A great Game for handheld that reinvents the series in some respects!
The gameplay is key to most racing games and this game definetely excels at it. There are a couple changes that may seem unneccessary, but they help separate the good racers from the mediocre racers. Drifting and mini-boosts have been perfected in this game. Drifting is key to winning some races. If you aren't good at drifiting, you better be good with items or dodging them. Anyway, the karts have different ratings on skills. They're: Speed, Acceleration, Weight, Handling, Drift, and Items. Usually, if a car has high speed, it'll have sucky acceleration. Acceleration is key to recovering from items. Weight can help push karts off the edge when you bump into them, but it can make you slide a bit. Handling really helps during races when the road gets really narrow or dangerous with items. Items can really help get you in first. They've added some new items like the bullet bill and the squid guy that both help you get ahead of the pack. The startup boost has been changed and I had to resort to my friends to find out how it works. Instead of when it says start, you have to hold the peddle when the sound of the 2 goes by. Time it right and you will have a boost that surpasses your friends. The levels are great. The new ones are already classics and the edition of some older levels adds a lot of depth. I don't think that Double Dash can get anywhere near the level of greatness that this one has reached. 10/10
The graphics are pretty good. The SNES and GBA levels have had some serious makeovers while the GCN levels have reall been dumbed down to fit on the DS. The N64 levels look pretty much the same. The karts and racers look great on the DS while the environments are a little lacking. Shells and most items are 2D but the artwork is awesome. I think that games shouldn't become photorealistic because it seems to take away some of the nostalgia that old games had so I think that these graphics are somewhat lacking and could have been better, but they still have a lot of nostalgia. 8/10
Sounds and music are always key pieces to a game. Bad sound equals bad immersion. This game has okay sounds but great music. The sounds are regular Mario Kart sounds, nothing special. Each character has their own little whines and cries that they make when the are passed or pass someone and the edition of Rob and Dry Bones sounds are great. they're little things (whatever they're saying) are really nice to hear. They can remind you of the old times that these characters have had with Nintendo games. The music is really cheery and great. They always help when you are doing bad in a race. Then again, I never do that bad. The new levels and their music fit in well and the old music is redcone and fits the DS great. 9/10
This game is probably the best DS game there is so far. (Still waiting for Hunters...) The Internet, multiplayer, singleplayer and personal emblems will keep you addicted for a while. I think that I've enjoyed this game more than some of the games I've played on PC and console. I got it with my DS, so it was a great addition to start me off. The ranking system is also really nice. You will be playing for probably years after it's come out. It's the Halo of handheld. There are some frustration to be had with this game, and 34.99 isn't the greatest pricing ever. 9/10
Mostly anyone who has ever played a kart game will love this game. I've seen some anti-DS people fall in love with this game the day that they played it. Some people get so addicted that they play it during school. I love this game as much as I do Halo 1 and 2. This game is enough reason to get a DS alone. I don't think that you can't like it, unless you have no soul.
10/10
If you've ever played a kart game or any racing game and felt disappointed, pick up this game. It will make you love racing games all over again. BUY IT!!! That's all I can say...