Hey guys, this is Gabe from CGRundertow, and today we have one of the best parts of my
childhood. My family never really went to the ocean or the Great Lakes or anything like
that, but for some reason, this game stuck with me longer than pretty much anything on
the N64. This game is a perfect example of how to properly make a game to show off your
machine’s technical abilities, and who better to do such a thing than Nintendo, the best
first-party game company of all time. This is Wave Race 64 for the Nintendo 64.
Wave Race 64 is a jet-ski racer, similar in style to well, other Wave Racers, I guess?
It’s one of the most unique games available on the N64, which seems a little bit odd.
How could racing jet skis be such a limited genre before? Honestly, what’s more fun
than being on a jet ski? So Wave Race 64 gives you a choice of a few different riders, each
having their own jet ski that can be customized to fit your play style. There’s a fair number
of options to choose from, such as Championship, Time Trial, Stunt Mode, and a versus mode,
but the real attraction here is that Championship mode. This takes you across a variety of courses
as you weave your way through buoys and around other racers in a 3 lap test of reflexes and
skill. Nothing feels better than pulling ahead right as you get to the finish line.
Controls in Wave Race 64 feel just about perfect. You aren’t going to get as much control
as you might in a car racing game, but that’s the point. You’re on water, so it should
feel looser than asphalt. Most of your effort is going to be just getting past all of the
buoys and not crashing, but you’ll also have to watch out for the other racers, who
crash just as often as you do, maybe more so. Of course, some of the crashes can be
caused by you, as well. Get out of my way, I’m winning this thing!
Now, the other modes in Wave Race 64 each bring something different to the table. Time
Trial is just what it sounds like; you’ll be trying to beat the computer’s time as
you race through a course by yourself. It’s simple, and it’s addicting, the two most
important things in any game mode. Versus mode is a lot of fun as well, although I’ve
noticed over the years that there’s usually a pretty big skill gap between new players
and veterans. The last mode is stunt, which to be honest, was a little bit disappointing
. Instead of being able to do a bunch of sweet tricks for points, most of your time is spent
collecting rings on a course. This is really the only thing that truly bugged me about
this game. Visually, Wave Race 64 may have been early,
but it still features some outstanding 64-bit visuals. Character models look great, at least
when they’re moving, and water effects are some of the best on the N64. One little problem
is a short viewing distance and some pop-up, but this is more of an issue with the N64’s
limited power than the game itself. Audio is also excellent, from the nice, lighthearted
soundtrack to the voice of the dude that yells “Wave Race!” at the beginning, it’s
just classic. Wave Race 64 is a classic game, and it really
deserves to be remembered as such. When I go back into my N64 collection, there’ s
a lot of games that just haven’t aged that well. One of the exceptions to this is a game
that is just as fun now as it was 15 years ago.
