Mario Kart is an amazing amalgam of every previous Mario Kart released that all fans and owners of the DS should buy.
Mario Kart has a special place in my heart. I was a fan of the franchise since Super Mario Kart for the SNES. My grandmother bought that for me on my 13th birthday. I'm now 26. This means Mario Kart has been around for more than 13 years, and it's just as fun today as it ever was back then, even moreso.
Mario Kart DS is a game that blends many good things from Super Mario Kart for the SNES, Mario Kart 64 for the N64, Mario Kart: Super Circuit for the GBA, and Mario Kart: Double Dash!! for the Game Cube. The first thing that stands out with Mario Kart DS lies within Grand Prix. You'll notice two sets of cups, one called Nitro Grand Prix, and the other called Retro Grand Prix. Each set is made up of four cups composed of four tracks with only the first two cups available at the start.
Nitro is where you'll find all the brand new courses designed specificially for this game. The track selection here is probably my favorite of all the MK games. There are new twists to old favorites such as Wario's Stadium and Bowser's Castle, but there's also tracks based on Mario 64's Tick-Tock Clock and Super Mario Bros. 3's Airship Fortress, as well as completey new tracks such as Waluigii's Pinball. That track's one of my favorite taking place in a hazardous pinball machine complete with gigantic pinballs.
Every cup in Retro is compiled of one classic track from each of the four previous versions. They all follow an order of SNES, N64, GBA, and GC. The tracks for the most part have remained faithful with some tweaking and whatnot for the new gameplay's mechanics. Even though you have probably played these to death, having them mixed up in such a fashion and zipping around them with new racers and vehicles tends to make these Retro cups seem fresh.
Mario Kart DS also packs the standard Time Trials, Versus and Batte Modes. New for single player, you can play Battle Modes with bots, so if you want to get your battle on and your friends are busy, you can still get in some play. New to this version is a mission mode. Each level is broken up into eight sub missions concluded with a boss fight. Boss fight, you say? In a Mario Kart game? Yes, I say. And I say they are fun! Although I have only completed one level so far, the Mission mode makes for a great change of pace when you're tired of straight up racing. I have been too busy delving into Grand Prix to really give Mission mode my time.
The gameplay of Mario Kart has basically remained the same. Gone from the Double Dash!! installment is the abiility to have a second rider, along with having a second item slot. Remaining from said installment is the ability to chose different karts. You start of with only two karts, but as you progress through Grand Prix, you'll be able to unlock a full set of seven. The power drift boosting system is present, but feels a little different in this version. What quickly becomes apparent when you start feeling the control of the game is how bad you miss the analogue stick. I missed a lot of drift boosting opportunites simply because the D-pad's not as responsive as I'd like. A new boosting system has been implemented in the game which allows you to ride the wake of the person in front of you. If you ride it long enough, you gain a powerful boost that will bump whoever you hit out of the way.
Pretty much every power up the franchise is known for is here. Green shells, red shells, slippery bananas, fake boxes, nitro mushrooms, kleptomaniac Boos, the double-edged Blue Spike Shell that homes in whams into the first place holder. Gone from Double Dash!! are racer specific weapons, and still missing ever since MK64 is the feather. There are a couple of new additions. The first is Bullet Bill, which turns you into said character and launches you like a guided missile around the track, whacking anyone in your way. The second one is Blooper, which splats the person in front of you along with everyone in the area with black ink obstructing their vision. The character specific Bob-Ombs have become a standard weapon here, able to be thrown both ahead and laid from behind. The lightning bolt is here as always, but sadly, it's been nerfed. It wears off faster for those in lower places. This means that if you're really behind, the lightning bolt that used to let you get a few positions back will do you no good here.
Graphically, this game's one of the most impressive on the DS. Everything moves so smoothly, and there are several places where it looks even better than the N64''s version. Some of the track designs are incredible, full of color and vibrance. Just wait until you race Rainbow Road. It's just a marvel for this system.
All the sound effects are familiar, from the smacking of turtle shells to the explosions of the Blue Spiked Shell and Bob-Omb. As expected, every racer has their own voice and you'll hear their varied exclamations over and over to the point of obnoxiousness. The music is just what you'd expect from any Mario Kart game, and the arranges of the songs in the Retro Grand Prix make for pleasant reminiscing.
Ridge Racer for the PSP is my favorite installment of the series. It's funny that another favorite racer of a different series also happens to be a handheld version, and that is Mario Kart DS. I've never had so much fun playing Grand Prix, mostly due to the awesome new tracks. Although I knew it was coming, I greatly despised the Rubber Band AI. Yes, MK is designed to be a multi-player game, but I really don't appreciate the viscious cheapness of the later Grand Prix cups simply because multi-player is better with everything unlocked, and no one should have to tear their hair out in order to do so. What I really appreciate is the very useful map they've implemented on the DS's lower screen. Aside from showing you the layout of the track, it also shows you the placement of items boxes as well as anything hazardous to you. With all that said, Mario Kart is an amazing amalgam of every previous Mario Kart released that all fans and owners of the DS should by.