Back in the Nintendo 64 era Rareware was unstoppable. Nearly everything they touched turned to pure gold. Most of their releases like Goldeneye 007, Perfect Dark, and Conker’s Bad Fur Day are some of the most fondly remembered games of this generation. Back then many of their releases were very similar to Nintendo’s own. Banjo Kazooie and Conker (at least in the beginning) seemed like a response to Super Mario 64. One year Diddy Kong Racing was what they came up with when tasked to fill a gap in the holiday release schedule. This was obviously their own take on Mario Kart 64. I was shocked at how out of left field this game was. There wasn’t a lot of time to generate hype. For me it quickly dethroned Mario Kart 64, and to this day is my favorite kart racer of all time.
The storyline is pretty weird here. It’s a kart racer after all so this was clearly an afterthought. An intergalactic being known as Wizpig has conquered a tropical island. In the process he turned its guardians into his henchmen, and converted a significant portion of the landmass into racetracks. Diddy Kong and friends must defeat him to restore order. I can admit that it’s a bit off-putting even for a game marketed toward children. Thankfully it’s relegated almost entirely to the background. For this release Rare created a mostly original cast rather than relying on their franchise characters. You have Timber the tiger, Krunch the kremling, Tiptup the turtle, Pipsy the mouse, and Bumper the Badger. Of course there’s also Diddy Kong as well.
What’s particularly interesting is the fact that the lineup also features Banjo the bear. This is years before he had starred in his own adventure. At that time all he was is screenshots in magazines. Even Conker (before the mature makeover) is playable here. Seeing how over the top cutesy and saccharine he is here is hilarious knowing what he later became. One thing I found really interesting about the cast is at the time of release for this game Rare announced they were planning to make games based on all of these characters. Clearly that fell through, but honestly that’s probably for the better. Outside of Diddy Kong, Banjo, and Conker the cast is pretty lame in my opinion. That hardly matters though because gameplay is where DKR gets it right.
This is a 3D go kart racer. You probably already guessed that though. On the surface it plays very similar to Mario Kart 64. Basic gameplay has you driving around circular looped courses trying to beat out everyone else and cross the finish line in first place at the end of the third lap. Along the way you can pick up items that, when activated, benefit your character with speed boosts, protective shields, and more. The other pickups are weapons such as missiles and oil slicks. This is pretty basic but there are a few unique elements to the weapons system. These items are stored in balloons which you collect by driving into. Each tool is designated as a separate color balloon so you always know what pickup you’re going to collect.
What’s also unique is the fact that these can be stacked for bigger effects. For example, picking up a red balloon gives you a missile. If you get a second one it changes into a homing missile. Collecting three in a row grants you five regular missiles. The other items are stack-able in the same manner for varying effects. This concept is interesting and executed in an fantastic way. The problem I have with the arsenal of pickups is that they’re all super boring and generic. There’s no personality behind it with just generic missiles, oil slicks, shields, etc. With a franchise as rich as Donkey Kong you would think Rare would have some better ideas.
Where Diddy Kong Racing goes above and beyond is in the fact that it features multiple vehicles. This puts it on a whole level above Mario Kart 64 in my opinion. You have the standard karts which have no special characteristics. They’re your basic vroom vroom vehicles. These are the easiest to use and are also the most common. Next up we have the hovercraft which only pops up when you’re racing on an aquatic themed stage. Unfortunately these are a little difficult to control because they slip and slide with every turn. This one has the highest learning curve, and it’s one of the less common vehicles you’ll pilot here. I will say that once you get used to the handling they’re pretty fun to use. It definitely takes some practice.
Last but not least is the airplane. This vehicle controls in a very similar fashion to the arwing in Star Fox 64 with only a few minor quirks. It can be a little unwieldy when flying through narrow passages. You’re often left banging into the walls. Despite this it’s easily the most fun of the bunch and gives you freedom unlike in any other similar racing title. What’s interesting is that, while some courses require the exclusive use of one vehicle, others are dynamic in such a way that they can be traversed with two or more of them. Sometimes there are shortcuts and alternate routes that can only be reached with the plane or hovercraft. It’s particularly cool because, when participating in regular races, you can sometimes choose which vehicle you want to use in the race.
There’s also a plethora of game modes. The default method of play is the adventure mode. This is is very unique from what is offered in other kart racers. Here you travel across a hub world wherein you select tracks and race to win golden balloons. These are similar to the stars in Mario 64. The different courses have requirements for how many of these you need to have in order to enter. Once you’re done with all of a world’s tracks you must then race against a boss character in a specialized course. Completing this unlocks the silver coin challenges in each stage wherein you must once again race against seven other opponents and come in first place, but you must also now collect all of the coins strewn about each track.
This is where the real challenge comes in, and after completing this you must then face off against an even more difficult version of the previous boss. When you’ve completed all of these goals (which is no easy task) you must compete against the all powerful Wizpig in one of the most difficult moments in any kart racing game. Should you forego the adventure mode (which can even be played with another player) you can instead participate in standard races. There’s even a fun battle mode that’s similar to what was in Super Mario Kart. The sheer amount of content crammed into this cartridge is staggering and puts others to shame. Rare must have just about reached the maximum data a cartridge can hold with this release.
Diddy Kong Racing isn’t one of the best looking Nintendo 64 titles. It is however a decided upgrade from Mario Kart 64. The biggest advantage is has is the fact that, instead of using sprites, Rare actually designed their characters with polygons. It’s a welcome effort and looks absolutely marvelous. What’s really impressive here are the draw distances. You can often see very far into the distance, and characters are still in sight when across the map. This is also one of the more colorful games on the platform. No stages in any other games have ever reminded me so much of Christmas as the winter based ones here with their vibrant lighting and great depiction of snow. Unfortunately many of the stage designs are a little boring. This is the only category in which Diddy Kong Racing is outshined by Mario Kart.
The soundtrack was composed by David Wise (of Donkey Kong Country fame) and while this is one of his weaker efforts it’s still really good. The music is fun and bouncy but often far too forgettable. There’s almost none of the classic Donkey Kong Country personality in place here despite Diddy Kong being the star of the show. The lobby theme in particular is a mesmerizing piece of music. The other stage themes are a little underwhelming however. There’s a small amount of voice work which I found impressive back at the time of release. The genie guide character speaks to you, and the racers each have their own clips as well.
