Dr. Mario 64 is a puzzle game based on the original Dr. Mario. It was developed by Newcome and published by Nintendo, released for the Nintendo 64 in 2001, and is an enhanced remake of the original Dr. Mario, which was released for the NES and Game Boy in 1990.
It was re-released along with Panel de Pon and Yoshi's Cookie in a GameCube video game called Nintendo Puzzle Collection in 2003, which was only released in Japan.
Plot
The flu season has come about, and it's Dr. Mario's duty to use his Megavitamins to heal the people of the land. However, Wario, wanting to have the fame that Mario has, attempts to steal the Megavitamins, but to no avail. Afterwards, Mad Scienstein and Rudy the Clown (from Wario Land 3) steal the Megavitamins, and both Dr. Mario and Wario go after him. Throughout their adventure, both of them meet up with many creatures from Wario Land 3. Most of the time the fights that emerge are really misunderstandings. For example, you may accidentally bump into a creature, who gets angry and retaliates. Dr. Mario and Wario follow Mad Scienstein to Rudy's castle, where you must fight Rudy to take back the vitamins. If you complete the game on normal or hard mode without continuing, you will play one more stage after defeating Rudy. The opponent is Metal Mario if you used Wario and Vampire Wario if you used Dr. Mario. If you complete the game on hard mode without continuing a hint will appear. From this point on if you highlight hard mode and press the 'Z' button hard will change to S-Hard.
Gameplay
Dr. Mario 64 plays the same as its predecessors for the most part. Dr. Mario throws Megavitamins into a jar full of Viruses, and lining up a combination of Viruses and Megavitamins (four at minimum), they disappear. There are three types of Viruses - the Red Virus (Fever), the Blue Virus (Chill) and the Yellow Virus (Weird), with a Megavitamin color designed to kill them. It includes the main songs from the original Dr. Mario, Fever and Chill, but it also includes two new songs called Cube and Que Que.
Dr. Mario 64 features many different modes of play. The first one is "Classic mode", which features a similar set-up and design to earlier Dr. Mario video games. The second mode of play is called "Story mode". In it, the player may take control of either Dr. Mario or Wario to track down the stolen Megavitamins, battling computer players on the way. Dr. Mario 64 also features a mode where the player may battle against the computer as any character the player has played as or fought against. Up to four players may play Dr. Mario 64 at once in the Multiplayer mode, which is designed similarly to the CPU VS. mode.
Dr. Mario 64 features a mode called "Flash mode", where the player must focus on clearing flashing viruses. Also included is a "Marathon mode", which consists of a never-ending rising field of viruses. This mode does not end until the player quits or loses. Another mode is the "Score Attack mode", where the player is given three minutes to clear all of the viruses as well as get a high score.
Main Characters
- Dr. Mario - The hero of the game who is famous for creating the megavitamins that cure the town's diseases. Mario's special vitamins are eventually stolen by Mad Scienstein to give to Rudy the Clown, and he must retrieve them. Dr. Mario is also playable in multiplayer and has a computer difficulty level of four stars.
- Wario - The anti-hero of the game, who along with Mario, is playable in story mode. He is jealous that Mario has fame for creating the medicine and wants to take them, but Mad Scienstein had already stolen them. Wario is caught red-handed for attempting theft and is blamed and challenged by Dr. Mario. Wario is also playable for multiplayer and has a computer difficulty level of four stars.
- Mad Scienstein - A scientist with bad history with Wario who steals Dr. Mario's megavitamins to give to Rudy the Clown. He is the second to last boss in the game and also second in command in Rudy's "army". Mad Scienstein is only playable in multiplayer, and has a computer difficulty level of four stars.
- Rudy the Clown - The mastermind behind the taking of Mario's vitamins. He is the final boss in the game, and like his minion, Mad Scienstein, has a rough history with Wario. Rudy is only playable in multiplayer.
Other characters
- Spearhead - A reocurring enemy in Wario's games, and is one of the first opponents in story mode when he is bumped into by Wario/Dr. Mario. He is only available as playable in multiplayer and has a modest computer player difficulty level of one star.
- Webber - An enemy in the Wario series and also one of Rudy's minions who is encountered in the forest and fought right before Mad Scienstein in story mode. He is available as playable in multiplayer mode, with a computer difficulty level of three stars.
- Silky - A seemingly harmless caterpillar enemy originally from Wario's games. He is encountered and challenged in story mode unintentionally. He has a modest computer player difficulty level of one star and is only playable in multiplayer mode.
- Appleby - An appleworm creature who is disturbed and challenges Wario/Dr. Mario in story mode. He has a computer player difficulty level of two stars.
- Jellybob - A jellyfish creature who is fought in story mode. He has a computer difficulty level of three stars.
- Octo - An octopus creature who is one of Dr. Mario's "favorite" patients. He is found sick on the beach shore and surprisingly challenges Wario/Dr. Mario. He has a difficulty level as a computer of three stars.
- Helio - A hot-headed balloon creature who is disturbed in the clouds by either Wario or Dr. Mario in story mode. He jabs Wario with a poison dart, causing him to float off to a head start, and challenges Dr. Mario. However, if challenged by Wario, he still jabs Wario after being defeated. He has a computer difficulty level of three stars.
- Lump - A docile toad creature who is disturbed and challenges Wario/Dr. Mario. He has a surprising difficulty level of four stars.
- Hammer-Bot - A robot enemy known in the Wario games for his strength and ability to flatten Wario. He is Rudy's second best minion and is a creation of Mad Scienstein. He has a powerful computer level difficulty of four stars.
- Metal Dr. Mario - An upscale, more powerful version of Dr. Mario complete with a metallic voice and a steel body coat. He is unlocked after beating story mode on hard difficulty.
- Vampire Wario - Vampire Wario is a form of Wario that is unlocked, along with Metal Dr. Mario, after completing story mode on a high difficulty.