othen. It's not that big of a deal imo. However, the times I'm in the back of the pack, and I pull a blue shell, I'm quite frustrated because it doesn't add value for me. It doesn't help me getting closer or overtaking my opponents. It only affects the first place player, which you give 0 fucks about if you are in 8th or 10h

[@Dave__AC]

"You shouldn't hate the blue shell" proceeds to outline exactly why everybody hates the blue shell 🤔

[@saltycakez]

Someone didn’t watch the video

[@spugelo359]

@@saltycakez Good thing you outed yourself.

[@alex2005z]

Yea preety much

[@Okamikurainya]

The easiest fix, and one that fits with their philosophy, is to just add the option to disable certain items in custom races. This would open the door for innovation and introduction of new non-compulsary items as well that may in the future become mainstays.

[@sadasela]

A prophet

[@joshcraftanimates5309]

This aged well

[@cap3990]

Well you can actually do that

[@justfreeze6655]

Now you can play Mario kart and make your dream come true

[@tastethedifferencecheese]

I love the spiny shell, especially in the ds version. it was always hilarious when you're far in front, see through the corner of your eye someone getting the spiny shell and seeing it disappear offscreen (the bottom screen kept track of everyone's power ups), then there's the moment of "OOOHH SHII-" it is certainly a very interesting and very funny item, especially in custom games

[@armorbearer9702]

Blue Shell is not so bad on lower difficulties. It's only when you are on the harder difficulties and trying to get a perfect score that the blue shell becomes a problem.

[@c.r.blankenship9040]

In my experience, there are strategies to curb this effect preemptively. Specifically, using bananas and green shells only as defensive items since you can’t really aim them, and only using red shells in an offensive manner when you either have another defensive item lined up or you’re really in a bind and need to hit someone. While not 100% effective, using a defensive strategy means you’ll get hit by fewer RED shells and GREEN shells, meaning you (ideally) won’t be as vulnerable when hit by a blue shell

[@stashthecash2392]

@@c.r.blankenship9040 exactly, in the new Mariokart on the switch, you can use the weird sound pulse thing that will destroy the blue shell it’s amazomg

[@Patchoulliil]

@@stashthecash2392 it’s kinda hard to get them when all the game wants to give you Is coins. For me at least

[@c.r.blankenship9040]

@@stashthecash2392 Yes! I like that - unfortunately you don't get it that often when you're in first place! I * think * since the air horn has the same basic (albeit weaker) functionality as the POW block in previous games that it might be possible to do it on Wii with a POW block, but I've never tried it. Again, it would be a rare situation to be in to have a POW block while you're in first place, and then you'd have to wait until somebody threw a blue shell. I did, just one time, manage to OUTRUN a blue shell by using a mushroom right as it was about to hit. It happened completely by accident and I've never been able to replicate it, so it's possible it was a glitch

[@benwyness148]

Just give me an option to turn the blue shell of when going for perfect scores in single player and then I wouldn't hate it so much

[@BoyProdigyX]

That dramatic reading of "Re: Blue Shell" at the end was amazing haha

[@ThomasGameDocs]

half the reason I made this video was to give me an excuse to read out that truly incredible quote

[@BoyProdigyX]

@@ThomasGameDocs Well it's gold as usual. Thanks!

[@2MKcreations]

@@ThomasGameDocs I like that you read it like it's a sermon

[@DuffTerrall]

@@2MKcreations appropriate given the soundtrack

[@tomjohn5458]

Two possible solutions: 1) The blue shell is actually hits every racer in front of you, with severity (stop time) slightly increasing with each racer it reaches. 2) It doesn't work in the final lap or final half lap, so there's more time to recover. Blue shells turn green when they cross this point.

[@fuzzyface4515]

I don't think I've ever experienced a single moment when playing any of the Mario Kart franchise where the blue shell has benefit me when I'm in last place. I certainly don't get any excitement of getting a last second win because someone or something performed better than me and the game decided to punish them for it. Absolute insanity.

[@chickenpasta7359]

its the same excitement you get when you're a dickhead to somebody just because they're doing better than you

[@CyrilHul]

The blue shell is fun.

[@pauldeddens5349]

Frankly for last place, the Lightning Bolt is the Blue Shell in every way but better. The Blue Shell seems like a much better item for 5th-3rd place, but would impede the selection for better items to get other racers out of the way. Red Shells, Bob-ombs, and Fire Flowers are all much better in those positions than a Blue Shell would be. Really the only advantage a Blue Shell has over a Red Shell is that it ignores most items.

[@ralsei7820]

Pretty sure in Mario kart you can get blue shells in fifth place

[@chosenscrub2009]

@@ralsei7820 Depends on the distance from the first place racer

[@lemmymaster]

I remember playing super mario kart on the switch and seeing how mario/luigi use a star every place and opportunity they have. Like, I was in second place, tried to hit mario with a red shell in first and he used a star out of nowhere.

[@timoyjonsen5428]

It's not fair, why do you play it then?

[@lemmymaster]

@@timoyjonsen5428 nintendo switch online, plus I like old games

[@Tmaster2590]

Use the built in rewind and save states to cheat back at the game.

[@timoyjonsen5428]

@@Tmaster2590ha, nice. I like to emulate the game then enable cheats so I can go through walls.

[@Supervocetubeia64]

The blue shell was different on Mario Kart 64. In that game, it tries to get every single racer who is ahead of you, not iust the first.

[@briancopeland4990]

Only if you're in its way in the process.

Now how does the blue shell solve the rendering issue of 8 characters at a time? As you explained, the blue shell will keep the playes closer together, so you will more often see more karts on the screen at once. So that sounds like it made it worse.

[@cartergamegeek]

He was a bit backwards. It's not being close it's being far. Game needs everybody close by to render less. Game has trouble loading things far apart. And in 4 player it's rendering 4 little screens and unlike single player you can't unload an off camera character to save rendering. It's forcing clusters to render less. The video had it backwards.

​@@cartergamegeek Okay. The player sprites don't even look 3D but rather 2D as in Super Mario Kart so is that even the issue? Or is it about rendering a bigger part of the track?

[@cartergamegeek]

@ For 64 they are sprites but the render problem is keeping track of everybody in 3D while keeping the game logic up and tracking who has what item at any given time. So in 4 player that is 4 things to track and we can't make them invisible to save on rendering. It's the worlds being huge that is eating up memory like crazy.

[@rightsaidmatt2632]

Problem with blue shell is it doesn't help the person that gets it. It's just they get to pull the trigger on screwing over the person in first at that time. It's not fun for the people in front because they are getting third partied by someone not even involved.

[@David-iy1zt]

Depends when it is fired On 64, I Usually liked to stock up a ghost if I am in first or second Steal the blue shell in multiplayer or just disappear at the right time Still some tactics you can use but it slows you down to use them

[@orangehatretro]

that’s like saying the red shell also doesn’t help you and just screws over the person in front of you

[@SwoleTommyPickles]

@@orangehatretro This is a flawed argument. The red shell helps you overtake the person that it is targeting, the blue shell does not help the person in 8th overtake the person it’s targeting in 1st.

[@rightsaidmatt2632]

@@orangehatretro red shell helps you pass the person in front of you. You get more points based on how high you place and get a better start position on the next race.

[@dominikstickling8197]

@@SwoleTommyPickles in this game everyone is your oponent, no matter which place he holds. If you are on lets say the 7. Place how much does it use you to slow down the player in front of you if you could slow the first player down?. Sure, if you slow down the 6. Player you take his place but the distance to the 5-1 place didnt change because of it, they are still far ahed of you and the 1. Is still miles ahed of you. ( you usually want to get on the 1. Place and if the 1. Finishes the race you cant get the 1. Place anymore, thus he is the main oponent for you and the player you should want to slow down most. ) The blue shell on the other hand helps you to close the gap to the top easier (in fact it make it easier for everyone but the first) by shortening the distance. for the counterargument: "but this dont benefit you it only benefit the 2.,3. Place " well in this case the former 2. Will eat the next blue shell until he is close enough for you to throw other stuff at him :). Oh the blue shell also brings the first places closer together so that they can eat more items from each other thus slowing them even more down for you.

[@Exvixcity]

The blue shell is too iconic to remove. I personally don't hate it because I like seeing my brother's face as I surpass him with the help of the blue shell.

[@SemiHypercube]

Oh so wait the game acting weirdly when I did 4 player wasn't actually the fault of the emulator, that actually is what happens to the game? (I mean it went a lot faster likely because of forcing the framerate to stay the same but still) I think the blue shell actually does its job better in some games where it can actually hit racers besides the one in first if it runs into some on the way there (by going on the ground)

[@saeedkhayal2733]

When he said “it’s not about drive,” all my mind thought of was “it’s about power.”

[@RatelHBadger]

Clarkson has entered the chat:

[@OfficialSnapDragon]

A tip for that devastating shell is to note when you might get tracked by the Blue Shell and who is closest behind you. When you think a Blue Shell may spawn, let someone drive in front of you. Upon that, stay clear of the route of the Blue Shell. Once done, your opponent should be halted and you have survived an attack. Repeat that to just destroy your opponents. Or you can use items that get away from the Blue Shell. BUT THAT IS JUST NORMAL AND LAME

[@andychamplin]

I actually like the Spiny Shell, but you know Nintendo can add customizable rule sets and remove items when they play with friends. That's always an option so Nintendo doesn't have to feel like a bad guy. Nintendo could always say, "You want to remove the Blue Shell so bad, now you can do it yourself and others who like it can continue to play using it. When your are online you have to play using the Blue Shell because we like the Blue Shell."

[@ItsUhCarmen]

“Blue shells of life”? Tell that to my controllers 😅 the Blue Shell is the grim reaper of Mario Kart.

[@TheSimpleMan454]

The blue shell's only role is to say to the person in 1st "You don't get to win, the guy in 2nd does." Because people just hoard them until the end of the final lap. It doesn't benefit the guys in 5th to 8th, just gives the guys in 2nd and 3rd (sometimes 4th even) time to become the new 1st and 2nd place right at the finish line. Things like Bullet Bills, mushrooms, stars, etc all help out the ones trailing, and red and green shells can allow the user to pass up whomever is directly ahead. If the guy in 2nd red shells me and passes me for the win, cool. (More impressive if it's a green shell. Seen some great bank shots. I digress.) But if some rando in 6th or 7th Blue Shells me to hand the guy in 2nd the win...

[@Swiftbow]

The problem with blue shells is that the CPU players get them. If it was only humans, I wouldn't mind so much. I will say that I have won at least one race after I got a blue shell. Not sure how much difference it made... I think it was in a figure 8 item pull after I'd run an impressively awful course to that point.

[@princetbug]

If they're used at the end of a race, sure. But that's not primarily where blue shells show up. Definitely not in a race full of players. Nobody's going to save a blue shell until the end when they're behind unless they're trolling or trying to smuggle it up to 2nd or 3rd. Even then, it's not worth doing. The point is to slow down 1st through 3rd. That's why the explosion exists, so that nearby placing racers also get effected by it.

[@bkCheezburgor]

I was still 1st when i was Blue shelled in the game

[@thomaspau211]

In my opinion they should add a update that allows you to disable powerups

[@conorbrennan5836]

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe booster course pack 3: allow me to introduce myself

[@donutlover2893]

They do actually if you do a vs race you can custom items

[@thomaspau211]

@@donutlover2893 I didn't know

[@rockbreaker6]

@@thomaspau211 It was added VERY recently

[@rosedollll7199]

isn’t that already in wii-

[@justanormalaccountnothingt1571]

“The blue shell is the most hated item from all of Mario Kart.” Coin: nervous sweating

[@FiresplitterSpeedrun]

I like the coin. I prefer coin over shells or banana peels every day of the week.

[@imreallybadatnamingthings]

@@FiresplitterSpeedrun Why, exactly?

[@FiresplitterSpeedrun]

@@imreallybadatnamingthings Because of the speedboost it offers. Even if you are at 10 coins it gives you a slight speed increase, which is enough to be significant.

[@lordnoobiest6578]

@@FiresplitterSpeedrun so you would rather be redded than get two coins??

[@FiresplitterSpeedrun]

@@lordnoobiest6578 This is a tricky one, the thing is that red shells are not as common as you think they are. They are about 1/3 during the best of circumstances (which is far from always the case mind you), so ideally I want 2/3 item boxes to contain coins in first place (assuming I am unable to dodge them, which is far from always the case). But if the question is whenever or I would rather always get coins or defensive items is a more interesting one. I think that only getting defensive item wins out over only getting coins though, but if I got to chose the content of one indiviudlal item box only, I would say that picking coin wins out over time. I think people really undervalues the coins.

[@dontworry4945]

first 5 years of playing Mario kart i had no idea what the blue shell did. it just flew away and i never had a clue. the other racers were eons ahead of me for years.

[@A_Ali173]

I love how there’s an option now in 8 deluxe. But to be honest, if you were playing with some friends or family and there’s a blue shell, it gets exciting

[@Swiftbow]

There is? Where is the option?

[@dreamcream3738]

​@@Swiftbowin versus, you can customize the item pool now

[@Swiftbow]

@@dreamcream3738 That's cool, and I should have known that, lol. But it annoys me the most when the computers use it in Grand Prix mode.

[@dreamcream3738]

@@Swiftbow Honestly, the blue shell is not as bad as it's memed to be. Sure, it's annoying to be on the receiving end of one, but not only is there counter play for it, but usually the AI is programmed to use it in the middle of a race. Three methods of counterplay; 1) the Super horn, which exists to destroy the blue shell 2) Use a mushroom boost at the right time. The mushroom is specifically programmed to make you invulnerable to the Blue Shell 3) Bagging and Smuggling; the practice of lagging behind purposely to get power items, only to carry them closer to the front and snatch victory at the final lap. While racing games reward good driving, Mario Kart rewards you taking on the mentality of "The only lap that matters is the last one."

[@Swiftbow]

@@dreamcream3738 I've played it enough, yeah. Definitely been hit by a lightning bolt and then a blue shell within sight of the finish line in the last lap, though. Counters are good... but one does not always have them.

[@comicfan3133]

The blue shell is completely OK in the beginning or the middle of the race but in the last lap close before the finnish line, it feels unfair getting hit by it while your victory gets "stolen" without a Chance to retake it. But this feeling could be prevented if you reduce the propability for the blue shell in the last round.

[@Niallpro10]

6:46 "if you didn't know, the blue shell seeks out to the player in first" Gets blue shelled in 3rd

[@ego-lay_atman-bay]

Here's the thing, I like the blue shell. I like having to avoid it, or to hold my mushroom in 1st, just in case a blue shell comes. It fun having the blue shell. I have actually played mario kart tour where only mushrooms do anything (glitched multiplayer rooms, where the items don't show up on anyone else's screen), and it's not really fun. I like the blue shell, even when I'm in 1st.

[@Ferrichrome]

I like games with a little luck or chaos. The devs are right, the game would feel empty without it. This is a party game at the end of the day, it's for laughs, and you don't have to take it too seriously. And ever since they added the super horn, it adds more strategy too, since I have to think about saving the super horn for when I'm in first, but I might have to use it on a red shell or someone else and end up getting blue shelled anyway... Love the depth that it adds. One of the best gaming moments I've had actually came from a blue shell. I was in first, saw a blue shell coming, so I decided to slow down just enough so that I was in the path of my friend in second place... Boom, we both got hit by the shell, meaning neither of us could secure first place. The look on his face was priceless!

[@ego-lay_atman-bay]

@@Ferrichrome nice! I agree. I also just thought up something that I want to mention. The blue shell is pretty much a staple of the mario kart series. If nintendo removed it, I'm pretty sure fans would complain about it, forcing nintendo to put out an update that adds the blue shell back in.

[@bannah6400]

This world is rapidly passing away and I hope that you repent and take time to change before all out disaster occurs! Belief in messiah alone is not enough to grant you salvation - Matthew 7:21-23, John 3:3, John 3:36 (ESV is the best translation for John 3:36) if you believed in Messiah you would be following His commands as best as you could. If you are not a follower of Messiah I would highly recommend becoming one. Call on the name of Jesus and pray for Him to intervene in your life - Revelation 3:20. Contemplate how the Roman Empire fulfilled the role of the beast from the sea in Revelation 13 over the course of 1260+ years. Revelation 17 confirms that the beast is in fact Rome. From this we can conclude that A) Jesus is the Son of God and can predict the future or make it happen, B) The world leaders/nations/governments etc have been conspiring together for the last 3000+ years going back to Babylon and before, C) History as we know it is fake. You don't really need to speculate once you start a relationship with God. Can't get a response from God? Fasting can help increase your perception and prayer can help initiate events. God will ignore you if your prayer does not align with His purpose (James 4:3) or if you are approaching Him when "unclean" (Isaiah 1:15, Isaiah 59:2, Micah 3:4). Stop eating food sacrificed to idols (McDonald's, Wendy's etc) stop glorifying yourself on social media or making other images of yourself (Second Commandment), stop gossiping about other people, stop watching obscene content etc. Have a blessed day!

[@jackmcnally8706]

I find the blue shell a great inclusion in multiplayer Mario kart, but it is INFURIATING in single player. It makes getting the 3 star rankings in Wii and DS a total nightmare and almost completely out of your control. It’s much less of a problem in 8 though since it’s stun time was nerfed, it no longer makes you drop items, and the super horn exists, plus it spawns way less (maybe even not enough for multiplayer you could argue). Plus you get 3 stars just for hitting 1st in each race and not having to hit some invisible time gate. Simple solution: Make the CPUs unable to get them in single player Grand Prix. Or at least not on the final lap of the race.

[@JustJulyo]

I've actually started intentionally going into last place to get the good items and drive up to 1st with a power star item

[@SupersonicII]

Yeah, if you can help it, it's better to sandbag your own performance to either get god-tier item drops in the bottom ranks, or just to avoid the dreaded first place.

[@Kisemo]

Here’s a tip: Make the Mushrooms work like they’re supposed to and increase the speed boost.

[@jaredpatterson1701]

This reminds me SO MUCH of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy!! 💀 ☠️ "All I want to know is - is she the one?" ("Sometimes life isn't fair, I think things are more interesting like that - blue shells of life") "What? We don't want love! We wanna be rich!!" - rat 1 "Yeah what is this 'is she the one' stuff ("life") TAKE HIS BRAIN!! - rat 2 (Every competitive gamer ever "we don't care about fair, we just wanna dominate!!)😆

[@lonelyPorterCH]

Well, I still hate it, beeing hit by an item you can't stop 5 seconds in front of the finish line and losing your 3 star gold trophy just sucks Also: in mk8 its easy to get to first place from the back of the field if you use mini turbos and drive good enough

[@Swiftbow]

Yeah... I was playing with my kid on 50cc, so, to make it interesting, I sat on the start line until the CPUs were about halfway through lap 2. (I did park on some coins to max that out.) I still won the race by a pretty big distance, so I stretched it out even more on the next few races.

[@lonelyPorterCH]

@@Swiftbow I don't even race 50cc, only 150, mirrored and 200, since 150 trophies count for 100 and 50 aswell^^

[@Swiftbow]

@@lonelyPorterCH I don't either, as a rule. But my kid is 2 3/4, and he wanted to try racing.

[@BusinessSkrub]

Not being shitty at the game and then being punished for being in first feels very bad, man. Only getting coins the entire race because you're in first place feels worse though....

[@AndrewAnstrom]

Exactly... it's deflating to get continuously punished for actually being good at the game... no other racing or vs games have such a punishing design for taking the time to become good at them.

[@Buglin_Burger7878]

Hold your coins, then your next item will normally be an item. Better then nothing, but still horrible.

[@Nuclearburrit0]

When playing with my friends we tried turning off the coin and then we learned why it's super important to have it on. Our games would always have someone get ahead early and get a huge lead while the rest of us use our items on each other. Meanwhile the guy in first would just cycle for shooms or a horn to dodge blue. And no this wasn't just one of our group being better. It was a different person each time. Having first place lose out on items means they can't cycle for defensive items while everyone else needs to balance their defense with their offense.

[@Turtelo_]

I always thought it was essential to prevent snowballing. If you are first you rarely get hit by anything (or can defend quite easily), whereas when you are in the pack you get screwed over way more often and to balance it out you need the blueshell. These kind of "unfair" ways to balance a match are actually a pretty common thing in strategy game design. It's also not fair if you are first and never get hit by anything all match long

[@Max-256]

I like the blue shell, I've never had a problem with it. In my family iam always the front runner so iam always having the blue shell hunt me down, sometimes I even get as many as 4 in a single race but it helps my family keep close enough to not give up. And sometimes them being able to steal a win because I got blue shelled is what keeps them playing, otherwise they feel like I just win every time.

[@Pitrek1113]

MK8: oh no, one blue shell is coming, I'm doomed! MKTour: Hold my beer, *BLUE SHELL FRENZY*

[@Overkill9991]

I think the main thing about the about the blue shell is that it is good at keeping first place in check. If they get to far ahead blue shell. There are plenty of items to help people in the pack catch up. Shrooms, stars, shock, bullet just to name a few.!

[@Rothiseph]

0:20 Wasn't sure if I misheard when you said "Get RED of the blue shell", but then you said it again later in the vid... nice. 😂

[@imagirabbii6557]

Thank you for adding accurate captions to the video! I wanted to watch something, but I’m in a very loud room atm and can’t hear the audio. I’m very grateful! Super interesting video as always, too 👍

[@marcush4741]

I love blue shells. Not because I rely on them, but because my kid loved them. She always felt like she could compete when she got them. Her goal started out as "I just want to blue shell dad". The first time she beat me, she did it with a blue shell. Within a few weeks of her forst win, I was never able to beat her without one. Watching her go from struggling to exceeding was beautiful. Knowing that she is now worlds ahead of me, I now get to play casually and mess up her races the way she used to mess up mine. Blue shells are my favorite part of any racing game ever. I hope they stay in the games as long as they'll stay in my heart.

[@aboudi0507]

The blueshell.. only a true gamer can dodge it

[@verppurp]

speeding past it, one of those shockwave things, driving off the edge

[@lance2580]

As a side note, this item is actually known as the *Spiny Shell.* - The Blue Shell already exists in the form of a power-up in _New Super Mario Bros._ - The Spiny Shell is name dropped in the item selection for _Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, Wii U, and Ultimate_ - One of the cups in _Mario Kart 8 Deluxe_ is literally titled "Spiny Cup" and is represented by the aforementioned Spiny Shell.

[@KokonutOil]

🤓

[@kirbo4252]

@@KokonutOil yeah, that's a fair enough response

[@sauseysandwich9215]

this is such a “uhh, actually” *pushes up glasses*moment

[@philnleblanc6664]

Blue shell

[@JoshuaPaulKing]

8:30 Interesting music choice in the background. One of my favorite hymns! 😂❤🎉

[@p.zansei3280]

Funnily enough, the game Crosscode has the most apt description referencing this controversial MK item: describing that the Blue Shell "Is fabled to be the bane of many a conqueror." In that turn of phrase, it's place in the game makes perfect sense - if anybody can win at any time, the person whose been driving superbly with a large gap at 1st place shouldn't feel safe until they've won. Even if it means that player 4's blue shell from 9th place costs you the first place in favour of an AI. It is, if nothing else, a hazard that exists to humble the player on top, and prevents a game from becoming *too* one-sided.

[@Robbery_]

crosscode is awesome

[@p.zansei3280]

@@Robbery_omg yes! I hold it in Hi! Regard

[@keiyakins]

I mean, I hate the blue shell sometimes, but I also get why it's there. They've also slowly added more ways to play around it, which are difficult but feel amazing when you pull it off. The item I just want gone forever is the goddamn lightning.

[@Eye_Of_Odin978]

Honestly yes. The Lightning Bolt is one of the most annoying items in all of Mario Kart, because it actually affects the racers differently depending on certain conditions. Obviously, the person who uses it is unscathed, but what about everyone else? Well, that all comes down to what place you were in when it went off. Have you ever noticed that it may feel like the miniature state you're forced into by the lightning lasts WAY longer when you were in 1st than other positions? That's on purpose. The devs made it so that it lasts longer on you the better you were doing prior, so that people can catch up. Everybody complains about how the Blue Shell doesn't actually help the guy who gets it, but the Lightning Bolt is damn near the exact same way but it hits EVERYONE except the user. It's insane that people overlook the Lightning Bolt's completely unfair state of play.

[@YodaPM999]

The lightning item also exists for balancing purposes. Without it, people could hold on to their stars, bullet bills, and whatever other power item without having to worry about losing it. Yes, it is an annoying item, but like the blue shell, it is in the game for a good reason.

[@DarkPrince777]

Honestly, the more I think about it. The Lightning Strike is the best item in the game because whenever you have the bolt, your like a King and Queen. You decide when players have to lose their items, and their speed, and you have time to catch up to the upper heads. Which is also the annoying item.

[@aidanh7527]

Lightning sucks but the blooper is the worst power it helps no one and is just annoying

[@DarkPrince777]

@@aidanh7527 Same argument with the blooper. Bad item but it has its use. The item that’s by far the worst is the Coin item.

[@walterego-ks7rx]

0:11 Ultrakill coin toss jumpscare

[@FausseFugue]

I really enjoyed the first Mario Kart. Yes, some characters had powers you didn't, but when you won a race, it was because you were good at the game, which to me made it feel a lot more fair. With newer Mario Karts, if you win it's mostly down to luck, which makes it feel really unfair.

[@Firemarioflower]

Agree

[@franceskinskij]

in 8 deluxe it feels like it's impossible to lose. The computers just kinda let you win. True, if you play 150 or 200cc you might get some assholes but on lower CCs you have to be REALLY bad to even get 2nd

[@amonoceros]

I really liked the original, and am meh toward all the rest. Because of things like this. E.g., you can get super good at 50cc and see how many of the computer players you lap. In newer versions, you can absolutely _crush_ a course, then make a couple of mistakes and suddenly you're in 6th. It's really disheartening to have being really good basically not matter, outside of time trials or last laps. My preference would be for a party mode for blue shells and comeback mechanics, because I want to be able to crush the 50cc AI opponents if I'm better than them. And want to _be_ crushed at 150cc if I'm worse. I want to control the difficulty level, not have Nintendo decide for me. And if I'm playing with someone clearly better than me, I want a handicap like their top speed is lower, or my top speed is higher, _set beforehand_. Without these things, it feels like playing Chutes and Ladders. Which gets boring quickly.

[@Flegz1]

Blue shells don't deserve that much hate. I don't hate blue shells, because sometimes when you're in 2nd or 3rd etc. you can have now 1st or 2nd etc.

[@going2021]

Yeah but you’re not the one even using the shell to begin with so of course you don’t mind lmao Benefits you without even having to use it yourself

[@EmmaxoOCE]

Yeah because someone else did it for you. It’s completely useless to the person in 6th. I get the game is half skill, half using items but the rest have way more counter play, like moving out of the way or putting up a defense shell or banana. You can’t get rid of the blue shell if you’re in first because you can’t get the bomb that destroys it. Maybe y’all should just get good so you don’t have to use the blue shell 😂😂😂

[@AA-tz2bm]

@@EmmaxoOCE ur acting like the reason you front run is pure skill and not partly because of good items or other racers screwing eachother up instead 😂

[@AA-tz2bm]

The blue shell is an imbalanced item that should be reworked but calling everyone that used it to 'get good' aint it since anyone can be in that place no matter how good they are

[@EmmaxoOCE]

@@AA-tz2bm lol nice how you avoided what I said. I quite literally said the game is half skill and half using items. Almost every other item being chucked at you can be avoided but blue shell can’t because when you’re in first you can’t get the bomb. Nice try tho…. Strawman argument

[@hibbs3180]

Getting rid of the blue shell loses so many good moments like throwing a blue shell at your friend right when he is about to win a race to make them lose and stuff and then them screaming at you. Nothing beats it.

[@jungdaniel2231]

I think the blue shell should only appear when first place is, like, really, really ahead of the other players

[@cursedcat6467]

In that case there is no point, it either has no influence or too much influence

[@jomaq9233]

Besides, everyone knows that lightning is the actual most infuriating item in the game

[@gnarled128]

Nope, the coin is. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve started a race in 1st, gotten a coin from the first item set, and then was immediately hit by a red shell to fall all the way down to 8th or lower

[@jomaq9233]

@@gnarled128 I meant “annoying” in terms of other players being affected by the item you pulled, but honestly, good point

[@gnarled128]

@@jomaq9233 The blue shell can still affect others in the games it travels across the ground. The lightning is like the great equalizer - it shrinks everyone but the user, removes items, and higher placements are shrunk for longer - plus there’s some strategy involved to avoid dodging players. The coin just gives you two coins which barely affect your speed *AND* you’re going to lose immediately when you get hit by that red shell. Whoop-de-doo! At least the other two items have strategic value and can help you.

[@wumpoooo]

@@gnarled128 what does the coin do?

[@iamathinginthisworld7880]

@@wumpoooo gives you 2 coins. It’s completely useless

[@SleepyShep37]

The ending in short "fuck you I'm keeping the blue shell because I rather make a player feel cheated than rewarded for mastering game mechanics because it makes me laugh."

[@BlouePickdMan]

Nintendo: makes npcs cheat* also Nintendo: Why cant anybody win

[@reshawshid]

Part of the reason is that AI don't exactly operate the way humans do. If you talk to game devs who program AI you'll hear them talk about how they have to program incompetence into the AI, otherwise they'll be perfect and always win against human opponents. That said, with how technology works today, there's no longer any reason why Nintendo can't program AIs to use the same rules as human players, and reducing competence to let them make mistakes.

[@LoveOverwhelming]

@@reshawshid except, as a game dev, it's actually really hard to get "medium difficulty" from an AI with the same rules. It's much easier to design simpler rules for AI that happen to coincide with the medium difficulty a human might be capable of.

[@reshawshid]

@@LoveOverwhelming So... why can't you have it follow human rules, following a relatively ideal path, and just force it to make "mistakes" at random intervals, that decrease in potential frequency as the difficulty setting increases? Hell, why not have it work similarly to the learning AI in Super Smash Bros? Starts off on an ideal path like above, but as the player gets better, the AI also learns how to do what the player does... if it can see them.

[@LoveOverwhelming]

@@reshawshid because those calculations are invariably much harder :) What is a mistake? When someone makes a decision in error, when someone makes a less than ideal decision? No one wants to play against an AI that unfortunately throws itself into death regularly. You need to distinguish mistakes ahead of time, to carefully humanize what a mistake is; this is far harder than simply making a more restrictive set of rules with "humanity" baked in. As for a learning AI, have you ever trained one? They don't easily render fun to play opponents; they very often result in nonsensical or annoying to play opponents, who are not constrained by sportsmanship or boredom, who will low kick you constantly for a very not fun fight. Growing a good opponent AI (not merely one that wins) is just as hard, if not harder.

[@reshawshid]

@@LoveOverwhelming Yeah, well... people rarely succeed long-term when they do things the easy way. Look how AAA companies are struggling when they try to cut corners, they get away with it only because of simps that buy their games no matter what. You will not have that luxury as a small dev. So do it the hard way, the right way, and earn the respect of your customers.

[@emilybixler3166]

Also, being in first place does give you an advantage. If you're in the middle, you'll often have shells and other attack items bouncing around everywhere, from all directions. But if you're in first, it's pretty easy to get further ahead because all you really need to worry about is red shells from second place, which are easily blocked or outmaneuvered. Blue shells serve an important role in lessening that lead and leveling the playing field.

[@Buglin_Burger7878]

As the person who is by all the items gets a blue shell then gets hit going further back? Why not just give the person in 2nd Red Shells? Or give them the Blue Shell?

[@kirbo4252]

@@Buglin_Burger7878 doesn't the blue shell have the ability to hit players while it's going for 1st place? Maybe that's the case so it could also hit other players

[@sauseysandwich9215]

so you are punishing someone for being good at the game?? that’s not logical, nor is that way of thinking good for any game.

[@castroglez1613]

@@sauseysandwich9215 Yeah but by not punishing a good player you're punishing everyone else who are casual players. And if you're a good player why would a blue shell hurt you that much, if you can easily catch back up? Staying in 1st place without a worry is incredibly boring especially if all you friends are behind you and they're having fun without you because you're so far up ahead.

[@cursedcat6467]

@@castroglez1613 that’s like telling a business, why don’t you like it when I steal from you? Your rich enough to make a recovery. Both statements ignore the fact that other stuff is going to happen that might make it impossible to recover

[@spikyshell8518]

Never hate me.

[@Icesta663]

It can talk now?

[@philippeklein7876]

It can talk now

[@brianmason1594]

Talk how

[@sofiacabrera239]

Talk stop

[@aligokce7836]

OR HE’LL TARGET YOU INSTEAD

[@Megamean09]

So their entire claim is bullshit, then. They claim it's there to give last place a chance at winning, when it doesn't help last place at all. Hurting the guy in the lead doesn't help last place to close the gap with the other six players between them, it just punishes the guy in the lead for being better than them.

[@BusinessSkrub]

Literally..... 12th place tossing a blue shell doesn't help anybody but the guy in 2nd lmao

[@Dead_Metal]

Well the Blue Shell worked a bit differently in MK64 than the other games in the fact that it could be used defensively as a shield like other shells, yet wouldn't get destroyed if another player ran into it, allowing a player lower down to retain their position. With then shooting it off allowing them to hit a player or two directly in front of them.

[@greninjamariokartpokemonfan]

​@@BusinessSkrubA similar situation occurs with the Blooper, except that item disproportionately affects new players while barely doing anything to experienced players.

[@jeffreythemonkey466]

I like the motivation you put in that quote at the end. Keep up these videos because they’re masterpieces.

[@studioanimations]

There's nothing more satisfying to me in Mario kart than keeping a blue shell up until 2nd place and then using it

[@crystaltulip_]

That baldie's discourse made me feel happy about the blue shells of life. So wholesome.

[@sledgen.]

the blue shell shouldn't get removed from the game, the coin item should! It's so useless lol

[@-Puppet-]

The coins make you faster tho

[@daforkgaming3320]

Maybe make it so you get more than 1 coin, like 2-5

[@radioactivevolt]

The coins work well in MK8DX, without them the 1st place would get two defensive items everytime

[@EliasMorals]

@@-Puppet- they also add some strategy! If you can only get 5 items, and one of the 3 common items was a Coin, I'd have to think about how I collect items even more, especially if dragging an item behind me doesn't free a slot

[@FiresplitterSpeedrun]

If it wasn't for the chance of getting a coin you bet that if I was in first I would always chill out with two defensive items, the coin is good enough where I do consider using items for the chance of getting a coin.

[@theCycleReport]

That last long quote sounds like somebody who rarely is winning at Mario kart 😂

[@420Gold]

The blue shell is one of those things that when you’re on second you absolutely love it, when you’re in first you absolutely hate it. I’ve tried to still hate it when it helps me, but that’s kinda hard lol

[@moronribbons5774]

The thing that weirds me out the most is that the item manual graphic you showed, doesn't at all mention how sometimes bananas stick to you and randomize your steering for a moment before causing you to spin out, but when this happens you can also break to avoid spinning out.

[@danielernsberger3771]

This was unique to MK64. I did this a lot after hitting a banana while at least steering straight to prevent spinning out and getting the "note" symbol and relief voice from recovering from a banana (or even sometimes just turning too abruptly!) No other Mario Kart game since has had this mechanic.

[@vivalanina]

It needs the blue shell!! Especially when you're playing a game with a new set of people, if someone is significantly better than others it keeps them from winning every race the whole night and sucking the fun out of the game

[@tempgamefreakgaming]

My issue on this is that I can get so far ahead that a potential Blue Shell hit would be more of an annoyance rather than a game ending event... 🚶

[@00yiggdrasill00]

I hate the blue shell true, I outright loathe it, but in multiplayer it gives that person who just can't keep up a way to interact with and influence the better players and I feel that's worth the enraging frustration it causes in singleplayer to keep it.

[@spugelo359]

AKA "Fuck you best player specifically!"