Posted 17th September 2006 14:56 by Mark Turner
Bcdefg123 again, where Mjf314, contacted for high scores in Mario Kart 64, gives us tips for EVERY Mario Kart game!
Bcdefg123: Tell us a bit about yourself if you want.
Mjf314: My name is Michael Fried and I live in the United States. The games I've spent the most time competing in on are the Mario Kart games. I usually only play 1 Mario Kart game at a time, and play it for awhile until I get very good at it and then switch to another Mario Kart game. Recently I started playing Mario Kart Super Circuit, so now I've finally played all 5 Mario Kart games. I'm not sure which details you're most interested in, but you can check out this article about me for more info: http://www.speedrunwiki.com/Michael_Fried
I've also played various games in The Legend of Zelda series, the Mario series, and the Donkey Kong Country series, and various other assorted games.
Bcdefg123: What's your favorite course?
Mjf314: My favorite track in MK64 is Yoshi Valley. It's the only track where I currently hold a world record (26.18 for the fastlap). Even before I had the world record, I've always liked Yoshi Valley and found it a fairly easy track. I remember one time when I returned to MK64 after taking a break from the game for awhile, Yoshi Valley was the track I practiced on to get my skills back. The only bad thing about Yoshi Valley is the spinies on laps 2 and 3 because you need to keep relearning their positions as you get better.
Bcdefg123: Favorite character to use?
Mjf314: SMK: Bowser
MK64: Yoshi
MKSC: Bowser
MKDD: Baby Mario/Baby Luigi
MKDS: Dry Bones
Bcdefg123: Wow, okay. Any specific records you want to brag about?
Mjf314: Trying to make me look arrogant by asking me to brag? :( I guess the records that are world records are the most worth bragging about. I currently hold 1 world record in Mario Kart 64, 26.18 Yoshi Valley non-shortcut fastlap (video: http://www.thengamer.com/MK64/14-YoshiValley/yv-2618-Fried.mpg). Another impressive achievement is that I'm the first person who ever landed the spiral shortcut in Rainbow Road on all 3 laps, though my time there (3:19.65) is only ranked 2nd now since Karlo beat it.
In Mario Kart DS I don't have many world records left. I guess the most impressive one that I still have would be 37.263 Bowser Castle fastlap (replay video: http://www.thengamer.com/MKDS/bc-37263replay-Fried.MOV) where I have a pretty big lead on 2nd place, but I'm not sure how much time other people have spent trying to beat it, so it's hard to say how good it really is.
Bcdefg123: Hey, you had the choice not to brag! Any last tips or tricks?
Mjf314: I have some tips for MK64 (some of these tips apply to every MK):
1. Watch vids by the top karters. Vids for MK64 can be found at http://speeddemosarchive.com/MarioKart64.html or http://www.thengamer.com/MK64/. It's also good to watch vids several times rather than just once because there are many small details that are more important than they seem at first.
2. Make vids of your own, and show them to top karters so they can tell you where you make mistakes. Being told exactly what you need improvement on is the fastest way to improve. You can talk to the top karters on the Mario Kart forum (http://www.mariokart64.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl), or more conveniently through AIM or MSN.
3. Practice a lot. This is a game that requires a lot of dedication. If you want to reach the top 10 in the world, expect to be playing for at least half a year if you're a very fast improver. If you're not a very fast improver then expect it to take you much longer.
4. If the joystick for your controller is too wobbly, then get a new controller. A little wobbly is fine, but if it's very wobbly then mini-turbos will become hard.
5. Keep your room at a comfortable temperature. An air conditioner is best (or heater during the summer). If you don't have one and your hands get sweaty easily, then use a fan or use dryhands (http://dryhands.com/).
6. Just before you start karting, stretch your hands, then warm up by repeatedly opening and closing your hands for about 10 seconds, then wash your hands with soap and warm water (if you use dryhands then put that on after you wash your hands).