Joystiq

Mario Kart 64 (Nintendo 64)

After a longish break, the Mario Kart series reappeared on the Nintendo 64 with 1997's appropriately (if a tad obviously) titled Mario Kart 64. Despite missing the system's launch by a good five months, the game still came off as a little rushed, with plenty of glitches that could be exploited for unearned race times. The game's graphics also suffered as a result, with an odd mix of pre-rendered 2D sprites for the racers and somewhat fuzzy, 3D polygons for the courses.

Still, the game made its mark on the series by introducing staple items like the fake item block and triple shells. It was also the first four-player multiplayer Kart, making party play that much more interesting.

Fun fact: MK64's Rainbow Road is by far the longest course in the series, taking upwards of seven minutes to complete a three-lap circuit (without shortcuts). Maybe "fun" isn't quite the right word for this fact.

23/04/08