Diddy Kong Racing DS

"It's certainly Diddy Kong Racing."

A very interesting game. It's kind of like Mario Kart DS: Wi-Fi racer, franchise kart racer, but at the same time it's a lot different.

Snaking is nowhere to be found, which makes the learning curve a lot easier. The cast of characters is about the same, although two of our good friends, Banjo and Conker, aren't in it because of legal issues. Tiny Kong and Dixie Kong replace the two. Personally, I don't mind another Kong member in the game, but I don't know if it was needed to have both Tiny and Dixie, two females from the DK series, in the game. Couldn't they have added Lanky? Chunky? Maybe a female companion for Timber? It's not a huge deal though, because like in MKDS, two people can be the same character. From what I've seen on Wi-Fi, Timber is the popular choice, although soon it will probably be T.T. x 6 in every race.

On to gameplay. The way you get a boost at the beginning has changed completely, and is different for each vehicle. For the car, you have to repeateatly move your finger down as fast as you can on the touch screen, and the airplane you have to rotate the screen with your finger; for the hovercraft, blowing into the microphone gets you the boost. All of the stages from the original are back, including four new tracks unlocked by purchasing them in the main game. In each track, bananas have been replaced with Rare coins, which are used to buy certain things such as the previously mentioned courses, upgrades to your car, and so on. Everything from the original, as far as extras go, are back; trophy races, battles, and boss races are the same as the original.

Wi-Fi is amazing. 6 players at one time racing is one of the coolest things ever. It's a shame they couldn't make it 8, but at the same time, I commend Rare for kicking it up a notch to 6, two more than Mario Kart DS offered. All of the courses in the main game are available on Wi-Fi, also different from MKDS, where only 20 of 36 could be played. Wi-Fi races can be done by the Trophy Race system, or can be a long string of races that goes on until all players quit. A warning though for Wi-Fi, if you hit the B button right before you're about to race someone, it'll take you back to the main Wi-Fi screen.

My only complaint with the game is the awful voice acting. Taj sounds like a whiny emo 14 year old, Tiptup sounds like a girl (I guess he's related to Slippy now?), and the other characters sound very out-of-voice. The music, however, is amazing. A lot of it is the same, but some tracks have new remixes of old tracks.

There are only a few major differences I can think of. Instead of a Silver Coin race after beating the boss of a world the first time (although Silver Coin challenges are still found in the game, purchased in the Wishes menu), you have to complete a first-person mode game in each stage where you use the stylus to pop balloons on the track. There's a new Upgrade coin, which allows you to upgrade an item to its fourth level: Missiles become missile shields, Boosts become really freaky superboosts that you control on the touch screen while the computer drives your car, the fourth Hazard is five identical copies of the Rare coin, the Shield causes you to become invisible, and the Magnet launches like halfway down the track, and pulls back whoever it lands on, which is only really useful if you're in dead last. Besides that, a few stages got some minimal makeovers (Ancient Lake has a cavern at the end, and Frosty Village's snowdesert now has houses), and the already mentioned alternate boost method (which takes some time to grow accustomed to, but is overall a pretty cool addition) are really the only major differences.

The track creator is alright, but not great. A bit more focus on it would have been excellent. The battle modes still remain, but you have to buy them from Taj.

Overall, I love this game. It might just be better than Mario Kart DS, but it's nothing short of what I would expect from Rare. If you're a Wi-Fi freak like I am, it's a must-have.

Graphics: 9.5/10 They're seriously better than Mario Kart DS's, and maybe better than the original's. The only problem I found was that the Upgrade coins and Rare coins look a bit flat.

Sound: 6/10 The only thing that holds this game back from perfection, in my opinion, is the horrible VA. The music is amazing, though.

Gameplay: 9/10 No mini-turbos, but sliding to get around corners makes it possible for newcomers to have a chance against veterans at the game, which is a lot better than Mario Kart DS's snaking problems. Add that with already stellar control, a very nice storyline, and an all-around all star kart racer, and there's nothing I can see wrong with the gameplay at all. The only problem I really had was with the hovercraft, but after a bit of practice you'll get used to it.

Replay Value: 9.5/10 The main quest is somewhat short, but Wi-Fi will keep you entertained for a looong time.

Overall: 9/10 One of the best remakes of a game for the DS yet, and that's in company with Super Mario 64 DS, New Super Mario Bros., and Tetris DS. I highly recommend it.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/09/07