Bowser's Castle (MK64)

Bowser's Castle

Bowser's Castle (BC) is Mario Kart 64's twelfth course, and Star Cup's fourth course. It was remade in Mario Kart Wii

Creating the ghost

By creating a ghost, you can prevent two of the thwomps from chasing you. To create the ghost:

1. Use all 3 shrooms to reach the large thwomp room as fast as possible.
2. After going around the left-hand corner, drive straight into the room until you reach the wall.
3. Turn around and position yourself as shown in the picture. Within a few seconds, the thwomps will begin moving back and forth and stomping the ground within that small part of the room.
   • If the thwomps close their eyes and stop moving, it means you are too far away. If this happens, start over and try again.
4. Wait until the time that you would normally pass this point on lap 3 (~1:25 NTSC/1:42 PAL at WR pace).
5. Carefully finish the race without hitting any more thwomps or falling off the track, to create a ghost (and save the ghost if you have a Controller Pak).

Non-Shortcut 3lap

• Rocket boost, and immediately begin a right-facing SSMT.
• Release the MT as the rocket boost wears off, and aim for the corner at the end of the bridge.
  • You should be slightly to the right of the center of the road when you release the MT.
• [flap shroom #1] Begin a shroomslide as you reach the grass. Shroomslide around one of the bushes, and release an MT as the rocket boost wears off (which should happen about when you leave the grass).

  Slower strat: Skip the SSMT at the beginning of the race; instead, shroomslide as straight as possible towards the corner. Then shroom slightly before reaching the grass (but still late enough that the shroom lasts until the end of the grass).

  Faster and harder strat: It's slightly faster to go inside the bush, but hard to do it consistently.

• Left-facing MT, followed by a right-facing MT, around the next two corners.
• After the corner, do a right-facing SSMT almost immediately, and aim in between the two thwomps at the end of the room.
• MT between the two thwomps. Start holding right shortly before reaching the thwomps (after charging the MT), and release the MT and start turning right as soon as possible as you pass between the thwomps.

  Slower strat: If you have trouble going between the thwomps, then leave out the SSMT. If you still can't go between the thwomps, then go to the left of both thwomps. Like the faster strat, start pressing right shortly before reaching the thwomps, and release the MT as soon as possible. Only use this strat if both thwomps are down.

  Lap 2/3 strat: Take this corner tighter if the thwomp on the right is up.

• You'll now notice several bars of light across the ground. There are two ways to take the next corner, about equally fast, so do whatever you find easiest:
  • Begin the MT as you reach the second to last bar. Charge the MT, and then hold right and release the MT as you go around the corner, without hopping.
  • Aim a little farther to the right, and start the MT slightly later. Charge the MT, and then instantly hop to the right tightly around the corner.
• Watch out for thwomps in this room. Depending on your pace, they may be in your way. MT around the corner.
• Start an MT around the middle of the bridge, and aim slightly to the left of the center of the bridge. As you reach the end of the bridge, quickly charge the MT, release it as soon as possible, and turn to the right. This is commonly known as the "stairs MT." It's easier to stay tight at the bottom of the stairs if you skip this MT.

  Slower strat: If you you're having trouble with this MT or with bounces at the end of the bridge, then skip the MT; instead, hop from the end of the bridge into a short slide around the corner. Try to land as soon as possible after the bridge, so you have enough time to turn.

• Continue turning until you are facing the right side of the doorway at the end of the carpet. Then begin turning left. When you reach the bottom of the stairs, quickly start a slide, and aim for the corner.

  Alternate strat (same speed): If you're angled slightly too far to the right, and it seems like you're going to be wide when you reach the corner, then hop while still on the stairs (it's not important exactly which stair), and land into a slide. This will help you turn more sharply.

  • If you took the stairs MT wide, then you must use the hop-from-the-stairs strat to avoid going wide.

• Hop to the left as soon as possible as you reach the corner. Hop repeatedly (about 4 times) through the grass. If done correctly, you should come close to the second corner.
• [flap shroom #2] When you are almost around the turn, MT (start it while still in the grass).
• MT tightly around the next corner, going through the grass.

  Faster and harder strat: Release the MT slightly earlier, and hop over the grass. Then do a right-facing SSMT.

• Drive slightly to the right of the center of the road as you approach the spiral.
• [flap shroom #3] Charge up an MT, and then hold left while holding the slide. You want to start out wide, because you want to be pretty far up the spiral by the time you reach the point where you're almost touching the inside wall.
• As you reach this point, release the MT and repeatedly hop to the left, until you're on the straight after the spiral. Don't brake at all; just let yourself hit the outside wall. Sometimes the wall bounces you inward, which saves time, but it's random.
• Just before the drop, begin a left-facing SSMT. You cannot charge an MT while in the air, so just hold right. After you land, continue charging the MT as normal.
• Aim just to the left of the wall ahead. Hop just before the drop (in order to land sooner). If you are angled too far to the left as you reach the drop, you can turn slightly during the hop.
• MT around the final corner (start this MT as soon as possible). SSMT on the straight (right-facing or left-facing, whichever is easier), and aim for the corner.
• Do a short slide around the corner, and shroom as you reach the grass. Continue the rest of the lap as normal.

  Common mistake: Starting this slide too early. It does make it easier to control, but it also slows you down.

• PAL Video (WR) - 2'12"90 (1'50"53) (download) by Michael Jongerius
• NTSC Video - 1'50"89 (download) by Luke Barnard

Non-Shortcut flap

• Lap 2.
• Begin the lap at the appropriate time (~0:40-0:41 NTSC/~0:48-0:49 PAL at WR pace) so that the thwomp on the right at the end of the large room is up when you pass it.
• Start the lap with an SSMT across the line.
• Shroom #1: Same as the 3lap shroom on lap 2.
• Shroom #2: At the bottom of the stairs, begin hopping through the grass as normal. At about the moment that you would normally MT, shroom instead. Hop once more to the left, and then start a right-facing slide. MT around the corner.
• Shroom #3: Start a shroomslide about .1-.2 before the end of the bridge. Like the 3lap, you want to start out wide, and then hold left until you reach the point where you're almost touching the inside wall. The shroom should wear off at about this point. Then release the MT and continue as normal.

• PAL Video (WR) - 43"35 (36"05) (download) by Michael Jongerius
• NTSC Video - 36"08 (download) by Karlo Tomazelli

External Links

• BC Videos
• BC 3lap World Rankings
• BC flap World Rankings