5 years of Burden (New Side Quest! #9)
Game Played: Super Mario 64 (Via Super Mario 3D All Stars) (1996, 2020)
5 years ago, Nintendo released the Super Mario 3D Collection which included Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy. This collection was my first time trying SM64, which I was very excited to do thanks to its legacy. As I wrote in an article 5 years ago, I had mixed feelings. Since playing it, I often think about my time with it and how I maybe didn’t really give it a fair enough wack. So on the 5th anniversary of my 1st time (and 29 years after release), I’m giving the game another go.
The article, for reference: https://nerdrock.wordpress.com/2020/10/01/super-mario-64-mixed-feelings/
In that original article I went through the obvious pleasantries, commending SM64 for the legacy it’s left behind, it’s influence on gaming and it’s pioneering of the 3D platformer genre. I like watching videos about the game but I think I can definitively say after this recent half playthrough that “I hate playing Super Mario 64”
I call it a half playthrough as yeah, I didn’t even finish it this time, stopping at 33 stars rather than my original playthrough’s 54 stars and a far far cry from the 120 star completion. This playthrough also stopped a lot earlier, missing Dry Dry Docks, Snowmans Land, Wet Dry World and Tick Tock Clock from my original. I genuinely believe the game peaks in some of it’s earlier levels - Bob-omb Battlefield, Whomps Fortress and Big Boo’s Haunt. I’ve even dropped Hazy Maze Cave from the list of levels I enjoy.
So why did I quit? For many of the same reasons I quit the first time around - the camera being neither use nor ornament. The camera being contextualised by a Lakitu is a wonderful bit of Nintendo design but is also of course more fun than practical. For all his moves, I also don’t find Mario very fun to control at all. Trying to grab and hit enemies feels awkward which makes some encounters annoying. Mario’s slippery movement and dead weight when it comes to gravity makes the game feel punishing and any underwater exploration is hampered by the damage and oxygen bar sharing usage.
Unlike a lot of people, I don’t mind being kicked out after every Star… in concept. I’m sure the technology wasn’t there to so dynamically change the the level without reloading it but where I take issue is when the stars are so near identical. Take for example a level I like - Thwomp’s Fortress. First star is reaching the top of the Fort, beating King Thwomp. The second star is making the same climb but instead of fighting the King, you have to additionally climb a really small tower. It’s things like that that make the being booted out between Stars bad.
I suppose it’s down to the design, take Banjo Kazooie for example (a game I believe far superior despite it releasing not long after SM64 and Nintendo developing the bloody hardware) - BK has only 9 levels compared to 64’s 14 but each level is static but large enough to have the unique set pieces that allow the player to experience different things without leaving the stage.
There’s no real merit to this article, I suppose it’s just a rant, a closing of the book on a story I started 5 years ago to this very day. I no longer have mixed feelings, I just don’t like Super Mario 64.
