Nintendo 64, N64 Game Cheats
Mario Kart 64
Alt. name(s): MarioKart 64, MarioKart64

Check for Walkthroughs, Guides, Cheats and more
Outside link to information specific to this game.
May include cheats, links to cheats and hints, guides, message boards, screenshots, reviews, previews, reader reviews and more..
Courtesy of: gamefaqs.com

HINTS, TRICKS AND PLAYING TIPS
How to unlock the mirrored courses: Win the gold cup in the 150cc class. After the Nintendo 64 is reset, the title screen will change to confirm that mirrored courses are enabled. Enter the 150cc option under GP mode to access the courses. Note that when racing the mirrored Toads' Turnpike, you will be going against the traffic.
How to reach the Mario 64 castle: Follow the yellow road to the right of the big jump on the Royal Raceway course to reach the castle from Mario 64.
How to get a quick start: Press A to accelerate at the instant between the dimming of the second light and the flashing of the blue light at the start of the race. Performed correctly, your kart will rapidly accelerate ahead of the other racers. Note that accelerating too soon will result in a spin out.
How to quick restart: After falling off a course, watch as Lukita places your kart back on the track. Press A when your kart is two or three tire widths from the track to immediately resume the race.
Item select: This trick is very useful in battle mode, versus mode, and grand prix. While controlling your character, drive into an item box and immediately pause the game as soon as the items start to change in the box. The roulette action of the items will stop. Resume the game and immediately press Z or C-Down. The box will usually stop on the item after the item that was displayed on the pause screen. Keep spinning or, if you are lucky, land on the item that was on the pause screen. Just take some time to study the order in which the items appear to select the desired item.
How to protect yourself: You can protect yourself from getting hit by shells, or you can get back at other racers with this trick. Make sure you have a single or multiple bananas, or a single shell. Hold Z instead of simply pressing the button. The power-up will now be in back of your racer. If another racer shoots a shell at you, the banana/shell will block it. You can also hold the power-up until a racer gets in back of your vehicle.
Spiked Shells: While racing in Grand Prix on any other mode, play through until you get the Red Shell or Triple Red Shell as your weapon. The best way to use them is to ram your opponent or be within close range so your shot will connect (especially on curves). If you race in the Frappe Snowland circuit, you can fire a Red Shell at close range and it will seek over the area and attack. A good way to fire a Red Shell is on the Rainbow Road circuit. When going down a slope such as the roller coaster drop at the beginning and you have a Red Shell as your weapon, jump at the beginning of the drop and fire it. If someone is ahead of you on the ground, the Red Shell will drop directly on top of them like a cruise missile. To use a Red Shell right in battle mode, play in the Double Deck or Block Fort arenas. In Double Deck, wait until your opponent falls off the top story onto the platform. Make sure you have a Red Shell as your weapon and your opponent does not have or carry a Star or Ghost in reserve. When they fall off, fire off the Shell. It will hit even if they are still on the platform or the area right below it. In the Block Fort arena, get on one of the top bridges and wait with a Red Shell as your weapon. When someone passes under you or comes your way, make sure they do not use or have a Star or Ghost, then fire. Your shot will usually connect if you fire the Shell down the corridor.
How to shoot a shell behind your kart: Get a single red or green shell. Hold Z, press Analog-stick Down, then release Z. If done correctly, the shell should shoot straight behind your kart.
How to throw banana peel forward: Press Analog-stick Up while throwing a banana peel during a race.
Easy balloon kill in battle mode: When the first light starts to illuminate, hold Up + A (accelerate). If done correctly, when you start there will be a huge fire behind you. Charge at any of the other players and this will destroy one balloon.
Easier descent in Rainbow Track: For a better start to each lap in the Rainbow Track of the Special Cup, press R to jump slightly past the beginning of the downward hill. This way you will not slow down, will hit the ground running.
Get gold cups quickly: The following trick can be used to get gold cups without having to retry all the tracks because of a third or fourth place finish. On the last lap, when you are close to the end and are in fourth place but need a first place finish, use the brakes or slow down until your kart is in fifth place before completing the race. Then, select "Retry" and repeat the race until getting a first or second place finish. Also, keep track of your and your opponent's points to learn what place finish is needed to win. For example, if you have 24 points and the second place player has 21 points, you need at least a second place finish to win because ties will go to the player.
CPU players: CPU-controlled players cannot shoot purple spiked turtle shells, but can shoot green and red ones. CPU-controlled players cannot use ghost.
Wario stadium: At the start of the level there are jumps. You can jump over all of them but this way is the quickest. Do not get a booster at the start of the level. Go towards the right (Left if you are in Reverse Mode) and face the wall and drive at the wall. Jump just before the wall.
Rainbow Road: At the start of the level go to the right then take a left and jump. You'll land on another piece of the course taking about 30 seconds off.
Koopa Troopa Beach: Drive through the course and you'll get to 3 jumps in a row. On the last jump, drive as fast as you can and at the end of it jump. If you make it you'll go through a cave. You do not need a booster to do this but it is easier to make it with one.
Booster without a Booster: Do a skid and smoke will come out. When the smoke turns Orange (The last of 3 colours) let go of R. You will get a booster.

HOW TO GET COURSE GHOST RACERS
Enter time trial mode and complete a course, beating the time indicated below. Then, select "Retry" to race the course again. The phrase "Now Meet the Course Ghost" will appear. The course ghosts are automatically saved to the cartridge for future replay without beating the course time again.

Course .... Time
Banshee Boardwalk .... 2:02.4
Bowser's Castle .... 2:11.2
Choco Mountain .... 1:57.7
D.K.'s Jungle Pkwy .... 2:18.6
Frappe Snowland .... 2:00.9
Koopa Troopa Beach .... 1:57.0
Luigi Raceway .... 1:53.9
Mario Raceway .... 1:31.9
Moomoo Farm .... 1:26.5
Rainbow Road .... 5:19.9
Royal Raceway .... 1:31.9
Sherbet Land .... 1:58.9
Toad's Turnpike .... 2:48.4
Wario Stadium .... 2:34.6
Yoshi Valley .... 2:07.0

SPIKED SHELL LOCATIONS
There following two places have hidden item boxes that will always give you Spiked Shells if you wait until its done going through items. You can find them in the Mushroom Cup on Luigi's Raceway and Koopa Troopa Beach.
Luigi's Raceway: In Luigi's Raceway, get to the item box hanging on the hot-air balloon that hovers up and down a short distance after the starting line. To reach it, you must either have perfect timing when racing on the course or you can wait on the shadow location on the track until it drops on you.
Koopa Troopa: On Koopa Troopa Beach, race through most of the course until you see a long, narrow ramp around a corner. Note: You must have a Mushroom power-up for this to work. Drive up the ramp at top speed and steer slightly to the right. Use a Mushroom near the top to fly in midair over the giant turtle rock and hit the item box. Wait for it to stop to get a Spiked Shell.

SHORTCUTS: HINTS, TRICKS AND PLAYING TIPS
Shortcuts in DK's Jungle Parkway: At the first gated "U'' turn on the track, try to gain a little speed. Then on the power ramp, stick right (or left if racing on the "reverse" track). Finally, right off the jump, turn away from the landing zone area and a little bit less of half the short straightaway. You will save a few seconds with this shortcut.
- At the cave exit, turn left into the wall. If you done correctly, one of three things will happen: You will not move fast enough and get placed back at the cave exit; you will move too far to the right and get placed by the river; or you will move enough to the left and land in the "green" water next to the entrance of the cave. You will hear the "lap counter" sound and be placed in the cave if done correctly. Note: If you are very skilled, Lakitu will not have to pick you up.
Shortcuts in Donkey Kong Raceway: Before the end of the lap you should be driving over a bridge into a cave. While in the cave you should see three item boxes in a row. Turn your Kart until you drive through all three of them, then hold Left (or Right for mirrored courses). If done correctly, you should drive right up the hill and cut about five to seven seconds off your time.
Shortcuts in Frappe Snowland: Begin any type of race (versus, time trials) and go to Frappe Snowland. When you start, do not go across the finish line. Just turn around and stop when you are about in the middle of the bridge. Then turn so that you are facing the start line. Turn towards the corner of the bridge in front of you, to your right. Head towards that corner and when you get to the edge of the bridge hop from the bridge to the snow bank. Do not touch the track. Once on the snow bank, drive past the start/finish line and turn out of bounds. You will be will picked up and placed on the edge of the bridge, right in front of the starting line. Simply drive across the line to finish a lap without actually running the entire track. You can repeat this to finish the entire race in under a minute.
Shortcuts in Kalamari Desert: Instead of going straight over the tracks at the first train stop, take a right onto the train tracks. When the next stop appears, take a right off the train tracks. This should cut a second or two off your time.
- Begin a race in any mode except for time trial with any racer. Find a Star in an item box and drive to the second set of railroad tracks after the start line. When you get to those tracks turn, left on to the tracks (or right in mirrored courses) and avoid any trains that are approaching. When you reach the entrance to the tunnel use the Star. The cloud boy should show up and reveal that you are on the next lap. When you come out of the tunnel, you will be at the train track crossing where you turned on to. Take a left and continue the race. Note: This trick can only be done on the first or second lap. If done on the third lap it will just put you back on the third lap.
- Note: This trick requires a star. Continue racing until the second railroad crossing. Turn down the left route (right on extra mode), and get to the tunnel. Do not use the star yet, and keep to the sides to avoid trains. When you get to the tunnel, use your star immediately before you enter it. If done correctly, you should complete the lap in the tunnel. Turn right at the railroad crossing (left on extra mode) and rejoin the race in first or second place. Note: Do not attempt this on the final lap or you will jump from whatever position you are in to eighth place and still have the lap to complete.
Shortcuts in Koopa Troopa Beach: There is a shortcut on this track that takes you about half way across the board. When you start the race, stay to the right of the big turtle rock (to the left on mirrored courses). Drive to the left of the first jump and to the next three (right on mirrored courses). It is best to avoid all the jumps in the race since they slow you down and will be longer to drive. In front of the three jumps is a narrow jump. Ride this to the hole in the wall. You will need a mushroom to make it all the way to the hole in the cliff. Drive through the tunnel and, at the end, turn towards the trees to get to the finish line. Another option is to drive around the arc that is in front of the first jump. Just stay to the right of the jump and around the arc -- there is a narrow strip of land in the water. It will cut a second or two off your time. It works better with a turbo because you are on wet sand.
- This trick allows you to make it into the cave without using the ramp. Pass the set of the set of three ramps until you reach the smaller ramp that guides you into the cave. Go along the left side of the ramp. Make sure your heading directly for the left side of the opening of the cave. Immediately after you hit the wall, jump and you should land in the tunnel. Another way of doing this is to go further left of the opening of the cave and jump up the giant boulder while gradually going left. Once you have reached the top of the opening of the tunnel, fall to land in the tunnel. These tricks are useful when you do not have a mushroom for the ramp.
- When you start the race, do a boost. When you get to the part near the entrance of the three jumps, turn right (left for mirrored courses). You will see a narrow path with crabs. Go through the water slightly. This will help on the last lap if you are in second, third, or even fourth place.
- After the first ramp, turn right until you turn around the big rock. You should see a big stretch of land surrounded by water. If done correctly, not hitting any crabs etc., you can go from fifth to first place.
- Start off and head to the three ramps that are close to each other. When you are near, go over to the right. You will find a straight path. You will save about five seconds by not going around where the three ramps are located. This may also bring you into a lower place so you have an easier chance of being in first.
- When you get to the part where there is an archway, before the four ramps and the mountain shortcut, go round the outside of the arch. There is only one place you can do this. There should be a road of sand that keeps getting covered with water. Drive along it. You will know where it is because there are crabs lining it. You will then join the course with a few seconds saved. Note: It will sometimes state that you are in 8th place for a moment when you do the second shortcut. Ignore that message.
- This shortcut requires a super mushroom or three normal mushrooms. Immediately before the "S" bend to the start/finish straight, go directly on through the water. Use your super mushroom constantly, or the three mushrooms at regular intervals.
- At the first ramp, take a right around the mountain. The water will go away for a moment. Then, go along that path. You will move up about four positions. This is very useful on the second and third laps.
Shortcuts in Luigi's Raceway: At the start of the level in any mode except time trials, to the left( or right if extra) is the tunnel halfway through the level. If you launch a Green Shell and hit it ,you should fly over the side and into the tunnel. This shortcut is most easily done on the second lap when you have speed. You can also do it if you are lucky enough for a person to hit you with a shell while you are driving over there.
Shortcuts in Mario Raceway: Go partially through the level in any mode except time trials. After you have done a couple of turns, you will go straight. Immediately before you turn, you can use a Golden Mushroom and hop over the side. This shortcut is difficult, and requires practice to master.
- On Mario Raceway, there is a shortcut which you can use to complete a lap in about 29 seconds. To do it, you need a mushroom. Do the first three turns and there should be a steep hill to one side. Where there is a slight bend in the track, drive up the hill as far as you can go and turn around. Start accelerating and use the mushroom. When you get to the course, wait until you are the opposite edge to where you just came on, then jump off the course. Because it is sloped it will act like a ramp and you should go over the top of the wall and land near the pipe "tunnel". Continue with your lap and repeat this as many times as needed. Note: You must master it before doing it in races. You may find yourself not going high enough or landing inside the wall, where Lakitu will put you back where you started.
Shortcuts in Rainbow Road: Get up to top speed at the beginning of the track, . Near the front, you will get to the top of a very steep hill. Stay all the way to the left and just when you get to the peak, quickly turn left and press R to jump. It is extremely difficult to accomplish, but If done correctly, you will land back on the track, half way through. This will bring you half a lap ahead of the other racers.
- Note: Try this in time trial mode first. Get a boost, and at the beginning of the race go to the right (using boost). As the slope goes down, sharply turn to the left then jump. Note: You could bounce off when you land.
- Note: This trick takes a lot of practice to master but after awhile you should be able to do it without a problem. After the race starts, there is a huge drop. Before the drop, turn left (or right if it is the Extra GP) and jump at the same time. Turning too sharply will make you fly over the track, and not turning sharp enough will make you fall short of the track. If done correctly, you should land on a further part of the track and save a lot of time. If you bounce off the track, do not worry. You will be picked up and placed on the part of the track where you bounced.
Shortcuts in Royal Raceway: There are two sets of speed tracks on a row on the Royal Raceway. The second one is a long distance jump which you can make every time. To add a little distance to it, press R to jump just before the edge. For a better recovery landing, without a slowing bounce, continue to hold R until you land. Your kart will impact hard, but you will be moving forward.
- Immediately before you get to Peach's castle on any mode, there will be the two boosts. Immediately after the second boost, turn left (right if in extra mode) and hop. Try to get as far as you can. If you are lucky Lakitu will pick you up and place you just before the finish line, shaving seconds off your time. This shortcut is best done with a Star.
- A little while through the level after your first couple turns, you will go straight. If you look ahead, this will be the place where you land after the two boosters. If you use a Golden Mushroom, you can jump across and land over there. This shortcut is difficult to master.
Shortcuts in Toad's Turnpike: At the start of the level in any mode, go a little bit forward immediately before you get to the place with items. Press C-Right to turn on the map and line up your Kart where it is directly overhead the track under you. Then, race toward the side (you should probably have a Mushroom or Star) and hop when you hit the railing. If done correctly, you should be halfway through that lap.
Shortcuts in Wario Stadium: Note the first bump right after starting a race at Wario Stadium. When the race starts, turn around and go back a short distance. Next, accelerate to the left side of the bump. Press R a couple of times when you are at the top of the bump. If done correctly, you will land on the other side of the wall, cutting off half or more of the race.
- Go fast to the wall and press R to jump over it. You will skip about one-quarter of the track.
- On the dip just before the jump (after the six small "whoopies"), stay to the right. You will reach the location where the road turns. This is also the place of the wall that you need to jump. Turn hard to your left once you reach the inside corner of that particular turn. Do a hop just before you hit the wall. If done correctly, you will bounce over the wall. This requires a lot of practice to master, but can save anywhere from 12 to 16 seconds.
- You can jump over three walls to skip ahead about a half of a lap.
- Go backwards and jump into the black and you will be in first place. Note: You must have the required speed.
- Use the following shortcut to complete a lap quickly. From the start, drive to the small dirt hills in front of you. Turn towards the wall on the left (50cc to 150cc cups) or the right (Extra cup). Drive to the wall, and just when you just about to hit it, press R. If done correctly, you will jump over that wall and get far ahead. You now have two choices. You can continue with the lap normally or you can jump the wall again and attempt to skip a lap. If you do try to skip a lap, drive over to where the lap flag is located, and position yourself so you will be behind the flag when you jump the wall. If done correctly you will land next to the finish line and can immediately go on the next lap. Repeat this two more times if desired. If you are an expert, you can finish the race in less than :25 seconds.
- Jump the fourth bump in the beginning of the lap. Do not jump the first bump as you normally would. While you are there on the other side, when you drive to the normal path you can see the other side and the lap. Practice the jump and the cameraman will pick you up, and if done correctly, you will be on the other side and complete the lap easily. If done wrong, you will remain on that side.
- At the start of the race, leap over the final bump. If done correctly you will cut out almost half of the course. Then, you will see a Wario sign. Jump on the dirt near the pole of the sign. You will get stuck and appear at the finish line.
Shortcuts in Yoshi Valley: Start racing and get to the area where all the routes combine. Go to the left until you see where the fence ends. After that, look down and you will see the other side of the track. Get to the location where the shortest jump is, then go back a little bit. Speed up, cut the wheel to that short jump area, and press R. If done correctly, you will then end up on that side of the track, giving yourself a lead. Note: You do not always have to stop; but doing so may help until you are used to the trick.
- Take the path with the small bridge. Then, at the end (the grass), use a mushroom to cut through it diagonally to the finish line.
- Once you come out of the maze (the shortest route is the one with all the porcupines), you will reach a hairpin bend in the road. Notice how the track gets close to itself and there are no barriers, and that the part you are on is higher than the other. Turn into this part and jump. You will cut a few seconds out of your lap. You have to be careful though. If you get the wrong angle you will just go off the lower part of the track. If you think that is going to happen, jam on the brakes in mid-air.

Submitted by: A.Taylor (AZe), AJ, CheatBookJon, Emily Thompson, Andrew Hypkrizz, Thomas D, Lilly McNabb and Big 'H'

Pro Action Replay, Game Shark cheat device codes? Check Here 

Log a request for cheats and hints for this game. Click Here 

Want to read reviews of this and other N64 games? Check Here 

Find the best deal: check availability of this and other games 

Was this page useful to you? YES / NO