A Mario Retrospective - Part VI

SUPER MARIO SUNSHINE

This game didn't exactly do much to advance the series. Need proof? I almost skipped straight to Super Mario Galaxy after Super Mario 64. This is probably my least favorite game of the series, but that's not to say I didn't like it. As a Mario game, it was kind of a disappointment, but as a standalone game it was pretty darn good and a lot of fun.

Let's get down to brass tacks, shall we? We'll start, as usual, with the story. This time around, Princess-saving isn't exactly the motive for everything right off the bat. Instead, we meet Mario, Peach and a new, crappy character, Toadsworth, flying into Delfino Airport on the beautiful island of Isle Delfino. Mario's earned a vacation from all the princess-rescuing hubbub of the Mushroom Kingdom, so a dolphin-shaped island apparently tickled his fancy. Well, they arrive, and as soon as the plane is vacated it turns out that Mario is already a wanted criminal. Of course Mario's not really the culprit; a Mario doppelganger has been carousing around the island spreading multicolored, toxic graffiti. As a result of the filth, the island's guardians, the Shine Sprites, have left, leaving darkness in their wake. After being arrested, Mario is forced to clean up the island and bring back the Shine Sprites with the aid of the water pump FLUDD. Turns out the doppelganger Mario is really Bowser's son in disguise, and he thinks Peach is his mother. (???) He is determined to kidnap the Princess and make his father happy by getting his mother back. So yeah. There's that whole awkward thing.

The gameplay itself is, to be honest, frustrating. You'll often find Mario doing things you didn't tell him to do. Mario's movements are often jerky, and the gimmicky FLUDD sometimes takes that Mario feel away from the game. In fact, the general consensus seems to be that the best part of the game comes when they take away FLUDD, and Mario is forced to navigate complex platforming levels by himself. I follow that line of thought, as those parts of the game are the most refreshing. To get myself reacquainted with the game (it's been awhile), I decided to play one level, and all I can say is I don't think I'll be doing that level for a while. I was just plain frustrated the whole time. You'll find that grate-climbing, once a refreshing, fun addition to Super Mario World, can be really trying on the nerves. The game really suffers in terms of gameplay.

The sound of the game is also less than impressive; though sound is crisp and clear, it just doesn't come across as very memorable. In fact, some of the music is annoying, like Pinna Park and Ricco Harbor. The music for the few "secret" levels is probably the best, as it's a cute little take on the original Super Mario Bros. theme song. The rest is just, as they say, "meh".

The graphics! That's where the game excels. It's bright, beautiful, and intricately laid out. You have the option toward the end of the game of wearing sunglasses, which darkens the screen, but I just can't wear them in good conscience. It doesn't do the game justice to dim the colors, as those are easily the best parts of the game.

I think the most infuriating part of the game, though, comes in the form of blue coins, ten of which will earn you a Shine Sprite. You need to collect all of these coins in order to fully complete the game, which is a drag since it's hard to keep track of the coins you've collected. It seems kind of lazy.

The game isn't exactly a bright spot in the Mario series, but it was good enough to tide us over until New Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Galaxy. So I say, "Fair enough, Super Mario Sunshine. You did a perfectly adequate job."