Play Nintendo Retro: Super Mario 64 (N64/VC) Review

Going into the Nintendo 64 era, gamers were questioning what would become of their favourite franchises. How would a Zelda game play in 3D? What about a Castlevania game? Some games exceeded our expectations, and some games just weren’t meant to move into a 3D environment. Could a Mario game known for its amazing 2D platforming translate into a 3D environment? Developers are still struggling with platforming in the third dimension even to this day, but Super Mario 64 hit the mark perfectly and is still widely recognized as the game that innovated not just 3D platformers, but gaming as a whole.

Super Mario 64 doesn’t have much of a story, but being a Super Mario game what more did you expect? Our adventure starts with a note from Princess Peach notifying Mario that she has baked him a cake and invites him to the castle to taste the lovely treat. Upon his arrival, Mario discovers that Bowser has kidnapped and trapped Princess Peach once again. Bower has taken control of the castle’s 120 Power Stars and is using their power to imprison Peach. To regain control of the stars, Mario has to jump into various paintings around the castle and complete objectives to recover the powers stars. After collecting a number of stars, Mario can make progress through the castle, and towards an ultimate showdown with Bowser.

Princess Peach’s castle acts as a hub world linking Mario to the game’s levels via paintings. It’s a very non-linear way of advancing through the game as it allows the player to explore at their own pace. Exploring the hub is extremely fun and you can easily waste time roaming the castle’s three floors, basement, and garden. While the hub is both fun and innovative, it is the ability to control Mario like no other Mario game to date that rises to the occasion.

Using the Nintendo 64 controller’s analog stick, Mario can walk, or run depending on the pressure used to navigate. Mario can also take advantage of a variety of other techniques giving a deep sense of gameplay. Adding to his wide repertoire of moves are a ground pound, back flip, side jump, long jump, wall jump, crawl, punch, etc. Mario has never been this agile until the arrival of the N64. Having all these moves at your beckon call is awesome, however it would almost ruin the game if they didn’t control well. I can easily say that Mario controls flawlessly due to the responsiveness of the analog stick (assuming you have an undamaged stick). Even swimming can be noted as a highlight in the game. It isn’t frustrating whatsoever, and even makes water levels kind of fun.

All of these techniques are quite fancy, but they also come in handy when navigating the game’s 3D environments. In fact, mastering these new techniques is essential when trying to obtain each of the game’s 120 Power Stars. Hidden within the numerous paintings in Peach’s Castle is a variety of environments that range from a Bob-omb riddled battlefield to watery depths that hold a sunken pirate ship and even an Island that is home to tiny and huge enemies! The variety is stellar and the level design is extraordinary. Each level contains six objectives, with a power star being the reward for completing each one. Objectives are varied in design, but some are constant throughout the game. Boss fights and eight red coins being repeat offenders. However, most you find by either just discovering them, or completing certain actions. Despite a little repetitiveness, most stars are unique and as mentioned before, you will need to have all your skills sharply honed to obtain every power star. Regardless, Super Mario 64 keeps things interesting and challenging most of the time, but most importantly, it’s just really fun to play.

Being a 3D game means that you will have to deal with camera angles. Some people may throw complaints at the camera, but I think the camera control is easy and well done. It can act up in tight spots; for example, being close to a wall, or under an object like a bridge. Super Mario 64 is well known for being an innovator of 3D action games; its handling of the camera is no exception. It can be argued that the camera control is the best amongst gaming as a whole. Deaths should absolutely not be blamed on the camera; if you die it’s most likely your fault.

Not only does the gameplay change up quite a bit in the 3D environment, but the graphics are extremely important. It would be the first time that Mario was rendered as a full 3D character model, and for its time it looked pretty good. It was a little on the blocky side, but that was basically the standard for the time. Textures at times were a little on the muddy side due to being stretched and space limitations. Overall, Super Mario 64 handles this quite well compared to other N64 and Sony Playstation games. If I were to use one word to describe the graphics back in 1996 I would say that they are amazing! Now I would say that they are pretty good, as the game still holds up quite well considering the technology.

I can’t finish this review (especially one about a Mario game) without mentioning the soundtrack. Nintendo 64 allowed composers to be more creative with their music and it shows with Super Mario 64. Most tracks are an instant classic upon first listen. A standout track would have to be the serene Jolly Roger Bay (or Dire, Dire Docks). It is a very fitting song to accompany a beautiful, yet somewhat haunting swim in the depths of the bay. Much like previous games in the series, the music was made to stand the test of time. It was catchy and likable in 1996, and the same can be said today.

Overall, Super Mario 64 is an amazing game. While it isn’t the best in the series, it certainly laid the foundation for games that are out of this world. It was innovative in its design and allowed 3D games to become common for other genres such as platformers, adventure, RPG etc. It was a great 3D game that wasn’t a first person shooter and for that it earns its due. It not only introduced a great 3D platformer, but it also innovative hub worlds and camera control, two things that would help make Super Mario 64 one of the best games in the industry. For the first time an entire game felt epic including the jogging around Bob-omb battlefield all the way to epic Bowser battles. Super Mario 64 is a must a must play before you die.