Mario Kart DS Review

From the age of the SNES on, Mario Kart has been a staple name on each Nintendo console and handheld gaming device. The game brought a whole new look to gaming and had engaging, solid gameplay dynamics with all of the usual Nintendo flair that makes the game unique. Every Nintendo fan, at some point, has put in a few hours with the famed Mario Kart series. While it was believed the golden days of the series were of days past, Nintendo has brought out Mario Kart DS to remind fans everywhere that the series is alive and kicking, and still as fun as it ever was.

Similar to every other game in the series, Mario Kart DS' main single player component is the Grand Prix setup. There are a variety of competitions and each takes players through a few levels where they will attempt to earn a gold, silver, or bronze medal for that tournament. In Mario Kart DS, there are 8 of these and each Grand Prix has four races, making for quite a lengthy 32 races in the single player portion of the game. Additionally, each of these has three difficulty modes (represented by increasing the increasing number of "cc") to be completed.

The level design is as good as ever. Half of Mario Kart DS' racetracks were taken out of previous installments of the game (good choices of racetracks, thankfully). However, even more impressively, half of the tracks, 16 of them, are completely new. These tracks offer a refreshing experience to Mario Kart fans who don't want to see the same old races.

As is a trademark with Mario Kart games, there are a lot of Nintendo characters to choose from. The usuals, Mario, Luigi, Bowser, Peach, and the others all make their expected appearance in the game. There are also many other secret characters that can be unlocked. Most characters have two karts to choose from, each with its own unique look that matches its character.