Super Mario 64 DS

Super Mario 64 DS (originally known as Super Mario 64 × 4 during development) is a 2004 game from the Super Mario series made for the Nintendo DS. It is the first Mario game to be released for the Nintendo DS and also the first 3D Mario game for a handheld console. The game is an enhanced remake of the Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64, bearing some new features on its storyline, gameplay, and graphics. Like the original game, Super Mario 64 DS was released as a launch title.

Unlike in Super Mario 64, Mario is not the only playable character (nor is he even available at the start); Yoshi, Luigi, and Wario become playable characters and join the adventure to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser. Super Mario 64 DS is the first and so far the only game of the Super Mario series where Wario is playable. It is also one of the two games where Yoshi is playable, but is neither ridden nor controlled by any of the other characters, the other being Super Mario Run.

Other new features within the game include a wireless multiplayer VS mode, in which up to four players can play simultaneously on each Nintendo DS connected together locally (though this cannot be done on the Wii U Virtual Console version except for the single-player training), mini-games to play with each character, and new additions to the story mode, such as new courses, missions, and bosses.

General
Princess Peach writes a letter to Mario, telling him to come to her castle because she baked a cake for him. This letter is assumed to be a clever forgery from Bowser, who guesses that Mario and his friends would come looking and so employs his minions to capture them beforehand.

Mario arrives outside the castle through a Warp Pipe, followed by Luigi and Wario. The three then make their way to the castle entrance. Yoshi is seen asleep on the roof the entire time, only to be awakened by one of the Lakitu Bros., who reveals that the others have not returned yet; immediately, Yoshi decides to locate them.

Yoshi tries to enter the castle, but the doors are locked. The Lakitu Bro says that he saw a rabbit with the key in his mouth. After Yoshi grabs the rabbit, the rabbit gives up the key to him. When Yoshi finally goes inside, he hears a voice from Bowser telling him, "Welcome. No one's home! Now scram--and don't come back! Gwa ha ha!" A Toad informs Yoshi that Bowser and his army have kidnapped Princess Peach and stolen the Power Stars. He also concludes the last time he saw the heroes is when they jumped into the Bob-omb painting. Yoshi then decides to investigate. Eventually, Yoshi starts collecting Power Stars, rescuing Mario, Luigi, and Wario along the way, and the four continue to collect the Power Stars in order to save Princess Peach from Bowser.

There are alternate endings for Super Mario 64 DS. Depending on which characters the player saves, they may or may not appear during the ending. Mario and Yoshi are always present in the ending. For each alternate ending, a different cake is awarded, featuring the characters that appeared in the ending as the cake figures. If the player does not drain the moat, then it does not appear as if it was drained. Also, if the player does not finish Snowman's Lost His Head on Cool, Cool Mountain, then the snowman's body is not seen in the ending.

From the instruction booklet
"Please come to the castle. I’ve baked a cake for you."

At the invitation of Princess Peach, Mario, accompanied by party crashers Luigi and Wario, enter the Mushroom Castle.

But when the three don’t come out of the castle for a long time, Yoshi decides to check up on them.

Upon entering the castle, Yoshi discovers that no one is there. According to Toad, Bowser has stolen the Power Stars guarding the castle and locked Princess Peach into the walls and paintings. Maybe Mario and his friends have been captured in the paintings, too!

Now it’s up to Yoshi to rescue Princess Peach, Mario, Luigi, and Wario from the castle’s paintings and walls!

Gameplay
As in Super Mario 64, the courses are accessed by the different paintings on the castle's walls. While up to 120 Power Stars can be collected in the original, the player can collect 150 Power Stars in the DS release, 30 more than in the original game.

Controls
Making use of the Nintendo DS's features, the player is offered three different ways to control the character. All three modes are always accessible by pressing the button. On the Nintendo 3DS and the Wii U GamePad, however, / makes for a more authentic feel of using the Circle Pad/Joystick, making for better and easier controls. However, the player still needs to press to run, and the game still registers only eight different inputs, not the full range of a circle. In the options, the player can change how audio comes out of the speakers and the settings of the backlight. For sound, the player can choose between stereo, surround, and headphones. The backlight can be toggled on and off.
 * In Standard Mode, the chosen character is controlled with the Control Pad. The stylus can also be used in Standard Mode. Jumping is ; punching, kicking, and sticking out Yoshi's tongue is ; and dashing is . The button is used for crouching, while  handles the camera together with the  Control Pad. Additionally, if the player presses  while sliding down a wall, the player wall-kicks (if playing as Mario). Compared to Mario in Super Mario 64, where he was moving as fast as the player tilted  of the Nintendo 64 Controller, the characters in Super Mario 64 DS move much more slowly when the run button is not pressed.
 * In Touch Mode, the character is controlled by having the player move their thumb or the stylus across the Touch Screen. By using the thumb or stylus, the player can adjust the character's speed and direction in a manner similar to what was possible with the Nintendo 64's control stick. Jumping, crouching, and kicking are still executed with the buttons.
 * In Dual-Hand Mode, the character is controlled with the stylus, and jumping, kicking, and crouching are done by utilizing either the buttons, for left-handed players, or the Control Pad, for right-handed players. The movement radius is larger with this control option, and all camera adjustments are done with the Touch Screen as well. The  and  buttons are not used.

Character selection
To switch between characters, there are three doors in the princess's room, each symbolizing the character's first letter of his name. To use him, the player must go through the door, and the corresponding character comes out of the door. Reentering the door of the character currently selected switches the player back to playing as Yoshi. There are four doors in total. However, the white-bordered door does not unlock a playable character but instead contains a secret Power Star, which can be unlocked if the player is able to catch the eight glowing rabbits. Once the Power Star is obtained, the player can reenter the door, but there is no effect afterwards (Boo laughs are heard), and the player's character simply exits it and groans.

Characters
In order to fully complete the game, the player needs to find three unlockable characters, who were trapped behind doors by Bowser. The following table below shows how good each character is in a certain stat. Each has his own special abilities, strengths, and weaknesses. The instruction booklet shows each character's stats and indicates his abilities with stars. However, it omits the rating for swimming speed and does not account for differences in physics that affect the stats. Mario, for example, has a higher top running speed than Luigi. Additionally, each character has different air speeds; Mario's jumps are higher than Yoshi's (most notably his triple jump), and Mario also moves farther forward, tied with Luigi.

Colored caps
In the painting worlds and some secret courses, the caps of Mario, Luigi, and Wario can be found and are visible on the Touch Screen. When a cap is put on, the player's character turns into the corresponding character who owns the cap. He gets all moves of the character who owns the cap, including the Power Flower and Wings power-ups, but keeps his original voice. The caps are usually found on the heads of Goombas, Boos, or Dorrie; on land or underwater; or on any other enemy.

When the player is hit by an enemy, the cap topples off, and the character needs to retrieve it within a limited time. When the cap disappears, it reappears on a different, set location in the course. If Mario, Luigi, or Wario loses his original cap, he cannot pick up any other characters' caps or use Power Flowers until he retrieves his own. All of them also take double damage when hurt.

With Yoshi, a player can select the cap when selecting a Star right after jumping into a painting. If a cap is selected, Yoshi puts it on after entering the course.

Coins
Coins can be collected by every character. In every course, there are a little over 100 coins, and collecting 100 in each gives the player 15 extra Stars for the 15 courses. After successfully completing a mission by grabbing a Star, the player gets an extra life for every 50 coins collected (this, however, does not work if the player exits the course via the menu). The highest number of coins that the player can collect is 255. They can be found on land, in the sea, in enemies, etc. They also refill the player's health by one point for each coin collected.

Types:
 * Yellow Coins – worth one and are found in most enemies
 * Red Coins – worth two and have to be collected in groups of eight per mission in each world and in some secret courses for a Power Star to appear
 * Blue Coins – worth five and are often temporary, being found in tougher enemies or on slides or invisible until the player hits a blue Switch

Power Flower powers
Each of the four characters has a special power from the Power Flower found inside red ? Blocks, replacing the three caps from Super Mario 64. Only Mario can get something other than a Power Flower from a ? Block, which is the "Wings" (a white feather) to transform him into Wing Mario for 60 seconds. Once he has taken the flower, a hero uses his new powers for a short time. If anyone other than Yoshi hits a ? Block without their cap on, a Bob-omb comes out instead. In some ? Blocks (such as the ones in Whomp's Fortress and Snowman's Land), a Bob-omb is always spawned if the blocks are broken by a certain character, even with his cap on. The three powers that Mario can use in Super Mario 64, namely the Wing, Invisibility, and Metal powers, can now exclusively be used by Mario, Luigi, and Wario, respectively. However, Luigi's and Wario's powers last shorter compared to Mario's equivalent forms in Super Mario 64.

Rabbits
In addition, there are many rabbits to catch. They replace MIPS from the original game and have the same name internally and in the Shogakukan guide. The rabbits give up keys to unlock mini-game drawers in the Rec Room when caught. Seven rabbits spawn around the castle as each character, and any rabbits not meant for a certain character do not spawn unless that character is selected. Wario catches orange ones, Luigi catches green ones, Mario catches pink ones, and Yoshi catches yellow ones, for a total of 28 rabbits. To make the rabbits appear, the player must talk to the Toad in the Rec Room. Upon the player talking to the Lakitu Bro at the start of the game, an extra yellow rabbit appears near the hedge maze, which provides the key to the front doors of the castle. Though intended to be caught as Yoshi, if unlocking the front door is avoided using glitches, the rabbit still spawns when accessed as any other character, despite appearing yellow. Once caught, this rabbit never reappears and can never be a glowing rabbit.

Rabbit locations
The following table displays information pertaining to the whereabouts of each rabbit, which mini-game its related key unlocks, and the number of Power Stars that are required to access the rabbit. For more information regarding the mini-games unlocked, view the section about the Rec Room. To unlock the white-bordered door within the princess's room, the player must catch eight glowing rabbits. Once the player has collected at least 40 Stars and the given rabbit has already been caught, there is a 1/32 chance for the rabbit to be glowing white each time the area the rabbit is in is loaded. This chance increases to 1/16 once at least 80 Stars have been collected. Upon catching a glowing rabbit, the player is informed of how many glowing rabbits are left to be caught or, on the final rabbit, is given the key to the white-bordered door. Once the key to the white room has been collected, rabbits no longer have any chance to be glowing.

Keys
The keys are used to unlock Mario, Luigi, and Wario. They are obtained after boss battles. Mario's key is obtained once Goomboss is defeated, Luigi's key is obtained once King Boo is defeated, and Wario's key is obtained once Chief Chilly is defeated.

Upon catching all of the eight glowing rabbits, the player receives a key that opens the white room in the princess's room. The first time the player opens it and enters, they find a Power Star. However, if they come back after taking it, Boos' laughs can be heard, and the player character comes out of the door, startled.

At the beginning of the game, after catching a rabbit near the small hedge on the left of the castle, Yoshi gets the key to unlock the castle's front doors.

After clearing the first two Bowser levels, the player receives Big Keys to access the basement and second floor, respectively.

Courses and missions
The following table displays information regarding each course, the Power Stars found within each course, how to get the Stars, and what character is required to obtain the Stars. During some missions, the player can find a cap of another character that transforms them into the character that owns the respective cap. The number of caps in a course varies and is based on which characters have been rescued, with few exceptions. Yoshi does not have a cap but is able to choose from the rescued characters' before selecting a mission. When the player's coin meter reaches 100 for the first time in a particular course, a bonus Power Star appears, making a total of eight Power Stars available in each course. If one of the characters receives a Power Star and redoes the mission, the Power Star appears as blue and does not add to the total.

Castle Secret Stars
Secret Stars are Power Stars found in hidden locations in and around the Mushroom Castle. There are 30 Secret Stars in all, 15 more than in the original game. According to Bowser, he did not know the whereabouts of most of them.

Bowser boss battles
Bowser is fought in three courses, each of which is behind a Big Star Door, and a certain number of Power Stars is required to open the doors. Big Star Doors can be opened only with Mario, though once one is opened, any character can enter the door. The only exception to this is the Big Star Door leading to the final Bowser course; if any character other than Mario enters it, that character is brought to the endless stairs instead.

The following is a list of Bowser's subversive worlds and the number of Power Stars required to access them:
 * Bowser in the Dark World – 12 Power Stars
 * Bowser in the Fire Sea – 30 Power Stars to open the Big Star Door, and the first Power Star from Dire, Dire Docks
 * Bowser in the Sky – 80 Power Stars

Bosses
The following table shows all of the bosses in the game.

VS mode
The game includes a multiplayer VS mode. The mode can be accessed from the Title Screen by tapping the orange "VS" button at the bottom left of the Touch Screen. The VS mode supports only single-card gameplay, with Player 1 as the host with the inserted cartridge and Players 2&mdash;4 using the DS Download Play feature. The VS mode starts in a waiting area, which takes place in a castle interior, as shown from the top screen. It depicts a desert sand-colored wall with a large painting of a cloudy sky, two large pillars located left and right each, a red carpet on the checkered floor that leads up to the wall, and red drapes hanging on the ceiling.

While other players are preparing, the bottom screen reads "Waiting for opponents..." When other players have joined, their names are displayed on Player 1's screen. The host can then tap the "TOUCH TO START" notice to start the battle. While in the waiting room, players can press to change the settings and press  to change their controller layout. Every player controls a Yoshi and is no different in terms of abilities; Player 1 controls a Green Yoshi, Player 2 controls a Red Yoshi, Player 3 controls a Blue Yoshi, and Player 4 controls a Yellow Yoshi. Player 1 can select one of four stages, all of which appear as locations in the main game, by tapping the corresponding icon on the Touch Screen. When a stage is selected, the four Yoshis sprint toward the large painting and jump into it. They are taken to the selected course, and the gameplay starts.

The objective is for players to collect the most Power Stars and coins. At the top center of the screen is a countdown timer, which starts at 30. Players can hold up to five Power Stars. When a Yoshi is attacked by an obstacle or opponent, it loses a Power Star, which starts to bounce around the course. As such, Power Stars function very similarly to Silver Stars. The Yoshi can reclaim the Power Star before their opponent does. Mario's cap, Luigi's cap, and Wario's cap are located around the stage, and they transform the Yoshis into Mario, Luigi, and Wario, respectively. Yoshis can swallow their opponents unless their opponent is wearing a cap. A few of the stages have a large yellow block that contains a pair of wings, which temporarily grant Yoshi, Luigi, and Wario with the ability to fly. Wario is the only character with an ability exclusive to the VS mode, the Wild Swing-Ding, where if Wario attacks an opponent, they get knocked out slightly longer, allowing him to grab the opponent, swing them around, and throw them.

The player that ends with the most Power Stars wins. If two or more players are tied with the same number of Power Stars, then the player with the most coins wins. The results are shown in the waiting room, where the winning Yoshis cheer and the losing Yoshis cry. The collected Stars and coins are shown for each Yoshi. On the Touch Screen, it tells whether that player won or lost. The top screen then shows the number of rounds that each Yoshi won or lost, and there is a Star trophy icon to the left of each number.

Rec Room
Once keys are gained, they can open shelves to unlock mini-games. Mario's mini-games are action-packed, Luigi's are casino (or luck-based) games, Yoshi's are puzzle-based, and Wario's do not have a specific theme.

The following table is a complete listing of all the mini-games, descriptions, and the number of Power Stars needed to unlock the mini-games, which includes also the unlockables, throughout the game. They are followed by the in-game instructions. Most of these mini-games are reused in New Super Mario Bros., and they also have multiplayer, along with some new ones. There are 36 mini-games in total. Each character has nine: The first two are available from the start, while the other seven are obtained from catching the rabbits.

List of changes from the original game
Although Super Mario 64 DS is a clear remake of the Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64, there are some elements that were added in the game that the original game did not have, as well as elements that are seen in only the original game that were taken out or slightly tweaked in its remake.

General

 * Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, and Wario are now all playable. Only Mario is playable in the original, while Yoshi makes an unplayable cameo appearance on the Castle Roof after the original game is finished, and Luigi and Wario did not make any appearances or cameos in the original. There were, however, rumors that Luigi could be unlocked in the original, but those have since been debunked, and he was planned to appear in the original game but was dropped out.
 * On the Title Screen, Mario's or Yoshi's face can be dragged by the stylus. While being dragged, they become wireframe. The user can also design a custom picture to drag around. In the original, Mario's face can be pulled by the cursor.
 * In the original game, Mario (the only character capable of wall-kicking in both the original game and the remake) cannot slide down walls. He is able to do so in the remake, making wall-kicking much easier to perform than in the original.
 * Wall-kicking from a dive is now possible if Mario dives into a wall at a low enough speed.
 * It is possible to grab ledges during a triple jump, whereas Mario must land above the platform surface in the original.
 * The Power Flower has a different effect for each character: Mario is able to float, Luigi can become invisible, Wario can become a metal version of himself, and Yoshi can breathe fire out of his mouth. Mario can also fly by collecting a feather. In the original, Mario is able to collect different caps to use these various abilities (excluding the fire and balloon power-ups), such as the Wing Cap, the Vanish Cap, and the Metal Cap.
 * There are eight Power Stars in each world. In the original, there are only seven Power Stars in each world.
 * There are 36 rabbits to catch. In the original, there is only one rabbit, MIPS, who is caught twice in the basement.
 * There are 150 Stars in the whole game. There were 120 in the original.
 * Wario is now able to pick up signs and throw them like any enemy that is picked up. He is also able to jump on signs and ground-pound them into the ground once. In the original version, Mario is not able to pick up signs, nor is he able to ground-pound them. He and the other characters cannot pick up signs but can ground-pound them twice.
 * The mushroom power-up was added, mainly found in Bricks, and causes the player to grow to an enormous size (and gives Yoshi punching and kicking abilities as well as the ability to destroy Bricks). Within a time limit, one can defeat virtually every enemy, something that could not be done in Super Mario 64. After destroying the first seven, the player receives an extra life for anything else they destroy. A 90s Got Milk? commercial shows simulated footage from Super Mario 64 featuring a giant Mario, but it was impossible in the original version.
 * As the Nintendo DS does not have the analog stick that the Nintendo 64 has, either the D-Pad or the stylus can be used (depending on the settings). However, the Circle Pad on the Nintendo 3DS somewhat simulates the classic analog stick from the original version.
 * Klepto appears in three different levels, while in the original, he appears only in the level Shifting Sand Land.
 * The and  buttons on the Nintendo DS control the camera. In the original, the  buttons on the Nintendo 64 control the camera.
 * Rabbits, when caught by the player, can unlock mini-games in the Rec Room. In the original, a rabbit provided hints and/or a Star.
 * Silver Stars were added in the remake. During Silver Star missions, the player must collect five Silver Stars to make a Power Star appear.
 * In the original, a glitch can cause Mario to backwards long-jump. In the remake, backwards long-jumping is possible, but it does not have the same effect as in the original.
 * There are three save files to play on. In the original, there are four.
 * Mario could not destroy things that Wario could do in this game. He and the other characters also cannot even do it in this game.
 * Star Switches are seen in this game. They make a Power Star appear for a limited time in a Star Sphere.
 * The ability to bounce slide-kick off lava once has been removed.
 * The ability for Mario to wall-kick from a full-speed long jump has been removed. However, he can now wall-kick from a backward somersault, dive rollout, or slide-kick rollout (the latter two now allowing ledge-grabs, which means the Hazy Maze Cave and Bowser in the Sky can now be entered without jumping).
 * In the original game, collecting a 100-Coin Star (or a Red Coin Star in a Bowser stage) would keep Mario's health where it was when he collected it. In the DS version, the player's health gets refilled.
 * The Power Meter loses and gains power slower than in the original game after the player respawns from death or drops from high places.
 * Diving at the end of a fall inflicts no damage, no matter how high the character fell from.
 * Falling with the Wing Cap while holding the jump button does slow down the fall, but unlike in the original game, it does not prevent damage from falling.
 * In the original, during the final scene after the credits (after everyone waves goodbye to the player), the cake awarded to Mario is displayed, and the player must reset the system to continue playing. However, in the remake, after the cake is shown, pressing any button takes the player back to the Title Screen.

Course specific

 * Hedges and an additional ramp that leads into the moat have been added to the Castle Grounds.
 * The doors to the Mushroom Castle are now locked and require a key, which is obtained from a rabbit.
 * The door on the top right corner of the lobby contains only two Peach murals (one still leading to The Princess's Secret Slide), as well as five additional doors. The three doors with letters above them allow the player to switch between characters; the remaining door contains a secret Power Star, and the door in the back center leads to the Rec Room and Goomboss Battle. In the original, the room is smaller and contains three Peach murals inside it (one leading to the Secret Slide).
 * Two Power Flowers appear in the Mirror Room of the Mushroom Castle (four if the ones through the mirror are counted), but only if Luigi is used. In the original, no power-ups appear whatsoever in the room.
 * After collecting all Stars, the player may be shot out of a cannon to the top of the Mushroom Castle. Three 1-UP Mushrooms can be found there, as well as one of Luigi's rabbits. Also present on the roof is a red ? Block, which gives the player a feather for Mario and a Power Flower for Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi. In the original game, Mario finds Yoshi on the roof. He awards the player 100 lives and a new animation for his triple jump, then jumps into the waterfall.
 * The bottom layer of Whomp's Fortress has been expanded significantly, adding space for a Star Switch and its respective Power Star, along with several new enemies.
 * Firing at the breakable walls in Whomp's Fortress no longer inflicts damage.
 * The Star for Blast to the Stone Pillar is out in the open (like in the original Japanese version) and not in a yellow block.
 * The toxic cloud in the Hazy Maze Cave inflicts knockback on the player's character.
 * In the original game, Mario's cap did not despawn when he lost it in Snowman's Land. In the DS version, when Mario, Luigi, or Wario loses his cap in Snowman's Land, it gets stolen by a Mr. Blizzard.
 * The interior of the igloo in Snowman's Land has been entirely changed in the DS version.

Sound changes

 * Upon the game's start-up, Mario does not say anything on the Nintendo logo screen and says, "It's-a me, Mario!" only on the Title Screen. In the original, he says, "It's-a me, Mario!" on the Nintendo logo screen and "Hello!" on the Title Screen.
 * When a pipe appears at the start of a new game, Mario says, "Ha ha!" after a pause. In the original, he immediately says it after saying, "Yahoo!"
 * When the Big Boos are hit in the original, they make the same sound as the Thwomp, but they do not do so in the remake.
 * When Mario goes to sleep after idling for too long, he does not talk in his sleep, though this may be because it would have to be recorded for the other three characters.
 * The penguins on Cool, Cool Mountain have slightly different crying sounds than in the original.
 * Entering Rainbow Ride causes the sound effect for entering a mini-course to play; in the original, it plays the sound effect for entering any other main course.
 * As with the Shindō Pak Taiō version, Mario says, "Buh-bye!" instead of "So long, King-a Bowser!" when throwing Bowser a great distance.
 * New music has been composed, such as the jingles for collecting the Silver Stars and flying with Hoot.

Text changes

 * When the player first enters Big Boo's Haunt in the original, they are greeted with "Come on in here...heh, heh, heh..." They are not greeted in the remake.
 * In the original version, the Big Boo's laughs in the mission Go on a Ghost Hunt are written as "Ka ha ha ha!" In the remake, "Ha ha ha ha!" is written instead.
 * The Big Bob-omb of the Bob-omb Battlefield is obsessed with his mustache. In the original, he is not shown to have any particular interests.
 * Collecting a 1-UP Mushroom causes the words "1UP" to appear in orange text. In the original, no onscreen icon appears.
 * In the original version, Princess Peach says, "Mario! The power of the Stars is restored to the castle...and it's all thanks to you! Thank you, Mario! We have to do something special for you..." and "Listen, everybody, let's bake a delicious cake...for Mario..., Mario," after being rescued. In the remake, she instead opens her speech with "Oh! Yoshi!"; says "Thank you all!" in place of "Thank you, Mario!"; and ends her speech with "Listen... Let's bake a delicious cake...for my heroes..., Yoshi!"

Graphical changes

 * A blue tint overlay and a layer of mist have been added underwater.
 * The painting for Jolly Roger Bay is the original Japanese bubbles painting.
 * Peach wears her hair up in her appearances instead of wearing her hair down. This is based on how she appeared in Super Mario Sunshine, which was the debut appearance of her ponytail hairstyle.
 * Mario's and Bowser's models are updated to match their current appearances since Luigi's Mansion.
 * All the textures are redone to fit the new capabilities and resolution of the system.
 * The sun and moon found in level skyboxes are now separate objects from them. Additionally, the pyramids seen in the background of Shifting Sand Land are no longer present.
 * In the remake, coins are octagonal, but in the original, they are circular. Additionally, they are 3D objects in the remake, while they were 2D animated sprites in the original game.
 * There are red ? Blocks and yellow ! Blocks. Like in the original, yellow ! Blocks are the standard ones, whereas the new red ? Blocks now share the functionality of the red, green, and blue ! Blocks of the original.
 * Several enemies have updated designs. Many of the designs from this game end up becoming the standard for later games.
 * Bubs (or Cheep Cheeps) were depicted as resembling Blurps with an orange, scale-like texture and plain fins, but they have a traditional design in the remake.
 * Bubbas were depicted as a larger version of the aforementioned Bubs with shades, but due to the Bubs looking on-model, they were revised to look more like Boss Bass.
 * In the original, Boos have blue eyes and are oblong, but in the remake, they have black eyes and are more spherical.
 * Mr. Blizzards have zigzag mouths and wear buckets like hats, while in the original, they have circular mouths and wear nothing on their heads. Their defeat animation shows them spinning (similar to Mr. I) instead of falling on their sides.
 * Lakitu's Cloud looks less like a real cloud and has a happy face, while in the original, it resembles a normal cloud. Additionally, Lakitu is smiling in the remake, while in the original, he has a frown.
 * In the original, Thwomps are blue and cube-shaped, while in the remake, they use their Mario Kart: Double Dash!! design and, as such, are a gray-green color, spiked, and rectangular. Despite the spikes, the player can still stand on top of them.
 * Whomps now have gray rectangles for hands instead of purple spheres.
 * Heave-Hos have their faces replaced with a pair of digital eyes.
 * Skeeters are now light blue instead of turquoise.
 * Scuttlebugs no longer resemble orange marbles, instead having bee-like stripes.
 * Bob-ombs and Chuckyas now have windup keys.
 * Moving Bars no longer have eyes in Whomp's Fortress.
 * Pokeys now have their Mario Kart: Double Dash!! appearance.
 * Unagi now has a Chomp-like head and yellow markings.
 * Snufits are less spherical and wear black masks instead of white.
 * Fly Guys have visible mouths.
 * The Spindel has one row of bandages instead of three.
 * Monty Moles have a new design with a double upper lip.
 * Bullet Bills have a design similar to the old artworks but silver, without a mouth, and with black arms. The original game's version resembled a Banzai Bill.
 * Spindrifts have tan heads.
 * Keronpa Balls now resemble active Fire Chomps.
 * Amps have white lips and yellow eyes and lack the original design's cross-popping veins.
 * The projectile a Mr. I shoots is turquoise and glowing instead of a purple bubble.
 * Swoops no longer have visible teeth but have yellow, red, and purple details.
 * The Big Bob-omb now has white gloves instead of yellow.
 * The Whomp King now has a crown and a more chipped, irregular shape.
 * Big Bullies have spiked rings around their horns and red rings around their eyes.
 * Wiggler now turns red after the second hit and looks angry throughout. He also has spots.
 * Bowser no longer has a disproportionately large head. Also, at his sky course, his colors are now the same as when he is at his dark world and fire sea courses, instead of having a dark color tone.
 * The toxic cloud is now purple, instead of yellow in the original.
 * Bob-omb Buddies' feet are now red instead of orange. They also have a fuse.
 * Unlike the remake, in the original game, two Toads accompanied Princess Peach.
 * Hoot flaps his wings while speaking. In the original, Hoot is frozen when he gives his speech. He also flaps his wings slower compared to the original.
 * Wario, Luigi, and Yoshi figures appear on the cake at the end, along with those of Mario and Peach (with Wario and Luigi appearing only if the player has unlocked them). Only Mario and Peach are seen in the original game.

Regional differences

 * The mini-games, and by extension the rabbits that have the keys to unlock extra mini-games and the Toad that appears in the Rec Room inside the Mushroom Castle, are removed in the Korean version, likely due to the presence of gambling in Luigi's mini-games.
 * The Japanese and Korean version colors the word "Super" (as well as the word 「神游」 in the iQue Chinese version) in many colors rather than just one color, making it look a lot like the original game's title screen.
 * There is a yellow ! Block alongside the red ? Block on the roof of the Mushroom Castle in the Korean version, rather than only the ? Block in the other releases. This ! Block gives extra lives: the block does not disappear so that they can easily earn up to 100 lives.
 * The US v1.1 version has different enemy bounce physics than the US v1.0 version. V1.0 mimics the original game, while v1.1 puts every bounce in the jump state.

Notable mistakes and errors

 * When the player puts on Mario's cap for the first time, the game states that the player must press to do a wall kick. This is incorrect, as the player must press  to wall-kick, likely a translation error of the control scheme from the original release.
 * Despite the instruction booklet giving Yoshi's jumps a three-star rating, his long jumps and triple jumps do not go as high and far as Mario's and Luigi's do.
 * King Boo is mistakenly referred to as Big Boo.
 * The floor by the 50-★ door on the castle's third floor has the carpet texture sound instead of the normal floor texture sound.
 * The instruction booklet is written in a vertical format and has a mistake where Mario and Luigi's speed is similar to that of the rest of the characters, except Wario. In fact, Mario and Luigi are the fastest in running and swimming, respectively.
 * Even if the player has collected the Star, a Star that is held by Unagi or Klepto or the caged Star on Tall, Tall Mountain appears as if it has not been collected yet when untouched by the player.
 * If the player enters the Tower of the Wing Cap without Mario's cap, the Wing Cap still appears on Mario. He even has his cap on until he leaves by any method.
 * Even if Yoshi's mouth is full, he can still make sounds.
 * Page 23 of the game's instruction booklet shows a screenshot of Mario on Star 3 in the Bob-omb Battlefield. The Silver Stars on the Touch Screen appear to be actual Power Stars.

Pre-release and unused content
The game was initially announced as Super Mario 64 × 4. This iteration featured co-op multiplayer, different graphics, and slightly different level layouts among other things from its final release. At E3 2004, a build of the game was available to play. In single-player mode, the player could switch between the four playable characters using the Touch Screen. Wario also had long sleeves as opposed to his current short sleeve design.

A fully functional red Koopa Troopa enemy is present in the game's code and can be accessed with an Action Replay code. Similar to Bullies, red Koopa Troopas attempt to ram into the player character. When they are knocked out of their shells, they slowly walk back to them. If the player hits a red shell, it slides along the ground and defeats enemies in its path. Once it collides with a wall, it breaks. If Yoshi eats a red Koopa Troopa, he can spew fire like in Super Mario World.

Sales
Following its release in Japan, Super Mario 64 DS sold over 241,000 copies in December 2004. Super Mario 64 DS is the 10th best-selling game for the Nintendo DS, having sold 11.06 million copies worldwide.

Staff
The game was produced by Shigeru Miyamoto, who also served as the supervising director, and directed by Shinichi Ikematsu. The main system programmer was Toshio Iwawaki; the other system programmers were Kenzo Hayakawa, Yuichi Yamamoto, Kenji Matsutani, and Hiroshi Umemiya.

Amp Death Glitch
The player must lose all but one wedge of their health, then touch an Amp. When they fall down to the ground in the death cutscene, one third of the body is submerged in the ground. As Bowser's face comes onto the screen, the character's body disappears.

Falling Pillar Glitch
Sometimes, when the player long-jumps under a falling pillar in Jolly Roger Bay, the pillar is destroyed, and the player stays squished until they lose a life. This works in only Version 2 of the game.

Hatless Power Flower Abilities
The player should enter Tall, Tall Mountain as Mario, Luigi, or Wario. Mario, Luigi, or Wario should obtain the Power Flower (or the Wing Cap in Mario's case) atop the mountain and then grab Ukiki while the Power Flower is still in effect. He should wait for it to wear off and, while he is flashing back to normal, hop into the water, but he should be back to normal by the time he hits it. When in the water, Mario, Luigi, or Wario should head back on land via the waterfall (if he goes on land normally, Ukiki gives his speech, causing Mario, Luigi, or Wario to return to normal). When he has climbed the waterfall slightly, then he can get on land. Mario, Luigi, or Wario can then go to the top of the mountain via the owl and obtain the Power Flower. Depending on which cap he has, the following effects can happen:
 * Luigi: His body is invisible, but his head remains the same.
 * Mario: Everything is normal, but he has wings growing out of his head.
 * Wario: The game freezes the instant the Power Flower is touched. It can also be used to find the debug screen.

Clipping Glitch on Bob-omb Battlefield
This glitch can be performed with any character (although Mario should not have wings). First, to perform this glitch, the character would have to go to Bob-omb Battlefield. Once he is on the mountain trail, he should enter the first cannon by a Goomba, a brick, and a tree. Then, the character should aim so that the tip of the bottom arrow aligns with the tip of the bottom of the floating island. Then once the character fires, he makes a glitchy movement going back and forth and then passes through the fence at a certain angle and ends up on top of the mountain instantly.

Boo

 * (caught by Yoshi) "You...can't...EAT...ghosts! Eee hee hee!"

King Boo

 * (to Wario) "Eee hee hee...I am Big Boo, the scariest of the spirits. Eek! What's this?! Your face...It would even scare a ghost. How horrible! You've got it backwards...I do the scaring around here! All right, now I'll put some real fear in that frightening face of yours! Eee hee hee!"
 * (defeated) "Augh! The scariest one wins, and your face is flesh-creepingly frightening. Good thing I don't have any flesh! Eee hee hee! This is not the end. See you again."

Lakitu

 * (to Yoshi) "Yoshi...Yoshi..." (pops Yoshi's bubble, waking him up) "Listen... Mario hasn't returned yet..."

References to other games

 * Super Mario Bros. 2 – Luigi has the same scuttle jump from this game.
 * Super Mario Bros. 3 – The music for the Rec Room is an arrangement of Grass Land's music. The music for the mini-games Wanted!, Connect the Characters, and Mario's Slides is an arrangement of the mini-game music.
 * Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 – Wario's gameplay is like that of this game.
 * Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island – Some of Yoshi's moves and animations are based on this game.
 * Super Mario 64 – Super Mario 64 DS is a remake of this game. Mario retains some of his moves, attacks, and voice clips from this game. Yoshi is seen on the castle's roof in the beginning, which is a reference to this game. Also, some of Peach's voice clips were reused from this game.
 * Mario Kart 64 – Some of Luigi's and Wario's voice clips are reused from this game.
 * Yoshi's Story – Yoshi's voice clips are from this game. The flower used in the mini-game Loves Me...? is based on that of the Smile Meter from said game.
 * Paper Mario - The Goomba King from this game appears as "Goomboss".
 * Luigi's Mansion – Some of Luigi's voice clips are from this game. Also, King Boo imprisoning Luigi is a reference to his doing so to Mario in this game. King Boo's laugh is also the same.
 * Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2 - Some of Mario's and Luigi's voice clips are reused from this game.
 * Super Mario Sunshine – Some of Mario's voice clips are recycled from this game. In addition, Sunshine Isles uses the music from Delfino Plaza, and other music can be heard in some mini-games. Luigi's games use the theme from Casino Delfino, and some other mini-games use the a cappella version of the original Super Mario Bros. theme song from the secret areas.
 * Wario World – Some of Wario's moves, attacks, and voice clips are the same in this game.
 * Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour – Wario's Double Bogey voice clip is reused as his death sound.
 * Mario Kart: Double Dash!! – Some of Mario's, Luigi's, Wario's, and Yoshi's voice clips are recycled from this game. Also, the Star on the box art is reused from the art of this game. The model used for Princess Peach's Castle is also taken from Mario Circuit (GCN), which comes from this game.

References in later games

 * Mario Kart DS – All of the bosses excluding the Whomp King and Bowser reappear in Mission Mode of this game, with each one fought after every eight missions. Also, some of Mario's, Luigi's, Yoshi's, and Wario's quotes and sounds are reused here. Tick Tock Clock is now a playable course.
 * New Super Mario Bros. – Most of the mini-games and enemy models from Super Mario 64 DS are reused in New Super Mario Bros. Also, when the DS is closed in both games, Mario says, "Buh-bye!" and when the DS is opened back up, he says, "It's-a me, Mario!"
 * Super Mario Galaxy / Super Mario Galaxy 2 – The Silver Stars return in these games.
 * Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games – The Nintendo DS version features the songs Mini-Games Coincentration and Mini-Games Bounce and Pounce from this game in the Gallery.
 * Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games – The arrangement of the Underground Theme in this game uses the same name as the mini-game Coincentration, which itself features an arrangement of the same theme.
 * New Super Luigi U – The portrait used to enter Big Boo Battle is reused as a hidden Luigi sighting in the level Boo's Favorite Haunt.
 * Mario Kart 8 / Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – Mario Kart DS ' s racecourse Tick Tock Clock returns as the first track in the Retro Lightning Cup.

Trivia

 * The artwork of the castle on the box art is different from the design in-game. The design on the box art is actually based on the castle that appears in Mario Circuit from Mario Kart: Double Dash!! This also applies to the Power Star seen on the box art.
 * On the title screen, if the player taps Mario's or Yoshi's face, a drawing of Mario or Yoshi (respectively) appears. The third time the player taps Mario's face, a Luigi drawing appears instead.
 * The UK version of the game's manual mistakenly reads, "Thank you for selecting the SUPER MARIO™ Game Card for Nintendo DS™ systems," instead of the full name.
 * The original European version of Super Mario 64 DS received a PEGI 3+ rating. However, due to content regulations in Europe growing stricter over the years, the European Virtual Console re-release instead received a PEGI 12+ rating because of the gambling in Luigi's mini-games. This also applies to New Super Mario Bros.