Mario Kart DS/Driving techniques

Rocket Start
This is when you get a speed boost right off the start line. To perform a Rocket Start, press and hold right after you hear the sound of the second beep in the countdown - ignore the numbers and just press the button after the sound of the "2". If done correctly, your kart will receive a powerful boost right from the starting line. The amount of boost varies slightly depending on how precisely timed the button is pressed and held. Press the button too soon and you will peel out, creating a big cloud of smoke, as well as not being able to move anywhere for a few seconds.

Alternative methods

 * Hold down as soon as the count begins, then release it and press it again quickly right before 'Start' appears.


 * Hold during each number of countdown. hold while '3' is on screen, release when it disappears, etc...hold after 1 disappears.

Drifting
To drift, simply press and hold while going round a corner. If done correctly, your kart will swing around in a wide arc. You can adjust the path of your drift by using or. Drifting (sometimes called Powersliding) allows you to go round corners slightly faster and stay tighter to the inside of the bend.

Mini-Turbos
This technique gives you a little power boost while drifting round corners. To perform, press and hold down the  in the direction you want your kart to drift. When your Kart starts to drift, immediately press and  repeatedly. If you are doing it correctly you'll notice some blue sparks coming from your tires, and then if you keep doing it you'll see orange sparks. The orange sparks mean that when you let go of you will get a mini-turbo.

The strength of mini-turbos varies a lot depending on what type of kart you are using. Generally, the big-wheeled karts, such as Mario's B Dasher and Yoshi's Cucumber do very weak mini-turbos, whereas the "novelty karts", such as Toad's Mushmellow and Dry Bones' Dry Bomber do very powerful boosts that are almost as good as using a mushroom. The standard karts perform somehwere in between.

Snaking
Snaking is a controversial technique which exploits the mini-turbo feature to gain a huge advantage over opponents. It is done by performing mini-turbos very quickly on straights as well as when going round corners. With a lot of practice it is possible to perform a constant chain of mini-turbos round an entire track. The name "snaking" comes from the way the driver must weave from side to side to achieve the mini-turbos.

The key to successful snaking is to perform the mini-turbo very quickly so that you don't drive of the track or into a wall, as shown in these two pictures. To do this, try a few drifts and turbos first to get your kart "warmed up". That makes it a lot easier to nail a turbo a lot quicker and successfully get into a chain.

Snaking is regarded by some as cheating because it gives the racer a huge advantage over anyone who does not snake. However, as the mini-turbo is an intentional feature of the game and exploiting it does not require any cheat codes or modifications it is difficult to argue that it is any more than a glitch. Therefore, snaking can be regarded as "cheap" and unsporting but is not technically cheating.

One-sided boosts (SSMT)
This is mini-turbo boosting (or SSMT, Straight Stretch Mini-Turbo, as fans of the game like to call it) from just one side repeatedly. It can be used on smaller straight sections where normal will only get cause you to run off the track.

To do this, perform a mini-turbo, making sure you can squeeze enough room to not slide onto the grass. After the boost, perform a hop or two to realign yourself, then boost from that side again.

Best karts and characters
The best karts to use for snaking are the very light karts with low drift and high acceleration, combined with a small, light character. The most commonly used combinations are:


 * Yoshi in Egg 1
 * Dry Bones in the Dry Bomber
 * Luigi in the Poltergust 4000

Dodging Spiny Shells
To dodge Spiny Shells, first go into a powerslide. Turn your sparks red by pressing and  repeatedly. When the Spiny Shell comes, it will hover over you for a split second. Then it will tip downwards. Right when it does this release your power slide and press. If your timing was correct, you should have successfully dodged Spiny Shell. This is possible in 100cc, but only on tracks such as Frappe Snowland, where the terrain is more slippery.

Prolonged Rocket Boost (PRB)
While considered cheap by some, it is a very difficult glitch to pull off. You must get to top speed (by either getting a 'perfect' rocket boost, or passing through a zipper. Mushrooms will NOT work. Once you have this top speed, use the snaking technique to continually Mini-Turbo, so that you don't lose speed. If done correctly, you can go over any terrain without slowing down, so long as you keep your mini-turbos going.

Drafting
Drafting (also known as slipstreaming) is a technique used in racing used to reduce drag and increase speed. You position yourself closely behind another kart, and after a few seconds, you'll get a temporary speed boost. Note that this only works with karts of similar speed, as if your kart is slower, you'll fall behind and not be able to stay behind your opponent long enough, and if your kart is faster, you'll pass by your opponent and again not be able to stay behind long enough.