The Best Mario Kart Game Released 22 Years Ago

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For years, Mario Kart has been a staple of Nintendo consoles, starting with the original game for the Super Nintendo, which quickly became a fan favorite. The series has evolved with each new console, showcasing its updated features. The latest installment, Mario Kart World, was a major selling point for the Nintendo Switch 2.

Despite being released 22 years ago, Mario Kart: Double Dash is still considered the highlight of the Mario Kart series and one of the greatest racing games ever made. It successfully built upon the core gameplay without making things overly complicated, which helped it become a massive hit and a long-time favorite among fans. Let’s take a look at why this game continues to stand out, even after two decades.

Rules Of The Road

Released on the GameCube in November 2003, Mario Kart: Double Dash is still considered one of the best games in the Mario Kart series. It refined the precise controls and racing that fans loved in earlier games, and added new features like kart stats and character-specific items. The game’s biggest innovation was letting players select two drivers per race and switch between them instantly with a single button press.

Double Dash let players build their dream racing team and even team up in co-op, where one person drove and the other used items. This was a smart idea, and the GameCube really brought it to life. The game used the console’s power to create bright, colorful tracks that still look great after twenty years. Overall, Double Dash felt like a polished version of Mario Kart, building on what the series did well while also adding something new and fun.

Mario Kart: Double Dash was simple to learn but offered surprising depth, a hallmark of great Nintendo games. Its well-designed controls and easy-to-understand rules made it incredibly replayable, which was a major strength. The game encouraged experimentation by letting players create unique teams and choose different karts, each affecting how the race played out. Different karts performed better in various situations, giving players plenty of reasons to try new strategies and find what worked best.

Why Double Dash Is The Best Mario Kart

The Mario Kart series walks a fine line with each new game. It’s tricky to add fresh ideas while still keeping the core gameplay tight and fun. Even Mario Kart World, despite being a bold attempt to innovate, faced some criticism with its more open-world approach. Nintendo is always good at trying new things, but these changes can sometimes be difficult for players to get used to, and create challenges for the developers.

Unlike other Mario Kart games, Double Dash offered players a lot more ways to customize each race, letting everyone develop their own unique strategy. This was done without making the game too complicated or slowing down the fun. When it was released in 2003, Double Dash was a huge success, praised by critics and loved by players. It became the second best-selling GameCube game, and its multiplayer mode made it a popular choice for parties and even competitive gaming. The game’s innovative character pairings allowed for strategic depth, and while the two-player karts didn’t stick around in later versions, the emphasis on kart customization has remained a key feature of the series.

Honestly, Double Dash is just the most fun Mario Kart game, and that’s why it’s my favorite. It takes everything that made the older games great and adds some cool new stuff without messing up what worked. The courses are amazing – I still love racing on DK Mountain and Wario Colosseum! And those character-specific special items? Seriously, they need to bring those back! Everything just feels right – the graphics are bright, the racing is super tight, and it’s just a pure adrenaline rush. I’ve spent way more hours playing Double Dash than any other Mario Kart, and I still get hyped every time I get to play it.

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2025-11-21 00:41