Mario Kart 7

Mario Kart 3D is an upcoming racing game in development for the Nintendo 3DS. It is the ninth installment of the Mario Kart series, the seventh in the main series, and the third on a handheld console. The game's release date is scheduled for Hoilday 2011. In the game, players will be able to exchange Ghost Data and play online in multiplayer mode. Nintendo has confirmed that this game will bring "a bunch of new elements" to the Mario Kart series.

Gameplay
In this new Mario Kart game, coins will make a return. Coins were not featured in any Mario Kart game since Mario Kart: Super Circuit. The option to select classic Mario Kart tracks is also available again in this game. This new Mario Kart also as some new features. Players can now use air gliders, which can be handy for navigating through air. Players may now assemble their own karts, rather than select pre-set karts as in older Mario Kart games. Players can now select the body of the kart, the wheels and the glider. Some parts need to be unlocked, before they can be used. There are 8 racers in the races instead of 12 like Mario Kart Wii.

Motorbikes (from Mario Kart Wii) haven't been shown yet in any trailer or screenshot. It is unknown if bikes will return in this game or not.

Playable

 * Mario
 * Luigi
 * Princess Peach
 * Yoshi
 * Donkey Kong
 * Bowser
 * Koopa Troopa
 * Toad

Other

 * Miis
 * Grand Goombas
 * Swoopers
 * Tiki Goons
 * Cheep Cheeps
 * Clams

Nintendo eShop Description
''A New Dimension of Kart Racing. The newest installment of the fan-favorite Mario Kart™ franchise brings Mushroom Kingdom racing fun to new heights, in glorious 3D. There are new customizable Karts with new abilities that will have players soaring through the skies on wings and propelling through the seas on their quest to become a Mario Kart Champion.''

Confirmed Items

 * Banana Peel
 * Triple Bananas
 * Green Shell
 * Triple Green Shells
 * Red Shell
 * Triple Red Shells
 * Spiny Shell
 * Mushroom
 * Triple Mushrooms
 * Star
 * Thunderbolt
 * Blooper
 * Bullet Bill
 * Coins

New Courses

 * Unnamed tarmac race course. Peach's Castle appears here. Cherry blossom trees, and mushroom trampolines from Mushroom Gorge in Mario Kart Wii also appear in it.
 * Wuhu Island, a place that also appears in Wii Fit, Wii Sports Resort, Wii Fit Plus, and Pilotwings Resort. The course even has a remix of Wii Sports Resort's main theme.
 * Unnamed mountainous course with pipes and incoming boulders. It greatly resembles the pipe beta course, dokan_course from Mario Kart DS. There is also a cave and after is a forest.
 * Unnamed jungle course with Tiki Goons from Donkey Kong Country Returns.
 * Unnamed underwater course with Clams and Cheep Cheeps.

Retro Courses

 * Airship Fortress (Returning from Mario Kart DS)
 * Luigi's Mansion (Returning from Mario Kart DS)
 * Maple Treeway (Returning from Mario Kart Wii)

Trivia

 * In the E3 demo version, the banners at the start/finish lines now use the new Mario Kart logo.
 * Wario seems not to be playble in the E3 demo version of the game. Koopa Troopa takes his place. This is odd, because Wario always has been a standard playble character since Mario Kart 64 (where he, ironically, took Koopa Troopa's place). However it should be noted this is an early version of the game and it may get changed before the release.