Even after almost 20 years (how has it been that long....) Mario Kart DS is an easy choice for one of the better Mario Kart games, a massive improvement over the previous handheld, Super Circuit, at minimum. This is arguably the first entry in the series where drifting makes sense to control, and the addition of memorable vehicles and the first instance of proper retro tracks make MKDS a landmark title in the series.
32 courses compared to Double Dash's 16 is some serious value. Technically Super Circuit did the retro track thing first, but the process of unlocking them is so convoluted and cryptic, only to be rewarded with uninspiring SNES courses, so for the most part MKDS is the trailblazer here. And while the retro courses are a great addition, they're pretty clearly inferior to the new nitro courses overall. The Double Dash tracks especially don't translate too well to the much less powerful DS, a bland and featureless Baby Park (complete with only 5 laps) is especially depressing. Others like Mushroom Bridge feel clearly downgraded, and its bizarre seeing the credits roll at the end of the lightning cup just after completing GCN Yoshi Circuit. SNES Choco Island 2 was seemingly designed in a lab to be as unfun to drive on as possible, but at least Sky Garden is back, so that's nice.
Nitros are a different story, the beloved Waluigi Pinball makes its debut here, alongside other great tracks like Shroom Ridge and Airship Fortress. There's even some derivative tracks based on existing Mario titles, like Tick-Tock Clock, Luigi's Mansion, or Delfino Square. They're mostly pretty good, and track references like this are always something I'm looking to see more of.
I knew I wasn't getting a visually pleasing aesthetic from an early-era DS game, but it's admittedly a little jarring just how ugly Mario Kart DS looks. The character models are super low poly, Donkey Kong and Bowser especially do not look their best here. The items like shells appear to be 2D sprites imposed over the 3D map on the screen, it just looks odd. One of the missions forces you to drive backwards as Bowser, meaning he is facing the screen the whole time.
Speaking of mission mode, it's a much welcome addition here and something that old-school Mario Kart fans have long awaited to return. It's not expected or typical for racing games to have substantial single-player content, but it's really cool to be able to play boss battles against King Bob-omb or win a race against a giant Wiggler in a Mario Kart game.
Some karts in this game have some real personality to them, like DK's Rambi Rider or especially everyone's favorite, the Dry Bomber tank. Even R.O.B. the robot is playable, an unexpected throwback even prior to his inclusion in Smash Bros. Another much appreciated feature is DS download play allowing one to play with friends who don't even have the game, they're forced to play as Shy Guy, (arguably a good thing) but it's hard to imagine this sort of thing existing in the modern gaming industry.
There are some other quirks to this game like the ability to see the items other players have on the bottom screen, or little fun things like being able to customize your own player emblem, but overall Mario Kart DS is a complete package of a game and just a really good racer. I had an experience last year after a night of "Mario Kart(8 Deluxe) Monday" with my friends where I went to play Mario Kart DS after it was over, only to have an epiphany realizing I was enjoying how this one felt more. Really makes me think.
3.5/5.0
32 courses compared to Double Dash's 16 is some serious value. Technically Super Circuit did the retro track thing first, but the process of unlocking them is so convoluted and cryptic, only to be rewarded with uninspiring SNES courses, so for the most part MKDS is the trailblazer here. And while the retro courses are a great addition, they're pretty clearly inferior to the new nitro courses overall. The Double Dash tracks especially don't translate too well to the much less powerful DS, a bland and featureless Baby Park (complete with only 5 laps) is especially depressing. Others like Mushroom Bridge feel clearly downgraded, and its bizarre seeing the credits roll at the end of the lightning cup just after completing GCN Yoshi Circuit. SNES Choco Island 2 was seemingly designed in a lab to be as unfun to drive on as possible, but at least Sky Garden is back, so that's nice.
Nitros are a different story, the beloved Waluigi Pinball makes its debut here, alongside other great tracks like Shroom Ridge and Airship Fortress. There's even some derivative tracks based on existing Mario titles, like Tick-Tock Clock, Luigi's Mansion, or Delfino Square. They're mostly pretty good, and track references like this are always something I'm looking to see more of.
I knew I wasn't getting a visually pleasing aesthetic from an early-era DS game, but it's admittedly a little jarring just how ugly Mario Kart DS looks. The character models are super low poly, Donkey Kong and Bowser especially do not look their best here. The items like shells appear to be 2D sprites imposed over the 3D map on the screen, it just looks odd. One of the missions forces you to drive backwards as Bowser, meaning he is facing the screen the whole time.
Speaking of mission mode, it's a much welcome addition here and something that old-school Mario Kart fans have long awaited to return. It's not expected or typical for racing games to have substantial single-player content, but it's really cool to be able to play boss battles against King Bob-omb or win a race against a giant Wiggler in a Mario Kart game.
Some karts in this game have some real personality to them, like DK's Rambi Rider or especially everyone's favorite, the Dry Bomber tank. Even R.O.B. the robot is playable, an unexpected throwback even prior to his inclusion in Smash Bros. Another much appreciated feature is DS download play allowing one to play with friends who don't even have the game, they're forced to play as Shy Guy, (arguably a good thing) but it's hard to imagine this sort of thing existing in the modern gaming industry.
There are some other quirks to this game like the ability to see the items other players have on the bottom screen, or little fun things like being able to customize your own player emblem, but overall Mario Kart DS is a complete package of a game and just a really good racer. I had an experience last year after a night of "Mario Kart(8 Deluxe) Monday" with my friends where I went to play Mario Kart DS after it was over, only to have an epiphany realizing I was enjoying how this one felt more. Really makes me think.
3.5/5.0