Ugh. Said it before, will say it again, MK64 is the one abhorrent entry in the series, the cookie-cutter sequel to end all cookie-cutter sequels, and floaty enough in the handling department to classify more as a rally game than a karting one. The single-player game is useless and not worth playing through unless you're a stickler for rubber-band AIs and a total lack of reward other than simply having "done it". Multiplayer is ok but near-ruined by the lacklustre handling. Though I've downloaded it, I did so more out of obligation than preference.
What people forget is that the direct response handling - arguably more appropriate given that the karting moniker - of later sequels like DD made the games more enjoyable. MK64 had floaty handling simply to prove that the N64 could do floaty handling, not out of any practical concern for gameplay quality. And as rushed as Diddy Kong Racing was, and as pointlessly repetitive it got in the later stages, it did at least get the handling totally spot-on, and as such was a superior game even before the added vehicles were taken into account.
Happily, the GBA version brought the series back on track, and the sequels have made nothing but improvements (even if you didn't like the two-driver mechanic of DD, its handling, course design and single-player mode were utterly superior), until we've now reached the undisputed zenith of the series in MK
D, which is simply great, great great. If Nintendo has learned from its mistakes and the Wii incarnation has a similar back-to-basics approach with the concomitant depth of the DS version, I will be a happy bunny indeed.
Rant over. Nothing to see here.