Mario Kart Wii is a 2008 kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It is the sixth installment in the Mario Kart series, and was released worldwide in April 2008. In Mario Kart Wii, the player takes control of one of 24 Mario series characters, who participate in races on 32 race tracks based on locations from the series while using specialized items to hinder their opponents or to gain advantages.