Diddy Kong Racing DS

Rare sneaks out to do another DS title!

	Version DS	Developer Rare	Publisher Nintendo	Genre Racing

Page: 1  2 

Page 2

This system worked well in the original game, and has been left almost exactly as it was. There are always at least two tracks available for you to race on, so there's never too big a sense of frustration if there's one that you just can't seem to beat. Have a whiz round one of the other circuits and you can come back to the track that gave you grief in a much more composed state of mind.

The vehicles all handle well, however the deciding factor in this rather slow-paced game is the racing line you take through each track, and use of boost pads to get a clear lead over the competition. Use the touchscreen, or blow for the hovercraft, at the start of each race to get a speed boost; however you will have to be quick at getting your hands back on the controls to keep your lead. This is the beginning of some very ill advised touchscreen additions to Diddy Kong Racing.

Once you've finished all the tracks on a world, you'll need to complete the touch challenge for each circuit. The genie gives you his magic carpet, which follows a predetermined route down the track giving you a first person view. Drag across the screen to look around, pop the balloons by touching them with the stylus and pick up coins and drop them in your wallet, to raise money to pimp your ride. It's a feature that detracts from the racing element in the game and seems to be added in purely because Rare felt they had to. The touchscreen stages reach their ridiculous conclusion at the boss battles. Once you have defeated a boss twice, you're invited to race them, using nothing but the stylus to control your vehicle. Hello? Racing by touch? How does that work? The frustratingly, touchscreen control is immensely poor.

Spinning your on-screen tyre using the stylus sends your cart off on the road and you also need to rub across the driver on screen to point him in the right direction. The first time you do this there's a 5 ton triceratops charging down the middle of the track; dextrous steering away from his crushing charge up the mountain is very difficult. Trying to fire off a missile accurately enough to take him down is nigh on impossible. Thankfully you don't have to complete these races to progress through the game, but the cash reward is handy and you'll need it to upgrade your vehicles later in the game.

The single player game has its flaws and is possibly too open ended for its own good. It will take a dedicated player to completely finish and unlock all the secrets it holds. This is made up for with the ability to pick single track races and race online or wirelessly against friends. Both are fun, especially shooting off weapons at your friends to pip them across the finish line.

The hover craft and aeroplane both add a much needed element of variety to the game, and both are a good blast. The aeroplane races are especially good; the added dimension gives a lot of options to the racer, such as touching down on speed boosts laid for karts and taking off again with a whoosh! But like the kart races it's under-paced. A Mario Kart style division of faster vehicles could have boosted DKR DS from an fairly average racer, into a good one.

Graphics Sound Gameplay Depth Presentation OVERALL 7.5 7.0 7.0 6.0 7.0 6.7

THE VERDICT: Diddy Kong Racing was a poor man's Mario Kart when it was originally released, and nothing has changed since. Some very bad touch elements don't add anything worthwhile to the experience. Buy this one only if you're a cartoon kart racer obsessive.

Page: 1  2