History VideoGame / MarioKartDoubleDash

* LightningBruiser: The Barrel Train is the heaviest lightweight (on par with middleweights), has a better acceleration than shown on the screen and a top speed comparable to heavyweights. The Parade Kart is an odd example; despite being a heavy vehicle with a good acceleration and top speed, it can be driven by a driver of any weight.

* NintendoHard: The game marks a ''huge'' boost in difficulty in the series. Not only is the AI more efficient (especially on higher difficulties), but the bigger amount of items (due to the presence of character-exclusive ones) makes races more chaotic, and it's this game when the Blue Shell gains the winged incarnation that makes it one's biggest enemy (its explosion is much stronger now). The Lightning stripes you from whatever item(s) you were carrying (this didn't happen in prior games), and the score system is less generous to those who reach below third place, or even first if you haven't fared so well in prior races. Racing in the All-Cup Tour in Mirror Mode gets a special mention due to all these factors coming into play more than usual due to the extended duration of that cup.

* GlassCannon: The Bullet Blaster (which, fittingly, looks like a Banzai Bill) is the lightest vehicle and the most vulnerable to off-road, but its top speed is comparable to the heaviest karts and it still gets great mini-turbos after drifts. The Green Fire is a more moderate example, having the best top speed of middleweights, but average mini-turbos. It is also the slowest to start in their category and one of their lightest vehicles.

* StoneWall: Piranha Pipes and Boo Pipes have the best off-road for heavyweight vehicles and while the former has a good top speed, the latter's acceleration is comparable to lightweights. However, they suck where their counterpart shines and both mini-turbos are mediocre. Waluigi Racer is a moderate example: it is the second heaviest middleweight car with Turbo Yoshi and its off-road is comparable to the lightest vehicles, but its top speed and acceleration are only average and its mini-turbos are mediocre.

''Mario Kart: Double Dash!!'' is the fourth installment of the ''VideoGame/MarioKart'' series, released in 2003 on the UsefulNotes/NintendoGameCube.

* BottomlessPits: Like the others.

* ArtifactTitle: From this game onward, many karts don't look like such at all, being modeled after train wagons, baby strollers and fancy convertible cars.

* AwesomeButImpractical: On one hand, the Parade Kart has the best stats among the other karts in-game; on the other hand, not only will the AI cheat much more than usual, but said vehicle is also ''incredibly'' wide, making it a poor choice for item evasion.
* BatFamilyCrossover: The first ''Mario'' spinoff to integrate the ''Donkey Kong Country'' cast into the extended Mario cast, as it included Diddy Kong.
* BigBoosHaunt: Used on the battle course "Luigi's Mansion". It consists of a large central hall, a small network of corridors in the basement, and a curved route that takes drivers to the roof. It plays the same background theme as that of Bowser's Castle (in ''8 Deluxe'', it uses a remix of the Luigi's Mansion racetrack theme from ''Mario Kart DS'' instead).

* TheCameo: ''Donkey Kong, Jr.'', of all choices, appears as one of the crowd members of Waluigi Stadium.

** Found in the battle modes. This game is also the first one to have "Bob-omb Battle", which is where karts would attack each other with nothing but Bob-ombs. It was unofficially brought back in ''VideoGame/MarioKart7'' through an internet custom group, and then ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe''.

* CheerfulChild: Toadette, who made her debut in this game. She's like a miniature Daisy. That is, until ''Mario Kart Wii'', which includes her ''and'' a Baby Daisy.
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: Koopa Paratroopa has not appeared in any Mario Kart games since. Hacks of ''Mario Kart Wii'' reveal that he was once considered for inclusion in that game (same with Petey Piranha, who would ultimately have to wait until ''VideoGame/MarioKartTour''), but since they didn't the absence has been upheld to this day.

** The Rank A mansion from ''VideoGame/LuigisMansion'' can be seen in the background of Luigi Circuit.

* CoolCar: Starting from this game, all karts have unique designs, fitting the personality and traits of the characters. There's also a secret vehicle with a beautiful golden design: [[spoiler:the Parade Kart, which is driven by Toadsworth in the awards ceremony; it's available after you complete the All-Cup Tour in Mirror, and ''any'' character can drive it regardless of their weight]].

* CruiseEpisode: The level "Daisy Cruiser" appears in this game as well as ''VideoGame/MarioKart7''. Features include a pool, a tunnel and moving tables. It is also in ''VideoGame/MarioSuperSluggers'', though not as a kart racing level.
* DeathMountain: DK Mountain, in which the drivers hop onto a barrel cannon to be shot towards a large gray mountain and then go back to the start line to complete each lap. It returns in ''VideoGame/MarioKartWii'' as a NostalgiaLevel.

* DogWalksYou: Baby Mario and Baby Luigi's special item in this game is a Chain Chomp that pulls the kart along for a while and sends racers it hits flying; every so often it goes careening forward without any semblance of control.

** Baby Mario and Baby Luigi have Chain Chomp, [[ChariotPulledByCats who dashes forward while pulling their kart ahead by the chain]], slamming anyone unlucky enough to be in its path out of the way. It eventually breaks loose and briefly runs along the track afterwards.

* GimmickLevel: [[AmusementPark Baby Park]] and Wario Colosseum from avert the usual "three laps per course" convention by having a different amount of laps each; Baby Park is seven laps due to it being a small oval, while Wario Colosseum is only two laps long on account of it being so long.

* GoKartingWithBowser: And Bowser Jr., too! Also, in this game, you can actually pair up Mario with Bowser!

* ItsAllAboutMe: The characters don't really acknowledge each other when they win or lose together.

* LampshadeHanging: The instruction manual remarks "Baby Mario and Mario...together in the same game?!?"
* LethalLavaLand: Bowser's Castle has lava as a hazard, though it generally behaves like water.

* MasterOfAll: The Parade Kart has the best-combined stats of all vehicles. Some are better in one stat but lower in the others (Bowser's has the highest top speed, but takes a while to get there). The AI compensates for this by cheating like crazy any time this cart is used.

* NintendoHard: The game marks a ''huge'' boost in difficulty in the series. Not only is the AI more efficient (especially on higher difficulties), but the bigger amount of items (due to the presence of character-exclusive ones) makes races more chaotic, and it's this game when the Blue Shell gains the winged incarnation that makes it one's biggest enemy (its explosion is much stronger now). The Lightning stripes you from whatever item(s) you were carrying (this didn't happen in prior games), and the score system is less generous to those who reach below third place, or even first if you haven't fared so well in prior races. Racing in the All-Cup Tour in Mirror Mode gets a special mention due to all these factors coming into play, due to the extended duration of that cup.

** Most obviously, the two-driver-per-kart mechanic.
** Character-specific special items. Also related to this, certain items that are standard items in other games, such as the Bob-omb, Triple Shells, and Golden Mushroom, are special items here. While Mario's and Luigi's Fireballs remain technically exclusive to this game, as do their Baby versions' Chain Chomp, they got successor versions with the Fire Flower (''VideoGame/MarioKart7'' and onward) and the Bullet Bill (''VideoGame/MarioKartDS'' and onward) respectively.

%%* OminousPipeOrgan: There's one in the music from Bowser's Castle and Luigi's Mansion.

* PaletteSwap: All of the karts for any "normal" character pairs who share a weight class are based on each other, typically with a few color, texture, and/or model changes to make the kart more relevant to the other racer.

* PalmtreePanic: Peach Beach, which takes the drivers through a sandy coast inhabited by Cataquacks. It returns in ''VideoGame/MarioKartWii'' as a NostalgiaLevel.

* {{Prehistoria}}: Dino Dino Jungle, a track filled with big ferns, bigger trees, and even bigger dinosaurs.

* RememberTheNewGuy: Seemingly invoked by Daisy, who constantly says "Hi, I'm Daisy!", as if to beat her name into the heads of anyone who has never heard of her.

** The game treats this as sort of a status effect in game, as touching any fire obstacle, or getting hit by either Mario or Luigi's fireballs will cause the character in the back to catch fire, preventing them from using any items.

* RunningGag: Most of the shortcuts in the game oddly involve warp pipes. For example, Peach Beach and Mushroom Bridge.

* SecretCharacter: This game is the first in the ''Mario Kart'' series with unlockable characters. Toad and Toadette (the latter of whom makes her debut in this game) are unlocked by winning the Special Cup on 100 cc, and King Boo and Petey Piranha are unlocked by winning the Star Cup on Mirror Mode. Also, the gold Parade Kart driven by Toadsworth during the ending cutscene can be unlocked as a drivable kart by winning the All-Cup Tour in 150 cc. Notably, this is the only home console ''Mario Kart'' game where Toad is an unlockable character.

* SequenceBreaking: On Waluigi Stadium, it is possible to launch yourself in the air by driving up the side of the wall at the corner after the long straight with Piranha Plants on the side, leading into a straight that runs underneath the zipper jump at the end the lap. If you manage to launch yourself close enough to the zipper jump, you can fool the game into thinking that you fell down from there and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3ys-Wh4mEg&t=21s Lakitu will you place you down in front of the zipper jump]], skipping the next few corners in between and saving several seconds over driving round normally.

This game expanded the Battle Mode as well, introducing Shine Thief and Bob-omb Blast in addition to the standard Balloon Battle mode; these modes would be brought back in ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe'', along with the ability to hold two items at once. Unique to this game is All-Cup Tour, which is a fifth cup in which every course must be completed in a random order, always beginning with Luigi Circuit and ending with Rainbow Road.

** Until their return in ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe'', the Shine Thief and Bob-omb Blast battle modes were exclusive to this game. The All-Cup Tour (where characters race on ''all'' the game's tracks in a row) remains exclusive, although the ability to do 32 races in the VS mode of ''VideoGame/MarioKartWii'' and ''VideoGame/MarioKart8'' can simulate the experience to a major extent.

* WealthyYachtOwner: Starting from this game, Princess Daisy owns a luxury cruise ship known as Daisy Cruiser. It has appeared as a race course here as well as in ''VideoGame/MarioKart7'' and ''VideoGame/MarioKartTour'', and can also be seen in the background of other courses from ''Double Dash!!'' onwards.

* MetropolisLevel: Mushroom City is a racetrack taking place in a busy city at night. The track has several different roads for racers to take, though they all lead to the same place. The roads are also crowded with other vehicles that cause racers to spin out if hit.

Changes from the previous installments include, most noticeably, the fact that players must choose two characters per kart, which means that two players can also play as one kart. To accompany this, the roster consists of ten pairs of 20 characters, over twice as many as previous games, with eight pairs available from the start and two pairs being unlockable.

* ExcitedShowTitle: Two exclamation marks, a reference to the ''Double Dash''.

One character drives and the other character guns, being able to use items and steal them from others. The driver can also hold an item in reserve, and the two can switch out at any time. Every pair of characters also shares a special item that is exclusive to them (save for King Boo and Petey Piranha, who can use any special item). This is also the first ''Mario Kart'' game to allow the player to select different karts independent from their characters; each kart has unique stats and is divided into one of three weight classes, based on the weight of the heaviest character selected.

Changes from the previous installments include, most noticeably, the fact that players must choose two characters per kart, which means that two players can also play as one kart. And every two characters share a special item that is exclusive to them (save for King Boo and Petey Piranha, who can use any special item). Also unique to this game is All-Cup Tour, which is a fifth cup in which every course must be completed in a random order, always beginning with Luigi Circuit and ending with Rainbow Road. None of these features have been brought back in any other game, though ''VideoGame/MarioKart8 Deluxe'' would bring back the ability to hold two items at once. The game consists of twenty characters overall, the highest amount for a ''Mario Kart'' before ''Wii'' had twenty four, which means ten pairs. Eight karts on the track at all times.

* [[SugarBowl Cookie Land]]

** [[RushmoreRefacement Yoshi Circuit]]

* DamnYouMuscleMemory: The controls in this game differ slightly from most other games in the series. Items are used with the X and Y buttons instead of the Z/L button, and both the L and R buttons can be used to drift.

* MythologyGag: The Goo-Goo Buggy and Rattle Buggy have a Smiley Flower from ''VideoGame/YoshisIsland'' on the sides.

** When playing in co-op, if both players in a kart press the A button as the pre-race countdown reaches zero, the usual boost that you get becomes a ''Double Dash'' which is much more powerful than the standard boost and has a blue flame instead of red.

* AwesomeButImpractical: On one hand, the Parade Car has the best stats among the karts in-game; on the other hand, not only will the AI cheat much more than usual, but said vehicle is also ''incredibly'' wide, making it a poor choice for item evasion.

* AthleticArenaLevel: In addition to having the usual Mario and Luigi Circuits, as well as Waluigi Stadium which has a more diverse take on a monster truck circuit than Wario Stadium from ''Mario Kart 64'', the game also has Wario Colosseum as part of the Special Cup. It's a long, intricate mechanical circuit whose road combines made of asphalt with chainlinks, and features a huge Globe of Death in its center.

[[AC:Starting Drivers]]

[[AC:Unlockable Drivers]]

* Toadette[=*=]

** In terms of characters, it is the only home console ''Mario Kart'' game where Toad is an unlockable character, though this was most likely done so as not to spoil Toadette's debut. Also, Paratroopa remains exclusive to this game, while Petey Piranha was for nineteen years until his return in ''VideoGame/MarioKartTour''. In addition, until the release of ''VideoGame/MarioKart8'', this was the only game where Daisy and Baby Luigi were available from the beginning (the same also applies to Bowser Jr. in the case of ''Deluxe'').