Mario Kart 64/Characters

Mario Kart 64 features eight playable characters, as the original game did. From the original line-up Donkey Kong Jr. and Koopa Troopa were dropped in favour of Donkey Kong and Wario. Kamek was originally intended to appear as a playable character but was replaced by Donkey Kong.

Lakitu returns as the track marshall and is not a playable character.

Weight classes
The characters can be grouped into three types: Lightweight, Middleweight and Heavyweight.


 * Lightweights: Peach, Toad, Yoshi - They typically have the quickest acceleration and best speed but this is balanced by their poor handling and their vulnerability to being hit by heavier racers. Always use one of these characters in Time Trial mode.


 * Heavyweights: Donkey Kong, Wario, Bowser - They have the best handling and can barge smaller karts out of the way but they also have poor acceleration and low top speed.


 * Middleweights: Mario, Luigi - Similar to heavyweights, they have poor acceleraton and speed, the only differences are their lighter weight.