Super Mario 64 DS

Super Mario 64 DS (originally called Super Mario 64 x 4 ) is a game from the Super Mario series made for the handheld game system Nintendo DS. It was the first Mario game to be released on the Nintendo DS and is also the first 3D Mario game for a handheld console. The game is a remake of Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64, bearing some new features on its storyline, gameplay and graphics. Unlike 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 also join the adventure in order to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser. Other new features within the game include a multi-player mode, in which up to four players can play simultaneously on each Nintendo DS connected together locally; minigames to play with each character, and new additions to the story mode such as new missions and levels.

General
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.

Apparently, Luigi and Wario somehow read the letter themselves and catch up behind Mario. Although surprised to see the other two are there, Mario lets it go and the trio start to run up to the castle when Wario bumps into the two. Mario and Luigi stare at him while Wario just chuckles. The three stop and race into the castle, when Bowser ambushes them and they, according to Toad, jump into the Bob-omb painting to retrieve the Power Stars after Bowser takes them and captures Princess Peach.

Yoshi is asleep, only to be awakened by one of the Lakitu Bros.. He is seen on the roof (possibly a reference to Super Mario 64), but somehow ends up in front of the castle when woken, probably carried there by the Lakitu who realizes that the heroic red, green, and yellow plumbers haven't returned to the pipes to leave, and instructs Yoshi 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. After grabbing the rabbit, the rabbit gives up the key to Yoshi. When Yoshi finally enters, he hears Bowser's voice telling him "no one's home" and to "scram". Toad tells him Bowser has kidnapped Peach and stolen the Power Stars. He also says the last time he saw the heroes is when they jumped into the Bob-omb painting. Yoshi decides to investigate.

After being found, the quartet hunts for the rest of the stars. Some of them are hidden so well that Bowser does not even know about them. After collecting at least 80 stars, the player can finally fight Bowser for the final time. Mario ascends a staircase at the top of the castle to face Bowser for the final time. After making it through another one of Bowser's obstacle courses, Mario encounters Bowser and the two battle.

Bowser ends up defeated, gives up and hands Mario the Giant Power Star before he explodes. When Mario grabs the final Power Star, wings suddenly appear on his cap allowing him to fly.

Finally, he lands in front of the castle where Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi are waiting for him. As his wings fade away, Mario uses the power of the Power Stars to make Peach appear in front of the castle. All four rush up to her as she wakes up. Peach is surprised to see the other three but she still thanks them, Peach kisses Mario and says they will make a cake for her heroes. Peach and the heroes walk into the castle. Yoshi starts to do so himself, but then pauses and turns around to look at the player. Peach calls his name and Yoshi runs in after the four. The credits roll and after the credits, the cake, with Princess Peach, Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi figures, is shown at the very end.

There are two alternate endings for Super Mario 64 DS. The first involves the player not rescuing Wario. During the ending, Mario lands only with Yoshi and Luigi. From then on, the cutscene continues as does the good ending without the attendance of Wario. In the second alternate cutscene, the player will have to not save Luigi which ultimately leaves Wario to be left behind too. In this ending, Mario lands with Yoshi and then the cutscene proceeds lacking the two other heroes. For each alternate ending, a different cake is awarded featuring the characters that appeared in the ending as cake figures.

From the instruction booklet
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 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, but in the DS game, the player can collect 150 power stars, 30 more than the original game.

Controls
Making use of the DS's features, the player is offered three different ways to control the character. All three modes are always accessible by pressing Select.


 * In standard mode, the chosen character is controlled with the Control Pad. The stylus can also be used in Standard Mode. Jump 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 and holds  and presses, the player will wall kick (if playing as Mario). Compared to Super Mario 64, where Mario was moving as fast as the player tilted the  of the Nintendo 64 controller, the characters in Super Mario 64 DS move much more slowly when the running 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 character's speed can be adjusted by the player 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 two 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.

On the Nintendo 3DS, however, the makes for a more authentic feel of using the Control Stick, making for better and easier controls. However, the player will still need to press to run and can still only move in eight different directions.

Character Selection


To switch between characters, there are three doors each symbolizing the character's first letter of their name. To use them, the player must go through the door, and the corresponding character will come out of the door. Switching to Yoshi will mean reentering the door that complements the same character once more. There are four doors in total, however only one is not a playable character. Inside the silver door, is a secret power star which is hidden until the player is able to catch the 8 glowing rabbits.

Characters
To complete the game, the player needs to find the three plumbers who where locked behind doors by Bowser:

Caps
In the painting worlds, 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 power-ups, but keep his original voice. The caps are usually found on the heads of Goombas, on land, or underwater.

When hit by an enemy, the cap topples off and the character needs to retrieve it in limited time. When the cap disappears, it reappears on a different, set, random location in the course.

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


 * Mario's Cap - a Red cap that allows the player to turn into Mario.
 * Luigi's Cap - a Green cap that allows the player to turn into Luigi.
 * Wario's Cap - a Yellow cap that allows the player to turn into Wario.

Coins
Coins can be accepted and collected by each character. In each course there are a little over 100 coins and collecting 100 gives the player 15 extra stars for the 15 courses. They can be found on land, in the sea, or in enemies.

Types:
 * Yellow Coins - worth 1 and are found in most enemies
 * Red Coins - worth 2 and have to be collected in the quantity of 8 for one episode in each world.
 * Blue Coins - worth 5 and are often temporary, found in tougher enemies, on slides or invisible until Mario hits a Blue Coin Switch.

Power Flower Powers
Each of the four characters has a special power from the Power Flower found inside a ? Block. Only Mario can get something other than a Power Flower from the ? Block, which is the feather that transforms him into Wing Mario. Once taken the flower, a hero uses his new powers in a short time, that may last about 20 seconds. Notwithstanding, Mario's wing form can last a bit longer, about one minute. Additionally, Luigi's and Wario's powers last shorter compared to Mario's equivalent forms in Super Mario 64.

Rabbits
Each character has 7 rabbits to catch (they are color coded). Wario catches orange, Luigi catches green, Mario catches pink, and Yoshi catches yellow. The rabbits will give up keys to minigames drawers in the Rec Room. Yoshi catches 8 because the first one has the key to the castle.

Rabbit Locations
'''Yoshi (Yellow Rabbits):
 * 1: Outside the castle, at the end of the bridge left - Puzzle Panel - 1 Star
 * 2: Outside the castle, at the end of the bridge middle - Hide and Boo Seek - 1 Star
 * 3: Outside the castle, at the end of the bridge right - Boom Box - 1 Star
 * 4: Outside the castle, in a patch of flowers to the right - Tox Box Shuffle - 1 Star
 * 5: Outside the castle, at the bottom of the drained moat - Puzzle Panic - 12 Stars
 * 6: Outside the castle, in the hedge maze - Which Wiggler? - 1 Star
 * 7: In the basement, in front of the entrance to Lethal Lava Land - Mix a Mug - 12 Stars

'''Mario (Pink Rabbits):
 * 1: Outside castle, left of the bridge - Sort or 'Splode - 8 Stars
 * 2: Outside castle, at the bottom of the moat (after it's been drained) - Shell Smash - 12 Stars
 * 3: Inside the room with the entrance to Jolly Roger Bay - Trampoline Time - 8 Stars
 * 4: In the basement, in front of the entrance to Lethal Lava Land left - Connect the Characters - 12 Stars
 * 5: In the basement, in front of the entrance to Lethal Lava Land right - Bounce and Trounce - 12 Stars
 * 6: On the second floor of the castle, at the very top of the stairs - Trampoline Terror - 31 Stars
 * 7: On the second floor of the castle, in the room with the large mirror wall - Shuffle Shell - 31 Stars

'''Luigi (Green Rabbits):
 * 1: On the second floor - Memory Master - 31 Stars
 * 2: In the hedges - Pair a Gone and On - 15 Stars
 * 3: Behind the castle, in the courtyard with the boos (back flip right outside the doorway) - Picture Poker - 15 Stars
 * 4: In the basement, in the room where the water can be drained from the moat - Mushroom Roulette - 15 Stars
 * 5: In the room with the entrance to the Bob-omb Battlefield - Lucky Stars - 15 Stars
 * 6: In the room with the entrance to the Goomboss Battle (behind the Rec Room) - Mario Slot - 15 Stars
 * 7: Outside the castle, on the roof - Super Mario Slot - 150 Stars

'''Wario (Orange-Gold Rabbits):
 * 1: Outside the castle, over the bridge - Bingo Ball - 31 Stars
 * 2: In the room with Whomp's Fortress - Coincentration - 31 Stars
 * 3: In the courtyard - Slots Shot - 31 Stars
 * 4: In the basement, in the dead end, near Toad - Phsyche Out - 31 Stars
 * 5: On the second floor of the castle, in the halls with the entrance to Tiny-Huge Island - Lakitu Launch - 31 Stars
 * 6: Near the Tick Tock Clock - Intense Coincentration - 50 Stars
 * 7: Near the entrance to Over the Rainbows - Giant Snowball Slalom - 50 Stars

After Bowser in the Dark World is beaten, there will be 8 shiny rabbits that will be randomly placed where a regular rabbit that has been caught used to be within the castle grounds and inside the castle.

Many people think it only takes 30 stars to unlock Wario, but it actually takes 31 because the player needs to beat Board Bowser's Sub to access Bowser in the Fire Sea.

It is possible to unlock Super Mario Slot with only 15 stars by using other ways to get to the top of the castle.

Keys
Keys are used to unlock Mario, Luigi, or 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 after Chief Chilly is defeated.

Upon catching all of the 8 shiny rabbits, the player receives a key that opens the white room in the character switch room. The first time to open it and enter, a character finds a power star. However, if the character comes back after taking it, Boo laughs can be heard, and the hero comes out from the door, startled.

Worlds
(As stated above, 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 8 Power Stars available in each course.)

Secret Stars
Secret Stars throughout the castle. All are necessary for a perfect completion.

Bowser Boss Battles
Bowser has kidnapped Peach, and holds the keys to the next floors as in the original. Mario is required to open the Star Doors so he and the other three playable characters can battle him (unless it's the final stage). However, a glitch can be used to fight Bowser with another character, with Yoshi using hats to fight Bowser. He can be beaten by swinging him into the spike balls once (3 times for Bowser's final battle) to get a key and, in the last battle, the final star.

Bowser's Worlds:
 * Bowser in the Dark World
 * Bowser in the Fire Sea
 * Bowser in the Sky

Bosses

 * Big Bob-omb
 * Whomp King
 * Goomboss
 * Big Boo
 * Big Mr. I
 * King Boo
 * Big Bully
 * Eyerok
 * Chill Bully
 * Chief Chilly
 * Wiggler

VS Mode
Super Mario 64 DS includes a multiplayer VS mode. When DS systems are connected, the host player will select a stage. Once the stage has been select, each player will compete to get the most Power Stars and Coins within the time limit. After the round is finished, the results will shown the ranks of player with the most stars and coins.

Rec Room
Once keys are gained, they can open shelves to unlock minigames. Mario's and Wario's minigames are action packed, Luigi's are casino (or luck based) games, and Yoshi's are puzzle.

The following is a complete listing of all minigames, which includes also the unlockables, throughout the game. They are followed by the in-game instructions. These minigames are reused in New Super Mario Bros., along with some new ones.

Yoshi

 * Wanted! – It's easy to get lost in a crowd! Find the one who disappeared and touch him. There he is!
 * Loves Me...? – Play this minigame for advice on your love life! Pluck the petals to find out how your crush feels about you.
 * Hide and Boo Seek – Rub the Touch Screen where the Boos are hiding! For the first 15 levels, you get three seconds to find them. After that, you only get two seconds.
 * Puzzle Panel – Match the Touch Screen picture to the top screen. Touch a panel to turn over the surrounding panels. Harder levels will take more turns to solve.
 * Boom Box – Each time you open a treasure chest, you'll hear a sound. Open 2 chests with the same sound. Win by matching all the pairs.
 * Tox Box Shuffle – Oh, no! Yoshi's trapped in a Tox Box! Find which one he's in to save him!
 * Which Wiggler? – Touch the Wiggler on the Touch Screen that matches the one on the top of the screen. Choose carefully, though; he has a terrible temper.
 * Mix-a-Mug – Line up the slots on the Touch Screen to form a face. Win more coins by matching the center face in the slots to the one on the top screen.
 * Puzzle Panic – This minigame takes the Puzzle Panel to a whole new level. Put on your thinking cap. You're going to need it.

Mario

 * Mario's Slides – Guide Mario down the slides to the Star. Draw lines on the Touch Screen to create new routes for him. Collect 5 Stars to move up a stage.
 * Bounce and Pounce – Mario's in free fall, but he can bounce back if you touch him. Stomp the Fly Guys, but make sure he doesn't fall off the Touch Screen.
 * Sort or 'Splode – Guide Bob-ombs to the black carpet and Bob-omb Buddies to the pink carpet. If you bring in a wrong-colored Bob-omb, KABLAMSKI!
 * Trampoline Time – Draw a line on the Touch Screen to turn it into a trampoline. You can draw up to 3 lines at a time. Help Mario bounce to safety!
 * Shuffle Shell – Use the paddle to push the Koopa shells to the target. The closer the shells land to the center of the target, the more points you will earn.
 * Bounce and Trounce – Mario's surrounded by Fly Guys to trounce. Touch him on his left, right, or center to make him bounce in that direction.
 * Connect the Characters – Draw lines to match the characters' head to their bodies. Press "GO!" when you're finished to see how you fared!
 * Shell Smash – Hit Koopa shells together to score points. Hit many in a row for even more points. Score even higher points by smashing green shells together.
 * Trampoline Terror – Only players with superb stylus skills will be able to make Mario bounce through rings.

Luigi

 * Memory Match – Pick two matching cards to make them disappear. Clear all the cards to win.
 * Pair-a-Gone – Touch 2 identical cards that are connected vertically, horizontally, or diagonally to make them disappear. Clear them all to win!
 * Picture Poker – Get a better hand than Luigi to win! If you're confident your hand is best, increase the number of coins you bet!
 * Mushroom Roulette – Guess where the ball will land on the roulette wheel. Guess correctly to win coins!
 * Mario Slot – Touch the spinning slots to stop them. Get 3 items in a row to earn coins! The Superstar is wild.
 * Lucky Stars – From a pair of cards, pick the one with more Stars to win coins. Beat Luigi at his own game!
 * Pair-a-Gone and On – This game of Pair-a-Gone goes on forever! Test your skill and see how many cards you can clear. Go for the record!
 * Memory Master – If Memory Match was a piece of cake for you, try out this harder version. You now have more cards to play with.
 * Super Mario Slot – Touch the spinning slots to stop them. Get 3 items in a row to earn coins! The Superstar is wild. Are you feeling super lucky?

Wario

 * Bob-omb Squad – The parachuting Bob-ombs are destroying your flowers! Use your slingshot to knock them out of the air. Hit Lakitu to blow them all up.
 * Snowball Slalom – Rub the Touch Screen to roll the snowman's head to the goal before time runs out! Rocks will slow you down, as will touching his head!
 * Bingo Ball – Launch a ball into a numbered slot on the Touch Screen. That number will light up the top screen. Get 3 numbers in a row to score!
 * Coincentration – Pay attention to where the falling coins land. Touch the blocks to retrieve the coins. But, if you choose the wrong block, your game will end.
 * Psyche Out! – Are you psychic? Can you guess what's on the card's other side? Maybe if you stare at it long enough, a vision will come to you.
 * Slots Shot – The bars swing open when a ball goes in a Piranha Plant. Sink the ball into the pipe to trigger the slots Switch. Get 3 items in a row for a bonus!
 * Lakitu Launch – Shoots as many balls as you can into the tubs within the allotted time.
 * Intense Coincentration – There aren't as many falling coins this time around, but that won't stop Wario. Watch the coins carefully!
 * Giant Snowball Slalom – Roll the snowball over a longer course! As before, avoid rocks because they'll slow the player down.

List of changes from the original
Though Super Mario 64 DS is a clear remake of the 64-bit game Super Mario 64, there are some components added in the game while the original did not, as well as elements only seen in the first rendition which were taken out in its remake.


 * Mario, Wario, Yoshi, and Luigi are now playable. Only Mario was 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.
 * The player can also draw, but in the original, they not appear.
 * Peach wears her hair in a ponytail in her appearances instead of wearing her hair down. In the original, she wears her hair down, this is based on her appearance in Super Mario Sunshine and her ponytail hairstyle is similar to the one she wears her hair from the current Mario Kart series and Mario Sports titles.
 * In the remake, Coins are octagonal, but in the original, they're circular.
 * 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 when anyone collects a Power Flower. Mario can also fly by collecting a Wing Feather. In the original, Mario was 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 Red ? boxes and Yellow ! boxes. In the original, there were also blue and green and all had "!"s on them. The red and yellow boxes also had "!"s on them in the original too.
 * There are seven missions in each portrait world (plus the 100 coin Star). The original has only six missions, plus the 100 coin Star.
 * There are seven multicolored Rabbits for each character to catch. In the original, there is only one rabbit which is caught twice.
 * There are 150 Stars in the whole game. There were thirty less in the original.
 * Thwomps are gray, spiked and rectangular prism shaped but the player can still stand on top of them, the original Thwomps are blue and cube-shaped and the player can stand on top of them.
 * Wario, Luigi, and Yoshi figures appear on the cake at the end, along with those of Mario and Peach (with Wario and Luigi only appearing if the player has unlocked them). Only Mario and Peach are seen in the original.
 * After collecting all Stars, the player may be shot out of a cannon to the top of Peach's 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 ! Box, which gives the player a Feather for Mario and a Power Flower for Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi. In the original game, Mario will find Yoshi on the Castle Roof. He will award the player with 100 lives and a new animation for his Triple Jump.
 * Cheep-Cheeps and Big Berthas now replace the Bubs and Bubbas.
 * Fire Chomps replace the Kuromames from the original.
 * Yoshi is the default character and the first to be played as. In the original, Yoshi could only be seen on the Castle Roof.
 * The Super Mushroom power-up was added, mainly found in bricks, and caused the player to grow to an enormous size (and gave Yoshi punching abilities). Within a time limit, one can defeat virtually every enemy, something that couldn't be done in Super Mario 64.
 * 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.
 * Yoshi appears on the title screen if the player returns to it without turning the game off, or if the player touches the Yoshi icon.
 * 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 slidepad on the Nintendo 3DS revives the classic analog stick feel.
 * On the title screen, Mario 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 on by the cursor.
 * The L and X buttons on the Nintendo DS control the camera. In the original, the C buttons on the Nintendo 64 control the camera.
 * Rabbits, when caught by the player, can unlock minigames in the Rec Room. In the original, Rabbits provided hints and/or a Star.
 * The door on the top right corner of the lobby contains two Peach murals (one still leading to The Princess' Secret Slide), as well as five additional doors. The three doors with the letters above them allow the player to switch between characters; the remaining door contains a Power Star and the door in the back center leads to the Rec Room. In the original, the room only contains three Peach murals inside it (one leading to the Secret Slide).
 * Silver Stars were added in the remake. During Silver Star missions, the player must collect five Silver Stars to make a Power Star appear.
 * Big Bob-omb of Bob-omb Battlefield is obsessed with his mustache. In the original, he is not shown to have any particular interests.
 * Mr. Blizzards have zig-zag mouths and wear buckets like hats, while in the original they have circular mouths and wear nothing on their head.
 * In the original, a glitch can cause Mario to Backwards Long Jump. In the remake, backwards long jumping is impossible without hacks.
 * The player is given three save files to play on. In the original, the player was given four.
 * Lakitu's Cloud is less shown of a real cloud and has a happy face, while in the original it resembles a normal, reality-like cloud. Additionally, Lakitu looks happy in the remake, while in the original, he looks unhappy.
 * When a pipe is appeared at the start of the new game, Mario pauses before saying "Ha Ha!". In the original, he immediately says "Ha Ha!" after saying "Yahoo!".
 * Some Brick Blocks are red, while others are black. Black Brick Blocks can only be broken by Wario. In the original, all crates are brown and have cracks in them.
 * Star Switches are seen in this game. They make a Power Star appear for a limited time.
 * After collecting a 1-Up Mushroom, the words "1-UP" appear in orange text. In the original, no on-screen icon appears.
 * Klepto the Condor appears in three different levels, while in the original, he only appears in the level Shifting Sand Land.
 * The Toxic Gas in Hazy Maze Cave is purple; it is green (or yellow) in the original.
 * The interior of the igloo in Snowman's Land has been entirely changed in the DS version.
 * Two power flowers appear in the mirror room of Peach's Castle. In the original, no Power-Ups appear whatsoever in the room.
 * There is one ? Switch, found in the course Tower of the Wing Cap. In the original, there was an ! Switch instead. Two other ! Switches are also seen in the original; one in the basement of Peach's Castle and the other in Hazy Maze Cave.
 * In first game, 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 was takes the player back to the title screen.

References in later games

 * Mario Kart DS - Tick Tock Clock is now a race track. All the bosses reappear in this game. Also, some of Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, and Wario's quotes and sounds are reused here.
 * New Super Luigi U - The portrait used to enter Big Boo Battle is reused as a hidden Luigi.

Voice Cast

 * Charles Martinet as Mario, Luigi, Wario
 * Kazumi Totaka as Yoshi
 * Leslie Swan as Princess Peach
 * Jen Taylor as Toad

Beta Elements
The game was initially announced as Super Mario 64x4. This iteration featured co-op multiplayer, different graphics and slightly different level layout among other things.

A fully functional Red Koopa Troopa enemy is present in the game's code and can be accessed with an Action Replay code.

Reception
Super Mario 64 DS received positive reviews. Following its release in Japan, it sold over 241,000 copies in December 2004.

Sometimes, when the player long jumps under a falling pillar in Jolly Roger Bay, the pillar will be destroyed, and the player stay squished until they lose a life. Note that this only works in version 2 of the game.

The player should enter Tall Tall Mountain as anybody and get anyone else's cap. With the cap on, he should go get the Power Flower atop the mountain, and then get Ukiki, while the Power Flower is still in effect. They should wait for it to wear off and, while they're flashing back to normal, they should hop into the water, but should be back to normal by the time they hit it. When in the water, the player should head back on land via the waterfall (if they go on land normally, Ukiki will give his speech, causing the character to return to normal). When they have climbed the waterfall a little, then they can get on land. The player should then get to the top of the mountain via the owl and get the Power Flower. Depending on which cap they got, the following effects will happen:


 * Luigi: His body will be invisible, but his head will remain the same.
 * Mario: Everything will be normal, but he will have wings growing out of his head.
 * Wario: The game will freeze the instant the Power Flower is touched. It can also be used to find the debug screen.

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."

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 off the castle that appears in Mario Circuit from Mario Kart: Double Dash!!. This also applies to the star.
 * In all regions, the painting for Jolly Roger Bay is from the original Japanese Nintendo 64 release, even though it was also changed in the Rumble Pak version. Similarly, when Mario goes to sleep after idling for too long, he does not talk in his sleep.
 * When the player puts on the Mario cap for the first time, the game states that the player must press to do the wall jump. This is incorrect, as the player must press  to wall jump.
 * In the Korean version, there is no Rec Room and the rabbits for minigames.
 * In the title screen, if the player taps Mario's face, a drawing of Mario appears. The third time this occurs, a Luigi drawing appears.
 * If the player presses in the title screen, a full color shadow appears instead of ink.
 * The instruction booklet has a mistake where Luigi's speed is similar to the rest of characters but Wario. In fact, Luigi is the fastest.
 * The UK version of the game's manual mistakenly reads, "Thank you for selecting Super Mario DS" instead of the full name.
 * On page 6 in the instruction booklet, it mistakenly says "Mariois face" instead of "Mario's face".