Bumping this back up due to some ideas that were brought up in GameXplains latest analysis video, in which they finally caught the most noteworthy detail from the new trailer.
Here's a link a video if ya haven't seen it yourself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riSJJQX-BQA
So if it's true that you can only hold one item at a time, and that all items come in singular forms, then I'd be perfectly fine with items no longer being dragged behind ya! With those changes, the Red Shell is much less OP, as it's impossible to fire 2 of em one right after another to guarantee a hit even if they've got an item, and of course no triple Red Shells! Infact it further balances items in general as you'll have to put more thought into em since you only get one use. Of course, this isn't confirmed 100% yet. Sure no triplets of any item was shown in the latest trailer, but we also have yet to see the Bullet Bill, the Starman, and of course the Blue Shell, all of which are guaranteed to be in this game. I bet the next trailer will confirm things one way or the other!







