| Mickey's Speedway USA | |
|---|---|
 North American Nintendo 64 box art | |
| Developer | Rare |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Composer | Ben Cullum |
| Platforms | |
| Release | Nintendo 64 Game Boy Color |
| Genre | Kart racing |
| Modes | Single-player,multiplayer |
Mickey's Speedway USA is akart racing game developed byRare and published byNintendo for theNintendo 64 andGame Boy Color. It is Rare and Nintendo's second collaboration withDisney Interactive followingMickey's Racing Adventure (1999), and features characters from theMickey Mouse universe racing across the United States. The Nintendo 64 game released in November 2000 to mixed reception, while the Game Boy Color version followed in March 2001.
Mickey's Speedway USA features various characters from the Mickey Mouse universe racing in karts to complete three laps around a track as quickly as possible. Scattered along each track are tokens that increase racers' maximum speed, boosters which will give racers a quick burst of acceleration, and items that can be used to interfere with opponents, such as baseballs and paint cans.[1] The Nintendo 64 (N64) version features gameplay similar to Rare's previous N64 racing gameDiddy Kong Racing (1997), while the Game Boy Color (GBC) version uses the sameisometric perspective as its predecessor,Mickey's Racing Adventure (1999).[2][3]
Both versions of the game include a Grand Prix mode, a time trial mode, andmultiplayer racing modes.[1][3] Each Grand Prix is playable at three difficulty levels; earning a gold trophy for each one will unlock new characters, cheats and other features.[4] The N64 version includes a practice mode, a multiplayer battle mode with four arenas, and unlockable cheats to modify gameplay,[5][6] while the GBC version includes "driving school" tutorial missions and a gallery of unlockable images, which can be printed out using theGame Boy Printer.[7]
The game features 20 different race tracks spread across five Grands Prix, all themed after famous American cities and locations such asLos Angeles,Washington, D.C. and theGrand Canyon.[6] The selection of tracks differs between versions.[7] In the N64 version, four special vehicle parts are hidden in different race tracks; collecting all four unlocks the final Grand Prix.[6] An additional bonus track can be unlocked in the N64 version via a cheat code and in the GBC version by connecting to a copy ofMickey's Racing Adventure via the system'sinfrared port.[7]
Six playable characters are included in both versions of the game. These default characters are paired in statistics:Mickey andDonald have average statistics,Minnie andDaisy focus on handling and acceleration, andGoofy andPete have a concentration in speed and weight.[8] Three additional characters, consisting ofDewey, Louie, andLudwig Von Drake, can be unlocked in the N64 version through completing objectives in Grand Prix mode;[9][10] a fourth character,Huey, can only be unlocked by connecting to the GBC version through theTransfer Pak.[11]
Mickey discovers his dog,Pluto, has been kidnapped by theWeasels for his diamond collar. He calls Minnie, Donald, Daisy and Goofy to help search for Pluto, while Pete intercepts the phone call and follows behind. Professor Ludwig von Drake builds race cars for the group to help them search faster, and they travel across America following a series of postcards left by the Weasels. After a final race, the Weasels are found, caught, and sent to jail. Mickey happily reunites with Pluto, revealing the supposed diamonds on his collar are simply glass beads from one of Minnie's old necklaces, and the group heads home.
In May 1999, Nintendo announced plans to publish severalMickey Mouse games for its consoles over the following three years, to be developed by Rare.[12] The company confirmed in November of that year thatMickey's Speedway USA would be released during the 2000 holiday season.[13] The game had a marketing budget of $5 million.[14]
| Aggregator | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| GBC | N64 | |
| GameRankings | 81%[29] | 68%[30] |
| Metacritic | N/A | 71/100[31] |
| Publication | Score | |
|---|---|---|
| GBC | N64 | |
| AllGame | N/A | 3/5[15] |
| Electronic Gaming Monthly | 6/10[16] | 5.67/10[17] |
| Game Informer | 8/10[19] | 6/10[20] |
| GameFan | N/A | 91%[18] |
| GamePro | 4/5[21] | 3/5[4] |
| GameRevolution | N/A | C+[22] |
| GameSpot | 9/10[23] | 7.5/10[5] |
| Hyper | N/A | 77/100[24] |
| IGN | 9/10[3] | 6.8/10[1] |
| Nintendo Life | N/A | 6/10[2] |
| Nintendo Power | 3.5/5[25] | 7.4/10[26] |
| Official Nintendo Magazine | N/A | 92%[27] |
| Video Games (DE) | N/A | 91%[28] |
The Nintendo 64 version received "average" reviews according to video gamereview aggregator websiteMetacritic.[31]
Matthew Byrd, writing forDen of Geek in 2017, said thatMickey's Speedway USA could not compete to other similar titles likeDiddy Kong Racing,Mario Kart 64, orCrash Team Racing, due to its courses being not nearly as "inventive" (only basic recreations of US locations), its power-ups as "little slim", its "problematic" artificial intelligence, and its roster of karts and tracks as "thin". Despite its flaws, he thought that Rare managed to produce an engagingly charming and functional kart racing title.[32]
