Dr. Mario 64
Developer(s)Nintendo
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)Hitoshi Yamagami
Yoshiyuki Kato
Producer(s)Genyo Takeda
Junichi Yakahi
Designer(s)Hitoshi Yamagami
Kazushi Maeda
Yohei Fujigawa
Composer(s)Seiichi Tokunaga
SeriesDr. Mario
Platform(s)Nintendo 64, iQue Player
ReleaseNintendo 64
iQue Player
Genre(s)Puzzle
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Dr. Mario 64 is a tile-matching action puzzle video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. The game was released in North America on April 9, 2001. The game is an enhanced remake of Dr. Mario, which was originally released for the NES and Game Boy consoles in 1990, and is based around characters from the 2000 Game Boy Color game Wario Land 3. The game's soundtrack was composed by Seiichi Tokunaga, featuring arrangements of classic Dr. Mario tunes and new compositions.

The game received a Japanese release as part of the Nintendo Puzzle Collection compilation, released for the GameCube in 2003.[3] The game was re-released on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack in October 2021, marking its first release in PAL territories.[4]

Gameplay

A screenshot of Dr. Mario 64 gameplay

Like its predecessor, Dr. Mario 64 is a falling block tile-matching video game. The playing field is represented on-screen as a medicine bottle populated with viruses of three colors: red, blue, and yellow. The main objective of the game to clear the playing field of all the viruses using two-colored medical capsules dropped into the bottle. The player manipulates the capsules as they fall, moving them left or right and rotating such that they are positioned alongside the viruses and any existing capsules. When four or more capsule halves or viruses of the same colour are aligned in horizontal or vertical configurations, they are removed from play. The player receives a game over if the playing field fills up with capsules such that they obstruct the bottle's narrow neck. Points are awarded when viruses are destroyed.

There are several single-player modes present in the game:

  • Classic - This mode features a similar set-up and design to the original Dr. Mario game.
  • Story - In this mode, the player may take control of either Dr. Mario or Wario to track down the stolen Megavitamins, battling computer players on the way.
  • Vs. Computer - In this mode, the player may battle against the computer as any character the player has played as or fought against.
  • Flash - In this mode, the player must eliminate three particular flashing viruses faster than the computer can.
  • Marathon - This mode consists of a never-ending rising field of viruses which does not end until the player quits or loses.
  • Score Attack - In this mode, the player is given three minutes to clear all of the viruses as well as get a high score.

A multiplayer mode also allows up to four players to compete at once in Classic, Flash, or Score Attack gameplay.

Plot

The flu season has come about, and it is Dr. Mario's duty to use his Megavitamins to heal the people of the land. However, Wario, wanting to sell the pills to get rich, attempts to steal the Megavitamins, but to no avail. Afterwards, Mad Scienstein and Rudy the Clown steal the Megavitamins, and both Dr. Mario and Wario give chase. Throughout their adventure, both of them meet up with many creatures from Wario Land 3. Most of the time the fights that emerge are really misunderstandings; for example, the player may accidentally bump into a creature, who gets angry and retaliates. Dr. Mario and Wario follow Mad Scienstein to Rudy's castle, where they fight Rudy to take back the vitamins. If the game is completed on Normal or Hard mode without using a continue, one last battle occurs after defeating Rudy; the opponent is Metal Mario for Wario and Vampire Wario for Dr. Mario.

Reception

Dr. Mario 64 in all of its various permutations was voted #76 in the Top 100 Games of All Time poll published by Game Informer in August 2001.[16] IGN criticized the game for being "more of the same" and gave it a middling score of 5 out of 10.[12] GameSpot gave the game 7 out of 10, summarizing that "Dr. Mario is a legitimate and satisfying puzzle game that is executed rather nicely in this four-player-focused package."[11] It was a runner-up for GameSpot's annual "Best Nintendo 64 Game" award, which went to Paper Mario.[17]

Notes

  1. ↑ Electronic Gaming Monthly's review was by three critics that scored Dr. Mario 64 differently: 7/10, 7.5/10 and 6/10.[7]
  2. ↑ Game Informer's coverage included two brief reviews of Dr. Mario 64 with different ratings: 8.25/10 and 8.5/10.[8]
  3. ↑ GamePro gave Dr. Mario 64 a 4.5/5 for fun factor, 5/5 for control, and two 3/5 ratings for graphics and sound.[9]

References

  1. ↑ Staff, I. G. N. (2001-04-09). "It Doesn't Happen Very Often". IGN. Retrieved 2024-01-10.
  2. ↑ "iQue PLAYER优惠套装上海试卖，五款精品游戏同步发售！" [iQue Player Discount Set Trial Sale in Shanghai, Five High-quality Games Released Simultaneously!] (in Chinese). iQue. Archived from the original on December 25, 2005. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
  3. ↑ Nintendo Puzzle Collection - GameCube Preview, IGN.
  4. ↑ "Nintendo 64™ – Nintendo Switch Online". Nintendo. October 25, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  5. ↑ "Dr. Mario 64". GameRankings. Retrieved April 4, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Dr. Mario 64". MetaCritic. Retrieved April 4, 2012.
  7. ↑ Dudlak, John; Johnston, Chris; Hsu, Dan. "Dr. Mario 64". Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 144. p. 108.
  8. ↑ Leeper, Justin; Reiner, Andrew. "OPEN UP AND SAY "MAAAHHHH-RIO"". Game Informer. Archived from the original on June 8, 2008. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  9. ↑ Major Mike. "Dr. Mario 64". GamePro. Archived from the original on August 26, 2003. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  10. ↑ Liu, Johnny. "Dr. Mario 64". GameRevolution. Archived from the original on July 3, 2003. Retrieved October 14, 2020.
  11. 1 2 Villoria, Gerald (April 12, 2001). "Dr. Mario 64 Review". GameSpot. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  12. 1 2 Mirabella, Fran (April 17, 2001). "Dr. Mario 64". IGN. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  13. ↑ Evans, Geraint (July 2001). "Dr Mario 64". N64 Magazine. No. 56. pp. 64–65. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  14. ↑ Kelly (August 2001). "Dr. Mario 64". Nintendo Gamer. No. 1. pp. 52–53. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Dr. Mario 64". Nintendo Power. Vol. 143. April 2001. p. 114.
  16. ↑ Cork, Jeff. "Game Informer's Top 100 Games Of All Time (Circa Issue 100)". Game Informer. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  17. ↑ GameSpot VG Staff (February 23, 2002). "GameSpot's Best and Worst Video Games of 2001". GameSpot. Archived from the original on August 3, 2002.
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