Mario Kart DS is part of the Mario Kart series: a series where the characters in the Mario games race each other. There have been a few Mario Kart Games previously out there: A great one on the Ninentdo 64, and another that seems slightly copied for the Gameboy Advance. Oh, and there was also another for the Gamecube. This one beats them all.
Mario Kart DS provides us with all the characters we have remembered from the old games. It also has all the tracks bundled into what is called The Retro Grand Prix. It also has a series of new tracks to race on in The Nitro Grand Prix. Also, every character has gotten more detail added onto them. In some of the old ones, the characters were simple, they only has power and speed. In this one, you choose which character you want by their drifting ability, chance of getting good items, acceleration, handling and more. If that isn't enough, there are a few new characters to unlock. In short: the characters and tracks have increased in quality and quantity.
There are a bit more new things, such as new items, new multi-player game play, new multi-player maps, a new racing technique, and even some missions.
The new items include the deadly blue shell (which attacks the player in front), the squid (which squirts ink on an opponent), and the golden mushroom (unlimited turbo boosts for a limited time.) Note: Some of these may have been included in the previous versions.
The multi-player game play allows you to compete against your friends in not only racing, but other modes too! You can do balloon battles, in which you and your friend use items to kill each other. (I think this was in the older ones.) You can also do Shine Sprite Battles, where you and an opponent compete to get as many Shine Sprites as you can.
The racing technique adds some more complexity to the normal game play. Once again, this was probably in the Gamecube version-I'm just not sure. Anyways, when turning corners, you can hold R and press left and right simultaneously, and then release the buttons to get a small speed boost. Oh, and you can choose to throw items either forward or backward.
The missions are cool. What you have is a menu screen that allows you to choose from many different missions, each with an individual goal. But, most of them are repeated, and you will find yourself re-playing the same thing, except more difficult the second time through.
But, what separates Mario Kart DS from other racing games is the variation. No, the missions aren't varied, but the game play oftentimes is. Each level contains numerous obstacles, which will slow you down if you hit them. They can also contain speed boosts, which give you a little boost. Many contain sharp turns, which requires drifting to easily get past. If the tracks weren't hard enough, other players will try to hit you with items, making the course even more difficult. But, don't worry, you can do the same thing to them. The option of whether throwing your item forward or backward helps a lot when competing. Of course, there is also the matter of controls and other things that will change the outcome of the race.
The variation of the game is the strong point, but it does have a weak spot. Even if the game is new, it seems to get repetitive. With no actual goal, or bosses to beat, or anything like that, you will find yourself replaying the same old tracks and racing the same old characters. The only thing that resembles levels are the missions, which soon get tedious too. After repeating the same old things over and over again, you will soon get bored. I wish it would offer some mini-games or something.
The controls are a bit hard too. Pressing on the Control Pad soon hurts your thumb, and turning in circles (sometimes required for missions) is rather difficult. With the luxury of the soft analog stick against your thumb, the controls in this game fail in comparison.
It does have it's flaws, but it is enjoyable. If you liked the originals, you will like this. If you were a die-hard fan of the originals, you will love and adore this.
8/10
Mario Kart DS provides us with all the characters we have remembered from the old games. It also has all the tracks bundled into what is called The Retro Grand Prix. It also has a series of new tracks to race on in The Nitro Grand Prix. Also, every character has gotten more detail added onto them. In some of the old ones, the characters were simple, they only has power and speed. In this one, you choose which character you want by their drifting ability, chance of getting good items, acceleration, handling and more. If that isn't enough, there are a few new characters to unlock. In short: the characters and tracks have increased in quality and quantity.
There are a bit more new things, such as new items, new multi-player game play, new multi-player maps, a new racing technique, and even some missions.
The new items include the deadly blue shell (which attacks the player in front), the squid (which squirts ink on an opponent), and the golden mushroom (unlimited turbo boosts for a limited time.) Note: Some of these may have been included in the previous versions.
The multi-player game play allows you to compete against your friends in not only racing, but other modes too! You can do balloon battles, in which you and your friend use items to kill each other. (I think this was in the older ones.) You can also do Shine Sprite Battles, where you and an opponent compete to get as many Shine Sprites as you can.
The racing technique adds some more complexity to the normal game play. Once again, this was probably in the Gamecube version-I'm just not sure. Anyways, when turning corners, you can hold R and press left and right simultaneously, and then release the buttons to get a small speed boost. Oh, and you can choose to throw items either forward or backward.
The missions are cool. What you have is a menu screen that allows you to choose from many different missions, each with an individual goal. But, most of them are repeated, and you will find yourself re-playing the same thing, except more difficult the second time through.
But, what separates Mario Kart DS from other racing games is the variation. No, the missions aren't varied, but the game play oftentimes is. Each level contains numerous obstacles, which will slow you down if you hit them. They can also contain speed boosts, which give you a little boost. Many contain sharp turns, which requires drifting to easily get past. If the tracks weren't hard enough, other players will try to hit you with items, making the course even more difficult. But, don't worry, you can do the same thing to them. The option of whether throwing your item forward or backward helps a lot when competing. Of course, there is also the matter of controls and other things that will change the outcome of the race.
The variation of the game is the strong point, but it does have a weak spot. Even if the game is new, it seems to get repetitive. With no actual goal, or bosses to beat, or anything like that, you will find yourself replaying the same old tracks and racing the same old characters. The only thing that resembles levels are the missions, which soon get tedious too. After repeating the same old things over and over again, you will soon get bored. I wish it would offer some mini-games or something.
The controls are a bit hard too. Pressing on the Control Pad soon hurts your thumb, and turning in circles (sometimes required for missions) is rather difficult. With the luxury of the soft analog stick against your thumb, the controls in this game fail in comparison.
It does have it's flaws, but it is enjoyable. If you liked the originals, you will like this. If you were a die-hard fan of the originals, you will love and adore this.
8/10