Rainbow Road: Mario Kart 64’s Most Legendary Racetrack
Recently I was looking at numbers and data for this writing thing I do and noticed one of my highest and most viewed articles was a review that was not a game but a gaming level in Super Mario 64’s Dire Dier Docks. This along with my review of the Xbox Duke controller, This got me thinking maybe I should do some more content that involves more detailed content like video game levels, bosses, hardware and so on and so forth. Not just stick with gaming reviews, opening more doors and possibilities.
So what level would I do next? I would not mind reviewing a racing course of some kind as there’s an endless amount of racetracks to chose from in video games. Then it hit me, why not review one of racing games most legendary courses not just in the game it’s from, but all of gaming? Also it’s pride month at the time of this write up, so what better time than to talk about rainbows?
Today, to say that Mario Kart has become one of Nintendo’s biggest franchises is a fair statement. Its latest entry in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for the Nintendo Switch has become not only one of the best selling games on the system, but of all time. Honestly, I think it’s well deserved. Game feels great and is still one of the best looking games on the system, and is some of the best things that make Mario Kart well… Mario Kart. When someone thinks Mario Kart, there’s more times than not one specific track every entry has had, That track being “Rainbow Road”.
Rainbow road since its introduction in the original Super Mario Kart for the Super Nintendo has always served as kind of the “final boss” of Mario Kart or a grand finale. It’s always the final course in the hardest grand prix you can do in most cases. Because of this, Rainbow Road has carried out a legacy and is put in a very high standard when it comes to quality of Mario Kart racetracks. Only some of the best and most memorable courses can earn themselves the title of Rainbow Road. If there’s anyone that has a top 10 or even top 5 Mario Kart courses all time list, you bet nearly every single time a Rainbow Road will show up on that list one way or another.
But then this begs the quest, of all the fantastic Rainbow Roads, what’s the one I review? I did think about ranking every Rainbow Road, but honestly there’s one that I really do want to get deep into as there’s a lot here than meets the eye. What I think for many was their first Rainbow Road, at least it was mine. This being Rainbow Road from Mario Kart 64 on the Nintendo 64 (where else would it be on?) But what exactly makes this Rainbow Road stand out from the others, why is THIS the one every adores and is most nostalgic over? Let’s take a deeper dive, or in this case a dipper drive into Mario Kart 64’s Rainbow Road.
Mario Kart 64 came out just a little after the launch of the Nintendo 64 and instantly became a premiere racing game on the system. Now with the all new joystick, racing felt much more fluent and fun, not to mention having 3D courses made Mario Kart 64 an instant classic. The final cup in Mario Kart 64 is the Special Cup, that has some of the most brutal hardest courses in the game, all leading up to the game’s grand finale in Rainbow Road.
After crossing harsh jungles of DK Jungle Parkway, the complex maze that is Yoshi’s Valley, and the spooky dark corners of Banshee Boardwalk, you are met with the game’s final challenge, Rainbow Road. So what makes this Rainbow Road worth of being the final track in such an amazing racing game?
First of all let’s look at the aesthetic here. Rainbow Road is of course has a road that’s a colorful rainbow in a space/black void setting. It really gives a feel you’re in the stars and a space of endless wonder. Neon lights of Mario characters look at you as you drive by. I almost see this as like a character credits roll. Most tracks in Mario Kart 64 are based or named after a Mario characters, rather it be Luigi Raceway, Wario Stadium, or Toad’s Turnpike. Seeing neon light up murals of everyone kind of reminds you of the other tracks and gives a sense of everything you’ve done up to this point, a great thing to have for the game’s final racetrack. It’s like the final lap of the game itself, you’ve made it this far, just a little bit more to go.
Rainbow Road is the final course, so surely it’s very hard right? That’s the thing… it’s really not. There’s no super tight corners or blinding hills, there’s some obstacles but not in the amount or difficulty that you’ve seen up to that point. The entire track has rails so you can’t really fall off if you do the course as intended. So… what gives? You see this Rainbow Road is not a game of challenge but rather a game of endurance. Normally each lap in the game in any other racetrack takes about one minute tops. Rainbow Road however can take around a minute and a half to two minutes time if you don’t take any unintended shortcuts (more on this later). This makes one lap of Rainbow Road longer than some courses in the game with three laps. Also this is still a three lap race. Meaning Rainbow Road can take up to around 6 entire minutes to complete. After doing three grueling tracks before this point, Rainbow Road really is the ultimate test of endurance.
Now to the track itself. Rainbow Road starts you at a giant hill (I look at it more as a summit) that starts with you going down a massive slope. You could of course jump forward for massive air time, to the point it makes me wonder if that was the intention. It’s like you’re flying for a moment pass the stars and the colorful scenery. Once you land you slightly go up and do some very long turns, perfect for getting those long drifts to give your kart an extra boost. However, watch out for chain comps that hug the ground that might run into you at points of the level. It’s a long race but that one mistake could cost you and with Mario Kart 64’s AI, it very well could. There’s a spiral that goes up with a star in the middle (as you see in the first picture up top) that’s again another really cool moment. The course ends with you going up hill back to the top where the starting/finish line is. This is one of my favorite parts of the course as it’s to me like you’re ascending to the end, almost like you’re going up to the heavens. I know it might sound a little much for some readers but image seeing this in your 6 year old eyes and for that moment, being in wonder and going up to touch the stars above.
So after all of this, I bet you’re thinking “wow this is the best track ever!” and my honest thoughts of Mario Kart 64’s Rainbow Road.
… It’s like a 7 out of 10 for me.
The presentation is top notch and I really do enjoy the ending of the track, however I do have my issues with it. I guess you can say I think the track is slightly overrated. Don’t get me wrong, I love Rainbow Road in this game, but I got my issues and if I did a every Mario Kart track ranked list, it would not break my top 10 of if it did, it would barely make it likely landing a 9 or 10 spot.. So to see people call this one of the greatest Mario Kart tracks period I feel is a stretch, but I 100% get it. I get why this course is so loved by so many faithful to the Mario Kart series.
I have three major issues with Rainbow Road. One as I said the course is a test of endurance, and honestly that could be seen as a double edge sword. The long track gives the course a grand finale feel as bigger is always better in most cases. However the length at times I find kind of boring after awhile. Once you get to the final lap of this track, I’ve seen everything there is to see and are kind of burnt out by it. The idea of Rainbow Road here is a long gauntlet and for some is why it’s loved so much, but honestly I feel like that’s a great argument against it.
Another issue is the items, items are part of what makes Mario Kart great. But because of the long course, you can get so far ahead or behind that items won’t make much of a difference. I swear red shells when they fail in this game are always at Rainbow Road, making them pretty pointless. This could be seen as a plus as it adds so much tension and making sure you don’t make that one mistake in this long racetrack that could cost you, but it really takes away one of the best things that make Mario Kart stand out as a game.
The other thing I kind of don’t like and might be my biggest issue is THAT shortcut, you likely know the one but if you don’t let me explain. At the top of the starting line I said you can do a massive jump down hill, however if you angle it just enough and jump to the left, you can land on a later part of the track, skipping about 30–40ish% of the course. Great if you’re trying to get that record time, but I feel like this kind of robs you of the experience and what I think is one of the best moments of the racetrack. I know there’s a joke/meme of the saying “You not only cheated the game but yourself,” but that’s kind of how I feel on this. This is not 100% Rainbow Road’s fault and is more the fault of the player cheesing the course more but the fact you can do this at all is a flaw in the course design.
Rainbow Road 64 would get remade not just in Mario Kart but in other games too. In F-ZERO X, there’s a remake of Rainbow Road, however since F-ZERO X is much most about speed and fast reflexes, it’s smaller and you can race past it much quicker. They also added a few traps in here too and took the rails off in some spots. Honestly this fixes a ton of the issues I had with Rainbow Road. Still a cool little thing they did here in F-ZERO X as a reference to Mario Kart 64.
Mario Kart 8 would bring back Mario Kart 64’s Rainbow Road… kind of. It’s more of a remake than a remaster if you get me. Tons have changed all while still keeping the idea and an up to date Aesthetic of the original Mario Kart 64 Rainbow Road. A ton of issues are fixed here that I had with the original Mario Kart 64 version, so it’s nice they did not just copy/paste it here.
One thing that has bugged players in this version is it’s a longer lap, but it’s only one lap instead of three. Honestly I’m fine with this as doing a 6:00 course online all the time could make the course loose its magic and bring back one of the issues I had, that being tediously long. It’s not really Mario Kart 64’s Rainbow Road here as so much has changed, so I don’t see this as more of a HD version as I do a remake of the track. I still love this track and honestly if this was the only way we’d get Rainbow Road 64 in Mario Kart 8, I can live with it. It’s different, but that’s not always a bad thing.
Despite its flaws I still love Mario Kart 64's Rainbow Road. It’s cool rainbow look along with the space backdrop makes for a great setting for a final race, having it be a test of endurance rather than a test of skill was kind of smart move, even if it has some consequences. It’s still a really great course to have for Mario Kart 64’s final track. This course is no doubt worthy to carry the prestige to call itself “Rainbow Road”.
