Super Mario 64 Review

Super Mario 64

Publisher: Nintendo Developer: Nintendo Platform: Nintendo 64 Players: 1 Release: 1996 Genre: 3D Platformer / Adventure Rating: 8.3 \ 10.0: Great

Sure, Super Mario 64 is old, but it’s widely regarded as one of the greatest videogames of all time. I don’t think it’s perfect, but it’s still pretty darn good. The plot has an unusual twist— Bowser doesn’t imprison Princess Peach in his lair— instead he traps her behind the stained glass window on the front of her own castle. At the start of the game, an invitation to the Mushroom Castle is read aloud by Peach, the camera rotates around Peach's courtyard, then focuses on the ground. A green Warp Pipe emerges, and out pops a full 3D model of Mario. Back in the mid-'90s, this was mind-blowing, and I can imagine why. This game revolutionized gaming with its full-3D environments and exploration. After crossing a bridge and walking through the door of the castle, you’ll see several doors marked with stars inside, and one that’s unmarked.  The numbered doors are locked at the start of the game, but the locked rooms can be accessed once you acquire the matching number of Power Stars, yellow stars that you must collect to complete a level, equal to the number on the door. Every room has one or more large paintings inside. When touched some paintings will teleport you to the course they’re represented by. Each course has 7 missions for you to complete, such as taking down a boss, racing a foe, collecting the 8 red coins hidden throughout the course, and more. Most courses are fairly small— they’re just large landmasses. Though the courses may be contain other small islands, they’re just as hard to explore. It takes a while to discover every secret and search every nook and cranny of the course, and it feels great to explore so freely. Crash Bandicoot may have been 3D, but it was linear. One minor annoyance is that because of the mission’s brevities, dying just once will send you hurtling back into the castle. Another quibble is that the difficultly continuously rises with each mission, up to the point where you want to give up. Also, the controls can be a bit loose and overly responsive at times— for example, if you accidently run in a circle when you intended to curve in a single direction, you’re likely to have to run in a few more loops before getting back on track. But platforming pros can use this to their advantage, such as using Mario’s overly responsive jumping to scale small mountainsides and the like. A new twist in the controls is Mario’s newfound ability to punch and kick. If you rapidly tap the B button three times in a row, Mario will perform punches on the fist two taps, and a kick on the third. Kicks sometimes destroy objects and enemies that you would otherwise pick up, like  crates and Bob-ombs. In addition to combos, Mario can perform other attacks, such as lunging forward by pressing B while moving forwards. Also, minor visual glitches sometimes occur, but it's a small issue that you likely will not care about. Despite these minor problems, there’s an excellent adventure to be played through. It can be immensely satisfying to discover the games many secrets. Throughout the game, you’ll meet friendly Bob-ombs, a fleet-footed Koopa, a mother penguin who’s lost her baby, an owl who flies you over courses, and other characters. Super Mario 64 is a highly entertaining classic, and it’s not to be missed by any Mario diehard.

Ups3D-ness!!!
Non-linear
New moves
Satisfying-to-discover secrets
Unique characters

Downs
1 death means restarting the stage
Frustrating difficulty rise
Loose and overly responsive controls
Minor visual glitches (but who cares?)

ESRB: E Content: ??? Price: $10.00 (Download)