MARIO KART DS (DS)
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Publisher: Nintendo.
Developer: Nintendo EAD 1. Released: November 2005. Genre: Racing. Posted 16th August 2013. By Tom Clare © 2013 |
Mario Kart DS laid down a typically assured marker for racing games on the handheld, and represents a sturdy, if not seismic, improvement over its GBA predecessor Super Circuit. Whilst fans of the series won’t find any significant new surprises lurking under the bonnet, gamers will enjoy what is an invitingly all-inclusive racer, with smart design and enduring multiplayer potential.
It’s tremendously accessible, and an ideal entry point for newcomers to the series, and indeed gaming in general. The handling has wonderful feel; both responsive and forgiving, the racing aspect is very easy to get to grips with. There’s plenty of challenge however, as each track offers its own unique obstacles, ranging from giant pools of lava, to highway traffic, surfacing moles and exploding snowmen. Fields of eight competitors battle it out in three lap races, and though the elastic A.I. (especially apparent in maintaining a pre-determined hierarchy throughout each tournament) can grate a little on occasions, MDS on the whole manages to tread the fine line between offering competitive gameplay, and not coming across as cheap.
And as you might expect, there’s the 50cc, 100cc and 150cc classes to tackle, with each offering incrementally greater speeds and a more tangible challenge. It’s not enough just to navigate the courses though; it requires a large dollop of race-savvy in order to succeed. Power-ups have been the blueprint of the MK experience since day one, and they’re once again the driving force behind what makes this iteration so moreishly playable. Neat design means that competitors struggling in the lower positions attain more potent power-ups, resulting in a tantalising balance. Those at the back may get triple-speed boosts, a Starman granting invulnerability and great speed, or a blue shell that specifically attacks the leader. If you’re out front however, you’ll have to have your wits about you in defending the position; with single banana skins, fake power-up boxes and shells that can be sent backwards in order to wreak havoc with the chasing pack.
Big vehicles are useful for pushing competitors around. Go road-bullying!
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Waluigi's so awesome, he has a pinball-based race circuit named after him
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Without ever quite reaching top gear in the presentation stakes, it’s a handsome looking racer. It offers a silky-smooth ride, albeit at relatively low velocities by modern racing standards, whilst the vibrant Rainbow Road and uniquely-bonkers Waluigi Pinball tracks make up for some slightly plain-looking Grand Prix-styled circuits. The new tracks are mostly excellent (if sometimes a little too extravagant for their own good), but it’s also nice to see elegantly renovated versions of SNES and GBA tracks replete with convincing 3D environments, finally doing away with the pancake-flat barriers that were a legacy of Mode 7. Competitors themselves are best described as chunky, but they fit the game’s bright visage entirely appropriately.
Mario Kart DS may not dazzle you with technical pyrotechnics, but in providing such simple, unbridled enjoyment from its racing, it’s a great game. What prevents it from being an outstanding one is down to the odd tentative new idea not really coming off. The powerslide boost, executed through sliding with R and then waggling the D-Pad furiously from side to side until you see an orange spark from the back of your kart, proves a bizarrely knackering method of attaining small speed boosts. Whilst the familiar four-race tournaments remain an attractive challenge, the Mission mode is poor. Intended as short, swift challenges to fit the portable environment, the missions, of which there’s somewhere in the region of 35, are depressingly formulaic by Nintendo's usual high standards. Collecting coins, driving through numbered gates and completing a lap with X number of powerslides are a few of the chores that lie in wake, with only the odd boss encounter to distinguish itself from the mediocrity.
Mario Kart DS may not dazzle you with technical pyrotechnics, but in providing such simple, unbridled enjoyment from its racing, it’s a great game. What prevents it from being an outstanding one is down to the odd tentative new idea not really coming off. The powerslide boost, executed through sliding with R and then waggling the D-Pad furiously from side to side until you see an orange spark from the back of your kart, proves a bizarrely knackering method of attaining small speed boosts. Whilst the familiar four-race tournaments remain an attractive challenge, the Mission mode is poor. Intended as short, swift challenges to fit the portable environment, the missions, of which there’s somewhere in the region of 35, are depressingly formulaic by Nintendo's usual high standards. Collecting coins, driving through numbered gates and completing a lap with X number of powerslides are a few of the chores that lie in wake, with only the odd boss encounter to distinguish itself from the mediocrity.
Never a more potent incentive to drive just that little bit faster
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Essentially, it's a cucumber racing through the desert. Or a cactus?
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Perennially a strength of the Mario Kart series, the multiplayer setup once again delivers a feast of party-friendly racing fun. Admittedly, it’s a little disappointing that you can’t partner a friend in completing the main tournaments in order to aid progress through the game, and the combative Shine Runners mode misses the mark, but the prospect of up to eight players battling in the same race remains a fantastic draw. The customisable options are easy to navigate and offer plenty of variety, and there’s nothing quite like settling down for a 16 race marathon with a mate. Provided you've got friends to play with, MKDS will last you for absolutely ages.
For all its mainstream appeal, it’s the little details that dedicated gamers appreciate, and they’re what allow Mario Kart DS to remain ahead of its competitors. Smart use of the dual-screen for instance; the lower screen revealing a top-down view of the track as well as power-ups and hazards – an uncomplicated feature but a brilliant compliment to the racing and, more tellingly, something players will undoubtedly make use of in staying one step ahead of their competitors. Short, feature-packed tracks are not only ideal for the handheld but make for a fantastic mix of the old and the new, whilst characters offer different levels of performance but each and every one proves handy with a bit of adjustment and practice. Easy to get into but tricky to master, Mario Kart DS may produce a couple of misfires but, where gameplay counts, it’s one of those rare titles that absolutely anyone can pick up, play, and enjoy.
For all its mainstream appeal, it’s the little details that dedicated gamers appreciate, and they’re what allow Mario Kart DS to remain ahead of its competitors. Smart use of the dual-screen for instance; the lower screen revealing a top-down view of the track as well as power-ups and hazards – an uncomplicated feature but a brilliant compliment to the racing and, more tellingly, something players will undoubtedly make use of in staying one step ahead of their competitors. Short, feature-packed tracks are not only ideal for the handheld but make for a fantastic mix of the old and the new, whilst characters offer different levels of performance but each and every one proves handy with a bit of adjustment and practice. Easy to get into but tricky to master, Mario Kart DS may produce a couple of misfires but, where gameplay counts, it’s one of those rare titles that absolutely anyone can pick up, play, and enjoy.
