In the hands of a younger me any Mario Kart game was a guaranteed time sink. Especially on the DS, it was portable so I could take it wherever I wanted, It held a charge for hours, and Mario Kart was one of few games I enjoyed on the console.
Before it was mine, my DS was my mom's, I remember her gifting it to me in a carrying case with all her games. In that case, to name a few, were Mario Party DS, New Super Mario Bros, Duck Amuck, Lego Star Wars, and Mario Kart DS. Those games were the only ones on DS I gave much attention, and this was before I got into Pokémon. I enjoyed Mario Kart DS a lot during the time I played it. After beating the Grand Prix what held my attention was the time trials. Racing against myself could have me entranced for hours, just the same as it did on Super Circuit, and as it would today on 8 Deluxe.
I haven't touched Mario Kart DS in a long ass time, but I still have that same copy, and the same DS. Recently I've had the itch to revisit it with the end of 8 Deluxe's booster course pass. Over the past week I've been routinely playing MKDS before bed. I replayed the Grand Prix and afterwards have been trying to beat my old time trials. I'm surprised how well MKDS has held up, I was a little worried that it wouldn't have aged well but I found the opposite. This game really has an enduring appeal, I constantly get the urge to pick it up and keep playing. Drifting is still just as satisfying as I remember, tracks are as beautiful as ever, the music is absolutely classic, and the Nitro tracks are some of the most consistent in the series.
Unfortunately, the Retro tracks really don't live up to the Nitro tracks. That's the main problem with this game in my opinion. The Retro tracks just didn't get the love they needed to thrive on the DS. They often feel bland and lifeless compared to the new courses. The worst of the retro courses are just terrible picks, they chose some of the least interesting tracks possible. Retro tracks make up half of all courses in the game, dooming that half to always be the last pick. I'm also not a big fan of the system which determines your Grand Prix ranking. The system has a large weight to how many times your kart gets hit, and how many items you use to hit other players. Its just not fun to try to get 3 stars on any track in this game.
I've had so much fun revisiting Mario Kart DS, every lap has been a testament to how brilliant the DS and handheld Mario Kart is.
Favorite tracks:
Waluigi Pinball, Shroom Ridge, Rainbow Road
Before it was mine, my DS was my mom's, I remember her gifting it to me in a carrying case with all her games. In that case, to name a few, were Mario Party DS, New Super Mario Bros, Duck Amuck, Lego Star Wars, and Mario Kart DS. Those games were the only ones on DS I gave much attention, and this was before I got into Pokémon. I enjoyed Mario Kart DS a lot during the time I played it. After beating the Grand Prix what held my attention was the time trials. Racing against myself could have me entranced for hours, just the same as it did on Super Circuit, and as it would today on 8 Deluxe.
I haven't touched Mario Kart DS in a long ass time, but I still have that same copy, and the same DS. Recently I've had the itch to revisit it with the end of 8 Deluxe's booster course pass. Over the past week I've been routinely playing MKDS before bed. I replayed the Grand Prix and afterwards have been trying to beat my old time trials. I'm surprised how well MKDS has held up, I was a little worried that it wouldn't have aged well but I found the opposite. This game really has an enduring appeal, I constantly get the urge to pick it up and keep playing. Drifting is still just as satisfying as I remember, tracks are as beautiful as ever, the music is absolutely classic, and the Nitro tracks are some of the most consistent in the series.
Unfortunately, the Retro tracks really don't live up to the Nitro tracks. That's the main problem with this game in my opinion. The Retro tracks just didn't get the love they needed to thrive on the DS. They often feel bland and lifeless compared to the new courses. The worst of the retro courses are just terrible picks, they chose some of the least interesting tracks possible. Retro tracks make up half of all courses in the game, dooming that half to always be the last pick. I'm also not a big fan of the system which determines your Grand Prix ranking. The system has a large weight to how many times your kart gets hit, and how many items you use to hit other players. Its just not fun to try to get 3 stars on any track in this game.
I've had so much fun revisiting Mario Kart DS, every lap has been a testament to how brilliant the DS and handheld Mario Kart is.
Favorite tracks:
Waluigi Pinball, Shroom Ridge, Rainbow Road