Snaking and other advanced Mario Kart techniques-a guide

[Mekchrious]

I see plenty of "WATS SANKING?", topics, and the like around many forums. This topic should clear up most things. If I've made a mistake or you have something to add, please post it or PM me.

What is snaking, anyways, and how do you do it?
Snaking is properly defined as a SSMT, which stands for Short Stretch Mini Turbo. Snaking is the common term. A mini-turbo is what results when you first drift, then move the control pad back and forth until red sparks appear, then releasing R. This gives you a short boost. Now, normally, you would do this around a turn, but snaking is different, as you do it on a straight section of track. Try going down a straightaway, say, on Figure-8 Circuit. Now, drift one direction and quickly make the red sparks appear, then release, resulting in a mini-turbo. Now here is the hard part. While the turbo is going, drift the OTHER direction and repeat the process. Not everyone gets it the first, or second, time. Learning to snake just takes practice. Here is a video made by GJ_Chubz from the Nsider forum going into detail about how to snake. The link is here.

Is snaking cheating, or a glitch?
You may find games that don't allow snaking. Its all your rules. Many people believe it is a glitch in the game's design, but rather, snaking has been around since Mario Kart 64. But when gameplay gets taken online, people develop and use techniques so they can win. And snaking resulted out of this. And another thing-snaking takes skill and practice, at least to snake well. A lot of people can snake on the Figure-8 Circuit, but how many can snake on Rainbow Road?

What's the history behind snaking?
As stated, snaking has been around since Mario Kart 64, but it was not totally utilized then. Snaking was first used seriously in Mario Kart: Double Dash, to get better times on time trials. When MKDS was released, it was taken online, and many figured out that snaking was a much faster way of getting around. The name was first used in MKDS (on MKDD, it was called SSMT), probably resulting from someone saying it and it going on and on. If you look when you're snaking, you go from left to right, such as a snake slithers. Properly, it would probably be called "slithering", but we all know how awkward and dumb that sounds.

So, why snake, anyways?
Essentially, if you snake fast enough to "link" your mini turbos together (making sure each boost is started during the last boost, making a constant speed boost), you are going almost as fast as someone with a mushroom. Its faster. That's what matters in Mario Kart, getting to the finish line first.

Snaking can be bad as well, especially if you aren't proficient at it. Make sure to practice enough on time trials before taking it to Wifi, or else you might hit a wall or fall off of the track.

When to snake, where to snake, who to snake with

When to snake? Wherever there is a straightaway. If you can fit in one mini turbo on a short stretch, then you will be going faster. Don't go overboard however, if you snake past a turn and miss the turn. When in doubt, kick it out. Losing one mini turbo is far better than falling off of the course.

Where to snake? Just about every level has straight stretches that you can snake on. Don't snake over uneven terrain, such as on DK Pass, or on ramps and hills, such as on Wario Stadium. When you aren't going straight over a ramp or bump, you lose speed.

Who to snake with? Its really what kart to snake with. The higher the acceleration of the kart, the longer its mini turbo will be, and the easier it is to link your mini turbos. Popular snaking carts are the Dry Bomber, the Egg 1, and the Poltergust 4000. The drift rating on a kart matters as well, as this shows how sharply you drift, or how much more you can turn during a drift. So, you can drift around tighter corners, but this has a bad effect upon snaking. Karts with a low drift rating are easier to snake with. Go try it out if you need to.

[Mekchrious]

More terms and techniques used in MKDS.


The Prolonged Rocket Boost(PRB), and how to do it
The PRB is simple to explain, but incredibly hard to pull off. To start a PRB, you have to get a perfect rocket boost at the start. There are two boosts you can get. Press A a second after the 2 appears, but not as late as when it fades. After you get the boost, you have to snake so fast that you never have a break between boosts. What does this get you? The PRB. If you don't break your boosts, you won't slow down on any terrain. So you can cut across a field, like on the SNES Mario Circuit, without slowing down. This is especially useful on courses like Desert Hills(go behind the pyramid on the dirt). A r-PRB is the same idea, but its a Prolonged Rocket Boost Restart, or r-PRB. Most people still refer to this as a PRB. Its the same idea here, except in place of a rocket boost, you use a zipper ramp (one of those rainbow things that make you go fast). After you get the boost from the ramp, start your PRB and the same idea applys. Be warned-something messing up your boost WILL disable the PRB, such as a lightning bolt or a red shell. Here is a video going into further detail about a PRB. YouTube - MKDS PRB Video Guide

Is this cheating? Should I use it?
This technique is a glitch in the game, but it is widely used and accepted. Time trials for courses are categorized as PRB or non-PRB, as they really are two different levels of play. If you can PRB consistently, your wifi game will skyrocket. This is how a lot of the best players play. If you play on wifi and you want to improve, then by all means, learn how to PRB. Just to tell you the difference between someone just snaking on a course and someone PRBing, the world record on the SNES Mario Circuit, with PRB, is 38 seconds, the world record without PRBing is 41 seconds. In a racing game, 3 seconds is a whole lot. So, use it if you want.

When to PRB, where to PRB, who to PRB with
When to PRB? Anywhere you can. Obviously on some courses it is useless, such as Rainbow Road, but most courses can be PRBed on, even for a short distance. A good example here is Delfino Square. PRBing at the start does nothing, but doing a r-PRB off of the bridge at the end and PRBing across the dirt there will save you time. I guess this covers where to PRB as well.

Who to PRB with? Statistically, the Egg 1 is the best PRBing kart for some technical reasons. The Dry Bomber is the easiest kart to do PRBs with, but the Egg 1 outdoes it once you get it down. You can also use a few other karts, but very few can be used practically for PRBing.

The Blue Shell Dodge(BSD), and how to do it.
The BSD is just like it sounds; you dodge a blue shell. The idea is fairly simple. Once a blue shell comes, start a powerslide. You want to have red sparks before it appears above your head. Next, just as it is dropping, release the boost and hop(using the R button)in the same direction you were powersliding. With some practice, and a little luck, the blue shell will not harm you. The jump at the end is to escape the blue shell's blast. It is good to practice on time trial at 150cc, as it is easier than doing it on 100cc, which is what wifi is. This is a video to show a detailed explanation of a BSD.YouTube - Blue Shell Dodging Video Guide

Now this MUST be cheating!
Its a glitch. Glitches are used and abused by people who want to get better. If this goes against your morals, then don't BSD. If you feel there is nothing wrong with it, it will help you in your play much, especially on wifi.

When to BSD, where to BSD, who to BSD with
BSD anytime, anywhere, and with anywho. However, if dodging it means going off of the edge, then just take the blast. Otherwise, to my knowledge, every character can BSD. Characters that can snake better will be easier to BSD with, as you can get a powerslide going at any time.

[Mekchrious]

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[Mekchrious]

Reserved for later use

You may now post.

[Naruto26]

Thanks for posting someone already made like 600 times :) Lol, since you spent so much time on it and its nice and neat (and new), I'll let it stay up.

Nice job ;)

[Adam]

it is good for not snakes

[Killer]

Very Nice.