N +

I actually cannot believe we didn't get to this sooner! Super Mario 64, just like any other game with the number "64" was designed and produced for the Nintendo 64 game system. I guess Super Mario 64 DS had the number 64 in the title as well, but it was a re-make of the N64 title, so it still counts.

Anyway Mario 64 is the defining game for 3D software. Sure starfox on the snes was using polygons, and DKC was running with rendered characters, but Mario 64 is what slammed the video game industry full force into the 3rd dimension! The way puzzles had to be solved, and objects had to be climbed over, or snuck around were just not available in any game before hand. This was also the first game that used the analogue stick! The crazy new controller Nintendo thought up with a stick in the middle of it! what's that all about? innovation - thats what.

Just as innovative as the controller was, the game had it's reign as god of the 3D world, a osrt of father for everything else to follow. Not only was Mario able to run around in 3D but he was able to swim, slide, climb, fall, and fly around his world in any direction he wanted, well I guess climbing entails up, and falling entails down, but not when you are crawling up a slope, or falling down the Bo-Bomb battlfield mountain! you could fall sideways when the Giant snowman blew you off of his face. Or if you were to fall into hot-lava or Ice cold water, you would fall upward!

The story starts this game just as simple (if not simpler) than the Mario games before it: Princess Peach sends Mario an invitation to enjoy a cake that she lovingly baked for him. Mario shows up to Princess Peaches castle, and is greeted by Latiku - this time a friend with a camera. He runs to the castle IN 3D! where he finds the main entrance. Right when he enters the castle you can hear bowser from the distance laughing an evil laugh, and explaining that he has kidnapped Princess Peach. Of coarse what sort of bad-guy would Bowser be if he didn't tell Mario how to rescue her? He tells you that he can find his way t him if you retrieve the castles secret stars! Well to do so you gotta run and jump into the paintings Peach has all around her castle... in 3D! There are 120 secret stars to find in all, but you wont need all of them to get to the end, just all of them to unlock a short cameo appearance by Yoshi! that and a sparkley triple jump that puts you higher than the old one.

There are 15 different courses in which to retrieve stars! There are a few more that are not the common course, 3 others include the Bowser levels, and there are more secret courses to find involving some sort of magic Mario hats! Mario goes heavy metal for a short period of time when he grooves the Metal Cap! this cap lets him sink to the bottom of water, which lets him move much faster in the drink, and also lets him push underwater buttons. When Mario threads the Vanish Cap he gets all scratchy and see-throughish! What can he do with somthing this odd? well he can run through certain walls and barriers dude! of coarse this is limited time as well. And finally when Mario wishes to throw a fasion parade in the sky, he scopes the Wing Cap, a basic Mario-Cap design with lil wings poking out the sides of it, this cap lets him wing-it freestyle after a triple jump or a cannon-blast! This is what I call the ultimate wing-man.

Music, that will never ever be forgot, will always sound great to any player who has ever played the game. Bo-Bomb battlefield is a timeless creative classic, and the Underwater theme is rich in... awesome. Battle music is cunningly cute, and Bowsers final theme feels like it comes straight from the Event Horizon spaceship.

Mario picked up the amazing triple-jump in Mario 64, as well as the ability to loose his hat! He kinda looks neato without it I think. Many many baddies of days-old make their 3D appearance, and we couldn't be happier. With Super Mario Galaxy (the "true successor to Mario64" - Nintendo) just around the corner, I highly recommend you reunite yourself with this masterpiece.

Giving this game a grade is hard because there was a remake that added alot of content, however I will rate this game as if the DS re-make didn't exhist. It should also be noted that the N64 version was alot easier to control than the DS outing. N+ 10/10 - You must download if you have never played it. If you have the N64 copy or the DS copy you may not need it, but it would be a great experience in the world of gaming to try it!

Cost: 1,000 Wii points
Rating: E for Everyone

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