Automatic vs. Manual drift in Mario Kart Wii
It's interesting to note that Automatic in Mario Kart Wii provides two 'undocumented' benefits.
The first and more obvious is that entering a drift doesn't require that little hop. This means you can go in and out of drifts without any foresight required on your path (going into a drift in manual can be enough to push you off of the edge because the hop is a period of straight motion before the drift starts).
The second one, the one that actually convinces me to use automatic whenever I use a kart (and often when I use a bike), is that an automatic is faster. I can hear you scoffing right now, so go into time trial for me, and test my claim. Right off the start don't use a fast start or shroom, just watch how you compare to your ghost on that first straightaway. Watch how the automatic gains on/leaves behind the manual when mini-turbos aren't involved.
Does the cumulation of these benefits lead to the conclusion that automatic is 'better' than manual? I'm not sure. It is not however obvious to me that manual is 'better' than automatic. Not by a long shot.
P.S. I'd like to point out that it's entirely possible that depending on track one kind of drift might beat another. The SNES ghost house course is full of mini-turbo turns, while Luigi's Circuit has a lot of straights and only enough turns for a few mini-turbos.
The first and more obvious is that entering a drift doesn't require that little hop. This means you can go in and out of drifts without any foresight required on your path (going into a drift in manual can be enough to push you off of the edge because the hop is a period of straight motion before the drift starts).
The second one, the one that actually convinces me to use automatic whenever I use a kart (and often when I use a bike), is that an automatic is faster. I can hear you scoffing right now, so go into time trial for me, and test my claim. Right off the start don't use a fast start or shroom, just watch how you compare to your ghost on that first straightaway. Watch how the automatic gains on/leaves behind the manual when mini-turbos aren't involved.
Does the cumulation of these benefits lead to the conclusion that automatic is 'better' than manual? I'm not sure. It is not however obvious to me that manual is 'better' than automatic. Not by a long shot.
P.S. I'd like to point out that it's entirely possible that depending on track one kind of drift might beat another. The SNES ghost house course is full of mini-turbo turns, while Luigi's Circuit has a lot of straights and only enough turns for a few mini-turbos.