Mario Kart DS is not 'perfection'. Mind you, nothing is perfection. Not even the Borg (you won't get that if you don't watch Star Trek). It gets pretty close though. Let me take you on a whirlwind tour of Mario Kart DS - and don't drool too much.
Stuff you get
You get 32 tracks, 16 which are new and another 16 which are from other Mario Kart games. Reminds me of Super Monkey Ball Deluxe, and belive me, that's not a good thing. This don't spoil it though - it's better that you get 16 new tracks (which is good enough) and 16 old tracks that I must say, look better than they did on their respective versions (apart from the Gamecube ones, which are about the same). You also get 6 battle arenas.
The character selection won't suprise you, there is;
- Mario
- Luigi
- Peach
- Yoshi
- Toad
- DK
- Wario
- Bowser
I haven't unlocked any characters but online I have seen a Dry Bones and a robot.
With each character you get a speical kart as well as a normal one. I don't have much to say about these except;
- Mario's looks cool.
- Bowser's is scary.
- Toad (and maybe Yoshi) look stupid.
- Luigi's looks so bad I would say that it is pure evil.
Finally there are 8 battle arenas (including one on a giant DS).
The experience
Racing
So you have opened your DS, pressed on, selected your character and kart, selected the track (I'll be described the level Waluigi Pinball), and you start. You start by flying up a large, colourful tube and then land on a twisting path going downhill (not in a bad way) - but you and your oppoents are not alone - for there is a large pinball rolling down, knocking over anyone who stands in it's way. Meanwhile, you pass through a strange floating box - and find that now you have a item. There are lots of items - from shells that you can fire at your oppoent to fake item boxes that blow your oppoent up (Maybe that's not so different!). You get a Red Shell, and seeing that the person in front is aligned with you - you fire. It hits and your oppoent stops. You are now in 1st place - the track opens up into an area with lots of bumpers, and pinballs bouncing everywhere. Yep, it's a pinball machine. Then, something terrible happenes. You get hit by one of the flippers - 4 people pass, and then even worse, you get hit by a shell - finally you are brought to 6th place. They think it's all over. Only there are 2 laps left. What happens next? You decide.....
Battling
Battling however, is a completely different story. In a nutshell, it's awful. You roam around firing stuff at your oppoents - either to destroy one of their lifes or steal a shine they have grabbed. The big question is why do I hate it so much? I don't know - just please, please, please aviod this mode.
Wi-fi
Getting on the Wi-Fi network has not been too difficult - but it isn't a piece of cake either. I had to enter all the settings (which you don't usually have to do) and change the settings of our wireless router.
While we are on it, there are 3 ways to connect to the Nintendo Wi-Fi service;
- Use a wireless router.
- Use the Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector.
- Go to a hotspot.
For home, you need a router. The USB connector will only do if you have 1 computer that is left on all the time (this will be tough if you parents/wife is a member of the Green Party).
Once you are set up, you can connect. There is no host or join a game system - the sever links players randomly. Then you press OK, and you wait, and wait, and wait, and wait. Make a cup of tea. Get some biscuits. Then you have 2 or 3 players. Playing online is very smooth - there is no lag. I don't have the fastest broadband either.
The verdict
Mario Kart DS is a epic game. It has flaws - but it makes it up by epic tracks, brillant gameplay, and excellent multiplayer around the living room - or over the world (if, of course, you can be bothered to wait).
