After the success of Super Mario Kart on the SNES, it's understandable that Nintendo would be keen to bring a sequel to their new console, the Nintendo 64, sooner rather than later. Racing games were among the genres which had the most to gain in a transition to 3D too, so Mario Kart 64 releasing less than a year after the N64's debut was hardly surprising. It was a huge hit, becoming the console's 2nd best selling game ever, and while that is hardly a surprise in the modern day, it was by no means a sure thing in 1997. But in only the series's 2nd entry, Mario Kart 64 was a massive step forward not just for its own series, but the kart racing subgenre in general. Where Super Mario Kart invented the mascot-lead kart racer, MK64 popularized it, and is likely responsible for the many spin-offs we have today.
It can't be understated how important the 3D courses were to Mario Kart 64's success. While the flat courses of the first entry were fine for their time, this was the game that set the foundation for how most future Mario Kart titles would act and feel. Changes in elevation, obstacles, depth perception, and background were all tremendously improved, and made the game significantly more comfortable to pick up and play. Graphics aren't anything special, but most hazards and walls are displayed clearly, and driving never really feels like guesswork. In fact, MK64 is home to quite a bit of classic courses, and while some might be a bit long or a big generic, most of them are pretty well designed and cater to a wide range of audiences. As with most Mario Karts, the focus for this title was clearly on multiplayer, which allowed 4 player races and battle modes for the first time in the series. Single player is a bit limited; there's the 3 standard grand prix (and 1 unlockable one) and a time trial mode, but not allowing single players to enjoy the battle mode was a bit of a puzzling decision.
What this game somewhat lacks in single player offerings, though, it greatly delivers on in the multiplayer aspect. The N64 was the only console at the time which supported up to 4 players, so to many, Mario Kart 64 became the de facto racing game of the 5th generation. And even after 8 titles in the series, this game offers a multiplayer mayhem that not many others do. Courses are less forgiving, items are more damaging, and going off track is practically a death sentence. Something about that chaos, though, makes MK64 feel distinctly like it's leveling the playing field, and that gives it a fair degree of variability, even when racing the same track back-to-back. Battle mode is excellent in this game, and it's the first time in the series the mode was truly able to shine; so many of the iconic Mario Kart battle mode stages debuted here. Mario Kart 64 offers that unique kind of tremendously fun, almost lawless gameplay which makes it so replayable with friends.
Of course, fun doesn't always mean good, per se. There's a lot of things about Mario Kart 64 that are only fun for the sake of their brokenness. The hazardous driving conditions of many courses may create lots of laughs in multiplayer, but some might end up easily frustrated by these sample aspects in single player. Then there's this game's most notorious feature, the cheating AI. Rubberbanding is a common feature in racing games, and when utilized properly can make each race feel fun and exciting. But MK64 doesn't really feature rubberbanding; the AI are just flat out not following the same rules as the player is. Items and hazards barely affect them once off screen, certain characters can overcome even the most ridiculous deficits to pass you at the last second, and their speed is sometimes so fast that not even an infinite amount of mushrooms can help you catch up. If you notice what's happening, you can develop strategies to make things more fair, but sometimes you just feel like you were predestined to lose certain races. In some ways it can almost feel nice that the AI is giving you a real challenge, but most of the time, your performance only depends on what happens in the last 30 seconds of the race, which sometimes makes the first two laps seem a bit unimportant.
Even then, there's a sort of chaotic charm to this title that's undeniable. It's the type of game that's decently made, certainly nothing incredible, but is always good for a quick session of guaranteed fun. It's the game that really defined what the core gameplay of Mario Kart would be like from that point forward, and even with all its mechanical flaws and poorly implemented AI, it's hard to deny the potential for the sort of unbalanced, sort of broken, but downright whacky fun that only retro games can really offer. Mario Kart 64 is where the series got its 3D roots, and despite its rather obvious flaws, its always worth keeping around to try that Rainbow Road shortcut just one more time.
It can't be understated how important the 3D courses were to Mario Kart 64's success. While the flat courses of the first entry were fine for their time, this was the game that set the foundation for how most future Mario Kart titles would act and feel. Changes in elevation, obstacles, depth perception, and background were all tremendously improved, and made the game significantly more comfortable to pick up and play. Graphics aren't anything special, but most hazards and walls are displayed clearly, and driving never really feels like guesswork. In fact, MK64 is home to quite a bit of classic courses, and while some might be a bit long or a big generic, most of them are pretty well designed and cater to a wide range of audiences. As with most Mario Karts, the focus for this title was clearly on multiplayer, which allowed 4 player races and battle modes for the first time in the series. Single player is a bit limited; there's the 3 standard grand prix (and 1 unlockable one) and a time trial mode, but not allowing single players to enjoy the battle mode was a bit of a puzzling decision.
What this game somewhat lacks in single player offerings, though, it greatly delivers on in the multiplayer aspect. The N64 was the only console at the time which supported up to 4 players, so to many, Mario Kart 64 became the de facto racing game of the 5th generation. And even after 8 titles in the series, this game offers a multiplayer mayhem that not many others do. Courses are less forgiving, items are more damaging, and going off track is practically a death sentence. Something about that chaos, though, makes MK64 feel distinctly like it's leveling the playing field, and that gives it a fair degree of variability, even when racing the same track back-to-back. Battle mode is excellent in this game, and it's the first time in the series the mode was truly able to shine; so many of the iconic Mario Kart battle mode stages debuted here. Mario Kart 64 offers that unique kind of tremendously fun, almost lawless gameplay which makes it so replayable with friends.
Of course, fun doesn't always mean good, per se. There's a lot of things about Mario Kart 64 that are only fun for the sake of their brokenness. The hazardous driving conditions of many courses may create lots of laughs in multiplayer, but some might end up easily frustrated by these sample aspects in single player. Then there's this game's most notorious feature, the cheating AI. Rubberbanding is a common feature in racing games, and when utilized properly can make each race feel fun and exciting. But MK64 doesn't really feature rubberbanding; the AI are just flat out not following the same rules as the player is. Items and hazards barely affect them once off screen, certain characters can overcome even the most ridiculous deficits to pass you at the last second, and their speed is sometimes so fast that not even an infinite amount of mushrooms can help you catch up. If you notice what's happening, you can develop strategies to make things more fair, but sometimes you just feel like you were predestined to lose certain races. In some ways it can almost feel nice that the AI is giving you a real challenge, but most of the time, your performance only depends on what happens in the last 30 seconds of the race, which sometimes makes the first two laps seem a bit unimportant.
Even then, there's a sort of chaotic charm to this title that's undeniable. It's the type of game that's decently made, certainly nothing incredible, but is always good for a quick session of guaranteed fun. It's the game that really defined what the core gameplay of Mario Kart would be like from that point forward, and even with all its mechanical flaws and poorly implemented AI, it's hard to deny the potential for the sort of unbalanced, sort of broken, but downright whacky fun that only retro games can really offer. Mario Kart 64 is where the series got its 3D roots, and despite its rather obvious flaws, its always worth keeping around to try that Rainbow Road shortcut just one more time.