20 Essential N64 Games You Must Play Before You Die

5. Mario Kart 64

Nintendo
Nintendo

Sometimes the simplest ideas can be just as addictive - if not more so - than multifaceted ones designed that way on purpose as a means of supposedly adding gameplay depth.

Mario Kart 64 doesn't care about all of that, it just wants you to enjoy driving in a spot of competitive racing with a few friends as you traverse famous vistas like the Royal Raceway and Bowser's Castle.

With a bunch of tempo-changing items (I still maintain that the Spiny Shell is anti-fun) thrown in for a little spice, Mario Kart's party game formula is one that's been replicated by both Nintendo and other developers ever since.

Contributor
Contributor

Joe is a freelance games journalist who, while not spending every waking minute selling himself to websites around the world, spends his free time writing. Most of it makes no sense, but when it does, he treats each article as if it were his Magnum Opus - with varying results.