It also allows for co-op play where two players control a single kart, one handling the driving and the other manning the guns. In practice, this basically gives you two different slots to carry power-ups in.

The logic is that while one character drives, the other handles all the firepower, though the characters are able to switch spots at a moment's notice with a quick tap of the Z button. There are a few exceptions, such as the Donkey Kong Mountain track, where you're launched by a cannon to the top of a volcanic mountain, then come careening down the rocky mountain face, but mostly there's a creeping familiarity to the track designs in Double Dash.įor all that's familiar, the most obvious change that Double Dash makes to the Mario Kart formula is the inclusion of two riders on every cart. There's a generic trimmed-lawn go-kart track, an ice track, a track set in Bowser's castle, and a Rainbow Road track. The track designs are generally pretty tight, but they're by and large pretty predictable, too, aping the track archetypes originally laid down by past Mario Kart games. All told, there are 16 unique tracks in Double Dash, as well as mirrored versions of those tracks. As you win gold cups in the different grand prix cup tournaments, you'll unlock hidden characters and karts, as well as additional grand prix cups and courses for the game's battle modes. If you're flying solo, you can choose between three speed classes-50cc, 100cc, or 150cc-and participate in one of the three initially available grand prix cups, or you can go into the time trial mode and try to beat your own best time. The racing options in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! should be pretty familiar to those who have played any of the previous Mario Kart games. Now Playing: Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Video Review What this leaves you with is essentially the same game you were playing in 1992, updated for 2003.ĭouble Dash!! offers more of the same Mario Kart action you've come to expect.īy clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, the latest installment in the series, refines that formula a bit, but it's careful not to compromise what people expect from a Mario Kart game. There have been some decent imitators in the following 11 years, including the 1996 sequel to Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64, and the 2001 Game Boy Advance game, Mario Kart Super Circuit, but no other kart racer has appreciably improved upon that original formula. The bar was set for kart racers in 1992 when Super Mario Kart hit the SNES-it was a game that blended breakneck arcade-style racing with simple combat and a cute aesthetic to create an almost-endlessly enjoyable multiplayer game. Nintendo's mustached mascot can be thanked for defining many a video game trend over the years-platformers (both two- and three-dimensional), party games, and, of course, kart racers.

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