Stuff I Grew Up With/Video Game Corner: Mario Kart 64 (1996)

I've mentioned in past video game reviews how I first learned of the Nintendo 64 when, as a subscriber to Nintendo Power magazine, they sent me a promotional VHS tape for the system months before it hit North America in September of 1996. While the tape focused on the three launch titles, it ended with a montage of many more upcoming games, like Cruisin' USA, Goldeneye, Body Harvest, Star Fox 64, and Wave Race 64, to name a few. One of these brief sneak peeks was of Super Mario Kart R, the initial prototype of this game, with different character models, as well as one character, Kamek, that was not featured in the final game. Not that I knew that at the time, nor did I care. Having rented and played Super Mario Kart a good number of times when I was a really little kid, I was more than eager to play a more advanced version. I got my Nintendo 64 for Christmas that year, along with Super Mario 64, and when Mario Kart 64 came out in North America the following February, I knew I had to have it, especially after reading up on it in Nintendo Power. Not wanting to wait for my birthday, which wasn't until June, I got my Mom to get it for me as an Easter present; in fact, and I'm now ashamed I did this, I resorted to tears to get her to do it. Yeah, I was rather spoiled as a kid, and I didn't need to do that anyway, as she would've been more than happy to get it for me without that kind of manipulation. But, regardless, I did get it, and for almost a whole year, it and Super Mario 64 were the only N64 games I had, so I played the crap out of them. As I said in my review of Super Mario Kart, while I certainly have fond childhood memories of that game, I never owned it, so I couldn't really call it something I grew up with. Mario Kart 64, on the other hand, I played frequently from the age of nine right up to my late teens, after I graduated from my high school. And this was back when I actually had friends who would come over to the house and hang out, and they themselves got Nintendo 64s and copies of Mario Kart as well. It became one of the most popular games within our little inner-circle, especially since up to four people could play at a time, and even as late as high school, I can remember us getting together, playing it, and having a grand old time. In short, I'll have much more to say about this game's multiplayer modes.

Like with Super Mario Kart and all the other games in this series, the mode I always play now is Grand Prix, which, like before, can involve one or two players. This time, all four cups are available from the beginning, as are the three difficulty levels, and there are four races a cup, with three laps each, due to how much longer these courses are. Again, you have to place at least fourth in other to move on to the next race (with two players, only one has to do so), and while the game

doesn't limit the amount of times you can retry a race (at least according to the Super Mario Wiki, but I'm sure I've seen the "RETRY" option disappear after so many losses), it doesn't give the option to give up if you know you're going to lose, as all it does give you is the option to quit the whole thing and start over. The scoring system remains the same, and you start the next race in the same position you finished the previous one. Like before, you get something special for winning the gold on all four cups at 150cc: Extra Mode, which flips the courses around horizontally and makes some of them even more challenging than they are normally. You know when you've unlocked Extra, as the title screen changes.

Time Trials is, once again, the one mode you play by yourself to see how fast you can drive the individual courses, with each lap's time being recorded and added up, as well as the fastest lap being noted (the individual characters used aren't noted, though). The Nintendo Power Player's Guide really delved into this mode, giving you hints on where it's best to Power Slide, when best to use your Triple Mushroom item (you start each Time Trial with this and it's the only item you get), and the best shortcuts for each course. It also gave you three different times (novice, intermediate, and

advanced) to try to beat, and then, in the back of the guide, they gave a list of the programmers and testers' best times, just daring you to try to beat them. As you might expect, those times are absolutely insane and give even experts a real challenge. I did try a few times in my youth to beat them but I decided it wasn't worth nearly killing my hands and giving myself a heart attack over. This Time Trials mode not only has a replay option but introduces an interesting feature where, after you set a really good time, you can try to beat it in the form of a "ghost," a semi-transparent version of the character you previously used whom you race against and acts out every move you performed when you set the record. This has since become a

staple of the series. However, a racing performance doesn't become eligible for a ghost if you screw up too much, i.e. slam into obstacles or fall of the road (it also gets disqualified if you ever go in reverse). And saving ghost data takes up a lot of memory in the Controller Pak, namely 123 pages, and even then, you can only do so for two courses! Not to mention, you can't save ghost data at all on the Wii or Wii-U Virtual Console versions of the game, because neither of those systems are compatible with the Controller Pak. 

Match Race is now referred to as Versus Mode and can involve up to four players (when you select it, Mario, who voices instructions on the menu screens, says it in an oddly appalled-sounding manner, like, "Versus?!"). Like before, it involves several players competing against each other on various tracks, receiving points for each match they win. If it's two players, only the person who came in first gets a point, while three-to-four players are scored based on the first, second, and third place position each one receives (fourth place gets nothing). And finally, like Match Race, Versus has its own specific obstacles you have to contend with; in this case, it's Mini Bomb Karts, these little

yellow bombs on wheels that tend to linger in your path. These Karts have an even more substantial role in Battle Mode. The only difference between the two games here is that Battle Mode, again, can involve up to four players. Otherwise, it's the same deal: you fight it out in one of four arenas, trying to pop all three of each other's balloons (not just with items but also by slamming into lighter characters with heavier ones). Once all three of your balloons are popped, your character turns into a Mini Bomb Kart, and though you've still lost the match, the transformation gives you a chance for some revenge. You can hunt down one of the remaining players and blow them up, making them lose a

balloon. Once it's done, you now have to wait for the match to end, but it can be satisfying to get that last jab in. Additionally, when you become one of these things, you no longer appear on the course map, and while you can't use items, most items can't damage you, either. The one that can take out a Mini Bomb Kart is an Invincibility Star, or if two Karts collide with each other.

For the most part, Mario Kart 64 dispenses with the split-screen aesthetic used in the first game, save for the two-player mode, while splitting the screen into squares for three and four players. If you press the top "C" button, you switch from the standard camera angle to a wider scope, with your Kart farther away, allowing you to more easily see drivers who come up behind you (I like this more than the rear-view used in the first game). Pressing the right "C" button toggles the various information displayed on the screen. The default is the course map, but it can also be used to display the speedometer or your ranking, though it varies from one mode of play to another. Like before, each

course has its own obstacles and types of terrain, but certain variables are constant, such as the Item Boxes, Zippers (which appear less frequently and are now often used to boost you over a large gap; like before, you have to watch how you aim your kart or you could end up out of bounds or flying into oblivion), and off-road terrain that slows you down when you drive over it. While they're not quite as prevalent here, there are certainly spots on some tracks where you can fall off and need to be rescued. Here, it can sometimes take a while for you to completely fall to the bottom, causing you to lose time and position, and there are spots where

you may think you're safe but, if you get hit by a weapon, you could end up sailing over some supposedly protective railing. Worst of all, there are spots where you can fall onto an earlier part of the track, severely screwing you over. Lakitu is here once again to oversee the races, warn you when you're going the wrong way, and fish you out whenever you need it, yet again taking his time while doing so, much to my irritation.

Like its predecessor, the game is very well-designed and also builds and improves upon what was already established. That's especially true in the case of the tracks, which are fully rendered in 3-D, are much bigger and more expansive, and have interesting details like signs, trees and other plants lining the edges of the roads themselves and the surrounding terrain, audience stands in some cases (no detail to the patrons themselves, as they're just colored spots on a flat section spanning the stands), and their own individual quirks and obstacles. They also rise up and down in spots,

something that wasn't possible on the Super NES. And instead of just variations on the same set of environments, each course has its own identity. There are some that feel similar, like Luigi and Mario Raceway, and there are two that deal with ice and snow, but they're different enough from one another, sometimes right down to the color scheme, where you never feel like you've raced the same one twice. A couple of courses use that old "distance fog" technique to enhance the feeling of depth, but it's never done to an egregious or distracting extent. An interesting thing about the graphics is that, while the environments are in 3-D,

the in-game character sprites, the items, and some of the track obstacles are pre-rendered, 2-D models shown from various angles, similar to what they did with the first game. They did this because the Nintendo 64 couldn't have processed eight, fully-rendered 3-D characters onscreen at once. Other in-game sprites are executed through a technique called "billboarding" where they're always facing you, even if you actively try to get behind them (that fascinated me as a kid and I would often try to do that). Going back to the characters, the developers had to almost completely redo the models due to a disk crash that happened halfway into production, which they took advantage of by having the characters slightly animated on the selection screen.

The first thing you see when you boot up the game is the Nintendo logo rotating, accompanied by the sound of a car driving by, immediately tipping you off that it's going to a treat in the sound department. Indeed, the audio is top notch once again, with great sound effects like the roaring engines, the Item Box's roulette selection noise, the different, distinct sounds of the items (few are likely to forget the sound of your tires skidding after slipping of the Banana Peels, the bonking of the green Koopa Shells bouncing off walls, or the siren sound the dreaded Spiny Shell makes), the karts crashing and slamming into walls, the cheering crowds in some tracks, and the different sounds you hear from the various animals and terrain of each course. That's to say nothing of the characters' having speech this time around, with some saying various phrases and yelling different exclamations whenever they get hit, someone hits an item of theirs, or they win a race (speech in video games was still something amazing to me, seeing as how I was coming off the Super Nintendo at that time). And, once again, there's the music which, aside from the lack of distinct motifs for the characters and some courses, like before, deserves nothing less than a chef's kiss, as I'll describe later.

As much as I praised the controls for Super Mario Kart, thanks to the N64's analog control stick, Mario Kart 64 feels so much more fluid. I find myself able to make tight turns and dodge obstacles much more effectively though that could also be muscle memory from having played this so much as a kid and teenager. When I replayed it for this review, I was a little rusty at first, but it didn't take me long to get back into the groove. I can also rocket start almost effortlessly, whereas in the first game, I either spin out or fail to pull it off. You also have so many more maneuvers you can perform

here, such as the ability to go in reverse, which is so helpful when butting up against a wall or obstacle, and you can also brake to stop yourself from spinning out if you hit a Banana Peel, though like hopping over one, you have to do it at the absolute right moment (if a musical note appears above your character's head, that means you pulled it off). Holding the A and B buttons at the same time allows you to do a spin-turn, where you turn your kart sharply while at a standstill (you most often find yourself doing this in Battle Mode). But the best new maneuver here is the mini-turbo you can pull off while doing a power slide. The smoke

your kart gives off while power sliding goes from a V-shape to an E, and if you rock the control stick in the opposite direction and then back, the E's turn from white to yellow, and then orange if you do it again. Once they're orange, you get a boost of speed that both helps you keep ahead of your opponents and is very useful in Time Trials. It takes some practice to pull off, as you can spin out if you hold the stick too long in one direction, and there are some instances where you have to abort the slide to avoid slamming into a wall or hitting an obstacle, but once you master it, you find yourself doing it a lot. There's also slip-streaming, where you get a boost of speed by lining yourself up close with another kart that's ahead of you.

However, with these maneuvers come more hazards besides those the other characters throw at you. Like before, if you accelerate too much, too fast while going for a rocket start, you can spin out, and that can also happen if you overdo it while Lakitu is placing you back on the ground after falling off the track. You can also spin out if you hit something or someone at top speed, meaning that if you're playing as one of the lightweight characters and try for a rocket start, you can slam into a heavyweight positioned in front of you and set yourself back (though, as a heavyweight, you can plow through all the drivers in front of you for an easy lead). And on 150cc and Extra Mode, you can also spin out if you steer in one direction and then immediately turn in the opposite, though braking can stop this from happening.

The item system is far more lenient than in the first game. First, unlike the tiles, the Item Boxes here respawn about as soon as someone drives through them, and there's often more than just one large group of them on a given track, rather than one big bunch and several single ones scattered here and there (though those exist here as well). Second, while there is still a system where your position in the race determines what item you get, it's not nearly as unforgiving. There are still items that don't come up that often, and some that don't come up at all when you're in a certain position (those are often to your benefit, as they would prove either

useless or detrimental to you if they did come up while you were in those spots), but more often than not, I find myself getting what I need, when I need it. And finally, there are many new items to play with, some of which are upgrades of those from the first game and others that are completely new, along with classic holdovers and some that weren't originally available in Grand Prix mode.

The boost-giving Mushroom not only returns but also has two upgrades: a Triple Mushroom, which gives you three of them you can use one after the other, and a golden Super Mushroom, which gives you an infinite number of boosts for a short period after you use it the first time (obviously, none of these boosting items are available in Battle Mode, as they're unnecessary). The Banana Peel also returns, along with an upgrade in the form of the Banana Bunch, where you drag five peels behind you. You can either drop them off one at a time or let another racer knock into them, spinning them out and scattering the peels across the track. The Banana Peels are one of several items

you can drag behind you before you launch or plant them on the track, making ramming into your backside particularly hazardous for your opponents. Another example is the classic Koopa Shell, which, again, comes in the standard green type and the homing red type. Unlike before, you can fire the green shells from behind you, instead of leaving them on the track. On top of that, each shell has a Triple Shell variant where you deploy three of them to use as a handy shield or to fire them one at a time (you don't get the Triple Red Shell in Battle Mode, as it would give you too much of an advantage over the other player). I always like to use them as shields until someone tries to

pass me or I need to take out someone up ahead. However, when using them as shields, a shell can be destroyed if you hit another item, and each opening leaves you progressively more vulnerable. And the red shells have the same issue as before in that they'll go straight for their target, which can sometimes lead them into a wall. Both the Invincibility Star and the Lightning Bolt return, being as handy as ever. I really love not only making other characters spin out with the Star but also blowing tree and Piranha Plants out of the ground and blasting right through the annoying Thwomps in the Bowser Castle

track (yeah, they're back, too). As for the Lightning Bolt (which like before, isn't available in Battle Mode), while it still shows up fairly seldomly, it comes up much more often than it did in Super Mario Kart. I've gotten it many more times during a single cup race here than I have an entire session of the first game.

As far as new items go, one that was previously only available in Match Race mode is the Boo item, which turns you momentarily transparent, allowing you to pass through other drivers and avoid getting hit by weapons, while also stealing another player's item if they happen to have one. Completely new is the Fake Item Box, which looks exactly like a real one, except the Question Mark is upside down and it acts like a bomb if someone touches it. It's best to place it among a bunch of real Item Boxes where your opponents have virtually no time to see if it's the real thing. And finally, there's the controversial Spiny Shell, which makes its debut here. If you've

been a regular Mario Kart player since the late 90's, you know all about this thing: once launched, it travels the track, homing in on the person in first place, while clobbering anybody who gets in its way. And though it follows the track, it will fly over gaps and holes if it has to, and if the first place driver is using a Boo, the shell will go through them but lap around the course again to catch back up with them. While not infallible, as it can hit an obstacle and get deactivated when first fired, as it goes straight ahead for a few seconds, and it will also get knocked out of play if it hits someone using an Invincibility Star,

for the most part, it can very easily clear the way for you. It's the rarest item in the game, usually coming up when you're in any position from fourth down, but there are two special Item Boxes on two courses that will give you a Spiny Shell every time. And needless to say, if you get one and then wind up in first place, firing it will only make it immediately come back around and hit you.

 

Once again, you have eight different characters to choose from, six of whom are holdovers from Super Mario Kart, while the other two, Wario and Donkey Kong, replace Koopa Troopa and DK Jr. Here, each character has his or her own color scheme, which identifies their kart icon on the map and also colors their balloons in Battle Mode. Again, the characters are divided up into several different groups, based on their weight classes. Mario and Luigi make up the middleweights: they have the slowest acceleration, the same top speed as the heavyweights, and their acceleration really diminishes when they reach said top speed,

meaning it's best not to use them in Time Trials mode. They make up for it with really good handling, able to turn corners better than other drivers, and they can also drive off-track faster than the heavyweights. And because he's a bit heavier than his brother, Mario is able to handle collisions better. They're also among the most talkative characters, especially Mario, since he's the voice you hear on the menus. He tends to yell, "Let's go!," and, "Whoo-hoo!", when he accelerates, "Whee-hee!" when firing weapons, "Yeah! Ha, ha, ha!" when one of his items is successful, "Mama mia!" when he spins out, an extended "Whoa!" or, "Ow, wow, wow, wow!" when he gets really clobbered, "Okey dokey" when a power-up wears off, "Yippee!" when

he finishes a race, and, "Hee hee! I got it!" when he comes in first place. As for Luigi, he yells, "Yahoo!", and, "Here we go!" when he gets a boost, "Bingo! Ho, ho, ho, ho!" when an item proves successful, an extended, "Mama mia!" and, "Ow, wow, wow, wow, wow!" when he gets whacked or spins out, and, "I'm a-Luigi! Number a-one!" when he gets the gold.

 

The lightweight drivers, Princess Peach, Toad, and Yoshi, are all about speed, with the highest acceleration and top speed in the entire game. They benefit the best from the mini-turbos and also drive the off-course terrain faster than any of the other drivers. But, they have the worst handling in the game, and are very vulnerable to getting knocked around by heavier drivers, especially Toad, who can't get bumped by any character without spinning out. Needless to say, picking one of them for Battle Mode is asking for trouble, and they're best used in Time Trials. While Yoshi just makes his classic sounds, Peach and Toad are much more vocal. Peach shouts, "Let's go!" when you choose her on the character select screen, "Here we go!", and, "Peachy!" when she gets a boost or a useful item, "Take that!" when

firing an item, "Bingo! Bye bye!" when an item works, "Aiee!" whenever she slips or gets hit, "Alright!" when she crosses the finish line, and, "Yeah! Peach has got it!", when she wins the gold. As for Toad, he has the voice of an excitable child and shouts stuff like, "Here we go!", and, "Yahoo!", when he gets a boost, "Whoo!" when he fires an item, "Yeah! Ha, ha, ha!" when an item works, "Ow, wow, wow!" when he spins out, just flat out screams whenever he gets really clobbered, which is kind of disturbing to hear, "Okay!" when a power-up wears off, and finally, "I'm the best!" when he gets the gold.

The heavyweights, Wario, Donkey Kong, and Bowser, lose the most speed when driving off-road and their top speed is equal to the middleweights, but the difference is that they can reach it faster, lose the least amount of speed when going around corners, and plow through middle- and especially lightweights. They're the ones best suited for Battle Mode. Between the three of them, Bowser is the heaviest and yet, like the lightweights, he can recover from a spin out very quickly by tapping the A-button three times in a row and then holding it afterward. His vocalizations are just a bunch of growls and roars, while Donkey Kong makes ape-like hoots and grunts, but Wario has actual speech. He either yells, "Here I go!", or cackles when he gets a boost, "Fire!" when he shoots a weapon, a truly evil laugh when an item works out, "Ay, yay, yay, ya!" when he spins, a hilarious, "Whaa!" when he gets blown up, and, "I'm a-Wario! I'm a-gonna win!" when he gets the gold.

 

One little detail I like about the characters' 3-D profiles from the character select screen is how they each have their own winning and losing expressions, the former you also see when you select them and latter you see at the end of Versus and Battle Mode, or when you get fourth place or lower at the end of a Grand Prix. Mario gives a thumbs-up when he wins and wipes his face when he loses; Luigi points up when winning and pulls his cap over his face in shame when losing; Peach cups her face when she wins and sobs when she loses; Toad simply throws his hands up when he wins and drops his head when losing; Yoshi puts his hand out and smiles when winning, and gives a pouting, side-eyed glance when losing; Donkey Kong puts his right hand on the side of his face while smiling when he wins

and puts his index finger to his lips in an, "Oops!", manner when he loses; Wario twirls his mustache while grinning evilly when he wins and gnaws on his shirttail when he loses (I always though he was blowing his nose while crying mournfully); and finally, Bowser roars at the camera when he wins and puts his hands on his head while yelling upon losing.

There is a rival system at work again, although this one isn't as precise as in Super Mario Kart, with the CPU selecting two random characters to be the ones who fight with you the most for first place. It remains the same two throughout the Grand Prix, no matter what position they end up in at the end of a race, and they recover from collisions and spin-outs and get back up to speed much quicker than you can, regardless of their weight class. Moreover, when you play 150cc or Extra mode, you can hit your rivals with a particularly devastating item and they recover very quickly. And if one or both of these characters get far ahead of you, it's unlikely you'll catch them for the rest of the race, unless you get nothing but Mushrooms, Stars, and Lightning

Bolts. One thing I appreciate is that here, your opponents don't have their own individual weapons but, rather, get items from the boxes just as you do. Also, while you do have to worry about them obtaining Stars and Lightning Bolts, they never get a Spiny Shell. And while the higher engine classes make it nearly impossible to lose your opponents, it doesn't enhance the AI's intelligence at all. In fact, the CPU-controlled characters tend to be rather dumb, as they'll drive right into obstacles they could easily avoid.

While the game did get mostly good reviews when it was released, there were some criticisms, with a major one being that the Grand Prix mode was the weakest part of the gameplay, as some found it to be far too easy. I'll admit that, after years of playing Mario Kart 64 to the point where I could practically do it in my sleep, going back to Super Mario Kart and realizing just how much harder that game is was a really rude wake-up call. Also, when I replayed Mario Kart 64 for the first time in years in order to do this review, not only was I able to get back into the groove fairly easily but, even at 150cc, it wasn't that difficult to make it to the winner's circle, and I did win the gold a number of times as well. Heck, when I played the Mushroom

Cup for the first time in this revisit, I didn't finish any of the races in first place and I still won the gold. That's not to say that I had it completely easy, as I did screw up and have to try some courses again, and there were hilarious Botchamania-worthy instances on some courses, but I do agree that this game isn't nearly as punishing as its 16-bit predecessor. Other criticisms described it as more of a downgrade of Super Mario Kart than an upgrade, calling it derivative and not adding much new, aside from a couple of new characters, some new items, new courses, and the expanded multiplayer modes, and that what was new didn't add much depth to the experience. While I

would've liked for them to have kept the five races a cup rather than four, come up with even more courses to fill the gaps, and maybe added to the number of playable characters, perhaps keeping Koopa Troopa and Donkey Kong Jr. along with the additions of Donkey Kong and Wario, or even adding Diddy Kong into the mix (little did we know at the time that his own racing game was in the works), I think the game is different enough to where it doesn't feel like just the same game with better graphics.

There were criticisms about the CPU characters' AI, which I've already commented on but, while I do wish you could decisively lose your rivals the same way they can you, for the most part, I'm just like, "It is what it is." Finally, while most agree that the Versus and Battle Modes are a lot of fun, criticisms leveled against the Grand Prix mode are that, besides being too easy, it's also repetitive, while the Time Trials are what keep single players continuously coming back. Speaking for myself, while I do wish I still had friends to play the multiplayer modes with, I do enjoy the Grand Prix mode whenever I play it, despite how limited it is and how there's little else to do when you've won each cup. While it can be a bit too easy even on

150cc, playing it on Extra mode makes for a real challenge, as you can get easily turned around even if you know the courses well. And when you're away from the game for a while, as I was until recently, it retains its freshness when you do go back to it. As for the Time Trials, that was something I cared about when I was younger but now, my attitude is that nobody's going to see the times I set, so there's no real point to it unless I enter some competition, which I'm never going to do. So, in the end, while a lot of it could be sheer nostalgia, I will always argue that Mario Kart 64 is a genuinely good game.

Mushroom Cup

 

Luigi Raceway: The first course of the game is, naturally, the easiest, even on 150cc or Extra Mode. It's perfectly simple, with no hazards aside from the rougher terrain on the sides of the track (which you're not likely to run into anyway), has plenty of curves and turns that provide ample opportunities for power-sliding, and there's even a little shortcut you can take on the second big loop before the finish line, which is to use a boosting item to cut through its sandy and grassy infields. Also, in addition to the many normal Item Boxes,

just beyond the first line of them, down the road from the starting line, is a balloon with Luigi's face that descends with a box all its own. This is one of the two boxes in the game that contain nothing but the Spiny Shell, but you have to hop when the box is at its lowest point in order to snag it. Also, if you really want the shell, you have to quickly get rid of whatever item you got from the boxes before it or you'll cancel it out.

Moo Moo Farm: This is actually the shortest course in the whole game, but it's a tad more difficult than Luigi Raceway, as you're driving on a dirt track, with rolling hills and slopes all around. Said hills can severely slow you down, so it's best to try to stay in the center of the course, though that can be difficult to do when you're trying to power slide. Because of the wide width of the track, it's easy to avoid other racers, but there are two sections, one shortly after the starting line and another near the finish, where there are big nests of

Monty Moles on the slopes (they're called "Chubbies" in the instruction booklet). Unlike the gophers in the first game, hitting one of these guys will send you careening up into the air, and their nests can be harder to avoid than you might think, as you sometimes can't tell where the stretches of them begin and end. But other than that and the risk of running into one of the pillars of the bridge you pass under before the finish line, this course isn't that hard. And the cows themselves, which actually are called "Moo Moos," are just here as part of the scenery.

Koopa Troopa Beach: This is the first course that has a handful of different paths and shortcuts to take. Just around the bend ahead of the starting line, you come to a large rock shaped like a Koopa Troopa, with the option of either going to the left or right. It's best to take the right route, as the left one leads into a snug S-curve that can cost you precious seconds. Farther down the shoreline, when you come to a rocky overpass with various ramps, you can take one of two shortcuts. The first one can be reached by driving to the right of the

rock and across a sandbar, although you have to get around some crabs that can cause you to spin out if you drive over them, and if the tide comes in while you're crossing the bar, you can really fall behind (it doesn't get deep enough to where Lakitu will need to fish you out, though). A more useful shortcut can be found by taking the normal route: beyond the last of the ramps is a cave in the wall which allows you to pass a good chunk of the course. Though some can do it by themselves, it's best to use a Mushroom to ensure success; otherwise, you'll crash into the wall. You come out of the cave at a waterfall and you have to be careful when you do, as there are palm trees that will stop you dead if you slam into them hard. Before this

spot is a huge boulder with a long ramp leading up to it. Going up this ramp and using a boosting item allows you the possibility of grabbing an Item Box hovering above the boulder, which is the other one that contains nothing but a Spiny Shell. The final bit to the finish line has some ramps and a spot to their right where the tide can come in high enough to cover you, as well as more of those annoying crabs.

Kalimari Desert: This is a fairly short course but it's also the most difficult of the Mushroom Cup. Besides having to stay on the central dirt track to avoid slowing down (if you go too far off course, you end up in the rough and Lakitu comes to your aid), your biggest obstacle is the train, which crosses your path at two points. You can get past it with any sort of boosting item, or even go right through it if you have a Star or a Boo. Even if you don't beat the train, you have better luck dealing with it than the CPU players, as they drive right up

to it and end up crashing into its side, giving you the chance to cut ahead of them after it passes. Speaking of the train, the more players there are, the smaller it is, to the point where it's just an engine car in three- and four-player Versus mode. This course also has one of the most amazing shortcuts ever. At the second train crossing, you can drive left up the tracks and, when you come to a tunnel, skip to the next lap by activating a Star before entering; at the midway point, Lakitu will come in and confirm that you've made it. You can only do this on the first and second laps, and if you don't use a Star, you'll royally screw yourself over, as the game will register it as you bypassing the finish line rather than going on to the next lap!

Flower Cup

 

Toad's Turnpike: While this course is completely straightforward in terms of its layout, what makes it difficult is the heavy traffic you have to dodge and navigate around. Sometimes you have to squeeze between two vehicles on either side of the road or maneuver around them in order to get at the Item Boxes, which are all found in small, off-track sections that dot the sides of the highway. Things get especially tight on the last stretch to the finish line, so it's best to use a Star or Boo if you have one. If you get hit by one of the vehicles, it blows

it blows you up into the air, leaving you vulnerable to getting hit again should another one come up behind you just as you're about to take off. Speaking of which, the traffic's speed depends on the difficulty level: the higher the difficulty, the faster it goes. And because of all these cars, you don't have many opportunities to power slide, and there's a big hill right before the home stretch where it's best to use any sort of boost item to keep yourself from losing speed. Finally, if you think this track is difficult already, try playing it on Extra, where the traffic comes at you rather than goes with you, and at the speed as in 150cc! I've tried that only a handful of times and each time, I get absolutely creamed.

Frappe Snowland: The first of two courses that involve snow and ice (though with this one, it's mainly just snow), what would you expect the biggest hazards to be? The snowy terrain? It's certainly slippery and doesn't have the best traction, especially if you go off-road, but it can be dealt with, and during the first stretch, you can just as easily power slide and mini-turbo over the rolling hills as you can on the track. The giant snow statues you see here and there? The only one you risk running into is the big one of Mario at

about the halfway point. Going out of bounds? You'd have to go really far off-track in order to end up there. No, the worst obstacles are these cute little snowmen that dot the track's first lag and appear in a huge group in front of the Mario statue. As cute as they look, they apparently have dynamite in them, as you get blown up into the air if you hit them, and they respawn immediately. That enormous collection of them in front of the Mario statue is where they're truly a pain, as you have to do some fancy dodging to get through them (unless you have a Star or a Boo, of course). It's much safer to go behind the statue, where there are no snowmen. Beyond them and some more curves

is a section that goes through a canyon, with steep walls and a really tight S-curve. After that, the track makes a hard right to a bridge going across a river, which is a good place to use items like Koopa Shells or Banana Peels, sending your opponents slipping into the frigid water. However, because of how hard that turn is, if no one falls for any Bananas you left on the bridge, you can easily go off into the water yourself.

Choco Mountain: This course is fairly short but very tricky due to the track being fairly narrow and often running through canyons and gorges, with steep walls and sides you can't even begin to power slide over. There are also a lot of sharp curves dotting it, as well as some rolling hills, particularly in the last little stretch before the finish line. The worst section is this canyon with a very sharp curve into its right side, where boulders come tumbling down from above. While they're easy enough to avoid for the most part, I have gotten crushed by

one of those things. But worse than that is the drop-off to the left of this turn. On 50cc and Time Trials, there's a guardrail here, but it's completely unprotected on the higher difficulties and, if you fall over the edge, you'll either end up in the water below or, worse, on an earlier section of the track, forcing you to drive it all over again! This doesn't necessarily equal instant fail, as I have fallen off but still managed to complete the race in the top four positions, but when it happens, it is panic-inducing, to say the least.

Mario Raceway: This is the second-shortest course in the game but it has one of the most challenging layouts, as there are so many curves, from S's to complete hairpins, that it's almost impossible to stay on the track. Fortunately, it makes for a lot of opportunities for mini-turbos, and you can easily cut through the grassy terrain with Mushrooms and Stars. The only real hazards are the Piranha Plants that dot the sides of the track, especially the corners, and which can cause you to spin out if you hit them full-force. There's a

really tricky but rewarding shortcut you can pull off by boosting off the highest point on a hill and, if you do it correctly, sailing over the wall, bypassing the entire hairpin there. However, this is probably the hardest trick in the game to pull off, and you likely wouldn't have time to do it in any mode other than Time Trials. There's also another possible shortcut where you can squeeze through the narrow space between the giant mushroom you come across and the wall, using a Mushroom or Star in the process, but the Piranha Plants there make it so difficult and your timing has to be so precise than it's almost not worth the effort, especially when you realize it shaves off maybe a second.

Star Cup

 

Wario Stadium: This course has the look and feel of a combination of a monster truck stadium and motocross track, with lots of steep hills and bumps in the road, sharp curves, spots where the Item Boxes are so spread out across the track that you can miss them, a big hill near the end where you jump over an earlier part of the track, and a very sharp hairpin before the final stretch to the finish. You really have to make sure to keep your kart in the center of the track when going over these hills, otherwise you can spin out or crash into the wall,

causing you to lose a lot of time. And if you fall off that really big hill near the end by not going up it fast enough or getting hit by an item as you do (if you get hit by a Lightning Bolt, you must wait until it wears off before attempting the jump, as you can't get enough momentum when you're shrunk), you'll end up a quarter of the way back, basically ensuring failure. Not even that one spot in Choco Mountain was that cruel. It's possible to jump over the left wall at the start of the course by power sliding up one of the four hills there, angling yourself up to the top, and releasing the mini-turbo and jumping at precisely the right moment. Like other similar shortcuts, it's really hard to pull off,

but if you do it correctly, you end up so close to the finish line that it's not even funny. Do it right all three times and you can finish the course in around twenty seconds... which is nice because this is second-longest course in the entire game, taking almost 1:30 to do one lap. But some have managed to do it in under 2:30, and that's without the shortcut!

Sherbet Land: I hate this course! It may be fairly short, but it's far from sweet, as you're driving on slippery ice around a frozen lake with large cracks that stretch right across your path (yeah, it's basically a 64-bit version of Vanilla Lake from the first game, and just as frustrating). It's also full of the penguins from Super Mario 64, with a bunch of baby ones that tend to slide right into your path, potentially causing you to spin out and slide into the frigid water if you hit them. Before the final stretch to the finish, there's a cave full of adult

penguins who make that same, annoying honking sound and waddle around the big columns in there, forcing you to power slide like mad to avoid them (they go counter-clockwise during the first two laps but change direction during the last), and you have to hop like mad to clear the sharp curve before the exit. The stretch leading up to that cave has a fork in the road where you can either go to the left of this enormous boulder for a number of Item Boxes or to a small, narrow route over to the right for just one. It doesn't really matter which way you go, but the right side is a great place to set traps, though they only work against other players, as the CPU-controlled drivers always go to the left. And there are two more of those damn baby penguins who slide across the track in front of the entrance to the cave, forcing you to dodge them as well as their parents inside.

Royal Raceway: This is another really long track, and while, unlike Wario Stadium and Sherbet Land, you actually have an asphalt road to drive on, there are many hairpin turns here, some of which curve around the shore of a lake, which you can easily get dunked in. There's a big jump about 3/4 of the way through where you use a Zipper to launch yourself across the lake, but you have to be in the center when you get the boost or you'll either crash into the front of the mountains and fall into the water or make the jump but hit the sides of the

mountains above the track itself. Using the Lightning Bolt on your opponents before they hit the Zipper is particularly evil, as they won't be able to clear it (it doesn't affect them if they're already on the Zipper when you hit it). Also, when you go towards the road after the jump, you bounce back up into the air unless you hold down the R-button at the right moment; do it too soon or too late, and you'll bounce up really high. While it may look cool, it wastes time and allows those who get ahead of you to beat you to the Item Boxes. At this spot, there's also a path that goes off to the right and takes you to Mushroom Castle, which looks exactly the way it did in Super Mario 64, but it's

nothing more than a cute distraction that can cost you time and you see it during the Award Ceremony at the end of each Grand Prix, anyway. Finally, the last stretch to the finish is made up of three tight turns through the hills, past a big wide field, and ending up back on the lakeshore. It's almost impossible to stay on the track during this last section and I don't even try, normally; I just cut across the field with any item I have and hope I beat the others to the finish.

Bowser's Castle: Yep, before you ask, this is just as frustrating as its Super Mario Kart counterparts. It has sharp turns, a narrow stone track in some spots that can be tough to stay on, bridges that span over lava which are often beyond those sharp turns, some big jumps over lava that you can fail if you don't approach them quickly enough, and numerous annoying Thwomps. In addition to smashing up and down in place, there's one long corridor where two of them fly out in front of you and attempt to either smash you or block your way,

and after you get past them, you have to drive under three more that block the doorway and come down one after the other. And down the next hallway and around a curve is another room with Thwomps who slide back and forth across your path (the fire-breathing Bowser statues here and in the first courtyard are no threat), and beyond them is another sharp turn to a narrow bridge spanning some lava. I once went off into the lava, got put back on the bridge, and then got knocked right off again when Bowser himself came roaring through! Worst of all, these Thwomps laugh at you while hindering your progress, making things all the more annoying. There's also a green Thwomp behind a cage in the back of one of the first rooms that laughs at you when you get close to him. He can't hurt you but it's kind of unsettling.

Special Cup

 

DK's Jungle Parkway: Being a big fan of the Donkey Kong Country games, this was always one of my favorite tracks, although it can be tricky. The dirt path you have to ride on is pretty narrow and there are a lot of curves that make it hard to stay on. Also, if you go off the track, you get pelted by big, thorny nuts that are thrown off-camera by, according to the instruction booklet, the "restless natives" (the booklet also calls these projectiles stones, while the Nintendo Player's Guide refers to them as coconuts, but they're actually kiwanos), and this can slow you down even more. The spot

where I tend to run into this the most is after another big jump you have to make with a Zipper, this one over a stretch of the river, which a large boat with Mario's name on its side chugs up and down. While you're in no danger of hitting the boat when you launch yourself, if you aim too far to the left before hitting the Zipper, you could find yourself in the water (and no, you can't land on the giant lily pad). Like the big jump on Royal Raceway, you can really crew over your opponents by hitting them with a Lightning Bolt before they hit the Zipper. Another spot for this is on the narrow rope-bridge that leads into the cave which makes up the last stretch of the course. Banana

Peels and fake Item Boxes are virtually impossible to avoid and a green Koopa Shell fired from behind will likely hit its target and send them flying over the edge (though, don't forget that that applies to you as well)! The path curves very sharply to the right inside the cave, and because the last group of Item Boxes are on the side of the slope, I often find myself just driving straight up it.

Yoshi's Valley: This course is unique in that it's a maze with several different paths you can take to reach the finish, each with their own pros and cons. Because it's impossible to determine just who's in what position, the top four profiles on the left side of the screen stay as question marks until each of them crosses the finish line. However, you can still see if you're in first place by looking at the map display and see if your kart icon is flashing. As for the routes, the fastest one, which you can find by going to the left twice when you enter the valley, is also the trickiest, as you have to go up a winding

path without a guardrail that's full of porcupines (which the Player's Guide calls "Spinys," even though they have nothing to do with the enemies chucked by the Lakitus) that can cause you to spin out if you run over them. The main route can be found by either taking a left and a right past the valley's entrance or a right and two lefts, leading to a drop down beneath a rocky overpass and a right turn filled with porcupines that leads out of the maze. Right next to the main route's entrance is another route where you drive across a short, narrow rope-bridge and a sharp left turn full of more porcupines. The safest route, which you reach by taking the first two rights after entering

the valley, has guardrails, for the most part, and no porcupines, but it's also the longest. Regardless of which route you take, you eventually reach a series of large curves snaking through the valley, with long sections that have no guardrails (if you line yourself up correctly and jump at the right time, you can hop clear over the chasm and onto a further section of track), a platform near the end with a giant, rotating egg that can easily squish you, and another, longer rope-bridge that leads back onto the track in the middle of the grassy plain where you started.

Banshee Boardwalk: As you can guess, this is the game's equivalent of Super Mario Kart's Ghost Valley courses, and while it's much more straightforward than Yoshi's Valley and goes by really fast, that doesn't make it any easier. There are spots here where a giant Cheep Cheep jumps over the boardwalk (I thought it was the balloon that gives you the trophy at the end of a Grand Prix but I guess not) and some Boos appear around you, but they're little more than distractions and can't harm you. What will harm you, however, are the many sharp turns and numerous sections without

guardrails on this narrow track, with the absolute worst being a jagged, rail-less S-curve a little over the halfway point (that's also a really good place to blast your opponents with the Lightning Bolt). Also, there's a "haunted house" before the final stretch to the finish line that has a winding path running through it and a big hole to the left in the first room, which you can jump over to save some time. Two of the house's three rooms contain spots where bats come flying out and slam into your kart, slowing you down and even possibly causing you to spin out. Also, if you've been shrunk before you enter the house, you'll get crushed when hit by the bats. And even when you make it out of the house, there are still more tight turns, curves, and gaps in the guardrail before you reach the finish line.

Rainbow Road: It was such a unique and well-done final course in the first game that they had to bring it back here. This time, the difficulty is not in how easy it is to fall off, as there are guardrails this time (although it is possible to get knocked over them if you're hit by someone using a Star or a Koopa Shell), and the track's generous width and gentle curves don't make driving a challenge. Instead, what does make it challenging is its sheer length: at 2,000 meters, it's the longest track in the game, and each lap takes about two minutes to complete. That gives your opponents a lot of

opportunities to catch up and steal the lead from you, regardless of how far ahead you might get. Fortunately, you get a lot of chances for mini-turbos, especially on the track's latter half, which has a number of wide loops and curves. But, at the same time, you have to watch out for Chomps that roam the track and are almost completely camouflaged by the colors. Often, you don't see one coming until you're almost on top of it, and hitting one blows you up into the air, increasing your chances of going over the edge. Speaking of which, the track starts with a steep drop off that will likely cause your kart to leave it, and you better make sure you're angled as straight as

possible, otherwise you can fall into oblivion and have to wait for Lakitu to pick you up. This makes doing a Rocket Boost especially risky, and if you try to hit someone ahead of you on the drop with green Koopa Shells, they're likely to go flying off into the sky like comets. It's possible to use this drop-off as a shortcut to a section of track below, but pulling it off is really tricky. And finally, there's a hill on the final stretch that's best tackled with a boost to avoid losing speed. But despite its tricky nature, this course is just gorgeous to take in, with the bright colors, the constellations that fill the sky around you, and the lovely music.

The awards ceremony at the end of each Grand Prix is the same deal as it was before, just more elaborate, as you watch your character and the two other winners drive up to the front of Mushroom Castle. There, a three-leveled podium, each level corresponding to the character's ranking, pops up from underneath them, and a big Cheep Cheep balloon appears over them, spitting out the trophy you're awarded. Interestingly, when you win on 150cc or Extra Mode, the trophy looks like an actual cup, whereas on 50 and 100cc, it's shaped more like an hourglass. But unlike its predecessor, this game isn't as nice about you finishing a Grand Prix in fourth place or lower. While you still see

your character watching the ceremony from the sidelines (if you look in the background when you take part in one of the ceremonies, you can faintly make out whoever is in fourth place, as they watch from afar), once it gets underway, your character drives off, disappears behind a hill... and a Mini Bomb Kart follows and blows you up into the air! You then see your player's losing profile image, with the captions, WHAT A PITY! YOU PLACED 4TH (or whatever). MAYBE NEXT TIME! The first time that ever happened to me, I was shocked at how harshly the game mocks you for not qualifying for a trophy. At least Super Mario Kart actually lets you watch the entire ceremony! If you

win the gold on the Star or Special Cup on 150cc or Extra Mode, you get the ending credits, which is just a montage of all the racetracks, but with some really nice music, ending with a final shot of Mushroom Castle, a "THE END" caption, and Mario saying, "Hey, you very good! See you next time." But like with the first game, you have to reset in order to go back to the Start menu if you want to play some more, which is still irksome.

As for the Battle Mode courses, or arenas, once again, there are only four of them, but they're much more interesting and have more variety to them. The first one, Big Donut, is circular in shape and slopes downward towards its middle, which is a pool of lava. There are numerous Item Boxes to be found here, some right on the edge of the lava, and four walls along the outer rim that make for great places to both shield yourself from attacks and catch your opponents off-guard. Block Fort is square-shaped and has four multi-colored, multi-leveled blocks in each corner, which you can drive

up through the use of ramps and travel to and from via bridges connecting their top levels. Those top levels also allow you to fire Koopa Shells down at your opponents from above, bypassing any shell shields they may have, as well as fill the bottom level up with bouncing shells that are hard to avoid due to the narrow corridors down below. For the same reason, both the bottom level and ramps are good spots to leave behind Banana Peels. Double Deck is another square-shaped arena, with three levels of floors. You start on the center floor and can either head down to the bottom or go up top,

which has a large gap that you can drop down through. This is one instance where your map screen is useless, as it doesn't tell you what level your opponents are on, and the floors' wide, rectangular outer paths leave you open to Koopa Shells, both green and red. Finally, Skyscraper is the most hazardous because, as the name applies, it takes place on the roof of a tall tower. There are many spots to fall off and lose a balloon: the outer edge, the gaps between the bridges leading to the central platform, and a circular hole right in the 

center of the whole stage. Koopa Shells are almost totally useless as projectiles here, since they tend to go down through the gaps, so it's best to use them as shields. The bridges that connect the central platform to the outer ring are also good places to lay traps, as their canopies can hide them quite well.

The game's music was the first Nintendo project for composer Kenta Nagata, who's gone on to work on many of the following Mario Kart games, as well as other Mario-related titles like the later Super Smash Bros. games and the New Super Mario Bros. on the Wii and 3DS. For Mario Kart 64, he took some inspiration from Soyo Oka's work on the first game but, for the most part, did his own thing and came up with some really good stuff. His title screen music comes off as more wondrous rather than fun and energetic, possibly since this was the first such game on the then awe-inspiring N64, but it works. Also, like before, when you hit the final lap, you get some fanfare akin to the "time running out" music in the old Mario Bros. games, and the track's theme suddenly speeds up. While he decided not to go with giving each character a distinct jingle when they complete a race, he did differentiate between simply finishing a race and coming in first place, with the latter having a grander fanfare. He also made coming in 5th or lower much sadder, complete with your character making one of their impact shouts, followed by a melancholic shot of the finish line accompanied by some downbeat music, as you're given the option to either try again or quit. And for the awards ceremony, he basically remade the music used in Super Mario Kart, only making it bigger and grander. Speaking of downbeat, the animation for coming in 4th or lower starts with the upbeat fanfare, only for it to drown out and then go down an octave, becoming downright somber, before slowing to a complete crawl as you drive over the hill and get blown up by the Mini Bomb Kart. It then ends with a fanfare that is the epitome of saying, "Too bad!", with music.

Though the racetracks themselves have a lot more variety than in the first game, some share the same musical themes. Case in point, Luigi, Mario, and Royal Raceway, as well as Wario Stadium, are all paired with what can best be described as Nagata's take on the Mario Circuit theme, a fast-paced, energetic, adrenaline-pumping motif that serves as the perfect musical way to start off the game when you first play the Mushroom Cup. Since the three Raceways are so similar, it makes sense for them to share this theme, but given Wario's evil nature, as well as the monster truck rally design of his course, it might've been better to come up with something harder and a bit edgier for the Stadium. But, that's just a nitpick. Moo Moo Farm and Yoshi Valley also share the same theme, which is a rustic, country-like piece that brings to mind the similar sound of Chocolate Island's music, which is perfect for the setting of Moo Moo Farm. It works well with Yoshi Valley, too, but I still wish they'd have come up with something original there. Koopa Troopa Beach has a very lovely calypso, tropical-sounding piece that is exactly the type of music you'd want to hear while you're at the beach. Kalimari Desert has a similarly mellow theme, one with a definite western sort of vibe to it, fitting with the environment, especially with the old-fashioned train that runs through it. One of my personal favorite track themes is Toad's Turnpike, which has this really cool, electronic keyboard piece that captures the feel of driving on a freeway or in a city at night. As you might expect, Frappe Snowland and Sherbet Land share the same theme, which is a lovely and even magical-sounding piece that does give off wintery, even Christmasy vibes; however, I think I prefer the original Vanilla Lake theme just a bit more. Choco Mountain has another rustic-like theme, sounding like it's being played on a harmonica-like instrument, but it's kind of generic. Rather than sounding badass and metal like in the first game, the theme for Bowser's Castle goes for a creepy and hopeless vibe, with constantly echoing voices that, when combined with the Thwomps' evil laughter, does make it kind of unsettling (that is, when the Thwomps aren't driving me mad). DK's Jungle Parkway has just a constant tribal beat that, while fitting and nice to listen to, could've had more done with it, especially given the pedigree of the Donkey Kong Country series' music. Banshee Boardwalk's music is creepy but kind of odd, too, as it's made up of two beats: one that's a constant, light drumming, and the other sounding like it's on a xylophone, with instances of atmospheric instrumentals. And finally, there's Rainbow Road, with a theme that's just as beautiful and wondrous as the course itself, sounding like it's played on a flute for the most part, but with sections of gentle, electric guitar as well. There's a reason why it's still one of the most beloved themes from this series, along with the original Rainbow Road theme.

Nagata kind of cheaped out when it came to the Battle Mode music, which is just repetitive and forgettable. You may not think Battle Mode would require really good music but let's not forget how surprisingly good it was in Super Mario Kart. However, he more than made it up for it with the ending credits music, which is this really nice, nostalgic piece that's like if you took the Rainbow Road theme and made it even grander and more beautiful than it already was, if that's even possible. Just like the ending credits to Super Mario 64, which also feature a montage of the game's levels, it allows you to look back at all the courses and reflect on the memories, both the good and the bad, you've had while playing, with Mario's message at the end making you want to come back again for more.

I may be just going off on nostalgia, but regardless, I think Mario Kart 64 is a classic game, right up there with the original Super Mario Kart. There's no doubt that that game is superior in various ways, that this one isn't nearly as challenging, could've benefited from some more courses and characters, and I'm not that big on the CPU characters' programming, but I think it still the game has more than enough to recommend it. The graphics and course design are all top-notch, the controls are wonderfully fluid and precise, the sound effects are pleasing to the ear, the music is excellent, the individual courses have far more variety than before, and all the various gameplay modes are so

much fun, with the multiplayer being one of the best on the N64, right up there with Goldeneye. It may not have the same cherished place in gaming history as its predecessor, and those who've only played the Mario Kart games on the Wii and Wii-U may not think it's anything special, but this game will always hold a special place in my heart as one of my personal favorites of all time.