Super Mario Sunshine

If any of you have read the Super Mario 64 review, you'll know my essential complaint with Super Mario 64 was that it was too repetitive and sometimes the puzzles were too hard or just anal. With 120 stars in that game, though, there was a LOT of gameplay, warranting a long game.



Super Mario Sunshine could be essentially called Super Mario 128. Think Super Maro 64 with better graphics and a tropic storyline, and you get Super Mario Sunshine. Not bad, but not good either: they lost some of the good parts of the original.

The original game was basically a run through of the original styles of the Mario games- a lot of the themes were directly ripped from the original Mario games on the NES. However, this game tends to take a Tropical theme, which may irritate some people. After all, it seems like the Mario series is becoming like the Brady Bunch- later episodes where the Bradies go find voodoo people and the like- and Mario seems to be going everywhere from dungeons to the tropics.

Of course, this isnt such a bad idea. After all, I would complain that, if this game was like 64, that Nintendo is a one-tune band. The game isnt necessarilly BAD, as it is just feeling like a rehash of 64.



Now for the only new mechanic to this game- the water pump. For some reason, someone in the Nintendo department went

"Hey guys, what if we strapped a big water gun to Mario's back?"
....
"Brilliant!"

Of course, the issue is that this doesnt necessarilly fit in with the Mario style. I would have much rather seen stuff like the costume and item system from Super Mario Brothers 3 as opposed to this. However, it does fit will with the tropical theme- after all, refilling it requires only a dip in a pool of water. Also, it is interesting to play around with the attachments to it- there's a gun, a rocket (To make Mario run fast), and a hover pack. The rocket pack makes the game feel like the Need for Speed series with bright colors, while the Hover pack feels a bit like the floating aspects of Super Mario Brothers 2 in 3D.

With 120 things to collect in this game, just like stars, this game isnt short. However, I was dissapointed to find out that they didnt make more maps than Super Mario Brothers 64, they just made less than the original, and made them bigger. For example, one level might have you gain a few stars outside a village, and one or two might be centered around floating in the air above it, etc. Though, I will say that they also make it timeline-ish, so later stars you collect will feel "Later" than the stars you collected originally, etc.



Also, a nice feature is that Yoshi is now in this game, and you can ride him. However, I didnt really feel the stunningness of him, as riding Yoshi only gives you a handful of abilities, and feels like an add-on instead of a whole different mechanic. However, its kinda been like that in all Mario games, and I understand where Nintendo's coming from, as they don't want a Starfox Assault kind of "Sometimes you're on the ground, sometimes you're in an arwing" kinda thing.

I can't say I was amazed by this game. I really anticipated playing this game, and I will admit that it is very well rounded, and very very good looking. However, I will be finicky about the fact that there isnt anything revolutionary in this game. The Water pack is unique, and the game sure is an growth of the original Super Mario 64 engine, but I just felt like there was nothing there unique. I really wanted to be able to say that this game was even better than Super Mario 64. But, looking back at it, I enjoyed the game with the choppy graphics, strange sounds, and sometimes annoying camera/jumping system over the game with the fully anti aliased characters and the smooth jumping and camera. The original just felt more realistic and fun.



Overall, I give this game three stars. This is an excellent game for any Gamecube owner, no doubt. However, I wouldnt justify this as a must-buy game, nor would I recommend anyone buy a Gamecube for this game. This game would be a decent game to pick up if you're looking for a game for a younger sibling, or simply want a long game that will last you a long time and can be picked up and played intermittently. Of course, for any older gamers, I would always recommend picking Resident Evil 4 up over this (They're essentially the same price), but this would be perfect for anyone who has to play games aimed at the younger generation.

3 star(s) out of 5

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