Mario Kart 64
Reviewed by Winston Chan
Super Mario Kart for the SNES has been one of the greatest games for the
16 bit console. I expected Mario Kart 64 to be the same but a lot better.
In my scoring, if there is a 10 out of 10, then it is the best I have
seen of any game. So here is my review.
GRAPHICS (9.6 out of 10)
What can I say. The graphics for Mario Kart 64 are outstanding and
impressive. The 3d worlds of the race courses are really cool with lots
of detail. A few of the best looking courses are Wario's Stadium, Bowsers
Castle, and Toads Turnpike. One thing I admire about the game are the
lighting effects. I especially like the stream lines on the back of a
shell. There is hardly any flaw in graphics for the game. Many people are
going crazy because the characters were made of sprites. Their body's
look really square if you look at them at a side profile. But I don't
think this is a major loss. When playing the game, you will sometimes
encounter a flaw such as seeing through walls or vehicles but it's not
that annoying. There isn't much slowdown while playing on 4-player mode.
It only occurs when all players show up in one screen. Everybody will
notice it in the starting of a 4-player race when the karts are lined up
together.
SOUND (9.4 out of 10)
The music in Mario Kart 64 is suitable for each different race course.
From the evil tune on Bowser's Castle to the catching music found on
Mario Raceway. All of the music was enjoyable except for the Rainbow Road
one. It was boring especially if you had to listen to it for a long time
when racing the track. The sound effects are incredibly clear and matches
every character individually. Mario has the same italian voice and Luigi
is somewhat like him. Peach sounds like a boy but still kind of sounds
like the Peach at the end of Super Mario 64. Many people are arguing
about what she says. Is it "bingo bye bye", "beaned ya bye bye",
"Mexico", or "Let's go?" I am just going to say this."WHO CARES" Toad
sounds like a girl. Many people think his voice gets really annoying
after a while but this is not true. The only annoying part is when he
falls of the side or gets hit. Yoshi still has that, Mario jumping on
Yoshi, sound from the old Super Mario World(SNES). I don't know what the
hell that noise is but what did people expect, Yoshi having a voice. I
don't know what the hell DK's voice came from. It sure isn't an ape. My
best guess is a goat being choked. WARIO has the best voice of them all.
From when he laughs at you when you get hit to when he wins.
"I'm-a-Wario. I'm-a-goin'-to-win." You never get board of his evil voice.
Bowser's voice sound like a dinosaur or something.
CONTROL (9.8 out of 10)
It is not very hard to learn how to control the karts when you are a
beginner. The only thing that takes a while to learn is power sliding and
those mini-turbos. The anolog stick is used for steering rather than the
D-pad. Each player has its own ability and disability. Which also means
that steering is different for everybody. I do have a problem on pressing
the C buttons. They are too small. The control is the best so far out of
any game except Super Mario 64.
GAMEPLAY (9.9 out of 10)
The gameplay is nothing but peer fun. It is quite boring in one player
mode but you will find yourself in the time trials, trying to perfect
your time. Multiplayer is the big thing about this game. You can play for
hours if you have at least a person to play against. Especially in battle
mode. Everyone is not quite the same where in SMK(SNES), every course was
square. A lot of people complain that some of them are too big for a 2
player match. This is not true. You just have to look at the radar map to
find the opponent. I like the idea(3-4 players), when you lose all your
balloons, you turn into a bomb but it is to hard to actually hit someone.
The bombs should be a bit more faster like the Super star. I really hate
computer Al. It is such a cheat. No matter what, Al is always on your
tail in GP mode. A great idea of what should be improved is if, for
example, the second player is hit with a red shell and falls back to 5th
place. It should stay between 4th and 6th place, not just always passing
everybody by in a few seconds. Even though computer Al is a cheat, GP is
really easy. Even in 150cc. In SMK, 150cc was really hard because of the
unlimited items they had. I found my self getting the extra mode in a few
days. One thing I noticed is that the computer never gets red shells(I
think). I have never been hit by a red shell in one player mode. Maybe a
green shell or spiny shell but never a red shell. Another thing I noticed
is that if Al is in first or 2nd, he get unlimited banana peels. When I
am 2nd and Al is first, he keeps dropping bananas even though he doesn't
have a banana bunch? I guess that's just how it is.
LASTABILITY (8.0 out of 10)=one player (10 out of 10)=2 to 4 players
Super Mario Kart 64 has a really low replay value, IF you don't have a
friend to play with. It will only last for about two months. But if you
have a second player around, the replay value is doubled, kind of. I have
been playing the old mario kart for over two years because I have some
one to play against. You will spend endless hours playing in the battle
mode. The game will probably last about 2 years if the 2nd person is
willing to play. BUT, if you have 3-4 players, the game will last forever
unless it breaks or another Mario Kart game comes out. From what I have
seen, Mario Kart 64 is the best multiplayer game there is. Possibly
better than Star Fox 64.
OVERALL (10 out of 10)
This is by far the best game and multiplayer game I have ever seen.
Despite its flaws and the fact that it is just an upgrade of the
original, it is a top selling game. Buy this game and you won't regret
it. I wonder why it has received a platinum? Lets just hope that there
will be another sequel.