NINTENDO PRESENTS __ ___ _ __ __ __ ____ _____ / |/ /___ ______(_)___ / //_/___ ______/ /_ / __ \/ ___/ / /|_/ / __ `/ ___/ / __ \ / ,< / __ `/ ___/ __/ / / / /\__ \ / / / / /_/ / / / / /_/ / / /| / /_/ / / / /_ / /_/ /___/ / /_/ /_/\__,_/_/ /_/\____/ /_/ |_\__,_/_/ \__/ /_____//____/ ************************************************ * bowser194's Seventh FAQ * * Mario Kart DS - FAQ/Walkthrough * * Version 1.25 * * FAQ Created: November 20, 2005 * * Latest Update: December 31, 2005 * * E-Mail: bowser194(at)gmail(dot)com * ************************************************ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ******************************** * Section 1 - The Introduction * ******************************** Section 1A - Table Of Contents ================================ Section 1 - The Introduction ---------------------------- Section 1A - Table Of Contents Section 1B - Version History Section 1C - Introduction Section 2 - Various Information ------------------------------- Section 2A - Controls Section 2B - Characters Section 2C - Items Section 2D - Karts Section 2E - Rankings Section 2F - Gameplay Section 3 - The Race Tracks --------------------------- Section 3A - Mushroom Cup Section 3B - Flower Cup Section 3C - Star Cup Section 3D - Special Cup Section 3E - Shell Cup Section 3F - Banana Cup Section 3G - Leaf Cup Section 3H - Lightning Cup Section 4 - The Missions ------------------------ Section 4A - Level #1 Section 4B - Level #2 Section 4C - Level #3 Section 4D - Level #4 Section 4E - Level #5 Section 4F - Level #6 Section 4G - Level #7 Section 5 - Online Play ----------------------- Section 5A - Information Section 5B - Setting Up Section 5C - Playing Online Section 5D - Troubleshooting Section 6 - Tactics & Unlockables --------------------------------- Section 6A - Tips & Tactics Section 6B - Unlockables Section 6C - Frequently Asked Questions Section 7 - Conclusion ---------------------- Section 7A - Closing Section 7B - Credits Section 7C - Contacting Me Section 7D - Copyright -------------------------------------------- Section 1B - Version History ============================== Version 0.15 FAQ Size: 43KB Date: November 20, 2005 Submitted the guide to GameFAQs. As you can clearly see, there is a lot of work left to do on this FAQ, but there should and will be a lot more completed for the next update. Version 0.40 FAQ Size: 89KB Date: November 25, 2005 I completed more of the Characters section, but I'm still missing R.O.B., who I'm yet to unlock. Rankings and Gameplay sections were also finished. The Flower Cup and Star Cup sections are done in Section 3. In Section 4, I've completed Level 2 of the Missions, and Section 5 was finished completely. I also added more to the Secrets section as well, and went through the guide, correcting many of the typos and errors. Version 0.55 FAQ Size: 117KB Date: December 2, 2005 Remodelled the Characters and Items sections to be more visually pleasing. Finally unlocked R.O.B. and typed up his description, so the Characters section is complete. I've added the first 15 karts, and moved the Frequently Asked Questions into Section 6. The Special Cup and Level #3 are done, too. Lastly, I decided to convert to the GameFAQs standard of version numbering. Version 0.75 FAQ Size: 152KB Date: December 6, 2005 Large update. The Karts section is complete - all 36 karts have been listed. Two more cups have been typed up, those being for the Shell Cup and Banana Cup. In Mission Mode, Level #4 and Level #5 are done, too. Version 0.90 FAQ Size: 177KB Date: December 10, 2005 The FAQ is just about done. The tips an tricks sections is complete, and everything in the FAQ has been completed except for the Everything has been completed except for the Lightning Cup and Level #7 in Mission Mode, which I'm trying to improve my scores on before completing this guide. Version 1.00 FAQ Size: 194KB Date: December 18, 2005 Having been busy lately, it took a while, but finally, the FAQ is complete! All characters, items, and karts have been added, all the tracks and missions have walkthroughs, and all other miscellaneous information has been completed. There may still be a few future updates to add some little tidbits here and there, but for the most part, this is a complete guide. Version 1.05 FAQ Size: 196KB Date: December 20, 2005 A quick and small update. Many little tidbits were added here and there, including a new Troubleshooting section for online play, a description for Shy Guy, more Frequently Asked Questions, and so on. Version 1.15 FAQ Size: 198KB Date: December 26, 2005 As expected the Christmas rush of users is here, and with it has come many emails that included new strategies, additions, and corrections to the FAQ. I've fixed up the track descriptions a bit. Lastly, SuperCheats has been granted permission to host this FAQ on their site. Version 1.25 FAQ Size: 200KB Date: December 31, 2005 A ton of updates have been made to the FAQ, all from user-submitted emails. There's quite a bit of minor changes that have been made, so you may have to browse around to find them. -------------------------------------------- Section 1C - Introduction =========================== Welcome to my seventh FAQ for the newest edition to the Mario Kart series! Not only does this game offer a nice variety of playing modes and a mix of various race tracks, but it also spotlights the first game ever created for the Nintendo DS with online Wifi play. This alone has made the game extremely popular, and it also provides nearly infinite replay value. Along with online play, other small features that are not as obvious to the casual observer include a new 'Mission' mode, which sends you spiralling through 63 different tasks. There is also a wide selection of tracks, ranging from the SNES to the GCN and completely new tracks for the DS. There are also many unlockables and new characters to be found. The goal of this FAQ is to assist you in beating the entire game, along with providing tips and strategies for the tracks and information about connecting online (which seems to be a major issue). So let's begin. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= *********************************** * Section 2 - Various Information * *********************************** In this section, you'll find various information on the items, characters, controls, and so on. A good section if you want to refer to something. Section 2A - Controls ======================= The controls are similar to previous editions of Mario Kart, but unfortunately they cannot be changed and you'll find it will become uncomfortable after long periods of play. Control Pad - Use this to turn and select the throwing direction of an item. A Button - Accelerate. You'll be holding this the entire race. B Button - Brake, or reverse. You probably won't be using this frequently. X Button - Throw items. Hold this down to drag the item behind you. Y Button - Change the map display. L Button - Throw items. This has the same function as X. R Button - Drift. This allows you to take the corners without losing speed. Start - Used simply to pause the game. Select - Not used. Touch Screen - Navigate through the menus or change the map display. Also, note that holding A and B at the same time allows you to perform a slower and sharper turn, useful on sharp corners and certain missions. Thanks to rollwithem for pointing this out. -------------------------------------------- Section 2B - Characters ========================= There are 12 playable characters in Mario Kart DS, eight of those playable right from the beginning. They all vary in weight, which also has an impact on acceleration, speed, and power. Choose according to your preference. Starting Characters ------------------- Name - Mario Weight - Medium Description - Since the 1980's, Mario has starred in a wide variety of games. Everything from 'Mario Golf' to 'Mario Tennis'. In this game, he is yet again, the star of the show. Mario is the most well- balanced, all-around character available for play. A great choice for newcomers to Mario Kart DS. Name - Luigi Weight - Medium Description - Since the beginning, Luigi has always played second fiddle to his older brother, but over the years he's had his chances in games like 'Mario is Missing' and Luigi's Mansion. In this game, Luigi races similar to his brother, but his karts offer more control and less drifting ability. Name - Peach Weight - Light Description - Usually the reason Mario is always out on a trek is because of Peach, but you'd think after all these years she'd have learned to defend herself! In Mario Kart DS, she offers good acceleration and surprisingly, she doesn't get knocked around very much because of some of her karts are heavy. Name - Yoshi Weight - Light Description - Every now and then, Yoshi will pop in a random game to play the common role as Mario's sidekick. This dinosaur is one of the most popular characters in the game, and that may be due to his superb acceleration without sacrificing top speed or control, although he is mediocre in remaining categories. Name - Toad Weight - Light Description - The servant to Princess Peach in all Mario games. Toad rarely has much of a role, but has always been a playable character in Mario Kart. Toad has extreme acceleration abilities, but a slower top s speed and he'll get knocked around quite a bit. Name - Donkey Kong Weight - Heavy Description - The first game he was featured in was 'Donkey Kong' in the arcade, and since then he has evolved into a popular and commonly seen character in party-style Mario games. In this game, DK is great for Drifting and has a well-rounded top speed. DK also has some fairly heavy karts. Name - Wario Weight - Heavy Description - Mario's arch-rival, Wario, was first brought into the Mario kart series with the N64 version of the game. He has always been very comparable to DK in terms of weight and speed, and this game is no exception. He seems to have somewhat better control than DK, though. Name - Bowser Weight - Heavy Description - If Mario is out on a mission, Bowser has usually been the reason why. For over 20 years, Bowser has kidnapped Peach time and time again, and created havoc throughout the Mushroom Kingdom. In Mario Kart DS, with his insane weight, he knocks anybody out of his path, and also has the fastest top speed, at the sacrifice of acceleration. Unlockable Characters --------------------- Name - Dry Bones Weight - Light Description - Dry Bones was a surprise addition to this game and Mario Party 7, and has never had any important role in any game in the past. Regardless, he's still a great racer in Mario Kart DS, far ahead of his opponents in acceleration and control. However, he does disappoint when it comes to top speed. Name - Daisy Weight - Light Description - Daisy is the Princess of the 'other kingdom', and pops up in various party games from time to time. The only game she was ever featured in was Super Mario Bros. for the original Game Boy, where she was the princess Mario attempted to save, instead of Peach. (Thanks to ZephyrSeija for that info.) Daisy is pretty much average in all categories, but usually she's a good choice when it comes to drifting. Name - Waluigi Weight - Medium Description - Very similar to Daisy in the sense that he's never had a game featuring him, but he always seems to pop up in party games. Also similar is how his karts are average, usually a bit better or more improved when items come into play. Otherwise, there's nothing special about him. Name - R.O.B. Weight - Heavy Description - Your first question is likely to question this character's identity. R.O.B. is actually not a character, but a peripheral for the NES. R.O.B. is extremely heavy, equivalent to the weight of Bowser, and tends to have heavier karts. Special Characters ------------------ Name - Shy Guy Weight - Light Description - Shy Guy can only be used in multiplayer mode when players do not have their own DS Card. He's very comparable to Yoshi in terms of kart weight, speed and acceleration, but exact stats on him are unknown. -------------------------------------------- Section 2C - Items ==================== There are a total of 17 items that be found in the item boxes scattered around each track. Each item has a special ability and appears depending on your position in the race. Each description provides you with the name, states whether or not the item can be dragged behind you, and when you're most likely to come across it. Items are listed in alphabetical order for your convenience. Name - Banana Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 5th Place Description - The banana was one of the first and also one of the most obvious roadblocks to Mario Kart. They can be dragged behind you and used as a shield from certain items thrown at you, but you can also simply drop them behind you or throw them ahead of you by holding Up on the Control Pad. A fairly effective tactic you might want to keep in mind for races is to drop the banana behind you when there is an opponent trailing you by a short distance. They'll have no time to react to it. Name - Blooper Draggable - No Usually Found - 3rd to 8th Place Description - A new addition to the Mario Kart series, but it isn't very effective. When used, all racers ahead of you have their screens blotted (but not completely covered) in black ink for about eight seconds. Against human opponents, it's only a minor distraction because of the second screen with the map that you can use to navigate. However, computer opponents may swerve out of control and even slow down a bit. Name - Blue Shell Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - A very useful item, simply because it can't be avoided and can change the race completely. When used, this shell will shoot away from your kart at top speeds, then fly over the course until it reaches the player in first place. They cannot avoid being hit, and there is a small blast radius that will cause anyone else who drives through to spin out. It's very uncommon and you shouldn't expect to see it too often, especially if you're near the top. Name - Bob-Omb Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - The Bob-Omb was first introduced in MK: Double Dash for the GCN, but only Wario and Waluigi could get this special item. In this game, however, anybody can get it, and I've found it in many positions in the race, making it even more common. When dropped (or thrown forwards), it will sit there for a few seconds, then explode, creating a large blast radius around it that will make any kart that runs through it spin out. If you run into the Bob-Omb before it detonates, then you'll be caught right in the middle of the blast, so be sure to avoid it if somebody throws it at you. Name - Boo Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - Boo is an extremely useful item that can multitask for you. Not only will it make you invisible (which in turn, makes you immune to bananas and shells), but it will also go after a randomly selected opponent with an item, and bring it to you. If nobody has an item, you'll get nothing. This is a great way to sneak up on someone and nail them with a shell or something similar. Also note that you can drive off-road unhindered with this item in use (Thanks to cubedman990 for that info). Name - Bullet Bill Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - Very similar to Chain Chomp from MK: Double Dash for the GCN, the only difference being that you fly above the course. When you get Bullet Bill, you are sent rocketing through the stage for about 5-7 seconds, knocking out any opponents in your path. Great item, but very rare. Name - Fake Item Box Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 5th Place Description - This item is simply an item box without a '?' in it. You can tell it is fake by this and if it doesn't revolve. It will also show up red on the map on your bottom screen. (Thanks to felix- m for that info.) When you run into it, you'll flip over and be stopped for a second or two. Using the Fake Item Box is all about strategy. Placing it in the middle of nowhere doesn't do you any good, because it will be fairly obvious that it is fake. However, if you're to put it in an area filled with ? Blocks, somebody may fall for the trick. Name - Golden Mushroom Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - The Golden Mushroom was introduced in Mario Kart 64 for the N64, and was very useful, but only available to Toad and Toadette. However, in Mario Kart DS, anybody can use it, and when you get it, you can continuously press A to get infinite boosts for about eight seconds. Very useful, but only common when you're near the bottom of the leaderboard. Thanks to Naza402 for reminding me of this one, and to Musicman, who was the first to correct an error here. Name - Green Shell Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - Possibly one of the weakest items in the game, the Green Shell really doesn't do anything except bounce around the stage until it finally disappears. The best use it has is to drag it behind you to protect yourself from other items being used against you, or to throw it forwards when there's an item right ahead of you. Otherwise, you'd better have good aim to hit your opponents. Name - Lightning Rod Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - When you get a Lightning Rod, you have complete control over the game. Unleash its power, and all your opponents will shrink, drop any items, and lose speed and weight. Meaning that when you catch up to them, you can knock them off the stage or shoot right by. In the past, opponents used to be able to run over you if you were little, but that doesn't appear to be the case any more. However, you can go from worst to first with this item. Name - Mushroom Draggable - No Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - Using this merely gives you a small boost of speed for about two seconds. During this time you can knock just about anybody out of your way. Try to use this on a straightaway to increase the effect. Name - Red Shell Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - Unlike its counterpart, the Green Shell, this can be fired and it will act as a homing device on the character ahead of you and hit them. This is a very common and very useful item, more so than a Green Shell. You can also drop them behind you, but refrain from doing so because it's a waste - unlike in previous versions of the game, the Red Shell will not go after the next kart to pass by it. Name - Star Draggable - No Usually Found - 5th to 8th Place Description - Ah, the Invincibility Star. If you pick up one of these and use it, you'll become invincible for about 5-7 seconds, and anything you decide to ram into (this includes on-track obstacles like Thwomps) will be sent flying. Your speed and control will also drastically increase during this time. This is a great way to catch up to your opponents. Make sure you hit them as you go by. Also note that you can drive off-road unhindered with this item in use (Thanks to cubedman990 for that info). Name - Triple Banana Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - When you get this, three bananas will be dragged behind you. Hit 'L' or 'X' again, and one of them will be dropped. You can do this for the remaining two, as well. This is great for cluttering up an area and forcing your opponents to swerve out of the way to avoid slipping, but you need to spread them strategically. Dropping them all at once doesn't do any good. Try to space them apart evenly across a section of the track. Also note that if you let them drag behind you and you're hit by an item, the three bananas will fly in random directions and land somewhere on the track. Name - Triple Green Shell Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - Unlike the single Green Shell, having a Triple Green Shell is actually quite useful. Its best use is to act as a shield to protect you from oncoming obstacles or items being thrown at you, and because they spin around until all of them are gone, they offer good protection for a good half-minute. Firing them away is not advised, due to the massive pileup that could occur, knocking you out in process. You can also use them to knock other karts out. Name - Triple Mushroom Draggable - No Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - One Mushroom is nice, but three are even better. When you get the Triple Mushroom, be sure to space out your boosts and not use them all up at once, or you won't get the maximum effect. Name - Triple Red Shell Draggable - Yes Usually Found - 1st to 8th Place Description - Extremely helpful item that can allow you to pass as many as three racers if you use it properly. My advice is that you fire one at a time, and as you pass each racer, fire another one. By firing them all at once, you're just wasting them on one opponent. You could also just let them spin around you as a shield, but they're too useful to serve that purpose, I'd think. You can also use them to knock other karts out. -------------------------------------------- Section 2D - Karts ==================== In total, there are 31 karts available for use by any character (once you've gotten a gold trophy on every cup). There are six ratings for each kart, all of them having an influence on how it drives. Those ratings listed below, along with information on it. Speed - The higher your speed rating, the faster your kart can go. Generally, karts with a higher speed tend to have a lower acceleration, meaning it takes more time for them to go their fastest. Acceleration - This is simply a significance of how quickly you can reach your top speed. Definitely important and crucial when it comes to tracks with many obstacles, because if you drive through the mud or hit a pipe, it'll have a minimal effect on you. Weight - The meaning is clear - weight determines how heavy your kart is. The heavier you are, the more likely it is that you'll be able to knock anybody in your path out of your way. Handling - Depending on how high this rating is, your kart will have little difficulty when it comes to rounding corners and taking sharp turns. The better your handling, the more control you have over your kart. Drift - If you drift corners frequently, be sure to grab a kart with a high drift rating, which allows you to drift around corners sharply. If you snake frequently, it would be best if you chose a kart with a medium to low drift rating, as turning sharply makes it difficult to snake properly. Items - The meaning may be confusing, but the higher your items rating, the more likely you are to get a good item, and if you're it by an item, the effect will wear off quicker. Also, in Time Trials, the higher your item rating, the more Mushrooms you'll start with. (Thanks to Ryan for reminding me of that one.) Each kart has a particular ranking in each category. Below, they are all listed, along with an estimate as to how high the ranking is. The higher the percentage, the better. Karts are listed in alphabetical order for your convenience. 1) Name - 4-Wheel Cradle 2) Name - B Dasher Speed - 31% Speed - 58% Acceleration - 81% Acceleration - 70% Weight - 62% Weight - 60% Handling - 60% Handling - 51% Drift - 62% Drift - 54% Items - 100% Items - 100% 3) Name - Banisher 4) Name - Brute Speed - 23% Speed - 91% Acceleration - 98% Acceleration - 52% Weight - 55% Weight - 41% Handling - 91% Handling - 50% Drift - 42% Drift - 49% Items - 100% Items - 32% 5) Name - Cucumber 6) Name - Dragonfly Speed - 50% Speed - 81% Acceleration - 90% Acceleration - 45% Weight - 59% Weight - 65% Handling - 80% Handling - 43% Drift - 38% Drift - 43% Items - 100% Items - 100% 7) Name - Dry Bomber 8) Name - Egg 1 Speed - 32% Speed - 60% Acceleration - 100% Acceleration - 91% Weight - 43% Weight - 31% Handling - 100% Handling - 90% Drift - 50% Drift - 40% Items - 31% Items - 31% 9) Name - Gold Mantis 10) Name - Hurricane Speed - 71% Speed - 100% Acceleration - 61% Acceleration - 31% Weight - 50% Weight - 50% Handling - 60% Handling - 30% Drift - 60% Drift - 70% Items - 31% Items - 31% 11) Name - Light Dancer 12) Name - Light Tripper Speed - 68% Speed - 50% Acceleration - 68% Acceleration - 72% Weight - 40% Weight - 40% Handling - 41% Handling - 50% Drift - 90% Drift - 100% Items - 31% Items - 31% 13) Name - Mushmellow 14) Name - Poltergust 4000 Speed - 41% Speed - 73% Acceleration - 90% Acceleration - 73% Weight - 38% Weight - 38% Handling - 70% Handling - 73% Drift - 70% Drift - 38% Items - 31% Items - 38% 15) Name - Power Flower 16) Name - Rambi Rider Speed - 60% Speed - 73% Acceleration - 61% Acceleration - 42% Weight - 55% Weight - 68% Handling - 35% Handling - 30% Drift - 83% Drift - 72% Items - 100% Items - 100% 17) Name - ROB-BLS 18) Name - ROB-LGS Speed - 100% Speed - 90% Acceleration - 53% Acceleration - 48% Weight - 43% Weight - 58% Handling - 70% Handling - 60% Drift - 29% Drift - 22% Items - 31% Items - 100% 19) Name - Royale 20) Name - Shooting Star Speed - 40% Speed - 67% Acceleration - 70% Acceleration - 72% Weight - 63% Weight - 32% Handling - 43% Handling - 60% Drift - 93% Drift - 59% Items - 100% Items - 32% 21) Name - Standard BW 22) Name - Standard DB Speed - 97% Speed - 30% Acceleration - 30% Acceleration - 100% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 28% Handling - 97% Drift - 67% Drift - 46% Items - 67% Items - 66% 23) Name - Standard DK 24) Name - Standard DS Speed - 80% Speed - 62% Acceleration - 47% Acceleration - 62% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 32% Handling - 40% Drift - 77% Drift - 89% Items - 65% Items - 66% 25) Name - Standard LG 26) Name - Standard MR Speed - 71% Speed - 63% Acceleration - 72% Acceleration - 71% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 72% Handling - 55% Drift - 31% Drift - 56% Items - 65% Items - 66% 27) Name - Standard PC 28) Name - Standard RB Speed - 47% Speed - 97% Acceleration - 72% Acceleration - 51% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 49% Handling - 65% Drift - 97% Drift - 25% Items - 65% Items - 65% 29) Name - Standard TD 30) Name - Standard WL Speed - 40% Speed - 71% Acceleration - 84% Acceleration - 61% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 63% Handling - 55% Drift - 65% Drift - 57% Items - 65% Items - 65% 31) Name - Standard WR 32) Name - Standard YS Speed - 89% Speed - 55% Acceleration - 50% Acceleration - 90% Weight - 51% Weight - 51% Handling - 49% Handling - 82% Drift - 48% Drift - 39% Items - 65% Items - 65% 33) Name - Streamliner 34) Name - Tyrant Speed - 65% Speed - 90% Acceleration - 70% Acceleration - 22% Weight - 60% Weight - 65% Handling - 70% Handling - 22% Drift - 30% Drift - 63% Items - 100% Items - 100% 35) Name - Wildlife 36) Name - Zipper Speed - 83% Speed - 65% Acceleration - 50% Acceleration - 59% Weight - 42% Weight - 55% Handling - 37% Handling - 51% Drift - 80% Drift - 55% Items - 32% Items - 100% -------------------------------------------- Section 2E - Rankings ======================= There are, in total, eight different rankings, from a triple star to an E, triple star being the best. These rankings are assigned based on your performance during the race - not just time or points - and what the final outcome was. To put it simply, to get a triple star ranking, you need to be perfect, and to get an E rank, you had to have messed up frequently, losing several races and crashing often. Here's a quick rundown of the list. 1) Triple Star Ranking 5) B Ranking 2) Double Star Ranking 6) C Ranking 3) Single Star Ranking 7) D Ranking 4) A Ranking 8) E Ranking -------------------------------------------- Section 2F - Gameplay ======================= There are five different modes of gameplay in Mario Kart DS. Grand Prix ---------- The Grand Prix is the main mode of the game. It is here that you will unlock most of your characters and new tracks. There are four different levels of difficulty for you to select from, those being 50cc, 100cc, 150cc, and 150cc Mirror Mode. From personal experience, the game tends to drag on when you're in 50cc or even 100cc, but when it comes to 150cc, you'll enjoy the best Mario Kart racing experience to date. The pace of the game is much faster than in previous versions and the AI is decent in 150cc. When playing, the top and bottom screens will look similar to this diagram. Most descriptions speak for themselves: ________________ Item -->|_| 1/3|<-- Lap | | | Main | | Screen | | | Position -->|2nd | |----------------| |#1 | Race |#2 Map Of | Standings -->|#3 Track | |#4 | | | |________________| When completing races, your points are added based on what position you came in. Here's how the points are distributed: 1st - 10 Points 5th - 3 Points 2nd - 8 Points 6th - 2 Points 3rd - 6 Points 7th - 1 Point 4th - 4 Points 8th - 0 Points Generally, when playing, there will always be one or two randomly selected 'bullies', who will excel more than the other CPU, providing you with the main challenge and preventing you from gliding into first place every time. If you focus your efforts on preventing that player from constantly finishing behind or ahead of you, you'll have a much easier time with the Grand Prix. Time Trials ----------- As you might expect, Time Trials is where you can test yourself to the limit. Race through any track at top speeds against your ghost, or if you and a friend have a DS, trade ghosts and try to beat each other. You get one Mushroom per race - try to use it on a lap that you plan on setting the lap record for. If you set a decent record, you may unlock a staff ghost, and when activated, you can try and beat the staff time. For more information, see Section 6B. You can save up to 32 of your ghosts and 10 of your friends. Note that when transferring ghosts, you automatically overwrite your ghost for that particular track, regardless of which one is better. However, you can only save one ghost per track, which is disappointing as it would have been nice to focus your efforts on one track and then watch your ghosts to see where you could improve. Versus ------ Here is the place where you can just have any casual race against the computers. A nice addition to this is the ability to tinker with most of the settings, including computer difficulty, selection of tracks, and more. A simple VS mode game can be turned into a fun, competitive match with these features. Battle ------ Originally, it was only possible to play Battle mode against human opponents, but the game has been expanded to include battle mode, which is very nice. Play on one of six stages on one of two different modes - Balloon Battle and Shine Runners, both very addictive and fun. Like Versus mode, you have the ability to adjust multiple settings related to the gameplay. In Balloon Battle, you'll take on your opponents, blowing up balloons by actually stopping your kart and blowing into the Mic as you play. You have five balloons in total, and once all of them are gone, you lose (unless your opponents run out of balloons first. In Shine Runners, you'll race past your opponents, trying to collect Shines, which are scattered throughout the stage. There are ten Shines available at once, and if your opponents have more than you, you'll need to try and knock them out with an item to get their shine. Missions -------- The all-new Mission mode drops you into seven levels filled with a total of 63 different challenges, each with its own unique task. When you complete the eight normal tasks in each level, you face a boss, and once you've beaten the boss (and the level), you move on to the next level. Try to get all the triple star rankings! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ******************************* * Section 3 - The Race Tracks * ******************************* In Mario Kart DS, there's a perfect combination of 16 new tracks and 16 old tracks from the various consoles gives you the chance to relive the classics, but still have fun on something you've never tried before. Some of the newer tracks are fairly innovative - one of them sends you flying up a pinball table and racing back down, another one allows you to trek through the mountains (similar to DK Mountain from the GCN), and the list goes on. In this section, I'll provide hints and tips for all 32 of the tracks. This section can also be used for information in Time Trials mode. With each description, you get a difficulty rating and recommended character. Then, there will be a complete walkthrough of the track with the tips and tricks you need. Section 3A - Mushroom Cup =========================== The Mushroom Cup is fairly simple, and doesn't require much skill, as you might have expected. The tracks you'll race on are: 1) Figure 8 Circuit 2) Yoshi Falls 3) Cheep Cheep Beach 4) Luigi's Mansion ==--==--==--==--=-== = Figure 8 Circuit = ==--==--==--==--=-== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Recommended Character Type: Heavy This track is obviously just a simple one, created for beginners to test their luck. You'll start off on a long straightaway, so boost at the beginning and shoot forwards down the track. There are only two very wide turns, so after you get the item box, stick to the inside of the track - a good guide is the dotted line that extends fully around the track, and if you can stay on it when taking the curves you'll save a lot of time. After you've rounded the curve there will be another long straightaway, making this a great place to use Mushrooms if you have any. There's an row of item boxes in the middle of this straightaway, so be sure to pick one up as you drive by. From here, you should move over to the right side of the track to prepare for the turn. Halfway through the turn, there will be a third row of item boxes which you'll have to swerve over to reach if you're following the dotted path. After the turn, you'll be on another long straightaway which leads under a bridge, to a full lap around the track. ==--==--==--=-= = Yoshi Falls = ==--==--==--=-= Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Heavy or Medium Yoshi Falls is surprisingly fun and addictive, even though it's a near circle around the track. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning. You'll shoot forwards, and immediately notice something unique about the track - there's a second road on a slant to the right. This is where three of the waterfalls go, and because two of them are passable, you might actually be using this route often. Drop down onto this slant, and drive through the waterfall, but make sure you start near the top or you'll slide right off the edge. Once you've past it, continue driving near the edge, passing nearly all the computer opponents as you go along. When you see another waterfall up in the distance, it's time to get back to the regular road, because this is the waterfall that cannot be driven through (unless you have Mushrooms). You'll cross over a bridge with a row of item boxes, so grab an item and once you've crossed the bridge, drive back down to the slanted road. There will be another waterfall visible in the immediate distance, and this one actually has item boxes floating in it. Drive through the water, and grab another item, then move back up to the regular path. There will be an on-track speed boost that you can take to speed past anybody, then directly ahead of it, another one. Once you've taken them both, there will be a straightaway leading to the end of the first lap. ==--==--==--==--==-== = Cheep Cheep Beach = ==--==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 2.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Light or Medium You'll start off lined up in front of a bridge. Get the usual starting speed boost, then fly forwards and up onto the bridge. There will be short straightaway, then a turn (take this sharply) and another short straightaway. Up ahead, there will be an on-track speed boost which will send you up a ramp and flying onto a beach. Be prepared when you land, because there are item boxes scattered around and you might miss it if everybody goes at once. After the item boxes, there will be another short straightaway, then you'll slowly curve around the mountainside and see another ramp with a speed boost, which will send you flying over the water onto a sandbar. Depending on the tide, you may be able to cut straight through where the water normally is, or you might be forced to stay on the dry section, so adjust your driving habits accordingly. In the middle of the sandbar, there will also be some more items, so you might miss them if you don't stay on the dry land. Your choice. Also make sure to avoid the palm trees scattered across the sandbar. Once you get to the other end of the sandbar there will be a small jump over the water, and then a second one up ahead. Take both of these, and you'll land on an empty beach, but when you turn the corner, there will be a couple of Cheep-Cheeps bouncing around in the water, so make sure to avoid those. Up ahead, there will be an entrance to a 'forest', and near the opening, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one as you enter. There will be a sharp turn to your right, and another one to your left, and you'll have completed a full lap. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Luigi's Mansion = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Recommended Character Type: Light or Medium One of my personal favourites. You'll start off on a dead and deserted path. Get the usual speed boost at the beginning. The road will be a bit wavy, moving left and right, but stay on track and get ahead of the pack. The path will then slowly climb upwards to a row of item boxes, and then up the stairs into Luigi's Mansion. You'll bounce up into the room, then just as quickly head downwards, and there will be three sharp turns to the right, which I recommend that you powerslide right through. Once you've rounded the three curves (making sure not to hit the open cabinet on the last turn), head down the straightaway, going to the left or right of the object in the middle of the path, then head through the open doors and through the tunnel. There will be some item boxes here - grab them and head back outside. There will now be an abrupt turn to the left, and then another quick curve to the right. Try to use powersliding to stay on track and head forwards, out the gates, back to the front of the mansion. There will be another small turn to the right, then you'll see a fairly interesting sight - a walking tree, moving back and forth in your path. Avoid it, and race past. There will now be some sort of red liquid for you to drive over (I'm yet to figure out what this is), and on an 'island' up ahead there will be some more item boxes. Grab one and turn to the left, through the liquid. There will be some more item boxes spinning around in circles to your right on land. Try to stay on the land, as you get more control and move faster. You'll advance through the liquid, passing through patches of land and item blocks. There will also be a tree walking back and forth, as well. When you get back onto the normal path, there will be one more tree, then you'll have a small curve to the left, and you'll have completed a full lap. -------------------------------------------- Section 3B - Flower Cup ========================= The Flower Cup is a nice variation of tracks, ranging from driving through the streets of a tropical island to driving back down a pinball table. 1) Desert Hills 2) Delfino Square 3) Waluigi Pinball 4) Shroom Ridge ==--==--==--=-== = Desert Hills = ==--==--==--=-== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Recommended Character Type: Light or Medium This track is very wavy and curves a lot. Also note that there are red fireballs that will bounce around different sections of the track, and they'll make you spin out if you touch one. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot down the straightaway and grab an item box before the light curve to the right. There will then be another lighter curve to the left, and another one again to the right. A Pokey will suddenly appear out of nowhere, moving back and forth in the middle of the track, so avoid it and continue forwards. There will be a small jump ramp up ahead. Fly off the ramp, and land quickly. Up ahead, you'll see three Pokeys, two sand dunes, and six item boxes scattered across the straightaway. Grab an item box or two while avoiding the first two Pokeys, then proceed past the third Pokey. There will be a long turn to the right, and you'll see more item boxes on an extremely slanted curve. You might want to just stay near the ground while turning left, because when going up the curve, you'll lose major speed. Powersliding also helps. However, if you want the item box and you get a Mushroom, boost over the curve and you'll cut right across the second, similar turn. After you've gotten through the first curve, there will be a second and third slanted curve right up ahead, both with two item boxes on them. The third one really isn't anything, though. As you drive by, grab the item boxes and quickly use them to get the one on the next turn. Once you've gotten through all three turns, there will be one more sharp turn to the right, and you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==--== = Delfino Square = ==--==--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Any Weight You're going to have a blast racing down the streets of Delfino Square in this one. Start off by getting a speed boost, and then you'll climb up a light hill and slowly the road will even out. There will be a huge statue in the middle of the road, so you'll have to drive around it to the right, and then enter a small side street. There will be a row of item boxes before a sharp turn to the left, so grab one quickly. Round the corner, then turn back to the right, and the road will slowly curve downwards to the right. The road will split into two and connect back after a short turn, so it doesn't really matter which one you decide to take. After the two roads are reconnected, there will be a batch of item boxes scattered around, and you're bound to get one as you drive by. There will be short straightaway that leads you across a bridge, then a quick turn to the right. The left side of the track will then have no barrier, but you're unlikely to go near the ledge anyhow. You'll drive down a side street with some boxes, then there will be another turn to the right. The road will curve slightly to the left, and again the left side of the track will be exposed, and you might be more likely to fall off this time, while dodging more boxes. When the road converts back to a straight path, you'll see a row of item boxes and six on-track speed boosts, which are actually a part of a drawbridge. This drawbridge moves up and down every few seconds, but regardless, it's easy to make it over. Once you've passed the drawbridge, the path will curve to the right fairly quickly. If the drawbridge was up and you jumped across the gap, you'll have to turn right quickly in order to avoid the dirt/grass. The path will then continue straight again, and also go upwards slightly. There will then be a quick turn to the right, and you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Waluigi Pinball = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Recommended Character Type: Light The fun factor of this stage is very high, and it's definitely one of the better courses Mario Kart has seen. You'll start off in an empty 'tunnel', with some sort of colourful pipe ahead of you. Get a speed boost, then use the on-track speed boost and enter this 'pipe'. You'll see that it's actually what will launch you to the top of the pinball table at insane speeds. Once you reach the top, you'll drop down and quickly lose speed. There will then be a slight turn to the left, and there will be speed boosts on your right, but I don't recommend you get them - instead, hug the corner and grab an item box. There will then be another turn to the left, and there will be a small ramp that will send you flying into the air and landing on a steep and slanted road. There will be a rough turn to the left again as soon as you land, then a 270 degree turn to the right. During this time, there will likely be a pinball or two on the path that you'll need to keep an eye out for, too. Once you've rounded that corner, there will be another slanted hairpin curve to the left, and then you'll rocket down a slope and fly off another ramp. You'll land on a wide road, and there will be another 270 degree turn to the right and downwards, too. About halfway through, there will also be a row of item boxes, so pick one up along the way. When the curve ends, there will be an quick drop down and then another one back up, and then a turn to the left. You'll go through a short straightaway, then there will be yet another turn to the left. You'll then drop down another slope and enter the main part of the pinball table. The first section contains four bumpers stationed in four corners, with two pinballs bouncing back and forth in between. Unless one of them start coming at you, just drive straight through and grab an item box. The second section has a large bumper in the middle of the path, then four more bumpers spinning around it, and in the middle (where you'll be driving through), item boxes will be scattered around, two to each side. Grab an item box as you drive through. The last section will have you driving in between two powerful flippers, which will move up and down every few seconds. It's easy to get through here, but if you're hit by a bumper, expect to go flying. After that, there will be two more simple turns to the left, and you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--=-== = Shroom Ridge = ==--==--==--=-== Difficulty Rating: 3.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy Shroom Ridge is like every Mushroom or Toad course - there are moving vehicles that you have to dodge as you progress through the track. If you touch a vehicle, your kart will flip out. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning of the track, then drive around the very wide U-Turn. There will be a row of item boxes somewhere in the middle of this turn, so grab one as you go along. Once you've gotten through the turn, there will be another light turn to the right, followed by a sharper one right after. After this sharper turn, there will be a wide turn to the left around a cliff, then you'll head down a wavy straightaway. On this straightaway, you will find that there will be item boxes that will start coming at you, so whenever you get a chance and see one, grab it. After the straightaway, the item boxes will stop flying at you. You'll turn to the left, then sharply back to the right. There will be a tunnel, and as you drive through it will turn to the left very slightly. However, when you exit the tunnel, prepare for a large turn around a cliff again, this one more sharper than most. Also note that at this point, the entire right side of the road is wide open, and you can fall off at any time. After the corner, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one as you head along. Prepare for another turn to the right, then a short straightaway. There will be two more turns, the first one going to the left, and then a second one to the right. After that, you'll have completed the first lap. -------------------------------------------- Section 3C - Star Cup ======================= Star Cup contains very random tracks, taking place on a mountain, a connection of clocks, and even on a flying airship from Super Mario Brothers 3. 1) DK Pass 2) Tick Tock Clock 3) Mario Circuit 4) Airship Fortress ==--==-=-== = DK Pass = ==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy Similar to DK Mountain in the sense that you're driving up and then back down the mountain, and also addictive and fun. If you can get an early lead, you'll be able to blaze right through this track. You'll start out on an icy path, and you'll see up in the distance an entrance to an igloo that turns to the left and begins climbing up a slope. Your journey up the mountain has begun. After you exit the igloo, there will be an S-Turn, which slightly curves to the left and then back to the right. I've found that this is a great place for snatching the lead and picking up speed - for some reason, your kart seems to shoot right up this part. After you've passed the turn, there will be item boxes, and the path turns sharply to the left, and then curves lightly back to the right again. At this point, one side of the path becomes unblocked and you'll need to take caution to avoid falling off the mountain. You'll approach another light curve to the left, and an enormous snowball will come bouncing down at you on the right side of the path, so avoid it. Continue upwards, and there will be another slight turn to the right, with another row of item boxes halfway through. Grab an item, then when you complete the turn, you'll find the path starting to level out. There will be another turn to the left, and you'll go upwards a bit more and the road becomes a winding, snow-covered trip to the bottom. **Note that there is a snow-covered hill just before the turn to the left with an item box on it, which will always come out as a Triple Mushroom or Star.** There will be a sudden drop, and you'll continue driving on rough, bumpy terrain, and as you bounce to the left, there will be another row of item boxes. Grab one, then there will be another drop in altitude. A bumpy turn to the right, and then another turn to the left. There will be another snowball rolling down the mountain, and the slope will become steeper as you approach another row of item boxes an on-track speed boost jump to the bottom. When you land, the road will become smoother and steadier, and there will be a plethora of snowmen in a turn to the right. If you touch one, your kart will spin out, so try to hug the curve as tightly as possible against the barrier, avoiding the snowmen and likely passing your opponents, too. Once you've gotten past here, the path will turn back into a normal road, and you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Tick Tock Clock = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 5.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Any Weight Another one of my personal favourites, this is a clock-filled stage that has you avoiding clock hands, driving over spinning gears, and more. Definitely one of the more innovative tracks. You'll start out on a wireframe surface. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot forwards and turn to the left. As you climb up the slight slant, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab an item and drive up to the top. You'll now be dropped on a gigantic clock, with spinning hands that you'll need to avoid. Both sides of the clock have on-track speed boost, so all you should be concerned with is taking the side where the hour hand is on so that you won't be hit when trying to take these speed boosts. After the clock, there will be a bump and then a long slope down. Once you reach the bottom, there will be a turn to the right and a long straightaway. About halfway through, there will be a row of item boxes, and then three quarters through there will be a swinging bell, so grab an item and quickly swerve to avoid the obstacle. Once you've passed this section, there will be a sharp turn to the right, and then another dull drop down to four swinging gears. Always head in the same direction that the gear is spinning. Keep in mind that if you go left in the first lap, it will be right in the second lap, and left again in the third lap. When you're back on stable ground, there will be a short, steep slope back up, and then a quick S-Turn. You'll head back down a slope, and come across a miniaturized version of the big clock you saw near the beginning, and with only one hand. There will also be item boxes spinning around the clock, so grab one as you drive by. There will be another slope upwards, and then another turn to the left. It is here that you will find two large, spinning gears and a thin path upwards. If you drive over a gear spinning forwards, you'll shoot right past any competition, and complete a full lap, so try to do that every time. Also remember that, just like the other gears, the direction is reversed during the next lap. ==--==--==--==-== = Mario Circuit = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 3.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Heavy Mario Circuit is a nice break from the action, and it comes at a good time in this cup. You'll find yourself on a regular race track. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then turn to the right. There will be two Goombas walking back and forth on the track, one near and the other far. In between these two Goombas, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one as you drive by. Once you've past the Goombas, there will a series of wavy turns and curves in the paths, going left and right. On the third curve, you can fall off the ledge, so stay away from there. After that turn, you'll curve left again, and a fireball will shoot out of nowhere at you. The path will curve right again, and then you'll enter a half-pipe tunnel. At the entrance of this tunnel, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one. You'll exit the tunnel, and there will be an extremely sharp turn to the left, which you should powerslide through easily. The path will then change to dirt, and you'll curve back to the right again, and then to the left once more. You'll now see the castle in the distance. As you proceed forwards, there will be two more S-Curves, along with item boxes scattered through the area. Get one as you drive by. The road will now convert back from dirt to pavement, and there will be yet another sharp turn to the left, so powerslide through it (this track curves a lot). A short straightaway, and then a final sharp turn (do a powerslide), not as sharp as the previous one, which curves right, and from here, you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-=--== = Airship Fortress = ==--==--==--==-=--== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium This track is similar to Bowser's Castle, but different in the design. You'll start out on a long straightaway with several drops. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then you'll immediately drop down to a lower level. There will be giant Bullet Bills being fired directly at you, so you might have to swerve a bit to avoid them. After about three Bullet Bills, you'll drop down again, and there will be an abrupt turn to the left. You'll see a row of item boxes - grab one of them, then turn to the right. You'll go upwards, then drop down on a wooden path, covered with Rocky Wrenches from Super Mario Brothers 3. They'll pop out of their holes every couple of seconds, and if you run into one, you'll spin out of control. There will be two light turns to the right, then you'll have passed them, and there will be another turn to the left. The road will slope down and you'll move into a tunnel. When the road evens out, there will be a sharp turn to the left, and then the road will slope down again. On the way down, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one along the way. You'll then be dropped down into an empty room of boxes - avoid them and zig-zag your way through. You'll then enter a second room, this one containing two large burners that reach from the ground to the ceiling, and will make you spin out if you touch them. Swerve past them, then the road will narrow and there will be a slight turn to the left. There will be a speed boost, and you'll be launched all the way across a huge gap from one end of the ship to the other. When you land, the road will immediately start curving to the left and downwards, so powerslide the entire way down, grabbing an item box from the row that will appear halfway through. When you reach the bottom, there will be a quick turn to the right, and the entire left side of the road will have crumbled away, meaning you need to stay away from that area and move more towards the wall on the right. There will then be one final turn to the left, and you'll have completed the first lap. -------------------------------------------- Section 3D - Special Cup ========================== The Special Cup has always ended with Rainbow Road since the days of the SNES, and this game is no exception. Before the final track, you also tend to see a Bowser's Castle and a Wario stage, too. 1) Wario Stadium 2) Peach Gardens 3) Bowser Castle 4) Rainbow Road ==--==--==--==-== = Wario Stadium = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 6/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium As with all Wario tracks, this one is filled with many jumps and bumps in the road. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then there will be three turns right away - first to the left, then to the right, then to the left again. They all are very light, so you can stay on the corners without drifting until after the third turn. After that, shoot up the hill, get the on-track speed boost, grab an item box, and fly off the ramp. You'll bounce down to the ground, then there will be another slight turn to the left, followed by four on-track speed boosts, which will, one by one, take you across the enormous mud puddle that will cover a huge portion of the track. The speed boosts will be located on three different 'mini-islands', so you'll have to weave back and forth to get them all. Once you reach the other side, there will be a slight turn to the left again. You'll now see a huge hill up ahead. There is also one more of these up ahead, except on the opposite side of the track. From here, you can see an on-track speed boost which will send you rocketing up a small ramp. When you fly off that ramp, there will be two item boxes and a circle of fireballs spinning around. You'll have to make quick maneuvers to avoid being hit by the fireballs when you're getting an item box. Once you've taken both these jumps, the road will straighten out again, and there will be another path leading through the mud. There will be two spinning fireball wheels on the swerving path up ahead, along with two separate rows of item boxes. Grab the items as you go through avoiding the fireballs and staying on the path. After that, there will be another slight turn left, and you'll fly off a huge ramp with three on-track speed boosts. When you land, there will be two large bumps, and when you turn right, four small bumps, with item boxes scattered around. Grab on as you drive by, then the road will curve left, and you'll see a mud puddle on your right. You're almost there. Fly up the biggest ramp yet, take on on-track speed boost, then land and head straight for the finish line. ==--==--==--==-== = Peach Gardens = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Recommended Character Type: Light Peach Gardens is a race through the elegant greens you see outside her castle. There are many easy shortcuts in this, but they will slow you down (when you're going through the bushes), making a light kart the best kart for this place. Start by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then cross over the bridge and turn left. Cross over another bridge, and grab an item box, then your first opportunity for a shortcut comes - cut across the bushes on your right onto the path you see up ahead. If you have Mushroom, this is made even easier because you can drive through at the same speed. Once you're ahead, you'll drive up a hill, then there will be another small patch of flowers that you can drive through if you have a Mushroom, or around if you don't. You'll go back down again, and then you'll have to weave in and out of the paths. The ones you take are your choice, but keep in mind that there are Chain Chomps bouncing around carrying two item boxes behind them (which you'll want to snag, but they may get in your way). When you've passed this large area, there will a hill leading upwards, and another garden to drive around, unless you have the usual Mushroom. After the turn, you'll fly back down, and there will be three bushes to weave around that form a 'peace' symbol. Once you've passed this, the road will turn to dirt, and there will be many holes in the ground, where Monty Moles will pop out of and try to spin you. Halfway through, you'll also come across a row of item boxes, so grab one as you go along. After the dirt path, there be a 90 degree turn to the right, back onto a normal path. You'll drive on this straightaway for a bit, then there will be another turn right, and you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-== = Bowser Castle = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 8.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy With every Mario Kart, there appears to be a Bowser's Castle that comes with it, and usually right before Rainbow Road, so welcome to another difficult stage. Start off by getting a speed boost, then drive onto the narrow path before your opponents do. Drive up the slope, and into Bowser's mouth. The first thing inside the castle are the Thwomps (and a row of item boxes stationed just barely in front of them), which will pound down on the ground every few seconds in an attempt to crush someone. Once you've past them, there will be a sharp turn right, and you'll drive back outside of the castle. There will be another abrupt turn to the right, and you'll start climbing up an extremely steep hill. As soon as it ends, there will be another one right after, then another quick turn to the right. There will then be a narrow bridge that takes you across the area that you were just in. Once you've past that, there will be a turntable up ahead. While it rotates against you, you're trying to drive forward and past it, which is best done by staying near the inside of the turntable. When you finally get through to the exit up ahead, there will immediately be a turn to the right. You'll see another Thwomp up ahead, so avoid it, then turn right, and immediately after, turn left. Grab an item box. Now, there will be a huge turn upwards to the left on a narrow path, which is easy to be knocked off if you're a light character. There is a huge lava pit below, so you do not want to fall off. After this turn, you'll drive back outside to see an interesting path - a rotating log, which spins back and forth every few seconds. You'll have to turn left and right to stay on the path, but if you do fall off, you'll simply be dropped down below, onto a longer path that eventually connects with the shorter one. After the log, there will be several item boxes to choose from, so get one and continue down the path. Turn right, and you'll drop down a slope and fly off a ramp onto some moving blocks. In total, there are four moving blocks, and this particular area can be extremely frustrating - the blocks tend to move somewhat abruptly, so just when you think you're going to land near the edge of the block up ahead, you'll fall off into the lava. Try to stay as centered as possible here. After the blocks, there will be another row of item boxes, then the path will make three quick turns (right, left, then right again) to the finish line. ==--==--==--=-== = Rainbow Road = ==--==--==--=-== Difficulty Rating: 9/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium Welcome to the final (since when hasn't it been?) track of the Nitro Grand Prix. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning. You'll fly down a slope and get three consecutive on-track speed boosts, with a row of item boxes appearing between the second and third. After that, the road will take a major slant to the left, and the path will begin curving upwards. There will be some small on-track speed boosts as you take this long curve. Try to get them all, but also stay close to the edge at the same time. After the turn, the road will straighten out, and you'll fly downwards again. Along the way, you can pick up another item box, and when you reach the bottom, you'll see the track curving upwards. In fact, it goes upside down, in a complete loop, and the entire section is a speed boost. There are barriers placed on the sides on this part, so you needn't fear of falling off. After the loop, there will be a curve to the right, and you'll drive through a couple of rings before dropping down suddenly. There will be a row of item boxes before an S-Curve. After the turns, there will be another 180 degree slanted turn to the right. Once you've gotten past all these turns, you'll be able to see another loop in the distance - in fact, this is a full corkscrew because you'll be turning at the same time. When you approach the speed boost, stay as close to the left side of the track as possible, because due to the turn, the speed boost is slanted to begin more on the left side, meaning you'll speed up faster. It's a minor advantage. You can also do the same thing at the end of the corkscrew by staying on the right side of the track. After the corkscrew, there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one and turn to the right. The path will then go upwards and slant to the left, and you'll have one more full turn to the left before you'll have completed the first lap. Drive around twice more, and you'll have completed the first 16 tracks. -------------------------------------------- Section 3E - Shell Cup ======================== Time for the remakes! The Shell Cup is the first of four Cups composed entirely of old tracks from previous games. This one starts off with the first course ever seen in the Mario Kart series - Mario Circuit 1. 1) Mario Circuit 1 2) Moo Moo Farm 3) Peach Circuit 4) Luigi Circuit ==--==--==--==-=-== = Mario Circuit 1 = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy The first track ever created and introduced to go the Mario Kart series. This is a quick race. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then immediately turn left and and head right down the empty straightaway. Up ahead, there will be two pipes with Piranha Plants popping in and out of them - powerslide around the corner and avoid the outer pipe while you turn. There will be another straightaway, with item boxes scattered all around. This is the only section where you can get items, so make sure to pick one up or you'll have nothing for the lap. Also, try to grab as many as you can, to prevent your opponents from getting to them. After the items, there will be another sharp turn to the left, then you'll see a completely empty path that curves to the right up ahead. If you have Triple Mushrooms, cut across the dirt and you'll take a huge lead. If not, continue down the road. After the shortcut/turn to the right, there will be another wide turn to the left, and you can powerslide around the turn once or even twice if you have the time. After that, just head straight through the first lap. There's nothing special about this track, it's just a flat, empty road. ==--==--==--=-== = Moo Moo Farm = ==--==--==--=-== Difficulty Rating: 2.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Light or Medium The key with this track is to hug the corners as tightly as possible, because the more you do it, the more time you can gain on computer opponents. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot down the straightaway and bounce over the bump. When you land, there will be a row of item boxes in front of you, so grab one and you'll see the first turn to the right. Drive up onto the slant, and take the curve right against the fence for as long as possible. Soon after, the turn will end and suddenly shift to the left, so quickly change sides and hop over the bump. There will be a row of item boxes up ahead, followed by a slight S-Curve. Once you've passed it, you'll drive under a bridge, and there will be a small bump in the road that drops you down into a pit filled with more item boxes. The road will then start curving to the right again. Drive on the slanted bit of road, although this time, you'll need to stay right against the fence, because there will actually be Monty Moles popping in and out of their holes on the path, intentionally placed there to get it your way. After this long turn ends, you've almost done a full lap. There will be yet another row of item boxes placed directly before a bridge. Grab one, then drive right under and past the bridge. Up ahead of you, you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-== = Peach Circuit = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy Peach Circuit is another simple, quick, and flat track. Start off by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then head down the straightaway and powerslide around the first corner. You can get in two powerslides if you're quick. There will then be another short straightaway with a row of item boxes. Grab one and then drive straight. There will be an S-Curve, then a quick, sharp turn leading to the left. The path will go straight for a bit, then curve lightly to the right, and immediately after, there will be a 'powerslideable' curve to the left. There will be a short straightaway, then the path will turn right, and there will be a row of item boxes, so grab one again. There will then be two more light turns to the left. Powerslide through them. Continue down the empty straightaway. There will be one more turn to the right, which you can powerslide through, then you'll see the starting line right up ahead. You're done with this short track. ==--==--==--==-== = Luigi Circuit = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium There are two Luigi Circuits in this game, and this one is the one that was ported from the GCN game of Double Dash. This is also the easier one. Start with a speed boost, then drive forwards and hop down the small bump with a speed boost. Stay on the right side of the track (the left side is actually a different part of the track that you'd be wasting your time driving on), and get an item box from the row of six that are available to you. Then, move away slightly from the right side of the track, because there will be a Chain Chomp to your right, ready to leap. Once you've past it, there will be a wide turn to the left, and you'll see many on-track speed boosts to your right. It's your choice as to whether you hug to corner or speed down the wall - both are about the same. There is also a row of item boxes placed in the middle of the turn. After the curve there will be another on-track speed boost, then the track will drop down again and you'll be on the other side of the track that you just saw a few seconds ago. Drive straight through, then grab another item box as you drive by. The track will then split apart again, and there will be another turn to the left similar to the last one, except this time, there will only be three on-track speed boosts to your right, so you're better off just taking the corner. Once you've rounded the turn you'll have completed the first lap. -------------------------------------------- Section 3F - Banana Cup ========================= The Banana Cup is composed of some long and short tracks, and interesting combination. But it shouldn't take you very long to bring home the gold. 1) Donut Plains 1 2) Frappe Snowland 3) Bowser Castle 2 4) Baby Park ==--==--==--==--== = Donut Plains 1 = ==--==--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Light or Medium Personally, I hate this track more than any other, due to the constant turning and massive slowdown when you're taking corners and driving over grass. You'll start off right in front of a light turn, so get the speed boost and turn right, grabbing an item box as you go along. You can also powerslide through this curve effectively, too. Once you're around the corner, you'll cross over a bridge that goes over the water. Once you're across, there will be a wide turn to the right, and a shortcut right in front of you. If you have a Mushroom, boost straight across the grass instead of turning right. There is an opening in the barrier that will allow you to save time and get ahead of everybody else. If you don't, just go around the barrier and you'll be right where the shortcut leads. There will now be a wide, long turn to the right, with some dirt you should avoid on the right (more info next paragraph), and once you're through, you'll have a selection of item boxes to choose from, the only one until the end of the race. Head down the straightaway, then there will be another wide turn, to the left this time. Powerslide once or twice through it. You'll see a large dirt patch on the right side of the track up ahead - driving through this slows you down. you'll be forced to drive around it, which is best done by powersliding. Occasionally, I've tried driving through it with lightweight karts, but that's usually the only time you should attempt it (unless you have Mushrooms). After the turn, you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Frappe Snowland = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium Right after a slow, curved track comes a trek through the snow. Start with a speed burst at the beginning, then immediately turn to the right. There will be a long, empty straightaway, followed by another turn to the left. You'll see a row of item boxes up ahead, so grab one as you drive by. You'll see a snowman up ahead, so drive around it, then the road will curve sharply to the right, so powerslide around it. After the turn, the road will start to curve very slightly to the right. Avoid the snowmen placed on both sides of the road as you might try to hug the corners. The road will then turn a bit more sharply to the left, and there will be a large ramp up ahead, which will launch you over a river that you can't see below. (Drive in reverse after the jump and you'll see it). Immediately after the jump there will be some more item boxes placed in front of you, so grab one and the road will turn left. Drive straight through the many snowmen placed randomly around the large and wide path, then once you've passed the area, turn left. The road will then suddenly swerve to the right again, then you'll see a path through some large snow banks starting to form after a slight turn to the left again. Take the turn, then start driving in. There will be one last row of item boxes up ahead. Grab one when you drive by, then continue down the straightaway. The road will then make a wide turn to the left, good for powersliding through, and then still continue to slant to the left after the curve. Immediately after, the path will curve to the right, and you'll cross over a bridge. The end of the first lap will be right up ahead. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Bowser Castle 2 = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium This track was usually quite small, but it was really blown up for Mario Kart DS. Start with the usual speed boost, then powerslide around the first wide corner. You should end up on the left side of the track, so get the on-track speed boost, then drive down the straightaway, and pick up an item box along the way. There will be another sharp turn up ahead for you to powerslide through, then head diagonally down the path, which weaves back and forth, although you don't need to. Turn to the right, avoiding the Thwomp, then turn left again, and you'll be on a wireframe floor. Drive over the on-track speed boosts to leap over the lava pits, then after the second one, start powersliding to the right. Try to get the speed boost located right against the wall. If you get it, great, if you miss it, keep on going. Turn right again, then leap over the lava. There will be several jumps in the track that go over the lava - you're best sticking on the right side of the track so you can jump over the extra jump and grab an item box. Once you've got it, there will be a short straightaway, then a turn to the right. There will be many random jumps and leaps, along with many holes in the wireframe floor. There are also some item boxes if you go down the middle, which is likely to be your best option, because hopping over lava pits is not only risky, but unnecessary. Once you've passed the many jumps, there will be another short straightaway and another turn to the right. You'll see the starting line right up ahead, so just avoid the Thwomps and head right through, and complete the first lap. ==--==--==-== = Baby Park = ==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 0.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium Do we honestly need a walkthrough of Baby Park? This is the fastest and shortest track ever to hit the Mario Kart series, and the only track with more than three laps in the game. It can get pretty fun when there are a lot of items flying around the stage, as it turns into a battlefield. The track is shaped like a classic oval. There are two rows of item boxes, each located near the beginning of each turn. Powerslide around these turns, and launch or use all your items as soon as possible, because you'll be picking up another one very quickly. There's nothing much else to it. -------------------------------------------- Section 3G - Leaf Cup ======================= Leaf Cup is filled with some pretty frustrating tracks, especially Koopa Beach 2 and Luigi Circuit. 1) Koopa Beach 2 2) Choco Mountain 3) Luigi Circuit 4) Mushroom Bridge ==--==--==--==-== = Koopa Beach 2 = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 6/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy This track was twisted horribly from the original version, and made much more difficult than it really is. The track was blown up far to large, and you can no longer float on the deeper water for a few seconds, you automatically sink. You need to be extremely careful on this one. Start with the speed boost, then drive down the shore and turn to the left. The path will go straight for a bit, and there will be a batch of item boxes, so grab one and continue driving. The path will curve to the left a bit more, then the hardest part of the track will be coming up - the water. There will be a large, empty area filled with mostly shallow water that is safe to drive through, but here and there you'll see some deeper areas, which are difficult to avoid in traffic and even more dangerous for lighter karts, because they can easily be bumped in. Your best bet is to drive up the middle (and grab another item box, too) until you reach the opposite shore. Once you do, you're safe for another lap. Once you're back on the land, there will be a sharp and sudden turn left, then the path will extend forwards and curve slightly to the left up ahead. You can cut across the shallow water at this part. After that, the road will curve right, then again go back slightly to the left. You'll then see the finish line right up ahead. Note that the closer to the right of the track that you are when you cross the finish line, the faster of a time you can get, and it might make the difference between first and second place. Simply put, try to go to the right as much as possible when crossing the finish line. ==--==--==--==--== = Choco Mountain = ==--==--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium Another personal favourite, this track was ported from the N64. The nice thing about this place is that much of the track is surrounded by walls on either side of you, so you can't go off-road. Right after the start, there will be a wide turn to the right, then a short straightaway, and a light S-Curve. These are all good for powersliding through. There will then be a row of item boxes up ahead, so grab one as you drive along. The road will now curve to the left, and the wide turn should last about three seconds, so powerslide through it up to three times. Once you've rounded the corner, you'll see a long straightaway that leads downwards and under a bridge. After the straightaway, the road will turn slightly to the left and upwards for a bit, then when the road flattens out, you'll see the road become a bit wavy up ahead, but you barely need to turn to get through it. There will then be a short straightaway, and a row of item boxes will appear up ahead. Grab one, then the road will curve to the left , and there will be a small ramp that you'll fly off. Once you land, there will be a short, empty path that constantly curves very slightly to the left, but then the wall on the left side of the track will completely disappear, and you'll be best off staying near the right side of the track. As you continue down this path, the turn will slowly grow sharper, and huge boulders from the right side of the huge hill will start pounding down, and you'll need to avoid them as you round the corner. Soon after, there will be another slight turn to the right, and the boulders will be behind you. Ahead of you, though, is a batch of item boxes ready to picked, so grab a few as you drive by, preventing your opponents from getting to them. After you've passed the item boxes, the road will continue to curve slightly to the right, until eventually it just swerves right completely, and the is a short straightaway before three massive bumps/jumps in the road. After the bumps, you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-== = Luigi Circuit = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 6.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium There are two Luigi Circuits in this game, and this one is the one that was ported from the GBA game of Super Circuit. This is also the harder one - there are many curves and corners to go through. Start off with a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot forwards and start turning to the right. There will then be two puddles on your left, so stay near the right side of the track while turning over to the left. There will then be a short, straight path, followed immediately by a sharp turn to the right. Powerslide through it once or twice. Once you've rounded the corner, there will be a slight S-Curve, along with a row of item boxes. Grab one as you drive by. After the item boxes, there will be another wide turn to the left this time, so also powerslide through this a couple of times. The road will straighten out, and some puddles will appear on the left side of the track, so avoid them while rounding the 90 degree turn to the right. There will be a puddle in the middle of the wavy road, then there will be a sharp and abrupt turn to the right. Immediately following this, there will be yet ANOTHER TURN to the left. You'll soon see a small puddle up ahead on the straightaway, with an item box placed just before it. A nice technique is to grab the item, then hit R to hop over the puddle. Right after the puddle you'll see a sharp turn to the left. After the turn, the road will weave left and right, and you'll need to avoid the puddles that appear here and there. There will also be a row of item boxes near the end of the path, just before it turns to the left. After the turn, there will be a short straightaway, followed by one more final turn to the right. Powerslide around it a few times, then you'll have completed the first lap. ==--==--==--==-=-== = Mushroom Bridge = ==--==--==--==-=-== Difficulty Rating: 3.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium This course is a disappointment, simply because there are no longer any of the shortcuts that were found in the Double Dash version. Nevertheless, this is a challenging track and one of the few that throws you into the middle of traffic for a race. Note that there are item boxes that fly around the entire track, and may appear at any time. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then edge to the left for a few seconds as there is a turn right at the beginning. You'll enter a tunnel, and halfway through it, there will be a stationary row of item boxes to choose from. Once you exit the tunnel, there will be a slight turn to the left again. The path will straighten out, and on your right, you'll see a large hill. If you have Mushrooms, you can boost your way over it for a mini-shortcut, but if you don't, you're best off staying on the normal path, which will quickly turn to the right and the paths will rejoin. After the turn, there will be a short straightaway, and you'll see another tunnel up ahead. At the entrance, there is a row of item boxes, so grab one as you enter. After another second or two, the track will start curving to the left, and you'll continue this way for several moments. Grab any moving item boxes that you may see as you go along. Soon, the tunnel will end and the path will turn a bit more sharply, then finally, it will become a straight path and an enormous straightaway that leads directly to the finish. You'll cross a large bridge along the way, and it's here that you'll come across a third and final row of item boxes. -------------------------------------------- Section 3H - Lightning Cup ============================ The Lightning Cup is the final cup of Mario Kart DS, and probably the first not to feature a Rainbow Road as the last track, which surprised a few people. 1) Choco Island 2 2) Banshee Boardwalk 3) Sky Garden 4) Yoshi Circuit ==--==--==--==--== = Choco Island 2 = ==--==--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 6.5/10 Recommended Character Type: Any Weight This track is a real pain for all characters - if you drive on the dirt, you'll lose a ton of speed, the road is slippery, and there are many obstacles throughout the short course, including mud puddles and mini-bumps in the road. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then turn to the right and quickly back to the left again. There will be a row of item boxes placed before a sharp turn to the right, so powerslide through and grab one as you turn through. The path will become extremely thin for a short while after the turn, making it a great place to drop items or use them, because there is hardly any room to avoid them. After the path becomes wider again, there will be a simple turn right again, and there will be some mini-bumps in the road. Up ahead, you'll see a huge puddle of mud with some item boxes on a small island near the left side of the screen. There are also some Piranha Plants that you'll need to drive around in order to get one of those item boxes. After the item boxes, there will be a bit more driving through the puddle, then the path will appear again and you can drive back at your normal speed. The path will turn right again, so avoid the mini-bumps that are scattered everywhere, or you may lose control. After the turn, there will be a short straightaway where you may bounce around a bit, as well as some item boxes to grab. The mini-bumps will then slowly disappear, followed by one final turn to your right, and the starting line will be right up ahead. ==--==--==--==--==-== = Banshee Boardwalk = ==--==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium or Heavy Start off with a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot forwards, and there will be a 90 degree turn to the left up ahead. Once you've turned, the banister on the right side of the track will completely disappear, so you could easily fall off into the water if you're not careful. Note that it will suddenly and randomly disappear at different places in the track on both sides. There will then be another turn to the right, then a short straightaway, followed by another slight turn right. There will be a short straightaway, and you'll see a row of item boxes up ahead, so grab one as you drive by. After the item boxes, there will be another sharp turn to the left (notice how all the curves on the track are very abrupt), and then there will be a short straightaway, during which the path will go down and up again. A giant Cheep- Cheep bounces over this lowered portion of the track, but it does no harm to you. When the track goes back up, there will be a small turn to the left, followed by another straightaway with a quick S-Curve in the middle. There is also another batch of item boxes that you'll find during this straightaway. The path will end suddenly and you'll be dropped down onto a slanted path which heads upwards, then curves to the left and enters a building. The arrow points to the right, so obviously, turn right. There will be an air vent up ahead, and there are bats that will fly out and slow you down. To your left there will be a small hole and a large pole that has nothing on it. Note that you can actually jump across the small crack in the hole to the left of the pole to avoid traffic and save time. After that, there will be another air duct letting out more bats, then you'll have to turn to the right and grab an item box, then head out of the building. The rest of the track is easy. The path will curve to the right, then there will be a long straightaway. There will then be two more turns to the left, and some item boxes to grab as you enter the second turn, followed by an even longer straightaway that leads you up to the starting line. ==--==--==--== = Sky Garden = ==--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium This track is loaded with some easy shortcuts, although several require Mushrooms to use. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then there will be a quick turn to the left. There will be a row of item boxes, followed by the first shortcut up ahead on your right - if you use a Mushroom, you'll be launched over the ramp onto a small island that leads to the track up ahead - essentially, it's a straightaway instead of two turns. If you take the normal path, there will be a slight turn to the left and then back to the right, followed by a small jump and a slight turn right, which will rejoin you with the other path. From here, there will be a quick straightaway, then a wide and long turn to the left, good for powersliding through. There will then be a longer straightaway, followed by two more obvious shortcuts up ahead. If you were to take the normal path, there will be a turn to the left, and then a sharp turn to the right, but if you take one of the two shortcuts, you'll just go straight over this area. The shortcut to the right requires a Mushroom, but the one to the left gets you an item and you need nothing, so in most cases you'll be using the one on the left. After that, there will be a tight turn to the left, and you'll cross over a wireframe bridge to the other side. There will then be a wide turn to the left, which you can easily powerslide through, and then there will be two very slight turn to the right and then the left. You'll see a row of item boxes to choose from when you've past the two turns, and then it is followed by a wide turn to the right. There will be a fourth and final shortcut, and probably the most major one in the game, after you turn the corner. If you take the normal path, you'll continue driving down the path, turn left, cross another bridge, then turn left right after and reconnect. However, if you take the shortcut, you'll use the R button to cross over a small island on your left, which appears right after the turn. This is extremely useful and cuts a lot of time off if you use it often. After the paths are rejoined, there will be a final wide turn to the left, and there will be a small on-track speed boost that launches you over a mini-gap located right before the finish. ==--==--==--==-== = Yoshi Circuit = ==--==--==--==-== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Recommended Character Type: Medium The final track of Mario Kart DS takes place on Yoshi Circuit from the Double Dash game. It's a very wavy and long track with so many curves that you'll likely be powersliding the whole track. This is a great place to practice. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, the head forwards and take the first curve to the right, and halfway through, you'll see a row of item boxes, so get one. There will then be a short straightaway, and a quick turn to the left, followed by another short straightaway and a turn to the right. The road will then curve slightly to the right, and there will be another straight path, followed by a small turn to the left. There will now be a row of item boxes in front of a tunnel - get one as you drive by, then immediately turn left and enter. There will be a long curve to the right, which is great for powersliding through, and you can get at least three or four in. After the tunnel, the path will turn abruptly to the right, and there will be some more item boxes. From here, the path will weave back and forth, and you'll actually have to be on your toes to make it through the turns and get yet another item box from the fourth batch available. Eventually, the wavy path will end, and the path will go downhill a bit before a wide turn that you can powerslide to the left. The worst is just about over. The path will then go upwards on a short straightaway, then there will be a very slight turn to the left, followed by another wide turn to the right, so powerslide through that. You'll see some item boxes up ahead on the longest straightaway of the track, followed by a tight turn to the left, and then a wide turn to the right. Avoid the Piranha Plants that are snapping at you as you drive through the last turn and head to the finish line. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= **************************** * Section 4 - The Missions * **************************** A new and unseen gameplay mode is now available in Mario Kart, that being the Mission mode. Mission mode consists of seven levels containing eight missions and a boss, totalling for 63 missions. There will be a clock that will count down in each mission, and the higher your time is, the more likely it is that your ranking will be better. In this section, you'll be walked through each of these missions. There will be a difficulty rating for each one, along with the name of the character you'll use and a description. Section 4A - Level #1 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 1-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 0/10 Character: Mario A pathetically easy mission to get you started. You'll be dropped behind the starting line on Figure 8 Circuit, and your goal is to drive through all five tires as quickly as possible. Hold down A between the countdown of '2' and '1' for the boost at the beginning, then shoot forward through the first tire. Up ahead there will be four Mushrooms. Grab the second from the left and shoot through the second tire. Now slowly edge to the left and grab another Mushroom while heading through the third tire. There will be a pit of a sharper turn you'll need to make to get back on track, and also another Mushroom up ahead that will send you rocketing through the fourth tire. Nudge to the left once more, and grab the final Mushroom to shoot through the final tire. You should easily get at least somewhere in the star rankings. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 0.5/10 Character: Peach The only thing this stage does is test your ability to drift around a sharp corner effectively while collecting all 15 coins. When you start, get the usual boost at the beginning of the race, and shoot forwards to collect four coins. There will then be a sharp curve, this being the one where you should drift to continue without losing speed. You could also slow down, if you'd like. Once you've rounded the corner, collect 6 more coins on the straightaway, then make a light turn to the left, collecting the remaining five coins and completing the mission. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Character: Yoshi This mission will send you around Yoshi Falls for an almost complete lap as you attempt to collect all 10 item boxes. They will all contain Mushrooms, so as you might imagine you should be using them as soon as you've got them, so I won't be telling you every time. Get the speed boost at the beginning, then shoot forwards and grab the first item box, directly ahead of you. Edge over to the right, go over the bridge and get the second one. The third one will be on the slanted road to your right, so drop down there and get it, then quickly come back up to get the fourth one, right in front of the bridge. There will be a fifth item box on the bridge, then up ahead, a sixth one to your left. Once you have them both, take the track's two speed boosts onto the curved bridge, where you'll find the seventh item box. Three left. As you get off the bridge, the eighth item box will be right in front of a track speed boost, so grab it and fly forwards. There will be one more speed boost, then another item box, your ninth. The tenth one will be directly ahead, which you can quickly get and complete the stage. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Wario This one is a somewhat frustrating level, because you'll either do really well or terrible. Your goal is to knock out the Cheep-Cheeps that are bouncing around on the beach with a Star, which is scattered in item boxes across the beach. There is no set method to beat this, as long as there are 15 seconds left on the clock, but what I tend to do is nail the first, third, and fifth Cheep-Cheeps, then turn around, grab another item box and hit the remaining two. And don't get frustrated when they bounce over your kart. Try holding down A and B at the same time for a slower, sharper turn, too. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Character: Toad Getting a triple star on this stage is fairly difficult, as you'll need to be powersliding through the whole thing. Otherwise, it's fairly simple. An interesting place, too - you'll be racing on a Nintendo DS. Get the speed boost at the beginning and head through the first tire. You'll go up onto the upper screen, where you should turn left and go through the second tire. Turn left again, and head down upper screen into the third tire. You'll drop back down to the lower screen, where you can drive right through the fourth tire. Make a sharp turn to the left to avoid falling off, and get the fifth tire. You can then make a light curve to the left into the sixth and final tire, to end the stage. If you're trying to get a triple star ranking, you'll need to be powersliding through most, if not all curves, to get mini-boosts. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 0.5/10 Character: Luigi While driving backwards does seem like a difficult task, it really isn't, because the camera makes it easy by showing you the front of your kart, allowing you to see everything behind you. Because you're also going to be moving slowly, it should be easy to navigate, as long as you remember that left is right, right is left and you're holding 'B', not 'A'. Start off by driving back down the slope, and slowly turn the corner. There will be another corner, and a small slope, then one more turn. Make sure you don't turn so sharply that you hit the cabinet door. Now, up ahead, there will be something right in the middle of your path, so either weave to the left or right and drive past it. Enter through the doors, and you're almost there. Continue to drive backwards until you're out of the tunnel and in the open. As long as you drove the whole time and didn't hit anything, you should get a triple star rating. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Character: DK You'll be doing an almost complete lap around Moo Moo Farm with DK in an attempt to get all 20 coins. Start by getting a speed boost at the beginning, followed by an item box directly ahead of you, which will give you a Triple Mushroom. Boost forwards to get the first four coins, then jump over the hill and use another Mushroom to get the second four coins. You'll now have eight. Make a light curve to the right, while grabbing five more coins along the way. Now you'll have 13 coins. You'll go for a short period of time without any coins, and this is when you should use your remaining boost. As soon as you stop turning to the right, you should see them in the distance. Grab the first couple while carefully navigating over the bump, then grab the remaining coins, which are scattered throughout the area. Mission complete. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Mario In this course, you'll be doing a full lap around the SNES version of Mario Circuit. Your goal is to perform four powerslides in that one lap, and you have five curves to do this. Get the speed boost at the beginning and don't bother trying on the first curve - it's a waste of time. However, when you get to the second curve, perform your first powerslide while going through the pipes. One down, three to go. You'll go on an empty straightaway for a minute, then another curve will come up for your second powerslide. Another straightaway (these SNES courses weren't very interesting) and another powerslide. The last curve is fairly wide, so you'll need to make sure you don't turn too sharply. Once you've done the fourth one, speed forwards to the end of the stage. ==--==--==--= = Level 1-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Mario This is a fairly simple boss stage, which simply involves you knocking the Big Bully off the stage by using Mushrooms. There is only one item box, found in the middle of the stage, but it's more than enough, because one hit sends him flying. At the beginning, just get out of his way while he aimlessly charges at you, then when he starts to walk back, grab some Mushrooms and attack him, spacing out your hits by about 2-3 seconds to save your Mushrooms and for maximum effect. Once he's dead, you should get a triple star rating. -------------------------------------------- Section 4B - Level #2 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 2-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Wario In this task, you need to destroy ten boxes by smashing your kart into them. Your first goal should be not to hit them head-on, because if you do, you'll have a drastic loss in speed. Try to hit the sides of the box, which allows you to destroy it but still continue moving at the same speed. You'll start out on Delfino Square. Turn the slight corner to the left and destroy the first three boxes by hitting the sides, and on the fourth box, ram into it head-on so you won't fall off the bridge. As you regain speed, turn to the left, and head down, closer to the water. Turn to the right and destroy the fifth box, head-on. Turn to the left and gain speed, then hit the sixth box, head-on as well. Now you're going to have to back up and back on track. Because there is hardly enough room to turn around completely, just press and hold B and go in reverse, keeping in mind that left is right and right is left. Once you're back at the top, drive forwards, and destroy the seventh, eighth, and ninth boxes. Only one more left. Turn right and cross the bridge, and up ahead, you'll see a 'Stop' barrier. Just before that, there will be a space in the right barrier, where you enter and see the final box. Hit it head-on to complete the mission. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 0.5/10 Character: Yoshi An extremely simple stage which would normally take you two tries and have you saying "How did I not see that?" You need to collect 10 coins. When you start, instead of trying to get the usual speed boost, hold B down and move in reverse. You'll get one coin, and immediately after you get it, press A and drive forwards for the next three coins. There will be a slight bend to the left, where you'll find the remaining six coins along the way. Simple. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Character: DK Another one of the 'Drive through the tires' courses. Start out by getting a speed boost, then powerslide to the right. There will be a bridge up ahead, and before it, you'll find your first tire. Drive through, then cross the bridge, and powerslide again to the right. There will be a Mushroom placed right before the large area of grass, and a tire up ahead. Get the Mushroom and speed over the grass, getting the second tire, and slowing down just after you reach the other side. There will be another sharp turn to the right up ahead, and halfway through, a third tire. Powerslide right through the tire, then head up a straightaway. In the distance, there will be a Mushroom placed before a fourth tire, which is placed before a sharp curve to the left. Grab the Mushroom and powerslide through the fourth tire, then continue to powerslide until the end of the curve. There will be two more Mushrooms on the track before the fifth and final tire, which is around a bend to the right. Mission complete. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Luigi This is a pretty quick and easy triple star mission. You'll need to chase and get the five item boxes that are moving away from you. At the start, watch them spin around and float away while getting a speed boost, then shoot forward and get the first item box halfway through the first curve. Use the Mushroom, and get the second item box at the end of the second curve. You'll now be heading for the mansion - use your Mushroom to catch up with the third item box just before the steps. Use the Mushroom as you fly up the steps, and chase the fourth item box, grabbing it halfway down the slope. Then, do a swift turn to the right and get the fifth and final item box. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Peach Another simple triple star mission in which you are required to collect 20 coins on Cheep Cheep Beach. Start off with a speed boost, and get the first three coins before the curve around the mountain. There will be nine more coins as you round the corner, and three more before the straight path leading to the ramp, which will send you flying over the water. This is the only part where you might miss a coin - as you come down from your flight off the ramp, there will be one coin that forces you to move slightly to the left to get it. Once you land, though, just collect the remaining three coins and you're done. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Wario This was one of my personal favourite missions. Not much harder than the previous two, but similar to Level 1-4 in how you need to destroy five enemies using items (with Wario in both). This time around, you'll be throwing Bob-Ombs that you get from item boxes at moving Pokeys. The trick to this task is to stop right by an item box and throw your Bob-Ombs from there, which makes it quick to pick up another one and throw it, too. For the remaining two Pokeys, there is a second row of item boxes where you can stop for a better aim, as well. Also remember the useful A + B button combination for slow, sharp turns. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2.5/10 Character: Toad This one sounds easy, driving through 10 tires, but it might confuse you the first couple of times around, especially on the selected track - Luigi's Circuit. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then drive right through the first tire. There will be another one right ahead of you, but that isn't it, that's the eighth tire. You'll have to criss-cross over to the other road that normally heads in the opposite direction to get the second tire, then criss-cross back (while snagging an item box containing a Mushroom) to get through the third tire. You'll now have the temptation to hug the corner as you turn to the right, but instead, avoid the corner, because a Chain Chomp will pop out of nowhere and likely surprise you. Stay somewhere in the middle of the track as you drive by. After the Chain Chomp, you'll see your fourth tire, and then you'll need to drive on the slope where the on-track speed boosts are to get the fifth tire, halfway through. Get the remaining speed boosts, then get back onto the track. Hop down the ledge, and drive through the sixth tire. Criss-cross over to get the seventh tire (and along the way, another Mushroom), then use your Mushroom to boost through the eighth tire. Only two tires left. Cross back over to the regular path. You'll see the ninth tire dead ahead of you. Drive through it, then drive onto the slope and get the first speed boost, and hop onto the higher level above the slope, where you'll see the tenth and final tire. Drive through and complete the mission. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Peach There's not much advice I can give you on this one, nor is there any real reason to walk you through it... I mean, it's Baby Park, and you have three laps to do six powerslides. There are two turns every lap, so the math says you have to perform two powerslides per lap. All of the item boxes contain Stars, so make sure to use your Star as soon as you get to save time and to move faster. Also try to snake through some of the straightaways to save more time - you might find it difficult to get a triple star ranking without snaking. ==--==--==--= = Level 2-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2.5/10 Character: Mario You'll be fighting two Eyeroks (hands with eyes on them, first seen in Super Mario 64) on a small, circular stage. The only item you have is a Green Shell, and there are three item boxes scattered around the stage to assist you. It is extremely easy to dodge the Eyerok's attacks, whether it be the hands pounding forwards into nothing, or the single hand trying to crush you. The only thing you might get frustrated with is aiming - you need to be quick, because you have less than four seconds to hit one of the eyes before they move again. Once you've hit the eyes three times, the Eyerok will explode, and you'll have completed Level 2. -------------------------------------------- Section 4C - Level #3 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 3-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Wario This is a simple mission once you know where all the item boxes are going. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then snag the first three item boxes while driving straight - you'll have to swerve to the left and right, and one will even come right at you. As soon as you get the third one, swerve to the right and make a wide turn around the bumper, then grab the fourth item box, and swerve to your right to grab the fifth one. All five contain Stars, too. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1/10 Character: Bowser Another easy mission, this one involves you driving backwards through five gates in order. Obviously, you'll need to keep in mind that left is right and vice versa. Hold B at the start, then drive through the first tire. Take the S-Curve, then drive down the curving slope and head through the second tire. After the curve, there will be a third tire directly ahead. Drive through it. Now drop down the steps, and turn to the left, where you'll find your fourth tire. When you reach the fork in the road, the right side is blocked off, so head left, and climb up two more flights of stairs while taking two small turns and reaching the fifth and final tire. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 0.5/10 Character: Luigi Instead of getting harder, they're getting easier! You simply have to collect 15 coins while driving around a Chain Chomp, which is much easier than it sounds. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then after about five coins, turn to the left without powersliding or drifting, and you'll get about every last coin if your timing is right. It should take you no more than two or three tries to get a triple star here. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Peach All you're doing here is a full lap around Yoshi Falls in a race against Yoshi, and you have to beat him. Certain area of the course are blocked off (you are forced to go through the first two waterfalls and take the bridge on the third one), but this is made easy because all item boxes contain Triple Mushrooms and Stars, meaning you can boost through the waterfall without falling off. For a complete walkthrough of the stage, see Section 3A, but otherwise, this should be fairly simple. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Yoshi Another 'drive through the tires' mission, this one taking place on a battle map. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then drive straight through the first and fifth tire (you'll still have to go through the fifth tire again), and into the pipe. You'll pop up on the upper level, where you'll see the second tire directly ahead. Turn right, and the third tire will be on the left hand side of the platform. Turn right again, and the fourth tire will be directly ahead, leading up to a pipe. You'll pop out right in front of the fifth tire. Drive straight through that and the first tire again, then you'll see a tire in the distance, that being the sixth one. Turn right and drive through, then make sure not to turn too sharply so that you make it up the ramp. Once you're back on the platform, the seventh tire will be on a slant to the right. Drive through, then drive off the platform and hit the ground. The eighth tire will be directly in front of you, and you'll be done the stage. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Character: Luigi This is an easy mission (again), but it can be frustrating if you have bad aim. Your goal is to hit the Monty Moles with Shells five times. This is best done by driving up to the middle item box and facing a hole, then developing a rhythm when firing the green shells at the Monty Moles. Once you get that rhythm, you should have no trouble beating this with a lot of time to spare. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: DK A frustrating level more than anything else, you'll be doing a full lap around Shroom Ridge and per forming 10 powerslides as you go along. At the beginning, get a speed boost, then attempt to do at least three powerslides around the large, wide curve, making sure to pull back to avoid the blue car. There will be a slight turn to the right, then a sharp turn, where you'll need to powerslide around the truck, which is shooting around the corner. You'll now have at least four powerslides. On the next curve to the left (around the slope), get at least two more powerslides in, and you'll be at least at six. There will be a long straightaway, and you should remain in the middle of the road. After a few rolling hills, there will be an S-Curve, so powerslide through both turns. You'll then enter a tunnel - drive through and when you reach the end of it, powerslide around the corner. One left. There will be three more curves, going right, left, and right, for you to try it out on before you complete a lap. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Mario This is an interesting one - your goal is to collect 20 coins, but you do it on a battle stage with many blocked passages, meaning you'll be weaving in and out of the track. Start by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then grab the coin ahead of you, turn left, and grab a second coin. Drive to the outside of the mansion, then weave back in and grab the third coin at the next entrance. Keep turning right, and enter a small area with a single hidden coin, which seems to evade everybody. Once you've got it, back out of the area, and turn left, and exit the area. You'll be outside of the mansion again, so turn right to avoid falling off, then grab the fifth coin and avoid the banana peel. Up ahead, the path ill be blocked, so turn in at the nearest entrance and grab the sixth coin, then continue turning left and grab a seventh coin, and turn out of the area. You'll be outside of the mansion again, and there will be a sharp turn to the right, where you'll find the eighth coin. Continue forwards and grab your ninth coin, then turn in at the next entrance and circle around the barriers, grabbing the 10th and 11th coins. Once you've got them, turn out again, and continue driving on the outside of the mansion, weaving past banana peels while getting the 12th and 13th coins. Once you've got them, there will be a barrier up ahead, so turn in to the nearest entrance for the final time, and grab the 14th coin. Then, turn left, and enter an area with the remaining six coins placed in a circle. Get them all, and you're off to the boss stage. ==--==--==--= = Level 3-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Character: Toad This boss stage requires you to race a Goomboss around Baby Park for three laps, which is actually somewhat difficult, due to Toad being knocked around a lot. Goomboss will charge up at you from behind when you're in the lead, and when he's in the lead, he'll stop and drop a Goomba or throw a Mushroom at you, so you'll need to avoid or get whatever comes out. Once a Goomba is dropped, they'll walk back and forth along the track for the rest of the race, so the track might become quite crowded near the end. Once you've beaten this, you're nearing the halfway point of the missions. -------------------------------------------- Section 4D - Level #4 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 4-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Wario In this stage, you'll be driving backwards on DK Pass against DK in a race. Beating him is fairly simple, but keeping control of your kart while heading back up the slope is not. There are item boxes scattered throughout the stage, all of them containing either Triple Mushrooms or Stars. Use them wisely, and try to knock DK out with the Star if you can. Some other minor altercations have been made to the stage, including more snowmen, and a somewhat bumpier surface (or so it will seem). Just get an early lead on DK and you'll be fine. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Character: Yoshi To win, you'll have to blast 20 crabs away using only Bob-Ombs, Triple Green Shells, and a single Green Shell. This is easier than it sounds, assuming you get decent items. The best item to use is the Triple Green Shell, because then you can just drive around, knocking out the crabs. However, Bob-Ombs work effectively, too, especially after about 30 seconds in, when all of the crabs gather in the center island, so one Bob-Omb could destroy six or seven of them. Try to avoid just driving around aimlessly - stay near the item boxes so you won't have to be driving back and forth. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Character: Mario All you're doing in this mission is a full lap around Shroom Ridge, in a race against a red car. Beating the car is easy, but getting a triple star ranking is not. You'll need to powerslide around every corner, as well as get every item box on the course. The item boxes contain Triple Mushrooms, and you'll need to spread them out as evenly as possible to gain as much time from them as you can. On top of all that, avoiding the traffic is a pain, and so is the red car, because if you touch it, you'll flip over, too. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Character: Wario This mission involves you doing a full lap around Desert Hills, and at the same time, driving through seven tires. Start off with a speed boost at the beginning, then shoot straight through the first tire ahead of you. There will be a patch of item boxes, which will contain Triple Mushrooms, for you to grab. There will be a slight turn to the right, and at this point you'll see the second tire on the dirt behind a pyramid. Use the Mushrooms to drive across the deep sand without slowing down. Head right through the second tire, then use another boost to finish cutting across. When you get back on the track, the third tire will be on a slanted hill on deep sand, so use your final Mushroom to cut across there and get that tire, too. You should be back on the track, now. There will be a ramp up ahead, and the fourth tire will be right in front of it. Drive through the tire and take the leap across, then land safely on the ground. There will be some rolling hills with item boxes up ahead, so grab one, then make a wide turn to the right and enter through the fifth tire, using a Mushroom at the same time. The sixth tire will be placed just barely in front of the deep sand, so you'll be forced to drive through it. Use another Mushroom just before entering the tire, then bounce over the hill. When you land on the hill right across, use your final Mushroom, then boost to the seventh tire below, and you're done. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Bowser This is a quick level where you take control of Bowser and try to get all 15 coins. Getting a speed boost at the beginning will get you the first eight coins without any trouble from the Thwomps, then right after you have those, use A+B to do a slow, sharp turn to the left, and as soon as the Thwomps start moving up again, speed up and grab the remaining eight coins. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: DK Your goal in this task is the take all the real item boxes and avoid the fake ones. In total, there are ten. This one is only difficult on the your few attempts, because you'll be looking down at the bottom screen to see which ones are which. You'll be racing on Choco Mountain for this one. I'll simply list the true item box from each row. 1st Batch - X O X X 2nd Batch - X O X 3rd Batch - X O X X X = Fake Item Box 4th Batch - X X O O = Real Item Box 5th Batch - O X X X 6th Batch - X X O 7th Batch - X O X X 8th Batch - X X O 9th Batch - X X X O 10th Batch - X O X ==--==--==--= = Level 4-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Character: Toad You'll have no clue what to do at first, but after a few tries it'll be simple, just like last mission. You'll be on the main section of Waluigi Pinball, where the bumpers and flippers are located. Your goal is to drive through 10 tires, but unlike the norm, you can drive through them in any order. From my personal experiments, the best one is as follows. Start off with a speed boost at the beginning, then drive through the tire right up ahead. Now, you'll need to slide around the bumper on the right, and enter through the tire which is slanted in the opposite direction (how convenient). After you drive through there, immediately turn left, and drive through the third tire in the center. Drive up the left side of the table, then enter through the fourth tire, turn right, and drive through the fifth tire. Now turn sharply to the right, and drive through the sixth tire. Turn right again, and drive through the seventh tire. Then criss-cross to the other side, and you'll see the eighth tire right ahead of you. Turn right, and the ninth tire will be right there. From here, just follow the orange path around the flippers, and go right around to the tenth and final tire. Done. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5.5/10 Character: Luigi Your goal in this mission is to perform nine powerslides in a full lap around Luigi Circuit. This is extremely frustrating and difficult to get a triple star on, but it can be done. Start with the speed boost at the beginning, then take the first light turns and perform your first powerslide on the first wide turn. Drive forwards, then there will be another turn to the left, get another powerslide in here. Another turn to the right, and another powerslide. The road will weave a bit, but then there will be three more sharp turns, and on the third one, you can get two powerslides in. That'll be seven. The road will then swerve back and forth again, and then there will be two more sharp turns for two more powerslides, and you'll be done. Along the way, keep in mind there are various puddles to watch out for, as you'll spin out if you drive through. ==--==--==--= = Level 4-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 6/10 Character: Peach As you might have noticed, the missions are starting to get harder, and the same with boss stage. This is a particularly annoying one, where you have to collect 50 coins from a huge arena with circles for paths and lava pits all around. Every now and then, King Boo will come and steal some of those coins from you, and all of the other coins on the stage will disappear until you drive into him twice to get the coins back. The simplest method for winning is to cover one 'circle' at a time and get all the coins from it, then move on to the next one - it's easier to keep track of where everything is, and also prevents you from leaving that one coin on the other end of the stage at the last second. -------------------------------------------- Section 4E - Level #5 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 5-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Peach This mission is simply a one-lap race around Peach Gardens against a stray Chain Chomp. It'll get a slight head start on you, but you can easily catch up by getting a speed boost at the beginning, then grabbing an item box and using one of the Triple Mushrooms to cut through the first garden. Note that the first item box you get is the only one, so you should save the Mushrooms for small areas where you know you can cut ahead, generally through a garden or something. The best areas to use them are at the first garden (as previously mentioned), then right after at the garden on the hill, and lastly, after the large 'maze' with other Chain Chomps bouncing around in it, there's a garden up on that hill. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: DK Very simple. All you have to do is drive backwards in a circle and collect 15 coins. The snowmen are spaced far apart, giving you more than enough room to drive through, and the coins are not way out of position. The only thing that might slip you up is the icy turf, but that problem is quickly solved by turning a half-second before you think you would. You might miss a coin on your first few tries, but otherwise this is a cakewalk. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 1.5/10 Character: Toad This is another easy mission, although it may not seem so at first. You'll have get five moving item boxes (similar to Level 2-4) on Koopa Beach 1. But there's no need to chase the item boxes in this one, because they all move in the same path and you can quickly overtake them and allow them to come to you. Simply get a speed boost at the start, then drive forward to the left until you near the edge of the beach, and glance down on your bottom screen. Align yourself based on where the item boxes are moving, then sit there calmly and let them run into you one by one. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Bowser All you're doing in this task is driving through 10 tires in a nearly full lap around Bowser Castle 1. Start with the usual speed boost at the beginning, and drive through the first tire, then powerslide through the sharp corner. You should end up on the left side of the track, so get the on-track speed boost, then drive right through the second tire. There will be another sharp turn up ahead for you to powerslide through, then head diagonally and enter the third tire. Turn to the right, avoiding the Thwomp, then turn left again, and you'll be on a wireframe floor. Drive over the on-track speed boosts to leap over the lava pits, then after the second one, drive through the fourth tire. Turn right, and try to get the speed boost located right against the wall. If you get it, great, if you miss it, keep on going. Turn right again, then leap over the lava. Up ahead, you'll see the fifth tire, but you'll have to jump across a pit with a fireball bouncing in and out of it - try to avoid it as you hop over and through the fifth tire. There will be a couple more jumps, then the sixth tire will be on the right side of the track. Continue forwards, then turn right, and jump over the lava pit near the left side and into the seventh tire. Jump over any other pits, and finally, you'll see the eighth tire on the other side of another lava pit with fireballs in it. Jump over and across, then drive through. Make a sharp turn to the right, and drive through the ninth tire. Then continue down the straightaway, and avoid the two Thwomps that may get in front of the tenth and final tire up ahead. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3/10 Character: Mario Welcome to Mushroom Bridge in reverse. All you have to do is complete one lap in the opposite direction. Some portions of the track are blocked off, so you'll have to go around. This also means that cars have less space to move around, so when going through these spaces, you'll have to take extra precaution. Also note that item boxes contain only Mushrooms, and that they're best used on straightaways in the open. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3.5/10 Character: Yoshi This mission is repetitive, because once you've got the first six coins, the last 12 are in the same places. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then curve around the cream puff and grab two coins. Then, turn right until you see three coins lined up together, get those too. You'll then fly up the ramp and launch into the air, where you can grab one of three coins. When you land, just look right, and the same thing will apply. When you have 12 coins, you'll only have to go around once more and make sure to carefully grab the coin in the air, then you're done. I've found that simply holding right on the control pad without powersliding or anything generally gets you pretty close to the three coins lined up together, and it's the best way to turn the corner. And, if you grab more than just one coin while you're in the air, you might be able to finish a bit quicker, if that helps you get a triple star. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Character: Toad You'll be going backwards on DK Pass, and you're attempting to drive through eight tires again. Get a speed boost at the beginning, then drive through the first tire. As you round the corner, avoiding the snowballs, drive through the second tire. Up ahead, you'll see two or three snowballs bouncing down at you, so you might have to swerve out of the way as you enter the third tire. There will be a huge slope up ahead, and you'll be launched way up to the top. Once you land, you'll see the fourth tire ahead of you. The rest of the path from here on out won't be too easy. Avoid snowballs as you drive through the fourth tire, then turn right and bounce through the rough terrain into the fifth tire. Turn left, and you'll see the sixth tire placed before a small slope that you'll bounce up and over, where the seventh tire is located. Once you've driven through these two, turn right slightly, then bounce up another small slope and drive through your eighth and final tire, then you'll be done here. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Luigi In this mission, you'll be racing against Mario in a plain and simple Mario Circuit. It's easy to beat him, especially with the selection of items that you have at your disposal - Mushrooms, Stars, and Red Shells. Stars are the best option, because you can knock out Mario while cutting across the grass in a shortcut, but Red Shells are equally effective, as are Mushrooms. Just try to avoid the numerous Goombas and Piranha Plants that have been added and placed all over the track, because they're the only thing that might get in your way. ==--==--==--= = Level 5-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5.5/10 Character: Wario This boss stage isn't too difficult, at least not as difficult as the last one. Your task is to get item boxes, which will contain Bob-Ombs, and throw them at the giant Bob-Omb. The only problem with this is that item boxes are not conveniently located anywhere are the stage. There are only two that appear on either side of the giant Bob-Omb every time he stops running around to throw a Bob-Omb at you. Once he starts moving again, the item boxes are gone, so you have to snag them quick. You needn't be worried of being caught in the blast radius, because if it comes down to one balloon and you get hit, you'll still win. However, keeping all your balloons is optimal for a triple star score. -------------------------------------------- Section 4F - Level #6 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 6-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 2/10 Character: Bowser A very simple task, all you have to do is drive backwards across the rotating log as Bowser. If you fall off, you have to start over. Simply keep in mind that left is right and right is left. The closer you are to the center of the log, the faster you'll make it across. Once the log turns in one direction, all you have to do is go the other way until it changes direction again. The log will only change directions twice, and the second time doesn't really count because you should be right by the end by that time. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5.5/10 Character: Wario This is a frustrating and annoying stage, due mostly to the fact that the Rocky Wrenches are constantly moving up and down, meaning you can't just knock them out. Your goal is to knock out 15 of them using the item boxes scattered across the stage. If you touch one without a Star, you'll spin out. As you're driving around, try to find a pattern in how they pop in and out, and also grab all the item boxes you can, so you can start using a Star again immediately after the previous one ends. Also, when trying to make a full turn around, use A+B at the same time for the usual slow, sharp turn - very useful. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 5/10 Character: Yoshi Yoshi is, fortunately, a good character for this stage, mostly because of his great acceleration and ability to handle the kart so well. At the beginning, get a speed boost, then simply go straight and grab the first six coins - there will be a Mushroom that allows you to cut across the dirt and keep your speed. Right after you get the sixth coin, start drifting to the right, so that you'll be in good position to grab the next three coins. The path will narrow, and once you've got the coins, there will be three more right up ahead, after you turn slightly to the left. Once you've got the 12th coin, start drifting to the right again, and you'll be in good position to get the next three coins. There will then be a huge dirt puddle up ahead, and it's extremely slippery, so try to align yourself with the next three coins far before you get near them. Once you have them, there will be only 12 left. Turn right, then weave between the jumps so that you can safely grab nine more coins. There will then only be one more turn to the right again, and the three coins will be right ahead. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 8.5/10 Character: Mario ** If you have any of your own strategies for this mission, email them to ** ** me, as there are many methods of beating this stage. ** This is an incredibly difficult mission, especially when you first start trying. It can take many attempts to figure out the correct path to grab all the item boxes, and several more attempts to actually get them all. However, I have laid out an effective path that will pretty much always get you a triple star ranking. Note that all item boxes contain single Mushrooms. Also note that the requirement on this stage is that you complete it with over a minute remaining, so you might have some time to burn. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then head straight up the middle until you reach the wall up ahead, then powerslide around the corner to the left. Grab the first item box, then get ready to powerslide to the left again. As soon as you see the path leading upwards, turn left, and use your Mushroom. Fly up the ramp onto the red block, then turn left around the corner and get the second item box. Use the Mushroom and boost across the bridge up ahead, and you'll have three item boxes. Once you've crossed the bridge, climb up the slope on your left, and once you reach the top, turn right wait for the item box to come to you. Once you've got four item boxes, turn right again and cross the bridge that leads from the yellow block to the green block. When you reach the other side, look at your lower screen. You should see two item boxes coming from opposite directions, about to pass each other. You'll need good timing, but just about when they're about to pass, drop down, and get them both. You'll need to edge forwards a bit to get the sixth one, but it shouldn't be too difficult. Once you've got it, turn to the right, then turn right against and drive back up the ramp, then continue to turn right until you reach the bridge leading to the blue block. Here you'll find your seventh item box. From this point, you can grab the eighth item box, which should be somewhere on the top level, and if it isn't, wait for it, as you have time to burn. Once you get it, drop down to the lower level, and find the ninth item box, which should be somewhere on the blue block. Once you have it, the tenth item box could be anywhere on the stage (because at this point, the description has become less specific), and all you have to do is find it with over a minute remaining. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Character: Peach Due to the fact that several areas of the course are blocked off, this task of driving through the eight tires becomes only a bit more difficult. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then drive forwards and get an item box. It will contain Triple Mushrooms. Powerslide to the left, then drive through the first tire. The road to the left will be blocked off, so you'll have to use a Mushroom to take the ramp on your right over the hole. When you land, drive through the second tire, then use a second Mushroom to boost right over the small gaps without trouble. Once you're back on the track, powerslide to the left and you'll see the third tire up ahead. Right when you drive through it, use your final Mushroom to boost across the ramp, because the regular path is again, blocked off. Once you land, you'll cross a bridge where the fourth tire is located. After the bridge, powerslide to the left, and then just follow the path to the fifth tire, grabbing an item box on the way there, which also contains Triple Mushrooms. After the fifth tire, powerslide to the right, then you'll see the sixth tire on a small, floating island, which is off-track. Press R to hop over the clouds and get to it. Once you've got it, Use a Mushroom to fly over the remaining gaps, then, back on the track, turn left and drive through the seventh tire. The eighth tire will then be right up ahead, near the finish line. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 6.5/10 Character: Yoshi This task is a real pain, and it's just as difficult as it sounds - perform 14 powerslides in one lap around Yoshi Circuit. For a complete walkthrough of Yoshi Circuit, see Section 3H, but for the most part, there are more than enough turns to get this job done, the only problem is picking the right ones. The first few are good for many - by the time you come out of the tunnel, you could have as much as eight powerslides done. After that, though, it's all up to you and instinct - you decide when the best time is to attempt a powerslide. Note that even if you finish long before the lap is completed, you should still continue to powerslide if you want to have more time left on the clock. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 7/10 Character: Toad This is a difficult mission in which you have to collect 40 coins on the big clock found on Tick Tock Clock. The big problem is trying to avoid the hands, which will take away five of your coins when touched. Basically, to get a triple star ranking, you cannot touch any of the hands of the clock. The coins form a star shape with the two eyes in the middle. Your best bet is to follow the first line of eight coins at the beginning, then use A+B to turn around and wait for the hands to move, then go for the next row, and so on. It may take you several attempts to beat this and many more to get a triple star ranking. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 3.5/10 Character: Bowser This is a nice break from the previous difficulties you've encountered. This stage requires that you beat Peach in a race backwards around Peach Gardens, an easy task because of Bowser's ability to knock Peach around. Note that all item boxes contain Mushrooms, Triple Mushrooms, and Stars, so you can use these to cut through the gardens and gain an advantage, as she will never use any items. Also, if you're neck and neck, try to ram your kart into hers to knock her off- track and hopefully off-road. ==--==--==--= = Level 6-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 6/10 Character: Luigi Your goal on this boss stage is to knock Chief Chilly off the arena using Triple Mushrooms, which are located in four item boxes scattered around the stage. This isn't too hard to beat, but you'll likely have trouble after you've knocked him off twice. The first two times are easy - either lure him near the edge and knock him off, or just use all three Mushrooms quickly and easily until he falls off. However, the third time is not as simple, because the Chief Chilly will suddenly leap into the air and land on a different portion of the arena just when you're about to hit him, and because you can't break when using Mushrooms, you're likely to fall off the edge. You either have to be extremely quick, or better yet, draw him near the edge and deliver one quick blow. Once you've beaten this stage, there's only one level left! -------------------------------------------- Section 4G - Level #7 ======================= ==--==--==--= = Level 7-1 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4.5/10 Character: Peach This is the final powersliding mission. This time around, you're on Rainbow Road, and you have a minute to complete one lap and perform six powerslides. This is extremely easy, in fact, you can get the six powerslides on the first, long turn that spirals upwards. That's also the best method, because the faster you get them done, the more time you'll have to focus on winning, and you'll also be able to do more powerslides on other curves, allowing you to save time. The only trouble you may encounter is the remainder of the track, while trying to powerslide. As long as you don't fall off or frequently hit the wall, this mission shouldn't be hard to complete. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-2 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: Mario In this mission, you'll take Mario and try to beat Bowser in a race through Bowser's Castle. All item boxes contain Mushrooms, Triple Mushrooms, Stars, and Red Shells, making it even easier to beat him. There are several changes that have been made to the track, and several areas that have been blocked off - some of these changes make things unfamiliar and you may have to adjust to them the first few times around - one of the major changes includes a complete path change after the turntable. This is equally simple and shouldn't be much trouble, either. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-3 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 4/10 Character: DK All you have to do to beat this mission is complete two laps around the Tick Tock Clock track in less than a minute and 30 seconds. Some minor altercations have been made to the track, including more bells that swing back and forth, and gears that spin faster. All of them tend to make the task bit more difficult, but it shouldn't take too long for you to bring in the triple star rank, as long as you're frequently powersliding and not hitting anything or falling off track. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-4 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 9.5/10 Character: Toad Personally, I think this is the most difficult mission in the game. Your task is to knock out 30 Goombas using the items contained in the item found on occasional parts of the track (Mario Circuit). All item boxes contain either Triple Green Shells and single Green Shells. Obviously, the triples are better, but you'll find yourself frequently spinning out when there are only one or even two left, circling around you, so you'll have to develop good timing so you hit the Goomba when the shell is circling around on that side. As time passes, the Goombas will start to advance down the track, so you might have to chase after the last couple of something - just don't go past the Piranha Plants that are placed before the bridge or else you'll never find anything, because the Goombas never make it that far. Your best bet for a triple star on this mission is to stay near the item boxes and always be armed with another item. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-5 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 6/10 Character: Wario You're halfway through Level 7. Your mission is now to collect 20 coins on Wario Stadium (with Wario). This is a harder 'collect the coins' mission because many of the coins will be placed in mid-air. Start with a speed boost at the beginning, then powerslide twice around the first corner, and you'll see a coin placed near the wall up ahead. Grab it as you drive by, the turn slightly to the right and get the second coin, also placed by the wall. There will then be a wide turn to left, and there will be three more coins placed before a ramp that launches you into the air to get a sixth coin. There will now be a turn to the left, and you'll have one coin placed on each of the speed boosts that launch you over the dirt. Once you've passed them all, you should have 10 coins. Turn to the left, then launch off the ramp on a minor slant to the left and grab three more coins, one of those being in mid-air. When you land, there will immediately after be a second ramp that launches you the same way as before, for another two coins. You'll now have 15 coins. The road will then swerve left and right, and along the way, you'll find two more single coins placed near the dirt on the slanted edge to your left. Once you have them, all that's left is a powersliding turn to the left, followed by a quick ramp which will launch you into the air for your final three coins. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-6 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 7/10 Character: Mario This is a rather interesting layout for a 'drive through the tires' stage. You'll be on the Nintendo DS battle arena, and there will be eight tires placed in a perfect circle that you'll have to drive through. While this appears complicated, there is a simple strategy to it, which has been submitted to me by loneboco (thanks for this excellent strategy). The gates are aligned in such a way that you can perform a single powerslide through them all. Perform an initial turbo-boost towards the first gate, then press R and hold right and keep holding right. You can easily make two complete circles through the gates and get a triple star rating with about 1.7 seconds left on the clock. Just keep the powerslide going and don't stop it. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-7 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 7/10 Character: Bowser This is another interesting stage. Your goal is to drive backwards through the lower deck of Airship Fortress and collect 12 coins. If you touch a burner, you lose. There is no set strategy for this one, but keep in mind that you can smash through the boxes (as you'll find out quickly), and that the map below is an essential tool for plotting out your path. When you get to the burners, you might have to wait for a second or two until you can safely get past - try to avoid this at all costs in order to save as much time as you can. ==--==--==--= = Level 7-8 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 8/10 Character: Luigi Your goal in this task is the take all the real item boxes and avoid the fake ones. In total, there are ten. This one is only difficult on the your few attempts, because you'll be looking down at the bottom screen to see which ones are which. You'll be racing on Banshee Boardwalk for this one. Unlike the last one, though, this one is a complete mix - you'll be weaving out of your way to get some of them. In those cases, I will provide small descriptions. 1st Batch - X X O 2nd Batch - O X X 3rd Batch - X X O X = Fake Item Box 4th Batch - O X X O = Real Item Box 5th Batch - O X 6th Batch - O (The only one placed at the entrance of the building) 7th Batch - O (Placed to the very left of the big hole found when you enter) 8th Batch - O (Weave around the six fakes at the exit) 9th Batch - X X O 10th Batch - O (The only one remaining at the end, surrounded by bananas) ==--==--==--= = Level 7-9 = =--==--==--== Difficulty Rating: 9/10 Character: Mario The final race has you up against Wiggler in a race through Mushroom Bridge from Double Dash. The most important tactic that will lead you to victory is picking up every item box you find - all of them contain Stars. Make sure to have at least one Star ready to be used for the shortcut over the hill, which Wiggler will only take on Lap 3. Always try to maintain your lead because once he's ahead of you, it's unlikely that you'll catch up again. Once you've beaten this mission, congratulations! You've beaten Mission Mode! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= *************************** * Section 5 - Online Play * *************************** In this section, information about the new online Wifi play capabilities will be provided, along with steps on setting up your DS for online play. -------------------------------------------- Section 5A - Information ========================== The ability to play online wirelessly with the DS has been a well-known fact for a while, but the servers never actually went up until early November, and games that supported it were not available to the public until November 15, 2005. A day after it came out, the servers just about crashed from the massive logs and from the amount of people online. It has been, to this point, a major success, and there appears to be a lot of potential for online Wifi play in the future. Mario Kart DS is just the beginning. With Mario Kart DS, you get a nearly lag-free, online racing experience. All you need is a wireless router or the Nintendo Wifi USB Connector, a DS, and a copy of Mario Kart DS. There are some disappointments with the online play, however. Your battery will drain quickly when playing online, especially from a distance, meaning you'll be recharging the DS frequently. You cannot drag items behind you in a race. Only 20 of 32 tracks are available, meaning that some of the best tracks cannot be used. Finally, you cannot play battle mode online, which would have been a nice addition to the game. All of these are likely due to technical reasons, but it is unfortunate that nothing could be done. -------------------------------------------- Section 5B - Setting Up ========================= There are four different methods of setting up your DS for online play. All methods start with accessing the Nintendo WFC menu from the main screen, and then entering the Connection Settings menu from there. Depending on your situation, choose one of the following: - Setting up by searching for an access point - Setting up using AOSS - Setting up manually - Setting up using a Nintendo Wifi USB Adapter Search Access Point ------------------- To setup your internet connection, proceed with the following steps from the Connection Settings menu. 1) Tap 'Connection #1' on the touch screen. 2) Tap 'Search for an Access Point'. The system should take no longer than a few minutes to search for one. If you wait any longer than five minutes, restart your Nintendo DS. 3) Once the search is complete, a list of routers will be displayed, with names and symbols of locks next to them. If you have an unlocked blue lock, you can connect without any further steps, simply tap that particular router on the screen. If you have a locked gray lock, you cannot connect with your router. If you have a locked red lock, you can connect, but you'll need to find your WEP Key. Continue reading. 4) If you know what your WEP Key is, tap that particular router on the screen and enter it, then perform the tests and you're ready. If you don't, make sure your wireless router is connected and ready. Open an internet browser, and type in 192.168.1.1. You'll be prompted for a password, which should be 'admin'. If correct, your wireless router's configuration page will be opened. You will be able to find it somewhere on this page, exactly where depends on your router. 5) Copy the WEP key into the Nintendo DS, and perform the tests. You should be ready to go. Connect With AOSS ----------------- It is unlikely for your router to have this sort of capability, which is not commonly found in wireless routers, but if you do (determine this by checking to see if you have an 'AOSS' light on your router), all you'll need to do is connect, and the rest will be done for you. Follow these steps. 1) Tap 'Connection #1' on the touch screen. 2) Tap 'AOSS'. Now look at your wireless router. If the AOSS light begins blinking, you're likely making contact with the Nintendo DS. Wait for approximately a minute, and the connection will test, and likely finish successfully. You can now play online. Connect Manually ---------------- This is not the optimal choice, especially if you aren't knowledgeable when it comes to internet connections, so for an easier method, try one of the other three methods. If you'd still like to go through with this method, read on. 1) Tap 'Connection #1' on the touch screen. 2) Tap 'Connect Manually'. 3) Most of the information you need can be found on your router's configuration page, so open an internet browser, and type in 192.168.1.1. You'll be prompted for a password, which should be 'admin'. If correct, your wireless router's configuration page will be opened. You will be able to find most information on this page. 4) Enter your SSID, the name of your wireless router or access point. 5) Enter your WEP Key. If you don't have one, skip this step. 6) Is your IP Address automatically assigned to you? If so, touch 'Yes', but if not, you'll have to enter in a lot more information from here, including IP Address, Subnet Mask, Gateway, and Primary/Secondary DNS. 7) Once you have filled everything out correctly, tap 'Test Connection'. If everything was done correctly, a connection should be established and you're set for online play. USB Connector ------------- The Nintendo Wifi USB Connector is a small device that you can plug into one of your computer's USB ports and use as an access point if you do not have a wireless router. It doesn't make much sense, as a router serves multiple purposes and some cost less than the USB Connector, but if you do have one, follow these steps when setting it up. 1) If you don't have a Windows XP Operating system, don't bother continuing, as you cannot use this device. 2) Install the device on your computer using the included CD. 3) Connect the device to a USB port on your computer, and then tap 'Connect to your Nintendo Wifi USB Connector' on the touch screen. 4) You will be prompted to grant access to the PC on the DS screen. Go to your PC, and double click the Wifi logo in the bottom right corner of your PC screen. A window will open. Click on your DS Username and click 'Grant Permission To Connect'. 5) You should now be okay to play online. Tests will be performed on your DS, then you'll be set. -------------------------------------------- Section 5C - Playing Online ============================= There's nothing to playing online, really. When you connect to the service, you will have the choice of playing friends (players added to your friend roster), rivals (randomly selected players of your ability), regional (randomly selected players in your region), or worldwide (anybody in the world). Once you've selected one of the following, you'll have to wait a few minutes for your opponents to be selected. When you have connected with somebody, a small square will begin flashing on the screen, and continue flashing until the race starts or the player drops out. If it takes too long to get an opponent, you may be forced to play with only three or two people instead of the maximum of four. When all of your opponents have been selected, their names will appear on-screen and emblems will appear alongside. After a few more seconds, it will switch to the character select screen, where you can use any character or kart you've unlocked. Once you've selected your character and kart, you will move on to the track select screen, and it is here that you will select the track you want to play on. The race will take place on the track with the most selections. If there is a tie (happens commonly), the track will be randomly selected. Note that there are only 20 out of the 32 tracks available for online play, those being the following (listed in alphabetical order): - Baby Park - Cheep Cheep Beach - Choco Island 2 - Choco Mountain - Delfino Square - Desert Hills - DK Pass - Figure-8 Circuit - Frappe Snowland - Luigi Circuit - Luigi's Mansion - Mario Circuit - Mario Circuit 1 - Moo Moo Farm - Peach Circuit - Rainbow Road - Sky Garden - Wario Stadium - Yoshi Circuit - Yoshi Falls After the track has been selected, the race will begin. Points are distributed to the racers as follows: Four Players Three Players Two Players -------------- --------------- ------------- 1st - 10 Points 1st - 10 Points 1st - 10 Points 2nd - 7 Points 2nd - 7 Points 2nd - 5 Points 3rd - 4 Points 3rd - 4 Points 4th - 1 Point After the race, these scores will be displayed and the process of selecting a track will repeat three more times until the 'Grand Prix' has finished. The final results will be displayed, and then you will have the option of continuing to play against the same racers or simply quitting and returning to the main screen. That's about all there is to it. -------------------------------------------- Section 5D - Troubleshooting ============================== Having trouble with your game? This section will take of the most commonly found problems and try to provide a solution to them. "My DS will not connect to the service." If you don't have a router that is compatible with the Nintendo DS, you won't be able to play online without the USB Connector. If you're using the USB Connector, you need to have Windows XP installed. For a list of compatible routers, check Nintendo's site at this link: http://www.nintendowifi.com/customersupport/supportedRouters.do "I can't connect to the service without losing all my stats!" Mario Kart DS can only be played online on one system. Attempting to connect with another system will simply bring up a warning, and if you proceed, all your stats will be erased. "My router is secured using WPA encryption, and it won't let me connect." The Nintendo DS is not compatible with WPA, so you'll have to remove all encryption or switch to WEP, a weaker one. "Everything has set up perfectly, but I'm still not able to connect." Check your firewall settings. It is possible that your firewall may be blocking the DS from accessing the service. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= *************************************** * Section 6 - Tactics and Unlockables * *************************************** In this section, there will be a couple of tips and tricks mentioned, along with a list of all the unlockables in the game. -------------------------------------------- Section 6A - Tips and Tactics =============================== Powersliding ------------ Perhaps one of the most useful tactics in the game, powersliding allows you to get a small speed boost when rounding corners. To perform a powerslide, simply turn around any corner and press and hold the R Button. The kart will hop, then start sliding. Turn in whatever direction, then push in the opposite direction on the Control Pad, then go back to the original direction. Blue sparks will appear on your back tires. Do this once more, and orange sparks will appear. Let go of the R button, then you'll boost forwards for a quick second. There's not much else to it. Keep in mind that the higher your kart's acceleration rating, the longer the speed boost will last. Once you've mastered this tactic, you can gain a huge advantage over your opponents, and if you want, you can even take another step further and learn a similar tactic, explained below. Snaking ------- This term was coined by F-Zero GX players who exploited a glitch in the game in order to weave back and forth on the track to gain speed. The same thing can be done here - simply put, snaking is powersliding through straightaways. It takes a bit of time to master, but with time you'll be able to eventually be able to fly ahead of opponents. A nice diagram that I found on the message boards is shown below. It effectively explains how to snake. I'm not sure who created this, but if anybody knows, please email me so I can provide credit. |---------\------| |----------\-----| |-----------O----| <--- You mini turbo again, then drift the other way again |-----------O----| forming a snakelike pattern while moving extremely |-----------O----| quickly. This is repeated for the whole straightaway. |----------/-----| |---------/------| |--------/-------| |-------/--------| <--- You move to the other side, and drift |------/---------| the other way. |-----/----------| |----/-----------| |---/------------| |--O-------------| <--- You perform the boost, greatly |--O-------------| increasing your speed. |--O-------------| |---\------------| |----\-----------| <--- You drift to the right, and begin doing a |-----\----------| mini-turbo. |------\---------| |-------|--------| <--- You come in to the straightaway and |-------|--------| begin to turn left. |-------|--------| |-------|--------| Snaking is considered to be cheating by a select few, but it has been confirmed by Nintendo that it is completely legit and was intentionally incorporated into the game, therefore you won't get very far in an argument about it. Drifting -------- This is simply the act of pressing and holding R while turning corners. Your kart will 'slide' around the corner without losing any speed. It's best if you press R a little bit before the corner, or you will turn much too widely and waste time. Drafting -------- Ever wondered what those blue lines that appear in front of your kart are when you're driving directly behind an opponent? It's a technique called drafting, which allows you to gain speed from your opponents wind, and catch up to them. Also, if you stay behind them for about four to five seconds, then you'll get a small speed boost that will last about as long as a Mushroom. This is an extremely useful technique, which can help you when you're in the final seconds of a race and you have nothing to catch up to your opponents, who are about a second ahead of you. Starting Speed Boost -------------------- To get a speed boost at the beginning of the race, hold down the A Button between the countdown of '2' and '1'. You can actually get a larger speed boost if you have a higher acceleration. 'Hop Drifting' (Submitted by Tom) --------------------------------- If you need to change direction quickly while you're moving, turn and repeatedly tap R until you're pointing where you want to go. Big Air On Jumps (Submitted by Tom) ----------------------------------- If you want big air on jumps, tap R just before you leave the jump, and it should propel you far above the competition. Apart from being a awesome thing to watch, it also allows you to launch various items while in the air, and avoid items that have been used against you. Steal Balloons - Battle Mode (Submitted by darthturkey5) -------------------------------------------------------- You can use a mushroom or speed ramp and boost into someone, and if you hit them at boost speed, you can steal their balloon to use for your own. You have to be careful, as you can also steal a teammate's balloon and potentially make yourself on a one person team. Also note that you can only use this technique if you have one or two balloons inflated. -------------------------------------------- Section 6B - Unlockables ========================== There are many unlockables to be found in this game, so they are listed depending on type and in alphabetical order. Characters ---------- Daisy - Get a gold trophy on every cup in Retro Grand Prix on 50cc. Dry Bones - Get a gold trophy on every cup in Nitro Grand Prix on 50cc. R.O.B. - Get a gold trophy on every cup in Mirror Mode Nitro or Retro Grand Prix. Waluigi - Get a gold trophy on every cup in Retro Grand Prix on 100cc. Karts ----- Every Kart - Get a gold trophy in every cup in Mirror Mode. Seven Karts - Get a gold trophy in every cup in Nitro Grand Prix on 150cc. Three Karts - Get a gold trophy in every cup in Nitro Grand Prix on 100cc. Staff Ghosts ------------ To unlock these staff ghosts, you must come within five to ten seconds of the actual time listed below. Thanks to mysteltainn for correcting a major error made in this section. The tracks are listed in alphabetical order for your convenience. Airship Fortress - 2:07:748 Baby Park - 0:50:920 Banshee Boardwalk - 2:14:403 Bowser Castle 2 - 1:52:258 Bowser Castle - 2:19:661 Cheep Cheep Beach - 1:43:654 Choco Island 2 - 1:01:620 Choco Mountain - 2:15:571 Delfino Plaza - 1:54:601 Desert Hills - 1:31:262 DK Pass - 2:14:607 Donut Plains 1 - 1:08:027 Figure-8 Circuit - 1:36:481 Frappe Snowland - 2:08:781 Koopa Beach 2 - 0:54:847 Luigi Circuit - 1:29:759 Luigi Circuit (GBA) - 1:46:581 Luigi's Mansion - 1:59:357 Mario Circuit 1 - 0:50:688 Mario Circuit - 1:56:533 Moo Moo Farm - 1:17:751 Mushroom Bridge - 1:30:600 Peach Circuit - 1:12:011 Peach Gardens - 1:52:989 Rainbow Road - 2:16:246 Shroom Ridge - 2:05:123 Sky Garden - 1:44:400 Tick-Tock Clock - 1:54:903 Waluigi Pinball - 2:23:288 Wario Stadium - 2:14:868 Yoshi Circuit - 1:48:793 Yoshi Falls - 0:57:677 Miscellaneous ------------- Alternate Ending Screen - Finish all classes with gold trophies on all cups. Alternate Title Screen - Finish all classes with gold trophies on all cups. Mirror Mode - Get gold trophies in every cup in Retro Grand Prix in 150cc. Starred Nickname - Finish all classes and cups with at least a Single Star Ranking. -------------------------------------------- Section 6C - Frequently Asked Questions ========================================= Most of these questions have been gathered from the GameFAQs Mario Kart DS message board. If you have any other questions, you can also e-mail me and it'll likely be answered and added in here. Q: Does the battery life decrease when playing online? A: Yes. It has been confirmed that a full battery charge will last for three hours of online play. Q: What do I need to connect to Nintendo WFC? A: A compatible wireless router and a DS with the Mario kart DS game cartridge. Q: How many new tracks are there? A: There are 32 in total, but only 16 are new. Q: How many missions are there? A: Including bosses, there are seven levels and 63 stages. Q: Can you customize the controls? Holding the A button is killing me. A: It would have been nice, but unfortunately, no, you cannot. Q: Can you play with unlocked characters and karts online? A: Yes. Q: Is it possible to not view the decals in the game? A: No, which is also unfortunate, because there have been multiple sightings of offensive/inappropriate decals. Not good news, considering that there are younger children that may be playing online. However, in an email sent by 'Greenpoe', I was told that connecting before the races begin will not count as a loss, making it an effective way of responding to offensive decals and also usernames. Q: Does a disconnection from Nintendo WFC during a race count as a loss? A: Yes, but only during a race. It hasn't deterred people from disconnecting. Q: Is there any way to clear your record of online wins and losses? A: Originally, I believed that the only way would be to erase your entire game, however, in an e-mail sent by 'GlitchCog', I was informed that you could reset the record by trying to connect to Nintendo WFC with a different DS. When doing this, you would receive a warning and your online stats will be reset. Q: What? How did that guy suddenly reappear somewhere else during online play? A: Occasionally, you may receive lag while playing online. This is normal, and if it happens to you, don't worry, nobody is cheating. Q: How do you boost at the beginning of the race? A: During the countdown, in between '2' and '1', hold down the A Button. Or more specifically, hold down A when '2' starts fading away. Q: What is 'snaking'? A: Powersliding back and forth through straightaways in order to get mini- boosts and speed up. Q: Is there a limit on how many friends you can have? A: Yes, the limit is 60 maximum. (Corrected by Mr Potter) Q: Is there any way to see what area online players are from? A: Yes. When playing online, the names of players have a line underneath them. If that line is Blue, they are in North America. If the line is Green, they are in Europe. If the line is Red, they are from Asia. Q: How do I find my friend code? A: Go to 'Nintendo WFC', then go to 'Friend Code', then finally, go to 'Confirm Friend Code'. Q: How can I see my online record? A: From the main menu, select 'Records'. Q: What's the best kart for snaking? A: It's arguable, but the common favorite is Yoshi with Egg 1. Q: I've heard rumors around the internet that there is a Rainbow Cup you can unlock in Retro Mode. It is supposed to have the four original Rainbow Roads. Is this true? A: No, to my knowledge, it isn't. Q: How do you unlock more tracks in DS Download Play? A: You can't. When playing with a single game pak you are limited to two cups. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ************************** * Section 7 - Conclusion * ************************** Section 7A - Closing ====================== Well, that's pretty much it! You've reached the end of my Mario Kart DS FAQ. Hopefully you enjoyed reading this, and that it was helpful to you in some way. I also hope you appreciate this work - it came from hours upon hours of typing, playing, and staring at a computer screen to compile this FAQ. I'm also somewhat impressed to this point at how frequently this FAQ is viewed (20,000 hits in the first two weeks), and it's great to know there are actually people out there reading it. That's all I have to say. See you in the next FAQ! -------------------------------------------- Section 7B - Credits ====================== **www.rootsecure.net/content/other/ascii_generator** The link itself says it all, my ASCII art for the first page came from here. It doesn't just come in one font, either - there are many other types as well, I just chose to use a rather simple one. **GlitchCog** Provided me with information on clearing your online wins and losses statistics. **Naza402** When writing up the items section, I overlooked the Golden Mushroom and he was quick to point this out. **rollwithem** Pointed out that holding A and B at the same time allowed for a slower and sharper turn. **Greenpoe** Pointed out that disconnecting before the races begun does not count as a loss, an effective way of responding to offensive decals or usernames. **Musicman** The first to email me about an error made in the Golden Mushroom description. **spameater** Pointed out that you can unlock R.O.B. by completing either the Nitro or Retro Grand Prix. **ZephyrSeija** Pointed out a small error made in Daisy's description. **Tom** Emailed me a couple of his own techniques that I've added to the FAQ. **loneboco** Submitted a flawless strategy for easily completing Mission 7-6. *felix-m** Sent other methods of detecting a fake item box. **mysteltainn** Corrected a major error in the description for unlocking staff ghosts. **Ryan** Was the first to point out that the number of mushrooms you get in Time Trials depends on the kart's item rating. Also pointed out an extremely useful shortcut in Bowser's Castle. **Mr Potter** Corrected the limit on how many friends you can have on your list. **smountjoy, sonicandtails111** Corrected a small typo. **darthturkey5** Submitted a good technique for stealing opponents balloons. **quel-droma** Had a minor addition to add for uses to the Triple Green and Red Shells. **DragonMaker9** Had a better strategy for timing the boost at the beginning of the race. **cubedman990** Pointed out a minor error and had some information for the items section. **Jeff 'CJayC' Veasey** Without him, this FAQ wouldn't exist in the first place. He has the best video game reference site I've ever found in GameFAQs, and I hope he continues with it for years to come. I can't thank him enough. **You** Why you? Because as the reader, you provide me with a reason to write. What use would this guide be without people to read it? Thank you. -------------------------------------------- Section 7C - Contacting Me ============================ Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Corrections? If you have anything to say, you can email me at bowser194(at)gmail(dot)com. You can also find me on the boards, but that isn't the best way of talking with me. I'm generous enough to give you the privilege of contacting me, so please do not abuse this privilege. When e-mailing me, please put Mario Kart DS or MKDS somewhere in the title, just so I have an idea of what the email has to do with, and so I don't think it's spam. The odds are that you will receive a response if you followed the above guidelines. You can email me if you'd like to host this FAQ on your site, but note that it does not guarantee that you will be allowed. Also note that if you plan on asking, do it only if you plan on keeping it in untouched, plain text format. Simple, I hope. -------------------------------------------- Section 7D - Copyright ======================== This FAQ is not to be reproduced, altered, or changed in any way. You cannot do anything with this FAQ that will be profitable in any way. It is not to be used for promotion or commercial purposes of any kind. It is not to be used in published text of any kind. It is not to be used in electronic text of any kind. It is not to be distributed in any way. Please comply to all of these rules/restrictions. Currently, the only sites allowed to host this FAQ are the following: http://www.gamefaqs.com http://www.supercheats.com This FAQ can be saved to hard drive. It also can be printed, but for personal use ONLY. Once it is printed or any part of it is printed, do not do any of the aforementioned things with it. Remember, plagiarism is not only illegal, but also stupid, and I'll be able to tell if you've stolen 200KB of my work from me, so don't try it. If this FAQ is found anywhere other than GameFAQs, please notify me. This FAQ is written by and owned by me, bowser194. Copyright (C) 2005-2006 bowser194