Mario Kart DS Mission Guide - Guide for Mario Kart DS
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***************************************************************************** Mario Kart DS Mission Guide For the Nintendo DS Version 1.15 (Last Updated 2/4/2008) By sean bird This file is Copyright (c)2008 sean bird. All rights reserved. ***************************************************************************** Table of Contents 1. What's New 2. Missions 3. Secrets/Tips and Tricks 4. Credits 5. Copyright Notice 6. Contact Information ***************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -= 1. What's New -= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Version 1.15 (12/10/07): Reworked part of the Mission 6-4 strategy due to a mistake I overlooked initially. Version 1.1 (11/30/07): I added a whole new strategy for beating the King Boo mission, thanks to rush60002. I also made a couple other adjustments, as stated in the Credits section of the guide, thanks! Version 1.05 (11/28/07): Updated the strategy for the Wiggler mission (level 7 boss), thanks to ShockKirby80! Version 1.0 (11/27/07): The first version of this file. I separated this from the main FAQ to make it easier for those who just want mission information, rather than flipping through everything else. ***************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -= 2. Missions -= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= NOTE: You will receive a ranking upon completion of each mission, ranging from *** to E. Your ranking depends on how well/efficient you perform in that particular mission (how fast you went, how often you hit walls or obstacles/enemies). As such, if you follow the strategies I gave for each mission, you should be able to pull off a *** rank in each mission. It also depends on your skill when you're playing; no amount of explanation will help you get a *** if you do not have the ability to play well. ======= Level 1 ======= Mission 1-1 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order! Strategy: This first mission is very easy, since it's on the Figure-8 Circuit. There are 5 black gates you must drive through, a fair distance between each, and a line of mushroom boosts you can take just before each gate. It's not hard to miss any of them, so this shouldn't prove difficult at all or require any further detail. Mission 1-2 ----------- Objective: Collect all 15 coins! Strategy: This one's another simple one, although it could prove slightly tough to get all the coins in a single run through at top speed. The coins appear in groups of two (and one at the end), and are generally in straight lines. The only tricky part is the hairpin turn after the 3rd/4th coins; just take it slow (it's not a good idea to power slide around the turn) and the rest is easy. Mission 1-3 ----------- Objective: Destroy all 10 item boxes! Strategy: On this mission there are 10 item boxes, none of which are hard to reach easily, each one containing a Mushroom. The first couple item boxes are on the upper part of the track (make sure to use each Mushroom as soon as you get it). The third box is towards the middle line of both tracks, then the fourth one is up top again, so be quick to go through that one. The rest of the item boxes are on the upper portion of the track, so just follow the path across all the boost pads on the ground and use your Mushrooms when you get them to succeed. Mission 1-4 ----------- Objective: Get the Star and use it to hit 5 Cheep Cheeps! Strategy: While this mission is easy to clear, it may be tricky to get a high rank because of how fast you move with Star power. All the item boxes yield Stars, so take one and use the power to knock into as many Cheep Cheeps (the fish) as you can before it wears off. If you need another Star, just hit another item box. If you're good, you can pull it off with a single Star; not speeding too much is key here. Mission 1-5 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 6 numbered gates in order! Strategy: Atop a replica of the Nintendo DS, you have to pass through 6 gates. The first one is directly in front of you towards the center, and the remaining gates are situated along the perimeter. Be careful when turning since you can fall off the course! Power sliding helps a lot here in shaving off time and making it through the gates with no real slowdown in the approach. Mission 1-6 ----------- Objective: Drive out of the mansion... backward! Strategy: This is a fairly simple and uninvolved mission, since all you need to do is drive in reverse. There are no tight turns or obstacles to worry about; just hold B and keep an eye on what's approaching, using your map for guidance, and you'll be fine. Mission 1-7 ----------- Objective: Collect all 20 coins! Strategy: Here on this dirt track, you have to collect 20 coins; luckily they are all in a straight line and in groups. You can get a Triple Mushroom from the item box at the start for 3 boosts when you want them. Use one of them during the first straightaway, another during the first wide turn, and the last one in the empty area between coins. This is easier than Mission 1-2 since there are no tight turns so you should have no trouble grabbing the coins here. Mission 1-8 ----------- Objective: Perform 4 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap! Strategy: As Mario driving on Mario Circuit, you have to do 4 power slides in a single lap around the course. If you don't know already, you can power slide by hopping with R while holding Left/Right and accelerating. When you start to slide, alternate between Left and Right to see blue, then red sparks. When they are red, release for a boost. Do this 4 times, preferably around each of the turns, to fulfill this mission's criteria. Level 1 Boss ------------ Objective: Use Mushrooms to crash into the Big Bully and knock him off the stage! Strategy: For the first boss round, you'll have a face-off against Big Bully while being surrounded by 3 balloons. The boss can run into you, knocking you back a bit. The objective is to knock him off the ledge, so begin by going around Big Bully and collecting the Triple Mushroom from the item box. Then, turn around and drive straight at him, and use a Mushroom before impact to push the boss back. Do this again once or twice if needed, and the boss will fall into the water defeated. ======= Level 2 ======= Mission 2-1 ----------- Objective: Crash into all 10 wooden crates and destroy every one! Strategy: The first mission on the second level isn't too hard, unless you're going for a *** ranking. The best approach I've found thus far is the following one. Go through the first 3 crates normally, then go straight into the fourth one on the dock. Go down the hill onto the dock and first hit the crate at the far end, then quickly turn around (without falling into the water) and clip the other crate as you turn right to the uphill climb. Then, power slide around the fence and hit the next 3 crates on a long straight run. Turn right and power slide through the opening of the fence to the right, crossing the grass and hitting the final crate. Mission 2-2 ----------- Objective: Collect all 10 coins! Strategy: Here, you go back to a more simple track with only 10 easy coins to collect. The tricky part if you look at your map, is that the first coin is behind you. So, as soon as you start, hit reverse to collect the coin, then start accelerating forward. Pick up the first two sets of coins, then power slide and stay towards the middle of the track to collect the final 3 coins for the win. Mission 2-3 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order! Strategy: In the Donut Plains, there are 5 gates you need to drive through over the course of a lap. The first gate is easy to reach, just before the first bridge. After the curve grab the Mushroom boost and cut across the grass for the second gate. Up ahead is the third gate; it may help to slide into it so you don't end up in the grass there. Stay to the right for this next stretch, then collect the Mushroom and go through gate 4, quickly sliding to the left around a tighter curve. There will be 2 more Mushrooms to grab, leading up to the last gate. After the first Mushroom, move to the left a little so you can approach the second one and the gate a bit more straight on. Once you go through all 5 gates, the mission is done. Mission 2-4 ----------- Objective: Destroy all 5 item boxes! Strategy: Played in Luigi's Mansion, you have to chase down the 5 item boxes that are moving in a line through the course. Each item box has a Mushroom inside for you to boost with. If you get the turbo boost at the start (start holding A just before the 2 fades out), you'll have no problem getting through the item boxes quickly. Just make sure to also use the Mushroom boosts as soon as you get them, since they'll help you keep up with the train. If you do this correctly, this should be an easy high ranking for you. Mission 2-5 ----------- Objective: Collect all 20 coins! Strategy: Collecting the 20 coins you need to clear this mission shouldn't be hard at all. The coins are all in straight paths along the beach, with no tight turns to worry about. There is a boost jump you need to go over to collect some coins, so make sure you go into that one aligned straight and towards the middle. Other than that, this mission should be a piece of cake. Mission 2-6 ----------- Objective: Use Bob-ombs to destroy all 5 Pokeys! Strategy: This is probably the first mission where you can't just rush through it and succeed. There are 5 Pokeys in a rather small playing field, and all the item boxes contain Bob-ombs. The best approach here is to grab a bomb, aim straight at a Pokey, and toss the Bob-omb to destroy the cactus, then grab another bomb immediately and repeat. It takes some patience to do this right and still get a good ranking, so don't worry if it's not done in 10 seconds, heh. Mission 2-7 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 10 numbered gates in order! Strategy: On Luigi Circuit, you have to get through 10 gates in order to complete the mission, but this time because of the course design, you don't get one gate at a time when you're driving. The first gate is right in front of you, then after the boost/drop stay to the left since there will be 2 gates coming up (2 on left, 7 on right). Collect a Mushroom boost for use after the gate, then stay to the right for the third gate (3 on right, 6 on left). Go around the end hairpin using the boost pads you drive across. On the second pass through the straightaway, alternate between right and left to pass through the next couple gates. When you reach the other end after the ninth gate, use the boosts to reach the top plateau and pass through the final gate (this one is a commonly missed one, so try not to miss it). Mission 2-8 ----------- Objective: Perform 6 power-slide turbo boosts in 3 laps! Strategy: On the Baby Park track, you have to complete an entire race, all while performing a total of 6 power slides throughout the 3 laps. This is actually really easy to do; just do a power slide around each of the two turns you encounter in each lap. The item boxes contain Stars for use during the straightaways, and seem to help in power sliding around those hairpin turns without cutting it too short or wide. Even if you don't use or get a Star every chance you get, this is still an easy objective to complete. Level 2 Boss ------------ Objective: Hit the Eyerok's eyeball 3 times with shells! Strategy: The boss here is comprised of two solid hands with blue eyes in the palms. They move around the arena, pounding the ground with their fists (usually one hand is in a fist while the other is on the ground with its eye open to attack). There are item boxes scattered throughout the room with Green Shells inside. Take a shell and head towards an eye (check your map to see which hand is vulnerable), then launch your shell to attack. Grab another shell from the item boxes and repeat this two more times to win. ======= Level 3 ======= Mission 3-1 ----------- Objective: Destroy all 5 item boxes! Strategy: This is actually a fairly annoying mission to complete, since it's played in the Waluigi Pinball area. This means there will be plenty of round bumpers to knock you around. There are 5 item boxes being knocked around as well, each containing a Star, and you need to go through all of the boxes. A good idea would to be patient and not so bent on speeding around, but rather to watch your map and move precisely to grab item boxes when they are near. If you follow this plan, you shouldn't be getting knocked into the bumpers nearly as much, and may come out of this with a high rank too. Mission 3-2 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 5 numbered gates in order... backward! Strategy: Of course, following a real pain in the neck mission, you get a much easier one to try. You have to pass through 5 gates entirely in reverse. Using your map, this can be done very easily. The first 2 gates are straightforward, but you'll soon come to a split in the path. Keep going straight to gate #3, and take the left turn to go around and pass through the final 2 gates. Mission 3-3 ----------- Objective: Collect all 15 coins while avoiding the Chain Chomp! Strategy: Despite what you might have thought going into this, this is actually VERY easy to complete. There is a circle of coins going around the Chain Chomp's post, with a line of coins leading into the circle itself from where you start. Simply follow the line into the circle, and when the turning begins, hold Left down as you accelerate and you should grab all the coins without any conflict. Mission 3-4 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before Yoshi! Strategy: Here, you are Peach and you have to race against Yoshi in a modified version of Yoshi Falls. You only have one lap to do this in, also. Right from the start, Yoshi will get a speed boost out of the gate. The item boxes you encounter have Mushrooms and Stars, so those will really help when going through the waterfall segments. Just make sure you're watching the course so you don't end up on the wrong half of the track when it gets closed off. Overall, it's a rather simple race you shouldn't have trouble with winning. Mission 3-5 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order! Strategy: Even with the non-linear layout, this isn't hard to clear in a short time if you know what you're doing. Along the back wall are two sets of pipes that act as warps (if you go into the bottom right one, you'll emerge out of the top right one, and vice versa). So, go straight through the first gate and then into the right bottom pipe hole. For the next 3 gates, ride along the upper catwalk all the way around, going through the top left pipe at the end of the catwalk. You'll come out of the bottom-right pipe and heading into the fifth gate. Make your way to the opposite end and turn/slide through the sixth one (enter it from the left). Go up the ramp to the catwalk and go through the seventh gate. Then, look to the ground and drop to the right, passing through the final gate at an angle to complete the mission. Mission 3-6 ----------- Objective: Hit Monty Moles with shells 5 times! Strategy: From where you start, there are 3 item boxes, all of which contain Green Shells. In front of you are several holes, and from each one a Monty Mole will jump out. It will first pop its head out, and then it will jump out, so remember this pattern. You have to hit 5 of them in order to win here. My method is to go up with a shell and sit in front of a hole, and when the mole jumps out, hit it. Then, reverse to the item boxes to get another shell and repeat. This is probably one of those missions that will take you a while, but practice does help in getting high ranks here. An alternative method would be to get a Green Shell, then hold the shell behind you as you sit just behind a hole (so the shell is floating above the hole). That way when a Monty Mole pops out, it'll automatically get hit by the shell, then you just have to get another shell and repeat. Mission 3-7 ----------- Objective: Perform 10 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap! Strategy: You will have 1 lap on the Shroom Ridge course, and in that lap you have to perform 10 power slides. This shouldn't be too hard, since there are plenty of long tight turns where you can easily get 2-3 of them out. Don't rush to get them all done early on; there are quite a few turns for you to use for sliding, so you most likely won't have a problem with hitting the quota. Mission 3-8 ----------- Objective: Collect all 20 coins! Strategy: This coin-gathering mission is a bit complex since you have to move around a series of rooms to grab all of them. From the start, go straight to get the first coin (1), then turn left in the second room to grab the next (2). Follow the outer path to the next room, grabbing the coin (3) at the entrance to said room. Quickly turn right and grab the coin (4) in the room that's blocked off, then quickly back out of there and turn around. Head out the opposite doorway and go right along the outer path again, grabbing another coin (5). Avoid the banana and turn into that room to reach the next coin (6). As you go into the next room, head toward the left opening as you grab the coin in here (7), and you'll be on the outer path again. Take the corner coin (8) without falling off (take it slow around the corners), then go straight. Grab the coin (9) behind the banana and head into that room, moving clockwise around the center block to get 2 more coins (11). Exit the same way you came in and grab 2 more coins (13) along the outer path while swerving around lines of bananas. Round the corner and go into the next room for yet another coin (14), then in the final room go around in a circle quickly, but not too fast to miss the coins, and you'll grab the final 6 (20). Level 3 Boss ------------ Objective: Reach the finish before Goomboss! Strategy: This boss race with Toad (a light-weight) against the giant Goomba at Baby Park is actually pretty challenging, but it's doable. You simply have to beat Goomboss to the finish after 3 laps here; he is clearly faster than you but don't let that get you down. If you're behind, he'll stop to throw Goombas or the occasional Mushroom boost at you (contact with a Goomba will deflate one of your balloons; lose all 3 and you automatically fail). If you're ahead, Goomboss will simply charge around the track to catch up. After each lap, Goomboss also gets bigger, which means more Goombas are thrown and on the final lap, he jumps over half the track to take a shortcut. The key to winning here is performing tight power slides around each turn. Not that you should be anyway, but don't ride all over the track; stay to the right and do the power slides perfectly, and you should be able to win. ======= Level 4 ======= Mission 4-1 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before Donkey Kong! Strategy: On this icy mirror course, you have to beat Donkey Kong to the finish, while playing as Wario. The first part with the snowman field can be tricky, but drifting and turning to avoid them really helps. Also, if you can get the boost from drafting shortly after starting, it helps as well. After a bunch of very curvy turns (no need for sliding here), you'll be out on the cliffs on a gray track (DK will take the supposed shortcut up the snowy hills, don't follow him). Do a power slide around each turn on the regular track, collecting the Mushrooms and Stars from item boxes along the way. As you go down the hill, there will be a tight turn to the right, so follow that. Avoid a few more snowmen dotting the landscape and go through the tunnel, and power slide left to the goal. Mission 4-2 ----------- Objective: Blast 20 crabs! Strategy: You'll be on an island with a whole load of crabs scattered about, and your job is to destroy 20 of them. On the center island are item boxes containing Bob-ombs and regular Green Shells, as well as the triple variety. The area surrounding the center area floods with the tide every now and then, but that shouldn't matter to you. The best method I found here is to use the Triple Green Shells to go after the crabs. If you get a bomb, just toss it since it's essentially useless for getting this done quickly. If you obtain a single shell, pick a nearby easy target and nail it. If you get the Triple Shells though, have them orbit around you as you pass closely by 3 crabs, knocking them each out. Rinse and repeat, and you should be done in no time. Mission 4-3 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before the red car! Strategy: This mission is EXTREMELY easy; your objective is simply to beat the red car going through traffic to the end of 1 lap. At first the car is a good distance ahead of you, but you can catch up easily by power sliding around the tighter turns and avoiding other oncoming traffic. There will be a couple times where you can grab an item from the boxes, usually containing Mushrooms. Those will come in handy for the straight/uphill portion. By the halfway point, you should already have left that red car in the dust, so keep on speeding around those curves with no mishaps, and you will have victory. Mission 4-4 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 7 numbered gates in order! Strategy: This gate challenge takes place across a very hilly, desert terrain as you can see. Go straight ahead into the first gate, then power slide around the curve. Make sure you get an item box (they have Triple Mushrooms). You'll see the next gate over the hill, so use your boosts, one at a time, to get yourself through gate 2, and even through gate 3 (all your boosts should be gone now). Go up the hill to the next gate and head across a hilly straight path, collecting your next set of Triple Mushrooms from an item box. Stay to the left of the Pokeys in the middle of the track, but start to turn right with the curve since gate 5 is in the inner portion of the curve. As soon as you go through it, use your boosts, again one at a time, to make it over the hills through the final 2 gates. Mission 4-5 ----------- Objective: Collect all 15 coins. If you get squished by a Thwomp, you fail! Strategy: This one might appear to be a bit tricky at first, but it's actually quite simple. The only thing you need to make sure you do is start off with the turbo boost. When the countdown hits 2 and is just about to fade out, start holding A so that you get the boost at startup. Go straight down the first line as the Thwomps go up (you won't hit them if you got the boost) to get the first 8 coins. Quickly turn around and line up before the other side, and as soon as the Thwomps drop down, start accelerating. If done at the right time, you'll pick up the remaining 7 coins with no problems. Mission 4-6 ----------- Objective: Break all 10 item boxes while avoiding the Fake Items! Strategy: For this mission, you have to ride along the Choco Mountain while going through 10 lines of item boxes. Only one box in each set is real, while the others are fake. In order to distinguish between them, use your map! The real item boxes will appear as they are, whereas the fake ones will show up as red squares. So, as long as you follow the map and avoid falling boulders, you should be set. Mission 4-7 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 10 gates! Strategy: Once again at Waluigi Pinball, you have to pass through 10 gates all while avoiding the bumpers and other hazards in the area. The best approach is to take the center path first, allowing you to pass through the first 2 gates. As soon as you go through the second gate in the middle, follow either the left or right path leading around the perimeter of the back area. This will get you 4 more gates. As you come back around to the first half of the course, follow the outer perimeter again to get the final 4 gates. It may help to shave some time off your trip if you drift between sides when you're at the far ends of the course. Mission 4-8 ----------- Objective: Perform 9 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap! Strategy: This particular challenge takes place on the Luigi Circuit, where it is raining and puddles spot the track. You have to pull off 9 power slides during the course of the lap, which is rather easy. Like you should be used to by now, do a power slide around each tight turn and you will meet the quota. Don't try to rush getting 9 out on the first leg of the lap, but if it will help you get through it faster, by all means do it. Just make sure you steer clear of the puddles, since you will spin out from them. Level 4 Boss ------------ Objective: Collect 50 coins while avoiding King Boo! Strategy: The arena here is a series of circular platforms with several bunches of coins going around each platform in a line. As for King Boo, he'll float around you for a bit and then attacks you from behind, taking 10 coins (assuming you have that many), and the rest of the level's coins disappear temporarily. The easiest method to winning this mission is stated below (as submitted by rush60002 since I felt his approach was better than my original one). Start off with a turbo boost and go straight ahead. Collect the two coins and then power slide in a clockwise fashion to collect the rest. Once you have collected all the coins on the ring King Boo should be about ready to charge you. So, jump into the lava in the center at the cost of one balloon. This should not only reset King Boo, but also it will place your kart in the appropriate position for the next part. Once you have been placed on the ground, try to get a boost when landing and get moving. Turn right, collect all the coins on the next ring, moving in a clockwise fashion again, using a power slide. Keep going around the ring even after alll of the coins are collected, and you should see a line of 3 coins on a path moving away from the ring. Grab those and hop into the lava in the center of the ring in front of you, again to stop King Boo from stealing your coins (and resetting him), placing you in the right position again. Once you hit the ground, boost and accelerate, and turn to the right. Once again, collect the coins by power sliding in a clockwise fashion, and keep going around the circle to collect the three coins in the line. This time, instead of jumping into the lava in front of you, collect the coins on the ring by power sliding in a COUNTER-CLOCKWISE fashion. Collecting the last coin can get kind of close sometimes, but if you do it fast enough, King Boo should not hit you and you should get the 3-star ranking. If done right, you should be able to have around 4:15 remaining on the clock, and it doesn't involve chasing King Boo around. If by chance he does steal your coins, chase and bump into him, then drive through King Boo from the front to get them back. ======= Level 5 ======= Mission 5-1 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before the stray Chain Chomp! Strategy: Since this is Level 5, you'll need all the help you can get, so make sure to achieve the turbo boost from the start. Grab an item box with the Triple Mushrooms, and maybe power slide around the first turn. Atop the hill, use your first boost to cut through the grass and up the second hill. Boost again through the grass and then go down the hill into the bush maze. Go as straight as you can through this, avoiding the other Chain Chomps. At the top of the next hill, there will be some more grass to use your final boost to cut through. At the circular bush formation, take one of the paths going through the center to save time. Avoid the Monty Moles popping out of the dirt path, then power slide through the final 2 turns before the finish line. You should have no problem winning if you use this method; the Chain Chomp should have been left behind after the first hill if you do this. Mission 5-2 ----------- Objective: Drive backward and collect 15 coins! If you hit a snowman, you fail! Strategy: Here you'll have another ridiculously easy mission, and it involves driving backward while being surrounded by snowmen. You are going around a circular formation with snowmen on both sides, collecting the coins around this path. After the second line of coins, the turn is wide but it's not something you need to slow down for. You really shouldn't have any trouble getting a *** on here, even on your first shot; just remember that you're holding B for reverse instead of A! Mission 5-3 ----------- Objective: Destroy all 5 item boxes! Strategy: This item box challenge takes place around the Koopa Beach 2 stage, and the item boxes will be travelling over the deep waters where you can't follow. The quickest and rather logical solution would be to collect the first item box if you can catch up to the train and maneuver around the deep part before they all become unreachable. After you grab the first box, use the Mushroom to follow the shallow part to where the item boxes pass onto the shallows once more. Grab the front box in the train from behind, then either stop moving and collect the rest of them as they come to you without any further effort, or start driving in reverse to help it along. At first it could be thought that if you boosted over the deep portions, you'll skim over the surface; that is not true, so don't waste your time trying it. Mission 5-4 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 10 numbered gates in order! Strategy: Here, you have to race around a Bowser Castle level while making your way through 10 gates in order. Try to drift through the first gate and around the turn, doing a power slide so you can hit the boost pad on the left side and pass through the second gate. Power slide around the next corner and head through the third gate, avoiding the Thwomp if it's down. In the first jumping part, if you can hit the boost pad on the far left and move to the right to pass straight through gate 4, that will really help with your time. If you can turn tightly enough you can hit the right boost pad. At the second jumping part, stay toward the middle and then to the right so you get gates 5 and 6. When you get to the next grated section of track, try to avoid hopping over the pit to reach gate 7. Instead, go through it and use the boosts to the left, then steer around the jumps and maneuver through gate 8 ahead. Power slide around the corner and use the mini turbo to get through gate 9, then continue straight to gate 10, barring any Thwomp interference. Mission 5-5 ----------- Objective: Complete 1 lap in the opposite direction within the time limit! Strategy: For this mission you have to navigate the Mushroom Bridge stage, but you travel backwards through it (not in reverse, you go around the course the other way though). The actual track isn't hard to drive upon, but the challenge lies in avoiding oncoming traffic. In addition, there are a couple sections where half the road is blocked off so you have to travel on a narrow path, all while dodging other cars. There are item boxes along the way containing Mushrooms, so use those wisely. Using the items along with power sliding around the curves will really help, just as long as you don't crash! Mission 5-6 ----------- Objective: Collect all 18 coins! Strategy: Atop a giant cake, you have to collect 18 coins by making 3 passes to the center. This isn't nearly as hard as it might look, but you will need to try it a few times to get the hang of it. Starting off, go straight to get the first coin, and make a wide turn around the cream puff to grab the second coin. Make a tight turn to the right so you can be lined up straight for the center, grabbing 3 more coins on the way to it. At the center, you'll jump over the cherry and if aligned properly, grab one of the coins above it. When you land, go straight and make a tight turn around the next cream puff, then repeat the cycle. Do this 3 times and you should have successfully nabbed all 18 coins. Mission 5-7 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order! Strategy: In this icy and hilly stage, driving through the gates won't be a real problem for you to do. However, avoiding the snowballs rolling down the hills will pose a threat. All the gates can be reached easily without power sliding (and you'll still get a ***); just as long as you don't get hit by a snowball you will be fine. After going through the first 2 easy gates, move left to avoid the large snowball, then go through gate 3 and head straight up over the hill. Stay a little to the left to pass through gate 4, then move right to get gate 5. After the curves, you'll reach gate 6 with no problem. Towards the middle of the path ahead is gate 7, then after you make the final turn, avoid the bouncing snowball ahead and go up the hill lined up with gate 8 to pass through it. If you didn't hit the walls or get trampled by a snowball, you should have a high rank with no problem. Mission 5-8 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before Mario! Strategy: Of course, for this matchup you are racing as Luigi, against Mario! Anyway, it isn't hard to beat Mario in this race, especially if you collect from both item boxes (they drop Triple Mushrooms and Stars). Starting off the race with a turbo boost, you can get an added boost by drafting off Mario. Avoid the Goombas on the uphill run and collect the first item box. If they are Mushrooms, use the first two and then when you reach the piranha plant pipe in the dirt, use the last boost to cut across the dirt as a shortcut. Grab the second item box and power slide around the curve ahead. If you got a Star like I did, use it when you start reaching the piranha plants in the road to cut through them easily; if you have Mushrooms, use those but steer clear of the plants. Then, for the final 2 curves, power slide around them, and you should have this thing won. Level 5 Boss ------------ Objective: Hit the Big Bob-omb with 3 Bob-ombs! Strategy: This boss fight is really simple to obtain a high ranking on. Initially there will be an item box in the battlefield; grab it to get a Bob-omb. Then, line yourself up with the boss and launch the bomb to attack. After he gets back up and tosses another bomb back at you, the boss will start throwing out item boxes once more, so grab another Bob-omb and repeat the process until you clear it. ======= Level 6 ======= Mission 6-1 ----------- Objective: Drive backward across the spinning bridge! If you fall, you're out! Strategy: You have to drive in reverse across the rotating bridge in the Bowser Castle stage. This is easy, but it can also be tricky since you have to balance to stay on top of it. When it's rolling to the left, move your kart so you're going forward but pointing towards the center, so as to keep balance. Then, do the opposite when the rotation switches. You clear the mission simply by reaching the other side. Mission 6-2 ----------- Objective: Get Stars and run over 15 Rocky Wrenches! Strategy: This mission isn't all that hard, but it's quite annoying to do it and receive a high ranking for it. There are several item boxes scattered around, all of which contain Stars, and a ton of Rocky Wrenches popping in and out of the airship deck. You must be fast to kill 15 of them with more than 20 seconds remaining to receive a high grade, so hurry up and drift/race around with a constant Star power to rid the deck of them. This is one of those missions where I can't give you a definite pattern, but I do recommend you make use of all your abilities, including being able to move in reverse, to hit them quickly. Also, when you're currently invincible, it will really help to collect another Star and use it just before your current one runs out, so there's no break in the power. Mission 6-3 ----------- Objective: Collect all 30 coins! Strategy: This particular challenge takes place through the SNES Choco Mountain course, and while it may appear to be easy, it can be difficult given the landscape. Go straight from the start to get 3 coins, then use the Mushroom to continue straight across the rocks for 3 more coins. Drift around the corner and line yourself up so you can get the following 3, then collect another easy set up ahead. Drift around the corner a bit more tightly, but straighten out quickly to get the next 3 coins. Cross the mud puddle, lining up to grab the next 3 coins in the set. This next part is the most annoying since there are plenty of little bumps in the road that cause you to jump around. Steer around the bumps carefully as you grab the next 6 coins, then make a tight drift around the final bend so you can reach the last 3 coins, ending this lap. Mission 6-4 ----------- Objective: Destroy all 10 item boxes! Strategy: On this multi-level stage, there are 10 item boxes floating around seemingly at random, but I will give you the best path I've found in grabbing them all. Get a turbo boost from the start and go after the first box in front of you as it rounds the corner. As you approach the corner, go up the hill onto the red tier. Go around it counter-clockwise so you get box #2 as it heads toward you. Head straight across the bridge as the third box moves onto it; you'll catch up to it easy. Go up the hill to the top of the yellow tier to grab box #4. Take the upper bridge right towards the green tier, and grab box #5 as it goes from the middle to upper levels. Drop down to the middle level and collect the sixth and seventh boxes as they rotate around. Then, go to the top section and take the bridge to the blue tier. Head down the ramp to the second level here and grab box #8 as it falls from the upper level, as well as the box making the rounds on this level anyway (#9). Finally, ride along the bridges to the yellow tier, where you'll find the last box going around the middle level there. If you did this quick enough without messing up, you should have an easy high rank. Mission 6-5 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order! Strategy: Right off the bat, it should be known that in order to pull this off, you MUST grab both item boxes that you come across for the Triple Mushrooms they yield. Grab the first item box and power slide quickly around the corner, and go through the first gate. Then, line up with the ramp behind it and use a boost to make a jump and pass through gate 2. As soon as you land, use your second boost to cut across the small gaps with no effort. Power slide around the next turn, and head up the straightaway to the third gate. As soon as you pass the gate, use your final boost to go up the ramp, giving you a straighter shot at gate 4 on the bridge. Slide around the next couple turns and pick up the lone item box in the center of the track. Go through gate 5 while using a boost, then power slide around the turn ahead. As you round the turn, you'll see another gate fairly close to you. Line up with it and as you approach the gap, use a boost to shoot across and through gate 6. As soon as you land on the track at the other side, power slide to the left and use another boost to get through gate 7 to the side. Then, just continue on and the last gate is in plain view. Mission 6-6 ----------- Objective: Perform 14 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap! Strategy: For this mission, you play as Yoshi on Yoshi Circuit, and you have to pull off 14 power slides in a single lap. This pretty much means you have to do a power side around just about every turn. It really shouldn't be hard since all the hazards of the course are gone, and you can tell when a significant turn is coming as opposed to just a slight curve in the road. Stay on the track and try your best to get these done as early as possible; if done correctly you should have enough room to do an extra 1-2 slides before the end of the lap in addition to the first 14. Mission 6-7 ----------- Objective: Collect all 40 coins! Strategy: Here, you have to collect 40 coins in the shape of a Star, atop a clock face, complete with moving arms. The minute/hour hands are the only obstacles you have to deal with, but they can be annoying and will make you drop some coins if you're hit. The best approach is to start off with a turbo boost, going straight up either the left or right lines of coins, all the way to the back wall. Then, turn around and go down another line of coins when the hands aren't in the way (use the map and your own line of vision to check). You don't really need to rush here, since a *** is possible below 35 seconds; just avoid the hands and try your best to pick off the coin paths when there is no danger to yourself. Mission 6-8 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before Peach! Strategy: This race (with you as Bowser) takes place on a mirrored version of Peach Garden, which makes it a bit more difficult. Start off with the turbo boost, then turn tightly to the left. After the straight path, power slide around the curve and follow the dirt path while avoiding the Monty Moles. At the last curve of the dirt path, do a power slide. In the next section, stay to the left and go around the perimeter of the circle, grabbing the item box. Drift around the corner ahead and go up the hill. If you have the Triple Mushrooms, use your first boost to cut across the grass here. Going down the hill into the Chain Chomp maze, you may have some trouble since most of the paths through are blocked off. For the first couple rows, stay toward the middle, then go to the left. Make sure you grab another item box here (or if you have 2 more Mushrooms, save them). To avoid the Chain Chomp in the back left corner of the maze, stay to the right. Slide around the sharp corners and up the hill, using your boost to cut across the grass again. Ahead, use yet another boost to go over the grass you're required to go through. Cross the bridge and grab another item, and power slide around the curve, then use your Mushrooms/Star on this final stretch to the finish. Level 6 Boss ------------ Objective: Use Mushroom boosts to hit Chief Chilly and knock him off the stage 3 times! Strategy: For this boss fight, you are on a platform surrounded by water, and a few item boxes strewn about. Chief Chilly is a giant ice ball who will charge into you, trying to knock you off the platform as well. The item boxes here all contain Triple Mushrooms, so grab an item box and line up with the boss, then let loose with all 3 of your boosts to knock Chilly into the water. Be careful when using your boosts, that you're still lined up with the boss, or you'll go off into the water yourself. When Chief Chilly returns, grab another set of boosts and repeat. After this is done the second time though, Chief Chilly will try to jump when you start charging at him with your boosts; counter that by quickly using your boosts to win. ======= Level 7 ======= Mission 7-1 ----------- Objective: Perform 6 power-slide turbo boosts in 1 lap! Strategy: This challenge takes place on Rainbow Road, which means you will have very little leeway in terms of when/where you can power slide. Most of the track is comprised of boost pads and long straightaways and loops, so anytime you come across a turn, you had best perform a power slide. Do the first one shortly after starting around that first curve, then after the boost pads, do another one quickly while avoiding the upper wall. After the straight path, do another power slide to the right. After the loop you'll come to a curvy road; perform a power slide around the second one and head left. Just before you reach the second loop is a good time for another power slide. Finally, when you're coming around the final wide turn to the finish line, you can do the last power slide with no problem. Mission 7-2 ----------- Objective: Reach the finish before Bowser! Strategy: This particular race puts you against Bowser in none other than the Bowser Castle stage. Start off the race with a turbo boost and stay to the right, to avoid the blockades in the middle area. Avoid the Thwomps and grab an item box (they have Mushrooms and Stars, of course), then power slide through the next couple of turns. In the rotating room, power slide around to the far side while being careful not to hit the flames or the Thwomp further down the hall. Grab another item box and drift around the spiral tower, power sliding at the top opening. You'll now be at the rolling bridge: DO NOT GO ON IT! Instead, use your boost or Star and shoot right off the platform onto the ground below (by doing it this way you keep moving forward as you fall, whereas if you fell from the bridge you'll fall straight down). Boost across the grass and head up the path, power sliding around the corner. Be sure to grab another item box, of course. After the jump, boost across the middle of the moving platforms so you don't fall, and power slide around the corner, then go up the hill. Power slide around the last couple of turns atop the hill, and the lap will be over. It will probably take several tries to pull this off perfectly, and getting the right items so you can get that high ranking. Mission 7-3 ----------- Objective: Complete 2 laps within the time limit! Strategy: Here, you have to complete 2 laps on the Tick Tock Clock course within 1 minute and 30 seconds. It's quite doable, so long as you don't crash into any of the obstacles or fall off the track. Starting off with a turbo boost always helps, as well as a power slide around the first corner. Grab an item box (they all have Triple Mushrooms) and boost up the hill, then go around the left perimeter of the clock face platform, using the boost pads to quickly get across without hitting the hands. Go down the hill and you'll come to a part with 3 pendulums alternating back and forth. If you have boosts, use them now to get by quickly, and also so you can get 3 more Mushrooms from the item boxes ahead. The next part is a series of 4 alternately rotating platforms; if you travel in the same direction as the rotation along the outer edge, you'll pick up speed but it's a lot more risky. Boost across these quickly, then power slide around the next couple corners. The next clock face platform is coming up, so travel along the outer edge to avoid colliding with it. Atop the final hill, there will be 2 rotating tires on each side of the track. If you drive onto the one moving in the same direction, you'll gain another final boost for the lap. Repeat this for both laps and you should have more than enough time left over with the mission completed. Mission 7-4 ----------- Objective: Use shells to defeat all 30 Goombas within the time limit! Strategy: Like in any other "kill the enemies" mission you've dealt with thus far, you only get Triple/regular Green Shells and need to quickly kill off everything within a time limit. The same goes for here, but now it's harder since you need to follow the track to several different checkpoints where there will be more item boxes and Goombas to clear. Right from the getgo, get some shells and shoot the Goombas you can, quickly get some more shells, and repeat until that segment is cleared. Then, you move ahead to the next part where more Goombas and items can be found. There really isn't any definite strategy I can give, other than to have good aim and to be quick about it, if you want a high ranking. Mission 7-5 ----------- Objective: Collect all 20 coins! Strategy: For this coin challenge, you are at Wario Stadium, and the coins are actually very easy to collect too. Starting with a turbo boost, do a power slide around the wide turn and collect the first 2 coins you see where the paths curve. Power slide again, then straighten out before the hill to collect 3 more coins and another one when you land. The next part has the boost pad islands in the mud; you have to hit each of them to collect the coins above them (4 total). As you round the corner, straighten out as you go up the boost hill, collecting 3 coins as you fly through the fire ring. Then, align yourself for the next jump with 2 more coins to be had. Up ahead, there are 2 more coins in the inner curves of the track below the fire wheels. For the final part, stay to the right and shoot straight up the 2 right boost pads to collect the remaining coins. Mission 7-6 ----------- Objective: Drive through all 8 numbered gates in order! Strategy: This is quite possibly one of the hardest missions you'll have to face, but it is doable and with a *** ranking (after trying it so many times, I finally got it, so now I can write this part). The 8 gates are situated in a circle formation, each gate you need alternating (1, 5, 2, 6, and so on) around the circle. Despite what you may hear, DO NOT POWER SLIDE! Instead, get a turbo boost at the start and you'll notice how the touch screen of the replica DS has light and dark streaks. Go straight and as soon as you hit the light streak, hop and hold R as you accelerate and hold Right. If you did this right, you should be able to successfully drift around the circle without hitting the gate walls, and get that *** easily. Mission 7-7 ----------- Objective: Drive backward and collect all 12 coins! If you hit a burner, you fail! Strategy: This one is probably the only mission where it pays off to take it easy with the gas and be patient to get the high ranking. You have to drive in reverse through a maze of crates, then across an open area with 2 burners going back and forth (if they hit you, you automatically fail). Starting off, go off the ledge and slowly turn left to the first coin (as an added note, when going around turns, do not hold B since you'll hit crates that way; just use the directional buttons to change direction, it really helps). Go around the bend slowly and grab the second coin at the other end, then turn again and collect 3 more coins as you swerve around the path. Slowly take the corner ahead and swerve around again for 3 more coins. At the end of that path, make a wide turn left and go straight in reverse to the coin in the opening leading to the larger area. Move quickly to grab the 2 coins directly in the path of the burners while being careful, then collect the final coin ahead to end this mission. If you didn't hit anything and moved about the maze in a timely fashion, you should have no problem in getting a high rank. Mission 7-8 ----------- Objective: Break all 10 item boxes while avoiding the Fake Items! Strategy: For the last mission before the boss, it's a pretty challenging one as you can see. Starting off, get a turbo boost from the start and power slide around the first corner. Do the same for the second turn, this time while avoiding the bananas. Stay to the right for the first real item box (to check which ones are real, use your map; the fake ones appear as red squares). Power slide around the wide turn ahead, then use the Mushroom boost. After the second item box (it's to the left), use the boost and avoid the bananas at the curve ahead. Get the next 2 item boxes to the right and left, using the boosts one after another while avoiding some more bananas further ahead. After the fall, grab the left item box and power slide around the turn, then use the boost. Grab the fifth item box and take the left side around the wall (of course there are a ton of bananas here so don't use your boost). Hop over the gap to the left where the hole is smallest and turn to get item box #6. Boost across the room and drift around the wall into the second room. There is a whole row of fake item boxes; drift around the curves and slow down if needed to get the next item box behind the column. On the boardwalk again, stay to the right to get the next item box. Use the boost and power slide around the curve, and go straight to the final item box, completing the mission. Level 7 Boss ------------ Objective: Reach the finish before Wiggler! Strategy: For the final boss stage in the Missions mode, it can be tough. Of course, Wiggler is huge and he plows through all the traffic, plus he moves a lot faster than you can. In addition, this race is a full 3-lap circuit, so be prepared! As for the actual race, there are item boxes containing Stars only, so make good use out of them (don't try using a Star to hit Wiggler, it doesn't work). As you race, you'll notice small trucks driving along; if you hit one while using the Star power, you'll receive a Mushroom for your use (check the touch screen and you'll see an item box inside the truck, too). The best method of dealing with this course is this: use a turbo boost at start, use the first Star (you should be grabbing every item box in the entire race), ram the truck and use the Mushroom, get the next item box, and repeat. If this goes as planned, you should have absolutely no problems beating Wiggler with a clear lead. If you aren't keeping up, beware since Wiggler is clearly much faster than you and after the third lap, he turns red and becomes even faster, even resorting to the shortcut over the hill after the first tunnel. With the method listed above, you really shouldn't be using that hill shortcut since you'd have enough of a lead doing what was already said. ***************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -= 3. Secrets/Tips and Tricks -= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= ======================= Access Level 7 Missions ======================= In order to access the Level 7 set of missions, you must first complete all of Levels 1 through 6, with at least a * ranking in each. -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= -= 4. Copyright Notice -= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= This file is Copyright (c)2007 sean bird. All rights reserved. This file was entirely written by me, unless otherwise noted in the Credits section of this file. This file may NOT be posted on ANY website, except the select few I list below: GameFAQs (http://www.gamefaqs.com ) GameWinners (http://www.gamewinners.com ) VG Strategies (http://vgstrategies.about.com ) GameAdvice (http://www.gameadvice.com) IGN FAQs (http://faqs.ign.com ) GamerHelp (http://www.gamerhelp.com) Cheat codes (http://www.cheatcodes.com ) Do not ask me if you may post this file as a whole or in part, because you WILL be denied. I have been ripped off WAY too many times in the past, and even in the present day, and I just prefer to keep my work on the sites above. If you are writing a FAQ for this game and would like to use a little snippet, please ask me first since I sometimes allow people to use tiny bits and pieces; either way you must still ask first! I don't care who you are, how good your site is, etc., because I do not give permission to ANYONE nowadays; nothing against you if you truly are legitimate, but this is how I have to be thanks to the bad ones out there. If I find you have posted this or any other file I have created where it is not authorized, I will make sure it is removed and you will be sorry, simply put. *****************************************************************************