I think with a game like Mario Kart, we all want to blame luck on our losses. As I said, though, it is partially your own skills. You can get better with practice, so just play when you can. The more you play, the more you improve. That's usually how it goes. Now some people generally have an in issue with drifting in any racing games. Do you share that problem. For me, drift mechanics change between certain games, so I'm good at drifting in some and suck at drifting in others.
I think I'm just not that good with kart physics or I might need to play it more to get better at it, but I don't like it enough to play it as obsessively as I do racing games with normal cars. I prefer arcade type games with real type cars rather than cartoony games.
Generally Mario Kart games have been well-made and everyone benefits from simply practicing the courses with their respective characters. Not sure what OP's friends were complaining about. The thing that makes MK games the most frustrating is the randomness factor--you can be the most skilled driver on the planet, but if your opponents get better items than you, sometimes it just doesn't matter.
I've been playing games in the Mario Kart series for years. Version 8 is really a treat for the eyes and has nothing to envy - in terms of gameplay - to previous versions. True, there are some maps that are more difficult than others, but come on! part of the fun is to err a little "here and there". Nobody wants such an easy game that does not present any challenge at all... Mario Kart 8 hits the sweet spot in this regard
I don't think that it is hard to play, but it sure isn't easy. I do have to play it a few times to beat it, sure, but I like that it is a little challenging.
I actually think it's one of the easiest games to play. The objective is clear and easy to understand. Even my mother knows and likes to play it!
Pretty sure it's easy enough for kids to play it after a few sessions. I don't see what's so hard about it, if you grew up with Mario Kart, Crash Team Racing, and other childhood racing console games, newer versions wouldn't look so hard. It's all about familiarity with the controls and the weapons, as well as tricks like gliding and looking for shortcuts. Any kid can do it.
Well I think that when you compare it to the other, previous versions of Mario Kart I would say that it is a little bit more difficult to get the hang of things. That said, though, I would not really consider it all that difficult on the whole, so I am not sure how much of the game your friends who are saying this have played, but I am guessing not that much.
I don't think that the game is necessarily the hardest game out there. Like any game, it does require a lot of practice and skill to actually become proficient at it, or the racing part at least. But also like any other game, skill doesn't mean much if other players can outsmart you or gain an advantage like the blue shell. Therefore, I wouldn't say that this game is hard; it's just that this game isn't solely based on skill, but also a little bit of luck and strategy.
A little update when it comes to this game being hard to play. I think it is mostly hard because of everyone screwing you over. I can not tell you how mad my friends were if at the last second you speed past them to get first. Then there is the terrible intentionally spinning them out and laughing like a crazy lunatic.
I don't really think it's a hard game to play. It's true that some places are very challenging but with a little bit of practice, you can win the race easily.