Live Mario Kart DS matches make a Korean TV show

The televised Guitar Hero match was just a glimpse into the diversity of video game shows I'm watching in Korea. (Yes, there are more than the Starcraft league.) Champ, a station that usually broadcasts cartoons like YuYu Hakusho, has a program called Run & Run Mario Kart DS. The half an hour long show interviews six young contestants and then shows them racing wirelessly. This is the first I’ve heard about a competitive Mario Kart league in Korea, but it’s clear some players are taking Mario Kart DS very seriously.

Run & Run Mario Kart DS is also an indicator of how popular the Nintendo DS is in Korea. The system has been around for barely a year and Mario Kart DS came out on April 5, 2007. In this relatively short amount of time the DS blossomed enough for a production company to green light a television show centered competitive Mario Kart racing.

These three players are on the same team. Notice how they are wearing Mario Kart DS jerseys. All six competitors have them.

This is a really blurry shot of one of the races. All of racing footage is shown full screen with the two announcers making comments about the players performance.