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| Super Mario 64 DS Reviewed by Pirate Yoshi Over-view: Honestly, is this even needed? Everyone knows Mario, everyone knows he's super, and--most importantly--everyone knows that his N64 adventure was ported onto the Nintendo DS as a launch title. But how did the transition go? Did Mario fair so well almost ten years later? Did Bomber Link really kick my butt as bad as he says? Of course not-......er, maybe..... ALL WILL BE REVEEEEEEEEEEEEALED.....below, I mean. Graphics: 9/10 How do you judge a launch title on a brand new system, that happens to be not only revolutionary, but also a handheld, and--to make it one notch harder--what if the game you're reviewing is a PORT of an existing, older game? Well, yessirree, I've tackled that question good and hard, and after lots of thought, all I came up with was, "I dunno." What I CAN say for the DS's version of Super Mario 64, however, is that the transition is not noticable (at least, in loss of quality), and the game may have even picked up a little extra graphic power! Pretty impressive, if you ask me. On the flipside, of course, I do believe that the DS is more capable than this, and we'll undoubtedly see upcoming proof very soon as new titles--not ports--hit stores. Sound: 9.1/10 Another hard catagory to judge. I don't think I can find many flaws with the sounds of Super Mario 64 DS--after all, they *ARE* the same sounds of Super Mario 64. The music is jingly, catchy, and (best of all) Mario-ish. The voices are very good, an advancement over the N64 in many ways. The sound effects are nothing special, but they don't play an entirely huge role in the success of this title, anyways. That all said, I can think of improvements to be made, mainly with the soundtrack. Super Mario 64 had, in many ways, a weaker musical composition than some of the other Mario games in the series, and I had really hoped some remastering would be done before the launch of this title. There hasn't been, but it's not like that'd ever stop anyone from buying a game, Sound Maniac (exhibit A), or casual gamer. Controls: 7.3/10 This catagory here has some problems, ladies and gentlemen. It's rare that I go attack a game's control set-up, and Super Mario 64 DS even has some alternate schemes, but let me be the first to say that I DIDN'T LIKE ANY OF THEM. The stylus is essentially useless--there is no earthly reason to use it in place of your thumb on the D-pad, other than for novelty. Not that I really liked trying to steer a crazed Mario around with the D-Pad, either, because he really isn't nearly as responsive as I would've liked. Don't get me wrong, this didn't really occur in the transition to DS, the controls weren't stellar in Super Mario 64, either. Now that players are forced to use a flat D-Pad in place of a control stick, however, the problem is amplified about four dozen times, making Mario a real loon when it comes to trying to steer him tightly and accurately. Other problems I had were with some of the difficult moves to pull off, particularly things like a running jump (an essential skill for multiplayer mode). Finally, the A, B, and Y buttons are all good and well, but not when used as they are in Super Mario 64 DS. With A doing the attacking and talking, B doing the jumping, and Y doing the running, it's hard to do ANYTHING well, because you've only got one thumb, and you'll undoubtedly need to be wicked fast with each of those buttons to play this title effectively. Sorry, Nintendo, but this catagory could have used some cleaning up around the edges. Challenge: 9.3/10 So how hard is it? It seems to be a common question surrounding most games today, as avid gamers go to tackle the toughest challenge available, and n00b gamers cower in the corners of Walmart, hoping they won't be made fun of for picking out Elmo's Fun For Toddlers game (alright, so I don't think that's a real game, but you get the drift). As I keep mentioning, this catagory is deteriorating, and--therefore--going out the window come 2005. However, since it's still the lowly year of 2004, I've got to give a grade, and this is the best I can do. With some trechorous levels, Super Mario 64 DS can be a handful, every bit as much as Super Mario Sunshine. As if getting all the stars is not hard enough, new mini-games offer additional challenge, and though you'll only compete with friends to set records, many are quite difficult to get quite good at and will require lots of practice before you start setting record times. On the flip side, many levels are easy, particularly once you've learned the lay of the land and have all the necessary practice under your belt to be jumping and flipping with the best of them. Gameplay: 9.3/10 I firmly believe (hopefully rightly so) that this is better than the original Super Mario 64, mainly because of the addition of mini-games. Oh, but you thought I'd say characters? Well, them too, but the most important (and by far best) addition is the expansive collection of miniature games and challenges that you can unlock and play along the way. The games range from puzzles to reflexes, and even sometimes stretch into luck and memory. The games are quite clever and are actually my favorite part of this title, I think. Other highlights, of course, consist of the new characters with new abilities, like Yoshi's eggs and Wario's fists. Could the levels have been designed better? Sure, but I think the people to blame were the original creators of SM64, not the people converting the game into DS format. This is a solid gameplay experience, when through and through. Replay: 9.4/10 Actually, for a port of a single-player classic N64 game, this is a phenominal victory in a catagory like this. 9.4 may seem low in comparison to big-hitters like the Mario Party titles and Super Smash Brothers, but what really makes Super Mario 64 DS Replay-valuable is its huge collection of mini-games (can't stop bragging 'bout 'em!). They really are that good, and most can be played forever without any real loss of amusement. And since there's so many, you can easily bounce between you favorites and get good at your most hated games, without ever having to play any game you really aren't interested in. I consider the collection itself a "mini Mario Party", and I definitely feel that these games should have been hyped in the ads for Super Mario 64 DS, moreso even than the rest of the game! They really do sell this title, I think. **Story: .4/1 Unoriginal? Yeah. Decent? Not really. Good for a Mario game? Yeah, most definitely! Even though the whole "stolen-by-Bowser, rescue-Princess-Peach" theme just keeps getting older, this game *WAS* made back before the same scheme had been over-used beyond the point of over-use (did that make any sense?). Also, I kinda dig the idea of the paintings and the worlds, although rescuing Mario and friends as Yoshi was sort of a weak touch-up to the tale to make it seem "new-ish". Still, who's complaining? This is a story that didn't have to be, and these are bonus points that didn't need to be given. Every little bit helps. **Multiplayer: .3/1 Alright, this score is NOT sour grapes for having lost to Bomber Link about 12 consecutive times at this game. Well, maybe in a round-about sort of way, since he DID make me decide that the multiplayer mode was not at all fun; who WOULD find losing 12 times in a row fun? I try to give SM64DS credit where I can, this was a mode that was never included in the original Mario 64, and the arenas are actually pretty well designed, but the simplistic "beat the crap out of someone, steal all their stars, trample on them like dirt" theme made me want to gag after I lost all my stars for about the nineth time in the first match. It doesn't take much to lose everything you've thus far gained in a multiplayer match, and even though we played alone in a 2-man match, I do not believe that two extra players running around would make me enjoy this title any more, other than perhaps the game would not be one-sided. Simply put, I believe a better multiplayer mode could have been made than this, and it's apparent that this multiplayer mode was tacked on at the end for an extra "wow", not to serve as a solid addition to a solid game. Still, can't complain, it gives you something more to do when you're bored, so long as you've got some friends around, and don't mind getting beaten into crackerjacks... Graphics: 9/10 Sound: 9.1/10 Controls: 7.3/10 Challenge: 9.3/10 Gameplay: 9.3/10 Replay: 9.4/10 **Story: .4/1 **Multiplayer: .3/1 Total Score: 9.0 Score Explanation: I don't care to comment, because I personally didn't really like this game too much. However, this is the math, so take it as you wish. Fans of the original will definately want to look into this DS remake, and Mario fans in general will probably want to tack this sucker into their collection, just to stay "complete". The rest of you, however, may have some doubts, and rightly so. DS owners should probably at least give SM64DS a rent, however, to experience it on their own; the mini-games alone may save it in your collection, as they have with me. |