G-pinions

It should be said that it's really Tom's thing to be talking about Mario Kart DS. It's his franchise, it houses his favorite game of all time (which has nothing to do with how good he is at it), and he's generally the Nintendo guy. However, I'm the one who got my copy early, I've been playing the balls off of it in the last 72 hours, and I'd like to tell you what I think. I think it's great. It supplies all the charm and appeal of the series, never dumbing it down for the portable crowd. It takes the most revered non-traditional racing engine and makes it better than ever. On top of everything classic that we've come to expect from anything with Mario's name on it, there are new levels, new karts, new characters, new challenges, and generally more entertaining things to do outside of playing against your buddies. I haven't tried the heavily publicized wi-fi play yet (which sounded cool at Nintendo's press conference in May, but has since become significantly less exciting with a fabulous new Xbox Live service looming next week), but it's such a complete, finely-tuned experience already that it's really just a nice little bonus if you happen to be robbing a McDonalds and need to kill some time while your partner negotiates with the police. Hell, I haven't even tried any multiplayer modes yet (nevermind EIGHT-PLAYER one cart multiplayer), and I'm more than thrilled with the game.

As you've probably read elsewhere by now, the game combines the best elements of the previous four titles. I love being able to jump again, and the way it leads into powersliding feels more palpable and sensible than before. I've played quite a bit of 64 and Double Dash!!, but only now have I felt fully in control, able to execute slides at every necessary turn. Not only are there several new items to pick up, but the old standbys are more dynamic than ever - when you're carrying three shells and are hit by a blue, they scatter around you and stay on the track for the next unlucky driver.

The game looks and sounds expectedly impressive, and contrary to most games relying primarily on the DS' handicapped D-Pad, it feels good too. Even for the massive-handed like myself, executing all of the slides and item usage needed simultaneously to stay in front has never been a problem thus far. The steering has a very appropriate amount of give, and it doesn't take long to appreciate the subtle changes between characters in that regard. And though I will probably be proven wrong within the next 24 hours, I think I'm going to give the mighty Tom a run for his Mario money.

I already had one pretty classic moment, throwing a banana peel forwards in smelly Toad's path mere feet from the finish line, causing him to spin out just enough for me to clinch first place. Of course, I've also had some soul-crushing defeats at the hands of ol' rubberband A.I., but it's not nearly as bad as it's been at times before. My complaints thus far are minor - it's annoying to instantly stop dead if you hit a wall at anything near a perpendicular angle, and I kind of miss each character having their own special attack. Otherwise, it's all gravy. Another perfect portable experience for the DS, highly recommended. I went to sleep last night seeing two glowing screens when I closed my eyes.