I remember in older iterations you could get a new item while you were trailing an item behind you...
No more apparently...
And I feel like I've gotten coins more frequently than every other item combined...
And does it seem like there are fewer opportunities to get items to anyone else???
Item boxes seem to be few and far between...
At first I thought it would help balance things, but I haven't played 150cc; perhaps it'll be just as chance-based as MKWii...

Online communication errors, rainbow road, and battle mode. Those are my main dissapointments.

Too many babies and metals.

Battle Mode is too big.

No choice of control scheme (I would've rather played as ZR being accelerate, ZL being brake, and X being items, like Sonic Racing). I hate the A to accelerate, ZR to Drift, Jump and do Tricks and ZL to drift.

Koopalings waste just as many spots =P

MKWii had a much better roster with fewer spots

I haven't played Battle Mode (which I don't care about anyway), nor have I played online yet. So far I've beaten all of the tracks on 50 and 100cc and unlocked all of the characters.

Normally I'd say that only being able to carry one item (even if you drag a shell or banana behind you) is disappointing but I kinda like it. Really, the only things that I can complain about are some "meh" choices for retro tracks (Dry Dry Desert, Sherbet Land, Piranha Plant Slide) and that Diddy Kong isn't a playable character. Champagne problems...

Error code 118-0516. I can't play online 9 times out of 10. I've tried port forwarding to no avail. Someone please help!

I would actually consider buying it if it had a proper battle mode. That was always my favorite as a kid, and you know what track was the only one that sucked? The donut one. I know a lot of people don't care about it, but for me it's a selling point.

Try this

http://www.crashwiki.com/quick-guide-fix-mario-kart-8-connection-errors/

Thanks but my router gateway has no DMZ options. I tried the 'equivalent' in the user manual but it's not working very well.