We just unlocked everything in Mario Kart: Double Dash, having finished All Cup Tour / Mirror Mode with 146 points. The thing about All Cup Tour (which is all 16 races in a row) is that it should end up being academic. As long as you keep placing high, and your next two opponents keep switching off wins, by the last track there should be no possible way you can lose in the overall point total. Our first attempt was an unfortunate failure, mainly because we seemed to have only *one* chief rival, and that team would consistently NOT get wrecked by the other players. On our second try, things went more to plan... we actually clinched the Gold Medal going into the second-to-last race, meaning that even if we got 0 points on the last two tracks, we'd still end up with the most points. It's always nice to go into Rainbow Road knowing that simple math is on your side, because that track is terribly unforgiving.

When Rhon and I play co-op, we almost always play Paratroopa and Toadette in the Toad Kart. I drive and Rhon handles weapons. The low, speedy Toad Kart suits my driving style, and our characters give us access to some of the better weaponry: the Red Shell trio and that pumpable Gold Mushroom turbo.

A happy holiday has been secured.