Good points, Danny355. I hated the way the enemy AI always kept up with me in Mario Kart 64. No matter how good I was, the computer controlled oponents would "cheat" and get a speed boost so that they could keep the race close. Plus, the weapons that the bad guys would get in 3rd to 8th place were way too powerful.
Double Dash suffered from this too (to a lesser extent). It was kind of sad that a weaker racer is almost always going to win 1st place in a multi player race. I would spend hours learning the track and perfecting my powerslides. Then, someone who is moderately good will compete with me, lose almost every single lap, and get a super weapon on the last stretch of the last lap to pull out a win.
I know the "anything can happen" feel of the game is part of what makes Mario Kart fun. A moderate gamer can still compete with an expert. But when you put in the work to learn the tracks, tricks, and powerups....when your time trial records are 30+ seconds higher than your competition, there is NO WAY you (by you, I mean ME) should consistently place 3rd or 4th in multi-player games.
