Mario Kart 64

Hearing John Ulmer describe this as the best racing game on the N64 made me glad that I'm not really a driving game fan because if this was the best then it must have been a poor console for the genre. This remake of the vastly superior SNES game was such a major disappointment for me, not only by way of comparison but just on its own terms – it needs skill but doesn't allow you to get better and it just isn't as much pure fun as it should have been.

The bright graphics and vocals are all good but the increased power of the N64 went to the programmers heads and it is just all too busy. The tracks have great backgrounds, which I have no problem with, but the amount of stuff occurring on the track is a real problem. The sheer volume of obstacles mean that even the most skillful driver will get caught up and it is endlessly frustrating when it happens – it certainly reduces its value as a straight racing game. It doesn't help that you simply cannot pull away in the way you could in the SNES game. With that game a good lap would mean the reward of space and a bit of a lead; however with the N64 the characters seem to stick with you no matter what – even a mushroom will make little difference a few seconds after you have used it. In fairness they also seem to slow down (although not to the same degree that they speed up) when you hit an obstacle but it is still annoying because a perfect race can still see you in 4th if you hit an obstacle on the last third of the final lap.

The characters are all OK and have had their individuality hemmed in a bit (not sure why – I still go for Toad) and again the courses see good use of the Mario universe. Some of them tend to be a bit too long and too many of them are overly complex with it. The items are surprisingly useless (not helped by how the others will catch you no matter what you do to them) and not helped by the computer characters having a seemingly endless supply of their chosen weapon (causing the third lap to be a total mess of bananas etc). The good items are useless because the computer will catch up in seconds while the idea of a "first place seeking" missile must have been good on paper but is crap in reality. The battle mode has not survived at all. The levels are complex and the items useless; the best way of winning it just to fire lots of green shells and the retreat to an upper level to wait it out. Even the simplest levels are a garish affair and it was more than I could bare – my favourite part of the SNES game had become an unplayable, skill and strategy free zone.

Overall this is not an awful game but it is rather poor. The fact that it might have been more for kids would explain why the skill has been taken out of it to some degree, but it doesn't explain why it is just so frustrating and random to play. The mockery of the battle mode is just another straw on my already broken back – maybe this is why I got so good at Goldeneye?

This N64 game is an update of the classic game from 1992 and I have to say, this game rocked. It was also very challenging, which added to the fun. The graphics are fantastic and the overall game is better than the original. New weapons are available along with the ones from the original and there many new and challenging tracks. The battle mode is also excellent, featuring (I believe) four arenas. Another plus is you can have up to four players playing at once, whether in battle mode or racing mode. This is a must have for any video game fan.

Nintendo IS the Disney of video-gaming; their catalogue of classic games have defined millions of childhoods across the globe and influenced things inside and outside the gaming industry itself. Mario Kart 64 is one of those many treasure-troves of Nintendo's gold-mines of entertainment. Mario is here with Donkey Kong, Peach, Luigi, Wario, Yoshi, Toad and even Bowser. The roster's grown since then, but still what a great selection of characters for a crossover racing game.

Released in 1996, Mario Kart 64 was one of the launch titles of the Nintendo 64, alongside Super Mario 64 (though that game was delayed in Europe and Australia by almost a year from the console's release), and Kart 64 still has fast, fun and vibrant gameplay. You're first place one minute, and then your position is under constant threat thanks to the use of blue-shells, banana peels, lightning bolts and trick-question-mark-boxes which are actually bombs.

This game brings back quite a lot of memories from my childhood: the discovery of many glitches, playing it with my cousins whenever they had a sleepover at my place, and just playing it with my brother gave me such cherishing moments that's helped me become the gamer I am today.

Mario Kart 64 is the first game I bought for Nintendo 64 back in late 1996. Even after so many other games and other systems that out did the Nintendo 64, I kept coming back to this game. Mario Kart offers a wide variety of courses to race on with eight unique Nintendo characters. A few of these characters being: obviously Mario, Peach, Bowser, and Donkey Kong.

There are four sets of races, each featuring a unique course going anywhere from Peach's Castle to Donkey Kong's Jungle. The course's are fun to travel through while you pick up items off the road helping you to stop your opponents and get a better boost. Mario Kart 64 is by far the best racer I've played. It is so unique and fun that you just become engulfed by it.

When the racing get's old, try to beat your friends in a little battle match or set a course time trial record with your favorite character.

Mario Kart 64. Featuring: Mario, Peach, Luigi, Toad, Wario, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, and Bowser.

Uniqueness: 5/5

Replay Value: 5/5

Plain Fun: 5/5

Overall: 5/5

Well what can I say most of you know the mario kart series very well especially if your here, so you should know its excellent. For one I don't really like racing games there's very few series' out there that I will play and this here has to be the best franchise by far now from all the tracks, the rewards, the multi player, this was the the leader of its time you update the graphics put it up there with todays games it sticks with the best. All of the sounds were done very well the controls were just perfect, only real problem I have is the dumb AI from 50 ccs (easiest difficulty) to 150 ccs (hardest difficulty) the AI makes dumb decisions and somehow for every cup you have the same people in 1st and third even though you know those guys out the most they keep coming like water in a flood but it still doesn't kill the glory beauty and funess of this game Mario Kart 64 is right in my top 10 ever if you haven't played it get it its worth every penny you'll play