The game begins with Mario receiving a letter from Princess Peach inviting him to come to her castle for a cake she has baked for him.

[2] Scattered throughout the castle are paintings and secret walls, which act as portals to other worlds where Bowser and his minions guard the Power Stars.

After recovering some of the power stars and defeating Bowser's minions, Yoshi unlocks doors that access other areas of the castle, where he finds Mario and his friends imprisoned in various rooms.

Yoshi defeats Goomboss and frees Mario as they continue searching the castle to find more Power Stars.

Mario and his friends eventually reach the highest area of the castle and come across the endless stairs, which constantly loops when trying to climb it.

After collecting 80 Power Stars, the endless stairs' magic stops and Mario confronts Bowser alone (as he is the only one allowed to gain access to the top).

The top screen displays the normal gameplay, while the bottom touchscreen can function as an overhead map and touch controls.

Another power-up item, the "Power Flower", provides each character with a different ability: Mario is able to float, similar to Super Mario World's balloon item; Luigi becomes intangible and transparent, similar to the Vanish Cap in the Nintendo 64 version; Wario becomes coated by metal, which makes him temporarily invincible to enemy attacks and poison (which is purple instead of yellow as in the original version), and sink underwater, similar to the Metal Cap in the original version, but with the added ability to walk on lava instead of bouncing without taking damage; and Yoshi is able to breathe fire, which allows him to burn enemies and melt ice.

Each level is an enclosed world (usually contained within and entered through a painting) in which the player is free to wander in all directions and discover the environment without time limits.

The worlds are inhabited with enemies that attack the characters, as well as friendly creatures that provide assistance, offer information, or ask for help.

The voice actors from Super Mario 64 returned as well, and Kazumi Totaka joined the cast, playing the role of Yoshi.

[citation needed] Originally titled "Super Mario 64 ×4", the game was first shown as a multiplayer demonstration at the 2004 E3 before the Nintendo DS was released.

[11][12] Prior to the conference, the appearance of the box art on GameStop's product page caused speculation Super Mario 64 DS would be a launch game.

[17] Super Mario 64 DS was later re-released in Japan for the Wii U as a part of the Virtual Console line of games on January 6, 2016,[18] and was later released in North America in August of that year.

He commented on the accurate recreation of the original graphics, and stated that the small Nintendo DS screen helps hide any visual flaws.

Phil Theobald of GameSpy lauded Super Mario 64 DS, calling it "fantastic" and complimenting the new features: minigames, use of a second screen, and extra stars.

[4] Harris said the original feel of Super Mario 64 is retained, while the new challenges and features build upon it in a way that added to the game's longevity.

[6] Jeff Gerstmann of GameSpot also complimented the graphics, specifically the higher polygon count and smooth frame rate.

He called Super Mario 64 DS a "great update of a classic game", and felt the changes and additional features offered a new experience to fans of the original.

Theobald felt the lack of an analog stick made the controls more difficult than the original game and required a short period of adjustment.

[4] Harris echoed similar comments and noted the touchscreen does not provide physical feedback like an analog stick.