The game that introduced my brother and I to karting was “Mario Kart DS.” The version of the game that had a terrible drifting mechanic (which was thankfully improved in “Mario Kart 7” for the 3DS, that also introduced gliders, but Zach and I skipped that one).
The Nintendo DS was also the first handheld console I ever owned and played. It was dual-screen, too, which was a vaguely intriguing concept at the time. I wish Nintendo had kept it when designing the Nintendo Switch 1 and 2, but alas. Mayhaps they’ll bring it into consideration for the Switch 3. I have high doubts, though.
A recurring theme for the “Mario Kart” franchise was that Nintendo would bring back older courses from older systems, namely the GameCube and the Game Boy. I loved that they remastered these courses and made them up-to-code with newer games. I especially liked the rebuilt DS courses such as Shroom Ridge, Sky Garden, Choco Mountain and – the most disgusting one – Baby Park. Though, admittedly, I do like how Baby Park has better and more realistic details outside the track in “Mario Kart 8.” It makes it look more like a park. I still despise it with a passion. Excitebike Arena is a much better course. It has the same oval-like shape, but it’s bigger and actually has ramps and obstacles. The only defense in Baby Park is the items the player grabs. And it has seven laps instead of the regular three, because it’s so small. The DS version lowers it to five.
The courses aren’t the only things that are brought back in “Mario Kart 8” from “Mario Kart DS.” Some of the karts are, too, namely the B-Dasher, which is the only one, now that I think about it. It might be due to it looking the most like a real kart. The B-Dasher was also a Mario-only kart, as well.
In the DS and Wii versions of “Mario Kart,” my preferred character to play was the Koopa King himself (Bowser). He’s a large (and therefore, heavy) character, which meant his speed and weight stats were much higher, and his acceleration was much lower than smaller characters. However, in “Mario Kart 8,” I like to choose my own Mii character, a medium-sized racer.
Side story: my brother, cousin and I were playing “Mario Kart 8” on the Switch one day when my cousin’s family was over. It was the Electrodome map, and the three of us were nearly to the finish line on our third and final lap. Everyone took the blue ramp (which deployed the kart’s gliders), and we went airborne. My brother and cousin touched ground first, and because of that, I crept by and passed the finish line in first place. My cousin trailed behind and my brother ended up in third. With his defeat, of course, he was furious. Ever since that day, we have always wondered how I got more airtime to even the odds of winning.
