Genre: Adventure
Platform: GameCube
Well, since I hate Zebco Fishing even more than I hate Roy Koopa and proved it in my Zebco Fishing Review, I think I should probably review a better game this time; that is, a game that is not at that low level. And that game’s name is… Super Mario Sunshine!
Super Mario Sunshine happens to be the first major game starring Mario for the GameCube. In it, Mario decides to visit the tropical Isle Delfino, but when he gets there, he discovers that a shadow-like Mario has been polluting the island, causing the Shine Sprites, the island’s energy source, to vanish. Since the culprit looks just like Mario, the island inhabitants think that Mario is guilty (when he isn’t really) and they forbid him to leave Isle Delfino until he brings it back to normal. Luckily, a water robot named FLUDD (Flash Liquid Ultra Dousing Device), who was invented by Professor E. Gadd, helps Mario out in this quest. Later on Mario discovers that Shadow Mario is really ???? (Sorry, I don’t want to give the secrets away.)
Ratings are based on a scale of 1 to 10. 1 is like what I think of Zebco Fishing, 5 is like what I think of Excitebike 64, 10 is what I will most likely think of the upcoming Poke’mon Stadium-style game for the GameCube, Poke’mon Colosseum.
Graphics: 8/10
True, there are games that have better graphics than this, but I personally think this game looks great. I really like the water effects in this game; Nintendo clearly put a lot of effort into them. As a matter of fact, I’m starting to wonder, how much longer will it be before games look just like they would in real life?
Sound/Music: 4/10
Here’s where the game loses points. Each course has it’s own music, but they virtually have the same music, just with a different theme to suit that level. I do, however, like the Secret Levels music, which sounds like a group of people singing the Mario theme song, but I like the way they sing to it. It’s sounds like… well, it’s hard to find words to describe it. And the Game Over music is just like the Mario 1 Game Over music, but much funnier. Oh, and when you die, the words “Too bad!” appear on the screen, a VERY funny variant of the Mario 1 death music plays, and you’re sent back outside of the level.
As for sound, most of the sound effects sound good, but not great. When Mario is on his last three sections of health, an alarm starts going off, and goes faster for each additional piece of health Mario loses. This alarm can really get on my nerves if it keeps going off for a long time (though not as much as the low health alarm in Poke’mon Ruby/Sapphire), but that’s exactly what it’s supposed to do.
Difficulty: 9/10
I’ve heard a lot of people complain about how easy this game is. This game isn’t easy. It’s very hard. It took me nearly forever to beat the manta in Sirena Beach, Episode 1, and Noki Bay, Episode 6? Let’s not even talk about it. However, in the end I did manage to beat the game.
What makes this game so hard is that most of the Shines in this game are harder to collect than the Stars in Super Mario 64 were. That means they’re both harder to reach, and harder to find. It’s also hard to beat this game without consulting a strategy guide, because many of the Shines require doing a lot of tasks, which are difficult to figure out on your own.
What’s more is that Super Mario Sunshine doesn’t let you jump out of order in the episodes or let you only have to collect 70 Shines like in Super Mario 64. You have to beat the first seven Episodes of each world in the exact same order they’re placed in. If I don’t like Sirena Beach, Episode 1, while I may like Sirena Beach, Episodes 6, 7, and 8, I should have the option of choosing to beat them first, then coming back for the other ones I don’t like near the end of the game. Nope, there’s no option like that. You have to beat the seven episodes in the exact same order they come in. Also, you HAVE to beat the first seven episodes of each world in order to reach Corona Mountain. In fact, you could have 118 Shines and still not be allowed to fight Bowser if you’re missing just one of those Shines. This episode system and required Shines automatically made the game harder.
Gameplay: 7/10
One of my favorite parts of this game are the episodes in Ricco Harbor where you have to surf around on Bloopers. It’s just so fun to be wildly riding a Blooper around the level, steering clear of obstacles. If you hit an obstacle while turning, you’ll always lose a life. However, if you’re going straight and hit an obstacle, you won’t die unless you’re on the purple Blooper, which is faster than the others.
I was also glad about FLUDD’s use of water in this game. Before I played this game for the first time, I noticed in the Instruction Booklet that there was a water meter in the bottom-right hand corner, which indicated how much water was left in FLUDD’s tank. Before I played this game for the first time, I was worried that from time to time, I would run out of water and would have to interrupt my search for a Shine to look for a way to refill. Fortunately, FLUDD can hold a LOT more water than it looks like it can, so you can squirt and hover just about as much as you want. There’s water just about everywhere (which you can jump into and press R to refill FLUDD), so even if you’re spraying like crazy, you’re bound to find some long before the tank hits empty. However! There are a number of episodes designed to get you to run out of water, so please do be careful.
The Secret Levels are another one of my favorite parts of Super Mario Sunshine (except for the one in Noki Bay, Episode 6, which sorely tests your wall kicking ability). The first time you play a Secret Level, Shadow Mario will take FLUDD away from you, and you’ll have to beat the level without using FLUDD. Most of the Secret Levels require good, precise jumping, as well as the ability to walk on a rotating cube, both of which I’m good at.
If only the camera were as good as the rest of the gameplay. For some reason, Sunshine’s camera seems to be less intelligent than the cameras in most of the other games I’ve played. I usually find myself constantly pressing the L Button, which puts it behind Mario’s back. Sometimes the camera’s view of Mario will get obstructed by a large object, which will make Mario appear as a shadow (kinda like Shadow Mario), and items and enemies appear as ?’s. Other times the camera will actually sink behind a rock or a building (like the Coral Reef rock in Gelato Beach, Episode 6), making a big blue circle appear around the screen. I have a horrible time trying to control Mario when either of these things happen.
Control: 7/10
At first I struggled getting used to the controls, but after a little while everything clicked and I started really enjoying the game. Maybe it was because I was still having a hard time with the controls early on, but I didn’t feel that Bianco Hills, the first course, was that easy. In fact, I think Bianco Hills is the second-hardest course after Noki Bay, and the easiest course is Pinna Park.
Replay Value: 4/10
Well, since in order to beat the game you have to collect 50 required Shines, and the other 70 Shines are completely optional, the only real reasons to continue playing the game are to have fun and to try to collect as many extra Shines as possible, maybe even all 120 if you can. However, you’d probably find these reasons in just about any other adventure, so it gets a low Replay Value score.
Size: 6/10
Well, there are eight worlds in total (counting Delfino Plaza), and they’re all pretty big, but Donkey Kong 64 and Super Mario 64 seemed a lot larger to me. I don’t think the worlds in Super Mario Sunshine are that much bigger than the worlds in Super Mario 64.
Fun Factor!: 5/10
This game would’ve received a higher score if not for its high difficulty. Some episodes were made to be too hard, and they took away some of the fun. Nonetheless, though, Super Mario Sunshine is a pretty fun game to play.
Recommendation: 7/10
Although I feel Super Mario Sunshine is not quite as good as Super Mario 64, the game it is a sequel of, it’s still good. If you’re a fan of Mario, you should probably add this game to your collection.
Overall: 7/10
Yeah, I’d say Super Mario Sunshine is an above-average game, but the high difficulty brings the score down a bit. I can’t for the life of me see why some people complain about how easy this game is. Oh well, the game is still good, and a lot better than Zebco Fishing, which is quite possibly the worst video game EVER to exist.
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