Mario Kart 64 (1996)

Nintendo EAD

Nintendo 64 · Wii · Wii U

4.08 from 5359 ratings

8723 members have it in their collection · 69 playing now · 405 backlogged · 323 wish listed

How long? Main story 3h · with extras 11h · 100% 20h (from 14 logged playthroughs)

Mario Kart 64 is the second main installment of the Mario Kart series. It is the first game in the series to use three-dimensional graphics, however, the characters and items in this game are still two-dimensional, pre-rendered sprites. The game offers two camera angles and three engine sizes: 50cc, 100cc and 150cc. Each kart has distinctive handling, acceleration and top … Read more
Mario Kart 64 is the second main installment of the Mario Kart series. It is the first game in the series to use three-dimensional graphics, however, the characters and items in this game are still two-dimensional, pre-rendered sprites. The game offers two camera angles and three engine sizes: 50cc, 100cc and 150cc. Each kart has distinctive handling, acceleration and top speed capabilities. Shells that you fire at rival racers, Bananas that make them skid out and Lightning Bolts that make them small and very slow are just a few of the game's unique power-ups. Read less
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Release dates

  • Dec 14, 1996 (Full Release) (Japan) Nintendo 64
  • Feb 10, 1997 (Full Release) (North_America) Nintendo 64
  • Jun 24, 1997 (Full Release) (Europe) Nintendo 64
  • Jan 08, 1998 (Full Release) (Australia) Nintendo 64
  • 1999 (Full Release) (Europe) Nintendo 64
  • Dec 25, 2003 (Full Release) (China) Nintendo 64
  • Jan 26, 2007 (Full Release) (Australia) Wii
  • Jan 26, 2007 (Full Release) (Europe) Wii
  • Jan 29, 2007 (Full Release) (North_America) Wii
  • Jan 30, 2007 (Full Release) (Japan) Wii
  • Apr 26, 2008 (Full Release) (Korea) Wii
  • Jan 06, 2016 (Full Release) (Japan) Wii U
  • Jan 21, 2016 (Full Release) (Europe) Wii U
  • Jan 22, 2016 (Full Release) (Australia) Wii U
  • Dec 29, 2016 (Full Release) (North_America) Wii U
  • TBD (Cancelled) (China) Wii
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Featured in lists

Rating distribution

5 stars
2036
4 stars
1979
3 stars
1131
2 stars
186
1 star
27
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Community All Reviews Statuses

El_Diegote

Review El_Diegote 5/5 · Mar 18, 2023

This game had Toad's Turnpike in extra with all the traffic going against you. That by itself makes it a 5 star game, my favouritest Mario Kart stage of all time. Not even the remakes of that stage in other games come close.

Enkiled

Review Enkiled 3/5 · Oct 21, 2022

3.5

This was so much fun... N64 games in the early 2000's were patrician childhood years

Capt.ACAB

Review Capt.ACAB 4/5 · Dec 28, 2020

Best enjoyed with friends

I just revisited this classic by 100% clearing the single player and had a lot of fun, but there is a bit of jank I don't remember from back in the day, like getting hit by your own red shells or hitting a bad part of a wall and clipping through.

That said, this game really shines in multiplayer and …

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I just revisited this classic by 100% clearing the single player and had a lot of fun, but there is a bit of jank I don't remember from back in the day, like getting hit by your own red shells or hitting a bad part of a wall and clipping through.

That said, this game really shines in multiplayer and I'm sure most of those quirks add to the fun in a less serious setting.

The sound design and graphics reallllly bring me back!

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DirtyMidnighter

Review DirtyMidnighter 4/5 · Mar 30, 2020

The Real Reason Why Most N64 Controllers Are Sticky

Have you ever played Drunk Driver? It's the game where you have to finish a whole beer during a single race but you can't touch the beer and the controller at the same time. You should try it. It's fun as hell.

The other Mario Karts just don't feel as good as this one does and I don't know why.

Saiyajin

Review Saiyajin 4/5 · Dec 24, 2019

Brief Final Thoughts

A solid racer with a solid cast of characters, even if they aren't exactly fully 3D. Of course, there isn't as much to do as later entries but it's still a respectable amount with 16 memorable tracks and a battle mode that can occupy me for hours on end. To this day this game has some of the best soundtracks …

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A solid racer with a solid cast of characters, even if they aren't exactly fully 3D. Of course, there isn't as much to do as later entries but it's still a respectable amount with 16 memorable tracks and a battle mode that can occupy me for hours on end. To this day this game has some of the best soundtracks in the entire series, a race on Rainbow road will never get old.

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SailorStar

Review SailorStar 5/5 · Oct 3, 2018

Dare I say the best of the Mario Karts? Probably more because it was some of the best co-op couch gaming in my life, rather than it being an objectively better game than any of the sequels.