Genre: Racing
Developer: Rare
Publisher: Nintendo

Rather than use the supplied Silicon Graphics microcode, Rare wrote their own, and boy does it show: Diddy Kong Racing looks nearly like a Dreamcast game, just lower resolution! There is colored lighting, super high geometry counts in the levels, every single racer is polygonal, and the framerate is very stable even in split-screen mode. The game's personality is simply outrageous, right from the dancing characters on the selection screen; the face the clock makes at the end of time trials; the "racially stereotyped" Indian elephant guy. The art direction is sublime, and the visuals ooze substance out of every pixel.

The over-the-top charm of this game continues into the audio category. The great David Wise delivers yet another masterpiece, this time via a combination of Jazz and Funk and Carnival. The groovy level select song is the best of its kind, anywhere; the voice samples here are unforgettable; while this one sounds straight out of classic DOS game "Wacky Wheels". There's even an obvious "Celebration" rip-off! The title's voice acting is just as great as its music: "Hi there! I'm T.T.!" Or the total weirdo elephant genie: "Whooaaaa... hello there.... hah hah! Whooo!" This reviewer just can't get enough.

As good as the game looks and sounds, Diddy Kong Racing plays just as well. "A" is throttle, "B" brakes, "Z" throws items, "R" causes a drift-- and when combined with "B", allows for super sharp and precise turning! The track designs are ingenious: they start out gentle but become very sophisticated by the end. Some of the "Silver Coin Challenges" feel like beating a boss in a "Souls" game, and that is the real genius here: Diddy Kong Racing is a very difficult game, yet one which compels the player to try again and again to master its various challenges.

Diddy Kong Racing is as close to a perfect video game as possible. It's everything the medium should deliver: a bizarre sense of humor, constant laugh out loud moments, quirky charm, unbelievable tech, perfect gameplay, amazing music, and out-of-this-world art direction. Not only that but the amount of content in this game, thanks to its incredible "Super Mario 64"-esque adventure mode but in a kart racer, will keep even the most skilled player busy for months-on-end. Rare obtained a reputation in the 90s as being among the best of the best, and Diddy Kong Racing is one of the reasons why.