Aww. That's a shame. I was really looking forward to DKR since the N64 version was great.
Yeah, the physics have been much improved since 64. Especially in DS. I think the track designs for 64 were much more in line with what Super Mario Kart brought us on the SuperNES. Only with depth and hills and such.
Super Mario Kart was essentially racing through Super Mario World. Mario Kart 64 was racing through Super Mario 64. Double Dash was just there. Super Circuit, I dunno - but it was fun. XD And DS was a mixture of everything.
I just found Double Dash to be gimmicky with the dual rider thing and I hated how every one was shiny. o.o
Not everything. Only when it is not used to it's full potential. The Wii and the DS are not gimmicky. :p Having two riders just for the sake of saying you get to control two characters - that's gimmicky. I suppose it might've been fun in multiplayer, but I didn't play a lot of that mode.