Diddy Kong Racing DS

Best For: Ages 8 and Up
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Genre: Racing
Available For: Nintendo DS
# of Players: 1-4
Fun Factor: 3 out of 5

Mario owns the world of Kart Racing -- nothing compares to the MarioKart series though pretenders often try. The latest challenger comes from Mario's gorilla nemesis Donkey Kong -- in a game featuring his son, Diddy Kong. Diddy Kong Racing differs from the usual kart racing games in that you must navigate a world and collect balloons to unlock new tracks and challenges.

Having a world to navigate is both a blessing and a curse. The island is vast and made up of themed hubs: Dinosaur, Icy, Forest, Desert, etc. -- each hub has 5 racetracks, a monster boss challenge, and a grand prix. Winning races and only winning -- no prizes for second place here -- gives you a balloon and each track or challenge requires a certain number of balloons to unlock. The world has a lot of character and is quite beautiful, but it's a bit boring to have to travel through the world when you'd rather just do another race. Usually races are offered one at a time.

The plot, such as it is, has Diddy, with the help of an elephantine genie, racing in order to defeat a giant space pig. Silly stuff, but kids will eat it up! Aside from the race difficulty (this game is harder than most) the only problem with Diddy Kong Racing is how it uses the unique Nintendo DS features. Diddy has three vehicles available: a hovercraft, a race kart, and an airplane. To boost off the starting line, you use the stylus to spin the kart's wheels, turn the plane's propeller, or blow into the microphone for the hovercraft. While cool in theory, in practice it's frustrating. Using the stylus or your finger to boost the kart or plane means having to drop the stylus and quickly switch to the controls -- while blowing into the microphone turns out to be a great way to get spit all over your screen.

Parents take note: There's nothing offensive in this game at all. While the game has a lot of little kid appeal, the difficulty ramps up very quickly and will leave younger gamers behind. One cool thing is how the wireless multiplayer works. With a single copy of the game, up to four DS owners can race -- making this a bargain for families with multiple systems.

Diddy Kong Racing doesn't hold a candle to the awesome Mario Kart series, but it's a competent game, a nice diversion, and it's fun to be able to race in planes and hovercrafts for a change. So, give it a try, and unleash your inner monkey.

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