Mario Kart Wii is the latest installment in Nintendo’s popular racing series and marks the series debut on the Wii. The game comes bundled with the Wii Wheel and went on sale across North America this past Sunday, the 27th of April at a retail price of $49.99.

“Just like Wii Sports, Mario Kart Wii will have everyone in the household playing together, laughing and having fun,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “With the Wii Wheel and ability to race with Mii caricatures, Mario Kart Wii literally puts players directly into the game.”

The game includes dozens of characters (each with his or her own collection of customised vehicles), 16 new courses as well as 16 classic courses from previous Mario Kart titles. Up to 16 players can compete online while up to four can race on one console.

In addition gamers will be able to race either karts or motorbikes and can choose to hurtle around the Mushroom Kingdom as their Miis. The game even boasts a new Mario Kart Channel which allows players to compete in tournaments, check rankings, keep tabs on friend’s online activity and download ghost data.

Whereas most publishers chose to avoid launching their games this week due to the launch of Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto IV today, Nintendo fixed the 27th of April as the North American release date of Mario Kart Wii.

Many were dubious as to how Mario would fare against GTA but the bottom line is that these two games are aimed at two completely different target audiences, not to mention that GTA IV is only available on the Xbox 360 and PS3. The sales figures will speak louder than words and both publishers will no doubt flaunt them as soon as they have them.

Mario Kart Wii was released in Japan on the 10th of April and across Europe one day later on the 11th of April.