they only made this game Japanese only

My favorite detail about red shells is how if it somehow managed to get in front of you, it would slow momentum and go backwards to still hit you. It was annoying when it happened but nowadays I find it charming.

My Favourite parts of the game were the battle modes, especially the collect the sun one. I loved how people would be eliminated overtime.

You didn't mention DS download play. 8 players with just 1 cartirdge was amazing. When this game came out, everybody had a DS so it worked amazing

The one thing really holding this game back to some ppl out there
Is their selection of Retro Tracks
They weren’t rlly the best, some were even worse than how they looked in their original versions

As a Mario Kart DS fan, even I have to agree on the shortcomings the entry has (especially the Retro courses, and even snaking to an extent)

That said, the Mission Mode section kinda has me wondering if it can be improved upon, if it’ll even return at least. I can see it having aspects of DS and Tour, but also having an online ranking board as an optional set piece. Hm..

That Bertil Auris (the faint red mii) in the distant bg at the beginning of the video actually startled me when I noticed it right before the static played lol

I think a better title would by "Why Mario Kart DS has kinda aged poorly"

Ok, that comparison between DS and Gamecube Bowser Castle was a goddamn stretch and you know it. There is nothing similar about them, the layouts are entirely different.

My issue with Mario Kart DS is how the retro tracks are flavorless and boring.

I think the reason the Battle Mode tracks only have one song is due to DS download play: every playable track needs to be transferred to up to 7 other devices.

Going to respond to a few points in the vid I disagree with, but I want to preface this by saying this comment isn't emotionally charged at all- I actually really liked the video and can agree with a lot of your points, I'm just responding for the sake of discussion. Good vid, Albert. :)

I feel like snaking is honestly pretty misunderstood- A lot of people will misinterpret DS's controls as just 'who can spam the best' but if you actually want to get your drifts out as quickly as possible then you will have to time your inputs perfectly. You rock the DPad back and forth twice with perfect timing to build up a quick drift- It's the same general idea with Double Dash, and if you spam too quickly your drift will simply just be slightly slower than it could be had you actually timed it- If you look at world records with controller visuals on, you'll see what I mean!

Also you can dodge blueshells with a precisely timed drift. I've done it a few times and it feels magical.

To be honest, snaking is needed to beat the 150cc cpu… and the fact that you need perfect driving or luck cause heavyweights is like you got hit by a truck

I know logically it’s not the best but DS will always be my favorite for nostalgia, plus missions, battles and addictive snaking

Well, as i said, I'll try and counterclaim your points. But before i do, i wanna say that yes i am kinda biased considering i grew up with the game and was my first mario kart. I'll say this, although its my favorite, its not the best. Deluxe and Wii are arguably better.
Gameplay: These are rather understable nitpicks but i actually like all these features. I love how the blue shell doesnt go in the ground which is arguably more frustrating being hit by the blue shell on the ground then being hit in first place, cuz at least when ur in first place u kinda accept its going to happen, whereass the blue shell on the ground is more unpredictable and frustrating. The red shell i also like because you can actually avoid the red shell if u turn at just the right time, adding more strategy and is more fun then just letting the shell hit u in the back, and it actually gives players behind a chance to catch up. The snaking i personally like bc u actually need skill to successfully snake through the trickier courses, unlike wii where friggin wheelies are like broken... And i just like building my turbo up rather then waiting for it to charge
Nitro Courses: Yes im biased here. In my opinion, all courses (except 8 circuit and yoshi circuit) are at the very least decent. And although waluigi pinballs kinda overrated, its still top 15 or even 10 material. The amount of small details like unique soundaffects and BANGER music, its a fun time. And i like the layout. So yeah this is more of a biased opinion and can see why you think the nitro tracks are kinda bland.
Retro Courses: yeah i agree. The snes courses are all flat and bland, n64 courses are decent, gba courses are arguably the best here, with sky gardens being really good, and double dash courses are a downgrade from what i seen from gameplay since i havent played double dash, but there still decent.
Battle Mode: I love it, u love it, WE ALL LOVE IT!
Mission Mode: yeah missions do get a bit repetitive at times, but honestly, at least we have a mission mode, you honestly cant complain with an extra side mode. And theres replay ability with getting 3 star ranks

Overall, good points are made and a bit of it im biased towards, but i dont really think its overrated and still think its one of the best mario karts in the series, and my favorite. Also, this is the best mario kart on the go (excluding deluxe cuz the switch is both a handheld and a console)

My most frustrating experience with mario kart ds is when I was unlocking R.O.B; getting high ranks for either retro or nitro cup was a PAIN.

Tick tock clock is really enjoyable IMO. It has so many different obstacles and jumps and boost pads that I found it very lovable. It’s an utterly unique course so far in the mario kart franchise.

I agree 100% with the shit retro course selection, especially when it came to gamecube and GBA courses where overwhelmingly they blatantly picked the laziest options that are easy to recreate.

However they do still have Banshee boardwalk and Sky gardens which made the originals better.

Nitro courses are where I disagree. Waluigi pinball people keep saying weird things like it’s so generic in its layout when the slanted side of the pinball machine feels new and fun especially going around the pinballs, then they say you just drive straight through the pinball section but really you have to dodge the bouncy things and the pinballs. Tick tock clock, wario stadium, rainbow road, bowser castle, desert hills, cheep cheep beach, bowser castle snes and frappe snowland are all really solid, well made courses.

I’m also biased bc I feel like people who snake too much do get punished when you have to slow down to keep from falling off or hitting a wall

For me:

1. Mario kart 8

2. Mario Kart Wii

3. Mario Kart DS

4. Mario Kart 7

5. Mario Kart double dash

6. Gba mario kart

7. N64

8. NES

Mario Kart DS kinda created the Retro Track thing (after Super Circuit) so you can’t really blame the retro tracks for being eh…

Plus this was the DS (and early in its life at that) so they couldn’t do anything really crazy with Retro tracks.

It's Xbox Enjoyer here, thanks for recommending me this video because after watching, I've a few things that I'd like to point out. Personally I think that when designing mission mode, they went by the saying "Hard work is its own reward" and so having three stars is good enough as you should be satisfied by what you accomplished. Also I think Waluigi pinball is a bit better than how you put it with the main pinball section having multiple routes you can take, and it's pretty fun to avoid the pinballs

Was willing to hear you out, and I can kind of agree with the snaking thing, but your opinions are so nitpicky I can't really take them seriously tbh