Super Mario 64

Many of us loved the N64, myself one. The system was just fun, kid-friendly, and easily handled. And there were a lot of games on it that were plain fun- this one is a good example.

Super Mario 64 follows the traditional Mario storyline of Mario the plumber having to go save the Princess Peach. Many questions, like why he even cares, are left to the gamer- just save the d*** woman. This was Nintendo's flagship technology offering to the public, being the first 3d Mario game, so the game is overall polished and ready for play, which is a good thing- this game needed it. The game itself, by today's standards, is pretty ugly. The graphics are comparably horrible to the newer Mario games, and the gameplay simplistic, but I'll tell you one thing: Its d*** fun.

The controls on this game deserve some attention for being basically perfect. This is one of the games you are inclined to say "Damn. Thats a good control scheme.". Even a newbie to this game will have no issue picking it up, running around, and even earning a few stars (The game has 120 of them, so there's no heartbreak if some mofo steals your controller and plays your game).

On the note of 120 stars, this game is LONG, and I mean LONG. I remember getting this game for Christmas and not ever being able to beat it until 3 years later. Maybe it was the fact that I was a horrible gamer at the time. Maybe its the fact that I didnt play it for the whole 3 years. But I know it took me a while, and I enjoyed it. With 120 stars, meaning 120 challenges in approximately 25 levels, you're going to be hard-pressed to beat this game even if you do consider yourself a l33t gamer.

However, now to the issues with the game. First off, with 120 stars come repetitive tasks, and this game is chock full of them. Be prepared to do a lot of backtracking, menial tasks, and "Racing" various things. Granted some of the challenges are unusual and hard, some of the challenges (Like getting a specific time in a race) are just irritating. Some actually could be considered partially unbeatable because they are so picky and cruel.

Second off, the game itself is outdated, and a lot of the levels and parts of the game are rather bland. Granted there are a lot of maps with great design, but some feel inferior and boring to others. For example, I loved one map where you had to shrink or grow Mario to get through areas. In comparion, there is a level that is just one big lake with a ship in it.

On the lake note, the swimming is hectic also. Having to worry about your life is quite annoying, and gets on the "Menial task thats really annoying" list. Granted it creates a challenge, but it also creates this paranoia of deep water for me, and doing all the water levels while having to worry almost obsessively about your air supply is just nerve-racking. But I guess some people enjoy it.

On that note, I give it 1 mushroom. The game is amazing, fun, and enjoyable, but there are some parts that just arent as fun as others. Of course, if you're willing to put up with all the menial tasks, swimming paranoia, and general strange parts of the game, you'll have a BLAST.

4 star(s) out of 5

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