Mario Kart 64 News
June2019
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (June 8th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
Phew, thank goodness it's the weekend! This week has brought with it all the drama of a Pokémon Direct, fresh Banjo-Kazooie rumours and even more games for the Sega Mega Drive Mini, but now we can finally calm down and talk about o
April2019
News Check Out The Title Screen Music Of This Mario Kart 64 Prototype
"Welcome to Muzakart!"
Every week we get fresh little peeks behind the curtain of games both big and small. Recently, Forest of Illusion posted this original theme tune for Mario Kart 64 on Twitter. It comes from a prototype build of the game and it's not the most inspired track in the plumber's songbook. Take a listen below: As you can hear, it...
January2019
Random This Couple Have Been Playing Mario Kart 64 Every Day Since 2001 To Decide Who Makes The Tea
Beats rock-paper-scissors
We've all been there, arguing over who has to do the cooking, cleaning, and washing for what feels like the 657th time this week, but this adorable couple seem to have the chore-deciding formula absolutely nailed down. It turns out the answer is simple: Mario Kart 64. Reddit user u/bork1138 has shared the story of their...
November2018
News This Wireless Nintendo 64 "Pro-Style" Controller Is Hitting Stores Early Next Year
Nintendo Sixty-Freedom
Video game peripheral manufacturer Hyperkin has revealed that it will be releasing a "pro-style" wireless controller for use with your beloved Nintendo 64. Named the 'Admiral', this controller uses a Bluetooth dongle to wirelessly connect to your console. As you can immediately tell, the design sacrifices the famous trident...
July2018
Random Toys R Us Employee Finds A Mario Kart 64 Box Hidden Under A Shelf
Dusty, but intact
Much like here in the UK, long-serving toy retailer Toys R Us is shutting its stores across North America. The worldwide chain also used to stock video games, and one employee just happened to stumble across a box that presumably fell down beneath some shelves back in the '90s. A box for none other than Mario Kart 64. Dusty (and...
News Hackers Have Now Found A Way To Emulate Nintendo 64 Games On Switch
Pokémon Stadium anyone?
Nintendo 64 games have now been successfully emulated on Switch, teasing those who would love to see the classic console's stellar library come to the new system for real. We've been hearing of multiple stories surrounding hacking on Switch over the last few months, with players forcing adult-themed imagery into Super Mario...
May2017
Video The Complete History Of Mario Kart
From SNES to Switch in 25 years
In light of the recent launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, we at Nintendo Life have been reminiscing about the celebrated history of the Mario Kart series. From the SNES to the new Nintendo Switch, Mario Kart has provided players around the globe with countless hours of shell-tossing entertainment. In this...
December2016
Nintendo Download 29th December (North America)
Mario Kart 64! Castlevania: Dracula X! Pokémon HOME Themes!
It's the final Nintendo Download Update of the year, and as expected we have a couple of Virtual Console releases and no 'new' downloads - the New 3DS gets another SNES title, while the Wii U get some classic kart racing. Let's get to it. Missed the European Nintendo Download details?...
January2016
Video See How Much Mario Kart has Changed Since Mario Kart 64
56 degrees of separation
It's been over a year since Mario Kart 8 was released on the Wii U and nearly 20 since its N64 sibling Mario Kart 64 graced our systems. A lot's changed in that time, and in order to highlight all the refinements a company like Nintendo can make in such a span, we've cobbled together another cheeky little comparison of the...
News Mario Kart 64 on Wii U VC Doesn't Have Support for Ghost Data
Controller Pak emulation seems to be the issue
Some of you from around the earlier days of the Nintendo 64 may remember the Controller Pak. This add-on slotted into the back of the controller and acted as a means of saving or transferring data between consoles. While it wasn't absolutely necessary in every N64 game, many used it to include features...
Nintendo Download 21st January (Europe)
Mario Kart 64! Adventures of Pip! Radiohammer! Themes galore! More!
Another week begins with the Nintendo Download Update details in Europe, and this time around we have a Nintendo 64 classic joined by a long-awaited retro-styled new release on the home console. Beyond that we have an exciting demo, 3DS Home Themes galore and a few discounts; let's...
August2015
Mario History Mario Kart 64 - 1997
A new kind of racing
In this series of articles we'll write about one Mario game every day for 30 days, each representing a different year as part of our Super Mario 30th Anniversary celebrations. In our last entry for this series we covered Super Mario 64, a title that utilised the capabilities of the Nintendo 64 to revolutionise Mario...
Event Super Mario Kart SNES World Championships 2015 - 18th to 22nd August
Champion racers are back
The worldwide Mario Kart community is huge, especially since the success of Mario Kart 8; yet let's not forget that the older versions are still heavily competitive. Super Mario Kart has Official World Championships held annually in France every August run by the French Federation of SMK team ( Nintendo of France have been a...
January2015
Video Teens Race and Talk Smack in Mario Kart 64
"Yo dawg I've got the golden mushroom"
YouTube has plenty of ways to entertain us, and one formula that's hugely successful is the React series in which different groups encounter games and are filmed as they get to grips with them. With Nintendo battling for attention against its big rivals, it can be fun to watch teens - particularly - getting to...
December2014
Poll Which is the Best Mario Kart Game?
Will you go retro, HD or portable?
It's a time of year in which plenty of time is spent with friends, family and fellow web gamers debating all manner of topics. Is Kirby Nintendo's cutest mascot? Has Mario's moustache become bushier in the HD era? Will F-Zero ever return? It's a time of opinions, and having checked out the Game of the Year results...
September2014
Weirdness Rainbow Road Muscles its Way onto Realistic Racer Assetto Corsa
Hilariously out-of-place
Rainbow Road from Super Mario 64 is a track steeped in many people's nostalgia banks, and Mario Kart 8 recreated that experience in HD for the first time earlier this year. Now, a clever modder who goes by the name of 'N64AC' has managed to get the original track working on an upcoming realistic racing simulator coming out...
August2014
Video This Drake-Inspired Mario Kart Rap is For Champion Racers
"Got all these races looking like they're just time trials"
There are only a few Nintendo franchises that can bring on very real trash talk; no, that Nintendo E3 press conference attempt for Wii Sports Resort back in the day does not count. One of these franchises that'll have friends and family boasting red shell success is Mario Kart, to this day...
July2014
News Four Students Set New Mario Kart Marathon World Record
"As a matter of fact this was an incredibly difficult thing to achieve"
Many of us have had some excessively long gaming sessions, after which we may look back and think "what was I doing?!". They can be fun, though, and there are often teams of people that use gaming marathons to raise money for charity, among other things, taking what is an...
June2014
Mario Kart Month A History of the Mario Kart Series - Part One
From pixels to polygons, then back to pixels
As June begins and our Mario Kart Month celebrations throughout May draw to a close, the build-up and expectation surrounding Mario Kart 8 has transitioned into mass play sessions and hands-on racing time. This is the moment on which memories are built, as competitiveness and hilarity ensues from...
May2014
What about those other items?
Whilst core items such as the banana, shell and mushroom have carried the traditions of the Mario Kart series over the past 22 years, there are many other forgotten, reinvented, and even untouched items that arguably contin
Mario Kart Month What Mario Kart Means To Me
Dave Letcavage shares his experiences with the series
In this personal reminiscence, Nintendo Life contributor Dave Letcavage explains how important the Mario Kart franchise — and gaming in a broader sense — are to him, recounting events of his life in which they've been invaluable sources of entertainment, fun and escape. You don’t need me...
News If You Like Rainbow Road Music, This Album Is For You
Shiryu brings us Rainbow Road Adventures
As you may have guessed from all the Mario Kart 8 articles, today is the Wii U title's launch day. A happy occasion for many Wii U owners, certainly, and one being celebrated in various ways. One such celebration that we think you'll enjoy is this album, Rainbow Road Adventures from musician and Nintendo...
Mario Kart Month The Developers Who Tried To Beat Nintendo At Its Own Game
Improving On Perfection
Veterans of the 16-bit era will vividly recall the first time they played Super Mario Kart. Nintendo's seminal racer was a genuine revolution; it took what had previously been quite a staid and serious genre and turned it into something light-hearted, yet immensely challenging and addictive. While Super Mario Kart had an...
Mario Kart Month A Brief History Of Mario Kart Item Evolution: Mighty Mushroom
There’s a shroom for every occasion
You wouldn’t normally associate a mushroom with speed, but just look at Toad with his white and red polka dot head – he’s always zipping about. Clearly he’s got a need for speed after excessive use of the mighty mushroom out on the track. Actually, it’s hard to imagine what’s even under that...
Mario Kart Month A Brief History Of Mario Kart Item Evolution: The Shell
When spiny blue shells grow wings
If you thought Donkey Kong’s banana-throwing antics were foul play out on the circuit, Koopa Troopa is probably worthy of mention as well – no doubt coming under fire from various animal rights groups for the exploitation of his own species. Although shells have been one of the many foundations of Mario Kart...
Mario Kart Month A Brief History Of Mario Kart Item Evolution: The Trusty Banana
Plenty of slip-ups contained within
Since the very beginnings of Mario Kart in the 1992 Super Nintendo original, items have been a truly defining aspect of the series. Little did we – and perhaps even Nintendo – know various themed items and effects originally extracted from the traditional Mario universe would go on to become such an integral...
News Club Nintendo Rewards Updated for May, Physical Items Return
Super Metroid! 3D Classic! Brain Age! Mario Kart 64!
During April Nintendo of America took away physical rewards from Club Nintendo ahead of maintenance work, and it's now reintroduced its standard range a day ahead of schedule. Little has changed, though it's worth checking out the updated options on the official website, with Mario and Luigi 3DS...
Play Let's Race Through Mario Kart 1-7, Live!
Let's do this...
As you're hopefully aware, we announced earlier this week that we're running a marathon live stream of Mario Kart 1-7, in which two courageous souls from the Nintendo Life team will sacrifice their Saturday for your entertainment. We'll also be hoping that the elaborate setup of cables for the broadcast won't spontaneously combust;...
Play We'll Be Blasting Through Mario Kart 1-7 in a Twitch Marathon
Not a ROM in sight
Not long ago we took our first tentative steps into the world of Twitch when we played a bit of Mario Kart Wii live for your amusement. Now we're planning to go a step further and marathon the first seven titles in the series; before any of you say "what about the arcade cabinets", we'll have feature content about those this...
April2014
News Nintendo Releases An Awesome Mario Kart Infographic
Sorry arcade titles, you're out
With the release of Mario Kart 8 on Wii U preoccupying many minds ahead of 30th May, Nintendo is taking every opportunity to raise awareness and hype. Is there a better way to do this than with a fancy infographic? No, no there isn't. The infographic below shows the eight main series entries to date, spurning the...
September2013
News Awesome Mario Kart Trophies Added to Club Nintendo Europe
Four available for 5000 stars each
We suspect, based on our community game nights and events — they will return! — that Mario Kart 7 is pretty high on a number of favourite game lists. The franchise is also the classic multiplayer experience on Nintendo systems, successfully bringing out the most competitive instincts in players. Naturally, if...
March2011
News Mario Kart Without Items Isn't Mario Kart, That Includes the Blue Shell
Hideki Konno explains the importance of its inclusion
We can't expect franchises to stay the same forever, but when the crowd-dividing Blue Shell was introduced to the Mario Kart series back in Mario Kart 64, maybe not all of us expected it to stay through to the modern day instalments. Hideki Konno is one of the main players behind the series,...
April2008
News South Korea gets their own Virtual Console
Interestingly the Wii finally went on sale in South Korea for the first time yesterday on the 26th April. This wouldn’t normally be a news item for us but with the Wii launch comes a whole new Virtual Console region with different prices!
Let’s take a look at the launch games as listed on the Korean Nintendo site: Famicom / NES (400 Wii...
