Mario Kart DS

This article is about the Nintendo DS game. For other uses, see Mario Kart DS (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Mario Kart (Wii/DS).

Mario Kart DS
For alternate box art, see the related gallery.
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
Platforms	Nintendo DS, Virtual Console (Wii U)
Release dates	Nintendo DS: November 14, 2005 November 17, 2005 November 25, 2005 December 8, 2005 December 8, 2005 December 8, 2005 April 5, 2007 Virtual Console (Wii U): April 2, 2015 April 2, 2015 April 2, 2015 April 23, 2015 May 25, 2016
Languages	English Japanese French (Europe) German Italian Korean Spanish (Europe)
Genre	Racing
Ratings	ESRB: - Everyone[?] CERO: - All ages[?] PEGI: - Three years and older[?] USK: - All ages[?] RARS: - All ages ClassInd: - General audience[?] ACB: - General[?]
Modes	Single player Local Wireless Play: 2–8 players Wi-Fi Connection: 2–4 players
Format	Wii U: Digital download Nintendo DS: Game Card
Input	Wii U: Wii U GamePad Nintendo DS: Gamepad Stylus Microphone
Serial codes	NTR-AMCE-USA NTR-AMCP-EUR NTR-AMCE-AUS NTR-AMCJ-JPN NTR-AMCK-KOR

Mario Kart DS is a racing game in the Mario Kart series for the Nintendo DS, developed and published by Nintendo. Mario Kart DS was released first in North America, on November 14, 2005, and is the only Mario Kart game on a Nintendo system to be released first in North America. Unlike its predecessor, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, it retains the traditional single-driver kart racing elements of the Mario Kart series, where players race against seven competitors in obstacle courses, using item-based weaponry to gain further advantages over their opponents. It is the first handheld Mario Kart title to use live-rendered 3D graphics for most of the objects in the game, including characters, vehicles, and racetracks.

Mario Kart DS expands and introduces mechanics that would later become the standard in future titles, most notably the Retro Grand Prix, and the advent of retro courses in general, that revamps tracks from all previous titles from the Mario Kart series. Mario Kart DS supports both single pak and multi-pak gameplay via DS Download Play, and is the first Super Mario title to support Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, allowing players to race against opponents by using online services across the world until the service was discontinued on May 20, 2014.

Mario Kart DS has its own mechanics that are not available in other Mario Kart games, such as customizing emblems for the vehicles, and the Missions mode, in which racers are tasked to complete objectives in a short series of events. The game also makes use of the Nintendo DS's features, using the bottom screen to display other HUD elements such as two types of maps, character order, and what items their opponents have.

In April 2015, Mario Kart DS became available for purchase for the Wii U's Virtual Console service via the Nintendo eShop until March 27, 2023 after the service's discontinuation. Players who purchased the title before this date can still play it as long as it is on their Wii U device. The Virtual Console version is only playable in single-player mode.

Gameplay

Rocket Start

Throughout the entire series, the Rocket Start allow drivers to give them an extra speed boost and get a head start when a race begins. To use the technique for this installment, players should stay at the starting line and wait for the countdown to hit two. When it does reach that number and when it starts to fade, players should hold the button to rev up the kart's engine. When START appears on the race screen, the kart receives a small boost of speed out from the starting line, which is a very helpful move to get first place early on in a race. But, there is a risk to this move. If players hold the button before the two fades, it may make the player's kart falter, and takes a few seconds to get back up to normal speed. If the player holds the after the second "ding" sound is heard and end, the player can get a boost that is a little faster than the normal small boost.

Drifting and powersliding

Yoshi powersliding at Figure-8 Circuit.

In the entire Mario Kart series, players drift by holding the button on a turn. Gray wisps come out of their kart as they turn around corners, possibly tighter or better than normal turning.

The next step up is powersliding. While drifting, players can move the Control Pad right and left repeatedly to produce sparks behind the kart. If done correctly, the sparks change their colors and intensity from blue to orange on each alternated move. After the sparks turn orange, the player releases the button to stop drifting and release a brief Mini-Turbo after powersliding. This can be used to dodge Spiny Shell if combined with a hop only during 100cc and 150cc races.

A player can perform a useful technique known as snaking by performing consecutive mini-turbos in a zigzagged direction, which offers a player the boost they need to get further ahead. This technique is much easier to perform with karts with higher handling, especially with Dry Bones.

Slipstreaming

Back from Mario Kart 64, Slipstreaming is simply moving just behind another player. If racers can stay behind their opponent's vehicle for about four seconds, players get a momentary speed boost that is strong enough to pass the other player.

Controls

Menu controls

• - Scroll
• - Select
• - Back
• - Tap selection

Race controls

• - Accelerate/Rocket Start (hold at 2 during the countdown before the race starts)
• - Brake/reverse
• / - Use current Item/Stop Item Roulette/Equip Item
• - Steer
• / + - Throw items backward or forward.
• - Hop/Powerslide/Drift (Hold)/Mini-Turbo (Release)
• / - Change map view (does not work in Mission Mode)
• - Pause/resume game
• - Blow Balloon (Balloon Battle), Toggle arrows/Mushrooms on/off (Time Trial)
• - Blow Balloon (Balloon Battle)

Wii U Menu controls

• - Scroll
• - Select
• - Back
• - Tap selection

Wii U Race controls

• - Accelerate/Rocket Start (hold at 2 during the countdown before the race starts)
• - Brake/reverse
• / - Use current Item/Stop Item Roulette/Equip Item
• - Steer
• - Throw items backward or forward.
• - Hop/Powerslide/Drift (Hold)/Mini-Turbo (Release)
• / - Change map view (does not work in Mission Mode)
• - Pause/resume game
• - Blow Balloon (Balloon Battle), Toggle arrows/Mushrooms on/off (Time Trial)
• - Blow Balloon (Balloon Battle)

Game modes

The title screen after the game's completion.

As in Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, the game introduced sixteen courses for the four main cups: Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup, and Special Cup, which are collectively known as the nitro cups. The game also includes sixteen courses that appeared in earlier Mario Kart games and are part of the retro cups: Shell Cup, Banana Cup, Leaf Cup, and the Lightning Cup. These cups are sorted by difficulty in the same way as the nitro cups.

In every retro cup, each of the four courses originate from a different Mario Kart game. Every retro cup has their courses ordered in the same way as the release order of the four previous Mario Kart games. Furthermore, every retro course's name starts with an abbreviation of the game console that their originating game was released for:

• SNES, which represents Super Mario Kart
• N64, which represents Mario Kart 64
• GBA, which represents Mario Kart: Super Circuit
• GCN, which represents Mario Kart: Double Dash!!

Starting with the following Mario Kart game, Mario Kart Wii, stages originating from Mario Kart DS were included as retro courses and were represented by the abbreviation "DS".

Grand Prix

Grand Prix is a single player-exclusive mode. In it, a player competes in each cup in 50cc, 100cc, 150cc, and Mirror 150cc engine classes, with ascending speed and difficulty. The game reuses the point system of Mario Kart: Double Dash!! by awarding 10/8/6/4/3/2/1/0 points for first to eighth place respectively. Similarly to Mario Kart: Super Circuit, a rating of how well a player performed is shown after the trophy presentation, from highest to lowest: ★★★, ★★, ★, A, B, C, D and E. An overall "game ranking" of ★, ★★, or ★★★ is shown in the Records area if the player has earned the designated rating in every cup and class.

Time Trial

Time Trial is a single player-exclusive mode. In it, the player's character races to complete a course in the fastest time. The item rating of a kart determines how many Mushrooms the racer can have once they start the race; vehicles with low item rate can only use one Mushroom; the ones with average item rate use two and the ones with high item rate use three. Players can choose to race against their best time as a Ghost, the Staff Ghost (raced by a Japanese Nintendo staff player with a * game ranking), or no Ghost. The game can download records from other players, allowing the player's character to race their Ghosts.

VS

In VS mode (single or multiplayer), player(s) choose their Karts and head out on the race track. They can earn points based of their finish position in each race. The player can also choose what course they race on (provided they've unlocked it). Up to eight players can play locally via wireless - simple mode only requires one game card but is limited. The essential requirement is that everyone has a DS or 3DS system. In VS mode, the player can choose the engine class, the CPU's difficulty level, the way the courses will be chosen - by the player, in order or random; the rules to win races (either free - infinite races; number of wins from 1 to 10 - where only the first racer earns points, or the number of races from 1 up to 32, and team race mode.

It is possible to have players play without owning the game - using the DS Download Play locally. Here, only the Mushroom Cup and Shell Cup courses are playable, CPUs only pick from the eight default characters (the four unlockable drivers can still be chosen by players who own the game) and everyone except the host must play as a random color of Shy Guy, in which he becomes playable then. If everyone connects with a game card, all courses unlocked by any player are available and there are no limitations, although CPUs will not pick the unlockable characters unless everyone in the room has them unlocked.

When playing in VS races where players place for a set number of races rather than for a set number of wins, players score points based off their finish position. If the game is being played in teams, the amount of points each player earns for each race is multiplied by about 1.5. The point system is the same as the one used in Wi-Fi when playing with 2-4 players and the one used in Grand Prix when playing with 8 players or with CPU opponents. However, when playing with 5-7 players, the distribution is as follows:

Point spread
Player count	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th
2 players	10	5	-	-	-	-	-	-
3 players	10	7	4	-	-	-	-	-
4 players	10	7	4	1	-	-	-	-
5 players	10	8	5	2	0	-	-	-
6 players	10	8	6	3	1	0	-	-
7 players	10	8	6	4	2	1	0	-
8 players	10	8	6	4	3	2	1	0

• Blue text indicates winning results.
• Green text indicates moderate results.
• Black text indicates losing results.

Battle

In single player battle mode, the user faces CPU controlled racers, whose difficulty can be set in the battle's setup menu. All racers drive their respective standard Kart only within this mode (note that all the standard karts have the same stats in battle mode and only the weight will differ, depending on the weight of the character chosen). Additionally, other players can join a battle locally. However, Battle Mode is unavailable on the Wi-Fi mode. Like in versus, battles can also be played in teams, and rounds in team battles end when all of one team's players have been eliminated.

Mario Kart DS is the only Mario Kart game to exclude console abbreviations from the names of its retro battle courses; in other words, the game does not name Block Fort and Pipe Plaza as N64 Block Fort and GCN Pipe Plaza respectively. Additionally, the retro battle courses do not retain their music from their original appearances, instead using the same music as the nitro battle courses.

Balloon Battle

Mario in a Balloon Battle at Palm Shore.

Main article: Balloon Battle

Burst your opponents' balloons with items! If all your inflated balloons burst, you lose! Blow into the mic to inflate your balloons!

Balloon Battle returns from previous Mario Kart games, though it has been reworked in some parts. For instance, in previous games, racers begin a match with three balloons. In this game, however, all players begin with a single balloon. They can obtain more by blowing up their balloons using the microphone feature on the DS, or by holding the button. Each player has four balloons in stock (five in total) and can hold up to three of them in battle. On the other hand, the fewer balloons a player has, the better an item is obtained from Item Boxes. Racers may also take possession of a balloon from their opponents if they dashed towards the opponent's kart using a Mushroom. The player is eliminated if they lose all of their balloons.

Shine Runners

Main article: Shine Runners

Collect more Shines than anyone else! Steal opponents' Shines to add to your total. Those with less Shines get booted over time.

Much like the Shine Thief mode in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, nine Shine Sprites are scattered across the course at the start of the game, and players have at first 60 seconds to capture them. If a player gets hit with an item, it causes them to lose one Shine Sprite. The Shine Sprite then moves to a random spot for someone else to grab. By the end of the game, anyone with or tied with the lowest Shine Sprite total when the clock hits zero is eliminated. The clock resets itself to 30 seconds and the battle continues until at least one is left. If all players have the same number of Shine Sprites when time runs out however, no one is eliminated and the clock resets as usual. The fewer Shine Sprites a player has, the better an item is obtained from Item Boxes. The concept would later evolve into Coin Runners in Mario Kart Wii, Mario Kart 7 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, where coins are collected instead of Shine Sprites.

Missions

Yoshi battling Big Bully in Mission Mode.

Missions mode is a new single-player mode for Mario Kart DS in which the player must complete some tasks and earn a ranking similarly to that in Grand Prix mode. It involves seven levels, each containing eight "missions" and a boss battle, most of which are taken from Super Mario 64 DS. The ranks almost always depend on how much time is left or taken. There are varying mission types:

• Driving through gates - driving in between giant half wheels in the ground. Very often the player has to pass these gates in numerical order.
• Collecting coins - Players must pick up all the coins set in the track. Players may lose these coins by some obstacle of such course.
• Destroying item boxes - Players must run over Item Boxes. Usually the racer will obtain Mushrooms after taking a box. In some cases, Item Boxes will move, and the player will have to catch up with it. Other missions the player must take care not to pick up the Fake Item Boxes alongside real ones.
• Using Stars, Bob-ombs, or shells to destroy enemies.
• Driving backwards - players must use the button to move, and directions on the are reversed. It is sometimes combined with other mission types.
• Performing power boosts within a certain lap - as said. More power boosts are often required to finish faster, meaning a higher ranking.
• Racing a CPU for one lap - item boxes contain Mushrooms, Stars and Red Shells that the CPU cannot use - the key to win. CPUs will always perform a Rocket Start. This mission type also includes a race against a Red Car and a Chain Chomp.
• Boss Battle - Unlocked after completion of the first eight missions in a level. The racer is usually required to use items in boss battles. Every boss is from Super Mario 64 DS, and each of them have their own battlefield stage and require a different strategy to defeat.

There are some one-time isolated missions that are self-explanatory. Each mission takes place on a course, often blocked off in some areas (sometimes even a battle course) and players are given a character in their own standard kart (CPU players are also in standard karts). None of the unlockable characters are playable, and Bowser and Donkey Kong do not fight a boss. Sometimes Mushrooms are laid across the track to help the player to complete the mission. When at least a ★ ranking is achieved on all missions and bosses in the first six levels, Level 7 is unlocked. When the boss battles of Level 6 and 7 are completed, the first version of the staff credits is shown.

Missions table

The following table includes the mission number, in-game mission description, time limit for the mission (0:00 signifies it is a race, and the mission finishes at 2:00 if the race is not completed), course, character the player plays as, and item distribution used. For a list of the item sets used, see Mario Kart DS item probability distributions § Special cases. CPU opponents always use set 1.

Level 1
Mission	Description	Time limit	Track	Character	Item set	Notes
1-1	Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order!	0:35	Figure-8 Circuit	Mario	N/A	There are Mushrooms to help Mario along the way.
1-2	Collect all 15 coins!	0:30	GBA Peach Circuit	Peach	N/A
1-3	Destroy all 10 item boxes!	0:45	Yoshi Falls	Yoshi	2	Each Item Box contains a Mushroom.
1-4	Get the Star and use it to hit 5 Cheep Cheeps!	0:40	Cheep Cheep Beach	Wario	4
1-5	Drive through all 6 numbered gates in order!	0:30	Nintendo DS	Toad	N/A
1-6	Drive out of the mansion...backward!	0:45	Luigi's Mansion	Luigi	N/A	The mission ends when Luigi exits the other side of the mansion.
1-7	Collect all 20 coins!	0:35	N64 Moo Moo Farm	DK	3
1-8	Perform 4 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap!	0:45	SNES Mario Circuit 1	Mario	N/A
Boss	Use Mushrooms to crash into the Big Bully and knock him off the stage!	3:00	Water arena*	Yoshi	3
Level 2
2-1	Crash into all 10 wooden crates and destroy every one!	0:55	Delfino Square	Wario	N/A
2-2	Collect all 10 coins!	0:30	Figure-8 Circuit	Yoshi	N/A	One coin is behind where the player starts, so they must reverse first.
2-3	Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order!	0:45	SNES Donut Plains 1	DK	N/A
2-4	Destroy all 5 item boxes!	0:35	Luigi's Mansion	Luigi	2	Each Item Box contains a Mushroom.
2-5	Collect all 20 coins!	0:30	Cheep Cheep Beach	Peach	N/A
2-6	Use Bob-ombs to destroy all 5 Pokeys!	0:55	Desert Hills	Wario	9
2-7	Drive through all 10 numbered gates in order!	0:55	GCN Luigi Circuit	Toad	2
2-8	Perform 6 power-slide turbo boosts in 3 laps!	0:55	GCN Baby Park	Peach	4
Boss	Hit the Eyerok's eyeball 3 times with shells!	5:00	Sand arena*	Mario	11
Level 3
3-1	Destroy all 5 item boxes!	0:50	Waluigi Pinball	Wario	4	Takes place in the pinball table area, and all Item Boxes have a Star.
3-2	Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order...backward!	0:50	Delfino Square	Bowser	N/A
3-3	Collect all 15 coins while avoiding the Chain Chomp!	0:25	GCN Luigi Circuit	Luigi	N/A
3-4	Reach the finish before Yoshi!	0:00	Yoshi Falls	Peach	8	Barriers block off the first two bridges and the third waterfall, and each Item Box has either a Star, Mushroom, or Triple Mushrooms.
3-5	Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order!	0:45	GCN Pipe Plaza	Yoshi	N/A
3-6	Hit Monty Moles with shells 5 times!	1:05	N64 Moo Moo Farm	Luigi	11
3-7	Perform 10 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap!	1:10	Shroom Ridge	DK	N/A
3-8	Collect all 20 coins!	1:05	Twilight House	Mario	N/A
Boss	Reach the finish before Goomboss!	0:00	GCN Baby Park	Toad	N/A
Level 4
4-1	Reach the finish before Donkey Kong!	0:00	DK Pass**	Wario	8	A single-lap race done in reverse. Each Item Box contains a Star, Mushroom, or Triple Mushrooms; there are also extra snowmen.
4-2	Blast 20 crabs!1	2:00	Palm Shore	Yoshi	10
4-3	Reach the finish before the red car!	0:00	Shroom Ridge	Mario	3	This car is much faster than normal and drives erratically. Along the way, each Item Box contains Triple Mushrooms.
4-4	Drive through all 7 numbered gates in order!	0:45	Desert Hills	Wario	3	Each Item Box contains Triple Mushrooms.
4-5	Collect all 15 coins. If you get squished by a Thwomp, you fail!	0:30	GBA Bowser Castle 2	Bowser	N/A
4-6	Break all 10 item boxes while avoiding the Fake Items!	1:10	N64 Choco Mountain	DK	2
4-7	Drive through all 10 gates!2	0:45	Waluigi Pinball	Toad	N/A	Takes place in the pinball table area. The numbered gates can be driven through in any order, unlike other missions.
4-8	Perform 9 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap!	1:00	GBA Luigi Circuit	Luigi	N/A
Boss	Collect 50 coins while avoiding King Boo!	5:00	Lava arena*	Peach	N/A
Level 5
5-1	Reach the finish before the stray Chain Chomp!	0:00	Peach Gardens	Peach	3	The course features only one lap. After starting, the player can obtain a set of Triple Mushrooms from the only set of Item Boxes. Notably, this mission uses a rearrangement of the Chain Chomp themeMedia:MKDS-Music-ChainChomp.oga from Mario Kart: Double Dash!! as its background music exclusive to this mission, having a changed melody and extended bass line and bridge.
5-2	Drive backward and collect 15 coins! If you hit a snowman, you fail!	0:30	N64 Frappe Snowland	DK	N/A
5-3	Destroy all 5 item boxes!	0:35	SNES Koopa Beach 2	Toad	2
5-4	Drive through all 10 numbered gates in order!	1:05	GBA Bowser Castle 2	Bowser	N/A
5-5	Complete 1 lap in the opposite direction within the time limit!	0:55	GCN Mushroom Bridge	Mario	2
5-6	Collect all 18 coins!	0:45	Tart Top	Yoshi	N/A
5-7	Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order!	0:45	DK Pass**	Toad	N/A	Toad has to drive through the course in reverse. Extra oncoming snowballs have been added.
5-8	Reach the finish before Mario!	0:00	Mario Circuit	Luigi	8	There are extra Goombas and Piranha Plants. Each Item Box contains a Star, Mushroom, or Triple Mushrooms.
Boss	Hit the Big Bob-omb with 3 Bob-ombs!	5:00	Sand arena*	Wario	9
Level 6
6-1	Drive backward across the spinning bridge! If you fall, you're out!	0:30	Bowser Castle	Bowser	N/A
6-2	Get Stars and run over 15 Rocky Wrenches!	0:55	Airship Fortress	Wario	4
6-3	Collect all 30 coins!	0:45	SNES Choco Island 2	Yoshi	N/A
6-4	Destroy all 10 item boxes!	2:00	N64 Block Fort	Mario	2
6-5	Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order!	0:50	GBA Sky Garden	Peach	3
6-6	Perform 14 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap!	1:00	GCN Yoshi Circuit	Yoshi	N/A
6-7	Collect all 40 coins!	1:30	Tick-Tock Clock	Toad	N/A	The coins form the shape of a Star.
6-8	Reach the finish before Peach!	0:00	Peach Gardens**	Bowser	8	This mission features only one lap. Barriers block off some routes in the hedge maze, force the player to cut through the patch of flowers just before the topiary, and force the player to take the long way around the topiary itself. Each Item Box contains a Star, Mushroom, or Triple Mushrooms.
Boss	Use Mushroom boosts to hit Chief Chilly and knock him off the stage 3 times!	5:00	Water arena*	Luigi	3
Level 7
7-1	Perform 6 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap!	1:00	Rainbow Road	Peach	N/A
7-2	Reach the finish before Bowser!	0:00	Bowser Castle	Mario	8
7-3	Complete 2 laps within the time limit!3	1:30	Tick-Tock Clock	DK	3	There are two additional pendulums and all clock parts move faster, and each Item Box contains Triple Mushrooms.
7-4	Use shells to defeat all 30 Goombas within the time limit!	2:00	Mario Circuit	Toad	5
7-5	Collect all 20 coins!	0:55	Wario Stadium	Wario	N/A	There are two additional fire chains for the player to avoid.
7-6	Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order!	0:11	Nintendo DS	Mario	N/A
7-7	Drive backward and collect all 12 coins! If you hit a burner, you fail!	0:50	Airship Fortress	Bowser	N/A	Bowser has to navigate a maze-like arrangement of wooden crates.
7-8	Break all 10 item boxes while avoiding the Fake Items!	1:05	N64 Banshee Boardwalk	Luigi	2
Boss	Reach the finish before Wiggler!	0:00	GCN Mushroom Bridge	Mario	2 & 4

*Conjectural title based on surroundings.

**Denotes that the player drives through the course in the opposite direction.

₁Using Green Shells (solo or triple) and Bob-ombs

₂The gates do not necessarily have to be driven through in order.

₃Players can use any means - normal or powersliding - to finish.

Options

Result

The emblem maker can be used to make a variety of designs, for example this picture of Mario.

In the options menu, the player can select "Settings", "Edit", or "Erase Data". Under "Settings", the sound output can be changed between stereo, headphones, and surround and the "Locate Friend" feature can be togged on or off. "Locate Friend" notifies the player about friends who are seeking opponents while connected to the internet. Under "Edit", the player can change their nickname and make their own emblem for racing throughout the game. They also have an option to make the emblem show up on the kart they are driving. Additionally, this emblem shows up next to a player's name while driving in a multiplayer or Nintendo WFC race. "Erase Data" clears all save data.

Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection mode

Mario Kart DS was the first Nintendo game to support online play (which has since been discontinued) though it's worth noting that it's the second Mario Kart game to support online connectivity, with the Japanese version of Mario Kart: Super Circuit being the first (the use of online connectivity for this game was made primarily to exchange ghost data with other players).

Being one of the first Nintendo DS games to feature wireless connection, the game mode required some technical changes in order to avoid connection malfunctions and long time loads during online play. The following changes and restrictions were applied to prevent excessive lag:

• Only up to four players
• Only the 100cc engine class was available
• 12 of 32 courses were omitted
• No multi-items
• No spilled Items onto course to be used; items were just lost
• Items could not be dragged behind the kart
• Item roulette could not be stopped earlier
• Course obstacles could not be destroyed (e.g. boxes in Delfino Square or snowballs in DK Pass)

Point Spread Comparisons
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th
Super Mario Kart Mario Kart 64 Mario Kart: Super Circuit	9	6	3	1	0	0	0	0
Mario Kart: Double Dash!! Mario Kart DS Grand Prix	10	8	6	4	3	2	1	0
Mario Kart DS Teams	15	12	9	6	4	2	1	0
Mario Kart DS WFC 4 Players	10	7	4	1	—	—	—	—
Mario Kart DS WFC 3 Players	10	7	4	—	—	—	—	—
Mario Kart DS WFC 2 Players	10	5	—	—	—	—	—	—
Grove-green bg signifies victory results (great clapping, character(s) cheering), best after-race music Lime-green bg signifies moderate results (mild clapping, moderate character reaction), same music in Wi-Fi as winner but different in Grand Prix Normal bg signifies losing results, losing music (kart engine stops if not in Grand Prix mode if the player placed last). In Super Mario Kart, Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Super Circuit, the race will be restarted (0 pts) if the racer comes in 5th-8th. If this happens more than three times (except in Mario Kart 64), the Grand Prix must be started over. — means not available

Connection

Players could connect using a wireless connection or a Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector (preferably high-speed.) Racers would choose to search for other players in "Friends" (more info below), "Rivals" (players with a similar record), "Regional" or "Continental" in Non-American versions of the game (players in same country or continent), and "Worldwide", the latter possible to cause long lags. Other racers searching in the same category were randomly grouped. The game tried to find four players, but eventually settled for three or two if necessary. Players chose their characters, karts, and the course they wanted for the first of four races.

In addition to the 20 courses listed in order of when it is encountered, there was also a random button. After everyone's selection was placed, a course was chosen based on the responses. If all players each picked a different course, the system randomly picked one. If four players chose two courses, two each, the game randomly selected from those two. On the other hand, the most voted course by a group of users was selected to race. It proceeded like so for four races, then the points were tallied up, and after the match, a player's wins and losses were totaled.

Each player received one "win" for finishing ahead of a player and one "loss" for finishing behind of a player. If a player tied with another player, it did not count as a "win" or "loss". Players could continue after the match to play the same racers again or quit to restart the process to find other players.

Issues

Problem: Trouble with friend codes

A) Friend Code System. Each copy of the game comes with a 12-digit code known as a "friend code". Players could enter codes into each other's "friend roster" to create a friend list, where Wi-Fi records between the players were stored. When a friend was online at the same time, a symbol would appear above the Wi-Fi strength symbol, whether trying to find racers or during racing. Yet, both (or more) players must have had each (or all) of their friend codes registered and be looking in the friends section at the same time to hook up. If the player were to find a racer to compete against elsewhere online, there was no communication for a friend code swap; the only way to race again is to do it right away by selecting continue after a match.

Problem: Disconnecting racers change the outcome of the match; it is later reflected in the match records.

B) Disconnecting. Take this scenario into consideration:

Bob started in a four-player match, but two people have disconnected since, and he is now in a two-player match against a three-star player, and has come second and third in the first two races. It is 20-11. Josh wins the next match, bringing the totals to 25-21. But, in the fourth race, the three-star player is a full half-lap ahead with one lap to go. Josh realizes that he might not win this race; however, Josh has researched about Wi-Fi connections and has learned a trick. He leaves his DS untouched, bringing his kart to a stop, then finds his wireless router, and disconnects it. According to the record-book, Bob has won the match from which he has disconnected.

Causes:

• The two players who disconnected earlier are experiencing certain effects. When a player is disconnected from Wi-Fi via turning off his or her DS, the player is charged with the same number of losses as there are other players. Players can disconnect at any time, but if they cancel before the first course is chosen, there is no effect on the win-loss record. Other players finishing the whole match gain one win per disconnected player.
• Refer to the point spread chart for WFC. Mid-match, due to disconnected players, the point spread can change. For example, when it goes down from four to three players, the point conversion is not affected for the top three. Yet, from three to two, it is. In the first two races, Josh lost three and six points to the three-star player, under the 10-7-4(-1) point spread. But, if he had won the last two races, under the 10-5 point spread, he would have recovered ten points - and would have won, 31-30, even though he came in third once and only won two out of four races.
• Players occasionally disconnect when losing. A glitch in the game affects the final results, and this is exactly what Josh does in the scenario. Instead of turning off the DS, he disconnects his actual connection. The three-star player would have gained three wins, but when everyone disconnects, it takes no effect on the winning player's records.
  • To restate and make clear: if Josh would have played it out and lost the fourth race, the result would have been 35-26, in favor of the three-star player.

Characters

The main game has 12 playable characters, 4 of which are unlockable. The eight starting characters, Mario, Luigi, Peach, Yoshi, Toad, Donkey Kong, Wario, and Bowser, are the same eight characters available in Mario Kart 64 and Mario Kart: Super Circuit (and listed in the same order as those games only with Yoshi and Toad swapping positions). The other four drivers can be unlocked by winning a gold trophy of certain cups in Grand Prix mode. Two of the unlockable characters, Daisy and Waluigi, return from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, and the other two, Dry Bones and R.O.B., make their first Mario Kart playable appearances. A 13th racer, Shy Guy, debuts as a playable character sharing Yoshi's statistics, but is only available to players using DS Download Play. Discounting the multiplayer-exclusive Shy Guy, this is the first game since Super Mario Kart where the player classes are divided evenly, with four characters in each.

Default drivers

Driver	Weight	Class	Signature kart	Standard kart	Unlockable kart	Borrowed karts	Description
Mario	32