Uh nope. This is just how Nintendo does Mario Kart. We only learned of Double Dash's existence 5-6 months before it came out too. Have you played it Pap? Jonny is comparing a game he played for 2 hours to ones he probably played for hundreds.
Played it? I thought it was a great game!
But what I mean is that Nintendo's insistence on getting MK Wii out might have killed some potential hype and even developer time.
The earlier karts were released at a time in which nothing else was available and thus the hype was staggering. For example, Mario kart 64 was released near the beginning of the year and it quickly became the game to own, especially since the N64 was experiencing a dry spell.
Super Circuit pretty much became the GBA's poster boy, being one of the first games revealed for the handheld.
Double Dash!! did come out unexpectedly, being announced at E3 then released a few months later, but the game was likely in development for a long time (it WAS kind of unveiled at the GC's very first E3) and once again, was released at a time where Nintendo had no big games for the system.
MK DS also became the DS's main game, and once again, was Nintendo's big killer app for the DS during the fall season.
MK Wii, however, came a month after the hype that was Brawl, another online based multiplayer centric Nintendo title.
The hype for that game was ridiculous, one that was building up since the first teaser was released. MK Wii was just announced and forgotten, since all eyes were on Brawl. Nintendo then made the mistake of finally unveiling new footage and detail just as Brawl's release was getting near.
I know a lot of you were disinterested in MK Wii because all you could think about was Brawl, especially with all the rumors about new characters and such. And when MK Wii was released many were surprised that it had come out.
Sales in Japan, Europe and the US prove that the game could have been released at any time and still be a massive hit, so why was Nintendo so itching to release this NOW when people are still tinkering with Brawl?
If anything, releasing MK Wii on the summer would have...
-Created better awareness and hype for it
-Given Nintendo time to polish the game and add more features
-Given gamers a BIG killer app to look forward to during the dreaded summer dry spell
So to sum all of this, I believe the reason MK Wii is receiving so many lukewarm reactions is because it came out too soon and right after Brawl. A delay would have helped it in many ways.