"Karting with a Mario twist."

Nintendo went through a lot of trouble to get this game to market. In production called Super Mario Kart R, it came out in early 1997, only a few months after the Nintendo 64's domestic birth, and... It wasn't disappointing.

Gameplay - Originated from the game Super Mario Kart for SNES, released in 1992, Mario Kart 64 supports four-player games, a first for the N64, and there are eight drivers (same as SMK), but with two new characters: Wario and Donkey Kong. There are twenty courses, sixteen regular and four battle, which is down from SMK's twenty courses (some hidden) and four battle mode courses.

Graphics - It's that classic Mario game feeling that comes to racing. I like the graphics and the courses are done extremely well, and the game runs at a nice, solid framerate, but one thing I notice is that the characters don't make any actions - except for when you're sliding, of course. That means they're sprite characters - but in three dimensions. Sort as if it's a statue or something.

Sounds - A good amount of music, some neat end-of-race fanfares, and good character sounds. The music really suits each race well. No music seems out of place here...so if you're saying, ''Get to the point!'', then I can say, ''I love it!''

Multiplayer - The two-player mode runs fine, with good framerates and you still are able to do the Grand Prix mode (plus the head-to-head mode and battle). But then, it seems like Nintendo got a little sloppy in three and four player modes. You can no longer do Grand Prix and the framerate really drops, plus there is no more music.

Lasting Appeal - Well, Grand Prix may seem boring after a while, but there are some secrets to unlock. Sometimes, you can use Mario Kart 64 not only as a racing game, but also as simply a sky's-the-limit game. Yes, you can do that...there are some shortcuts as well.

Overall Scores

Gameplay - There's some change from SMK, but it might bring those memories back (if you've played it) in a different style. 9.0
Graphics - Good tracks, but I don't like the character lack of movement. Looks like they're focused on racing and nothing else. 8.0
Sounds - What can I say? If sounds were food, I would dig in! 10.0
Multiplayer - Got sloppy on three and four player modes, but two's okay. I would have to say a 7.0
Lasting Appeal - There is some stuff to unlock, but you can play around with this game. 8.0

FINAL SCORE (averaged) - 8.4
What I would say about it - 8.7
Overall score - 8.6

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/07/00, Updated 03/07/00