If you're going to help me and my buddies throw a monkey wrench in Wizpig's plans, you're going to have to learn how to handle your car, kraft and plane. The basic controls are pretty simple so I'm not going to explain them. I'll concentrate on the special techniques you'll have to master for each vehicle in order to win.

Car
Power Slide
Press and hold the R Button to power slide around corners. You won't get a speed boost for power sliding, but you also won't lose any momentum as you go through the turn.

Tilt Turn
Hold A, B and R as you turn to execute a super sharp turn. Mastering this move will be essential to winning some of the more twisting courses. If you're driving a heavyweight like Krunch you'll need to use this maneuver on practically every turn, since the heavyweight turning radius is so poor.

Hovercraft
Hop and Turn
Cornering in the hovercraft can severely drain your speed, and even cause you to wipe out if you're a lightweight. To make a turn quickly and smoothly, tap the R Button repeatedly as you turn. Heavy characters like Banjo are the best for piloting the hovercraft.

Water Wiggle
Hold the R Button and wiggle the Control Stick back and forth as you accelerate in the hovercraft. If your timing is right and you don't wiggle too much, your hovercraft will accelerate and maintain a higher top speed than normal.

Airplane
Hard Bank
If you press and hold the R Button while flying the plane, you'll bank and turn a lot sharper than normal. If you master flying in this power steering mode, you'll have a big advantage when you come up against the trickier courses late in your adventure.

Loop and Barrel Roll
Tap the R Button twice and your plane will execute a barrel roll. This can be useful to backtrack and power-up your weapons. If you hold the R Button as you loop, you'll do a longer loop and backtrack even farther. To perform a barbell roll, hold the Control Stick to the left or right as you tap the R Button.

Use All the Zippers
The plane can take advantage of road zippers if you fly low enough to touch them.

Any Vehicle
Press the accelerator button just as the words "Get Ready" fade out and you'll get a speed boost off the starting line. Time it just right and you'll get a super fast blue boost.

Just before you get a boost from a zipper or Blue Balloon, lay off of the accelerator and you'll get an extra boost of speed. When your vehicle starts smoking, press the gas again.

The Racers
Now I'm not one to rat on my friends, but I've compiled my own scouting reports on each of them. Being the well-rounded racer that I am, I fall right in the middle in all three categories: top speed, acceleration and handling.

KRUNCH
I don't really know why this Kremling is hanging out with us, but hey, we need all the help we can get to defeat Wizpig. He's the heaviest racer and has the highest top speed. On the downside, his handling in atrocious and he accelerates like he's glued to the track.

BANJO
Banjo is another heavyweight racer, but his acceleration and handling are acceptable. He's a great choice for piloting a hovercraft. In many instances, Banjo will have to use the sharp turn technique to take corners cleanly.

BUMPER
Bumper's a light-heavyweight who does well on courses where there isn't a lot of turning required. His handling is slightly better than Conker's, but his acceleration is not as good.

CONKER
Light-heavyweight Conker also does well on courses where there is room to maneuver. Combine Conker's good top speed with decent acceleration and you have the makings of a good choice for the power courses.

TIMBER
My good buddy Timber is almost my twin when it comes to racing styles. We both have great handling and acceleration, but sacrifice a little top speed.

TIPTUP
Light drivers like Tiptup have excellent handling but very poor top speed. Grabbing bananas to increase top speed is a priority with Tiptup.

PIPSY
On courses with lots of sharp turns, Pipsy can't be beat. She can turn on a dime in the car or the plane, but in a hovercraft she's almost unmanageable. Like Tiptup, collecting bananas and hitting every zipper is essential to winning with Pipsy.


Diddy Kongú Racing Trademark of Nintendo
© 1997 Rare. Diddy Kong, Banjo and Krunch licensed by Nintendo.