The Year of Mario (Ports of 3D Marios! Super Mario Bros. Royale! Mario K-AR-t!)

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: numbers are for nerds. I'm annoyed at that "3" in the name 3D All Stars. I might put a sticker over it.

Rum wrote:

masofdas wrote:

Rum wrote:

I think that's what I find annoying about people up in arms about these rereleases - we're a minority of the audience who this is actually aimed at. Some of the write-ups highlight how misleading a numbered score can be as well. "Incredible, genre-defining games, but that's not enough. 7/10"

I've said before about these sort of things especially as someone that did buy 4K films, that are you reviewing the film or the quality of that version?

That's not what I'm saying. My point was that reviewers are saying exactly the same thing and some are giving it 7 and some are giving in 9 (Chris Scullion doing the latter). Obviously numbered scores are pretty useless overall and we know that but this is highlighting it.

I can imagine this must be an utter bastard of a game to review. I saw Scullion saying that all his comments were saying it should get 10s or 5/7s, based on whether you review based on the games or the port (like what Mas said).

As for the numbers thing, is that not going to bleed through into the tone of a numberless review anyway? In a good review I can usually tell the score +/-1 before I get to it based on tone, which the number's just a summary of. In any case this is one of the few games where you probably don't need a review to know if you're going to pick it up... And the reviewer can only give their own view on it, which given that they're likely one of our minority (why else would you go into what is no doubt a rather poorly paid profession if you're not vvv into games and have been for a while) is going to sway things that way I suppose!

I am curious to read if people get on with Sunshine this time around. I have very fond memories of it, but I played it through with a walkthrough to find the blue coins. Maybe it's not all I remember it to be...

Sunshine is absolutely unfairly maligned just because it dares to be different than the others, compare it to other 3D platformers rather than the other Mario's and it still takes a pish on them from a might great height.

The_Jaster wrote:

Sunshine is absolutely unfairly maligned just because it dares to be different than the others, compare it to other 3D platformers rather than the other Mario's and it still takes a pish on them from a might great height.

This. Further to that, I've always said that Sunshine was only a disappointment because of what it had to follow. Compared to everything else except Banjo it's a modern classic.

For the 3D All Stars reviews, I think Metro Gamecentral have pitched it right. They've called it "lazy", "incomplete" and individually awarded 64 a 8/10 and Sunshine a 6/10 (!), but recognise that it's still a 10/10 for their own reasons.

https://metro.co.uk/2020/09/16/super-mario-3d-all-stars-review-remaster-super-mario-64-sunshine-galaxy-13280271/

Balladeer wrote:

As for the numbers thing, is that not going to bleed through into the tone of a numberless review anyway?  In a good review I can usually tell the score +/-1 before I get to it based on tone, which the number's just a summary of.

Exactly . . .so don't have the number. That way people have to actually read the words and understand the nuance.

You overestimate the mass majority of gamers and their ability to understand nuance.

Yeah, Eurogamer changed their system to "avoid, [nothing], recommended, essential" and the comments are often still "well this READS like an ESSENTIAL but you ONLY gave it a RECOMMENDED"

Picked this up this morning. Won't be playing it just yet; want to polish off SMB3 and SMW at least.
Also, my final birthday present arrived and it's the Mario Encyclopedia. I'm celebrating Mario's birthday harder than I did my own . . .

JayMoyles wrote:

You overestimate the mass majority of gamers and their ability to understand nuance.

Evolve or die.

Buskalilly wrote:

Exactly . . .so don't have the number. That way people have to actually read the words and understand the nuance.

Nope, everything's better with numbers. If we were creating this forum today it'd be called 'GNamer 2' because everything's better with numbers.

You're in great company.

On recent evidence, Tory politicians hate numbers.  (Especially those pesky test count ones.)

How's everybody enjoying Super Mario 3D All Stars? 

I made a start on Sunshine and I'm 35 Shine Sprites in. I'm definitely enjoying it, as it's beautiful, massively playable and (I think) really satisfying to control. But that camera is so much worse than I remember, it's frustratingly designed, and it's badly riddled with bugs. I don't see myself going for all 120 Shine Sprites - getting to where I am was a pain in the arse by itself.

I'm going through Mario 64 at a rate of about 5 stars a day and the camera is doing my head in. Can't say the controls are up to much either. Bring back 64 DS!

I'm 25 Shine sprites into Sunshine & really enjoying at as well, not had issues with the camera like TCK said but some aspects of the visuals really are showing their age. Most of it is the odd level seam or bad texture by today's standards but you will only really notice it if you are looking closely for it & none of that stops the game from being fun!

Also I forgot how much of a pain some of the no FLUDD levels can be and it feels odd for Mario not to have a proper long jump move.

I'm 15 stars into 64 and 7 Shines into Sunshine - haven't played it as much as I would have normally, as I moved flat recently and have had to get stuff sorted. I've found the camera a bit annoying with both but I honestly can't work out how much of that is due to Joy Con drift. I got an internet connection sorted today so sending them away to get fixed is on the to-do list now!

I've been playing a bit of all of them with my focus on beating Sunshine first, but I have made a pretty big headway into SM64 because it's just so playable and I'm happy to rush it a bit more since I've already completed it somewhat recently.

It's not my ideal version of the game but I've been wanting a good handheld version of it for a while and this is currently my best option.

Unfortunately I've not been able to enjoy Galaxy as much in handheld mode because the touchscreen isn't the best substitute for the pointer. I don't like having to free up my right hand just to collect some starbits and do other pointer stuff. I guess it was kind of tricky because the pointer needs to be precise a lot of the time, but I wish they made an attempt at other control schemes. Like binding the pointer to the right stick and maybe shifting the camera to shoulder buttons.

Sunshine has been great. I never viewed the game as a disappointment compared to 64. It's just so cool and there really isn't any other game like it, before or since. I'd like to see Mario reunited with Fludd in a (more polished) sequel and Splatoon could make a perfect cameo in it.

There are a fair few shines that just aren't fun to get at all but it's not as if you have to collect all of them anyway. It is a bit of a shame not collecting everything in a 3D Mario game, but for my sanity's sake I might give 100%ing Sunshine a miss. Still a really, really good game regardless.

My copy is sat in the cellophane while I play through previous Mario games, but every now and then I look at it and get a little shiver. Ooh.

Finished Super Mario 64 with all the stars and had a great time doing it, I think it's mad that some think this doesn't still hold up really well, sure it's camera is a bit naff but the gameplay is still as fun and free as ever, I guess it's just a victim of everything that's followed being even more polished. I played Spyro Reignited yesterday and in comparison 64 is still way ahead in its gameplay and that's not even been remade.

I played through by doing every star on a course before moving on to the next which in a way I kind of appreciated as it let me really get used to each level and so found myself playing it like a pro at times, I got all the stars in Snowman Land in what felt like record time.

My original plan was to then go on to Sunshine and gets all the shines before playing Galaxy but instead I'm playing both at the same time, the touch screen controls for Galaxy have put me off playing that in handheld so that's strictly for TV play and Sunshine is for handheld. Not sure if it's the smaller screen but Sunshine looks a lot prettier than I remember it being.

Sunshine has definitely had a visual facelift, and besides some of the textures, it's a gorgeous game both docked and in handheld. I don't think that's where it needed work done though. 

I'm finding it too infuriating too often. I'm up to sixty Shines now, and I'm reaching a point where I know I'm going to stop having fun. There's been a few Shines where I've just thought 'bollocks to it' and looked up YouTube guides for shortcuts - The Gloopy Inferno, The Runaway Ferris Wheel and Red Coins In The Water are just three of those. I'm not even going to try that pachinko machine or the one where you ride a leaf across the poisonous water, no chance.

Yet as Kriken said, "it's just so cool and there really isn't any other game like it, before or since". When it isn't a buggy mess, it's class.

I'm jealous of you lot - I believe I may be receiving a copy... soon! But honestly I'm mostly looking forward to playing Super Mario 64 again. I could play that game over and over - and unlike my 2D exploits, I don't think I've got worse. I'm a bit nervous about the other two - I think what Cappa describes about later Shines in sunshine is what I'm not looking forward to, with the fear that it takes a long time per "fail"; and all 4 Joy-Con halves are drifted to buggery, unless I can use the Pro Controller to point at things, Galaxy might be a bit disappointing. In fact janky Joy-Cons is what put me off my first few goes at Mario Odyssey; that's something I do want to play again with the Pro controller...

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Red Coins In The Water

Is that the one where you've got ride on the blooper to collect the red coins or is it the one on Gelato Beach where you've got to swim about the reef to collect them all? I remember the blooper one being plagued by some iffy controls and the Gelato Beach shine had an issue where the coins would sometimes get stuck inside rocks under the water.

I finally got around to getting electric contact cleaner to fix my joycon drift because I couldn't stand playing Galaxy 1 in handheld mode with my hori joycon (which doesn't work wirelessly) - which it isn't too bad in real. Just hated not being able to collect starbits as efficiently. So definitely recommend that to people who haven't tried because it works and is very easy to do. Don't even need to open up the joycon. Just followed a video of a guy doing it on youtube.

It does work, but for one of my 'Cons it's only been a temporary solution sadly.

JayMoyles wrote:

...and the Gelato Beach shine had an issue where the coins would sometimes get stuck inside rocks under the water.

Think that was intentional!

JayMoyles wrote:

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Red Coins In The Water

Is that the one where you've got ride on the blooper to collect the red coins or is it the one on Gelato Beach where you've got to swim about the reef to collect them all? I remember the blooper one being plagued by some iffy controls and the Gelato Beach shine had an issue where the coins would sometimes get stuck inside rocks under the water.

I was referring to the blooper one on Ricco Harbour, but that Gelato Beach shine was a pain in the hoop too. 

Still, neither stack up to the one I'm stuck on now: The Secret of the Village Underside in Pinata Village. It's better known as the Chuckster shine, where you get thrown about a secret stage. That's the exact point where I abandoned Super Mario Sunshine eighteen years ago, and it's probably going to be the point where I abandon it again. Unrelentingly dogshite, it would be a lowlight in Bubsy 3D, and I've got no idea what anybody was thinking when they were developing and playtesting it. 

I've been focusing on Super Mario 64, but I've been moving/working so haven't had loads of time to play it. On 31 stars now - it's fun but I am finding it a pain in the arse fairly regularly! I only ever had the DS version so there's a limited level of nostalgia for it - I don't have any memory of some of the stages (I don't remember Tiny Huge Island or Tall Tall Mountain at all) and some of them do my nut a little bit (Wet Dry World). But I can see why it was such a step forward for gaming at the time. Obviously it's 23 years old so I'm not expecting perfection... though I know some people still consider it perfect!