I got Super Mario 64 DS when I found it used and wanted to give it a try. Now for those who have never heard of the original Super Mario 64 (and I want to see the rock you've been calling home for the past 10 years) it was the launch game and killer app for the N64. Sure the N64 may not have been the greatest console but it still had some of the greatest games and
Super Mario 64 was one of them, it showed off Nintendo's newest crazy invention the analog stick. When the DS was released Mario 64 was released beside it and I ignored it along with the DS, it would take more then just a 10 year old Mario game to interest me in the console. 2 years later and several great DS games later I have now played through the game enough to rescue Princess Peach here are my impressions.
Story.
Princess Peach as invited Mario to her castle for cake, he goes there accompany by the party crashing Luigi and Wario. We see the 3 go in and several hours later Lakitu awakens Yoshi who's been asleep on the castle roof explaining the 3 went in but haven't come out. Yoshi goes in and finds out that the 3 along with Princess Peach have been captured by Bowser and sealed into the walls and now it's up to Yoshi to break them all out.
Yes the story has been changed and you start with Yoshi but don't worry this Mario 64 still and you'll control Mario most of the time, you will just go through the first 8 stages as Yoshi before being able to change characters. After that though Mario will be your main character for most of the stages, you will be able to unlock Wario and Luigi as playable characters to and they will be handy in several stages as well.
Graphics.
The graphics have been updated since Mario 64 to show off the DS power. For one thing character models have been greatly improved and updated. Mario now dons a lower polygon model and looks a lot smoother then he did in the original games. Also characters that have been upgraded and changed over the years also now sport there new looks (Yoshi and Peach). The graphics inside the castle and of the scenery still look as good has they did on the N64 with the exception of some of the water effects. Some of the colors for water just look a bit off, it's nothing but fans of the original will notice it.
Sound.
We get the same music from the original game put into this remix which is good because the music can be a bit catchy. As for the voices Mario still says the same things he did in the original nothing new there. But Luigi and Wario all have there own voices and saying that have been recorded in. What surprised me is that Nintendo used the same VA for Peach that they did in the original game (she's one of the localizers at NOA) and have her record a few new lines for the ending, keeping the same sense of nostalgia while adding something new to it.
Gameplay.
Well there have been a few changes to the gameplay but nothing that is majority disappointing. Like before your goal is to enter each painting world that the castle has and retrieve stars. There are 8 stars per world this time, 6 from the original, 1 new, and the 100 coin star. Each time you enter the level you get the star number and a clue like race with koopa the quick, or Wigglers 8 red coins to help you figure out what to do in the world.
What do the stars do well you need them to unlock other areas of the castle. In order to beat the game you will need to find 80 out of the 150 (yes that's 30 more stars then the original) power stars in the game. There are a few bonuses for collecting all of them. Of course collecting stars would be boring if the stage design in the game was boring. But it's not the stage designs still hold up to this day for being interesting and fun. You will travel through battlefields fought with bob-bombs, through a sea of hot lave, an under ground maze, and even an area similar to SMB3 Giant Land.
Also in the game you will need to find the secret areas where Mario and the crew are being held and get the keys to release them. Once these areas are finish and the character key is found switching can be done in the same room that the Princess secret slide is found. Go into the room with the characters logo and switch characters. Each character as different stats as well has there special abilities. The hats Mario gained in the original have been split up among the different characters to make them a bit more difference, Mario has the wing cap, Luigi can use the invincibility cap, and Wario is the heavy metal cap.
Yoshi.
Yoshi is your starter character and he's relatively weak character who can't break blocks and has some trouble getting around. All though eating an enemy and then throwing the egg that Yoshi poops out can clear out a field of several enemies. He as his flutter jump from the Yoshi Island game to help him get on far platforms.
Mario.
Mario is unlocked after 8 stars and he will be needed in order to unlock new areas (Bowser won't permit you to enter a lot of areas in less your Mario). He's pretty much the same character he was in the original game. He has one new ability and that is the ability to puff up like he did in Super Mario World and float a certain distance. Also his wall jump is similar to that of Mega Man X where he will slide down the wall before jumping making the wall jumps easier.
Luigi.
Everybody complained no Luigi in the original game, and now Nintendo's finally giving the plumber in green is chance to shine. His power is between Mario and Yoshi and he can't wall jump. However when he ends his back flips with a slow spin jump that can be useful for getting through tricky areas. He also is needed in areas where the invisibility cap is needed, so it's not surprising he's the guy to use on the boo mansion world.
Wario.
Nintendo's coin greedy anti hero is here to lend you a hand, nobody tell him all he's getting out of the deal is a piece of cake. Wario is lacking in both speed and jump department making him a bit of a pain to get around. But when it comes to tackling big bully opponents off platforms he's your guy. He's also the one to use if you need use to the metal cap.
Now switching can be a pain especially if you enter an area and find out you need some ones abilities in order to obtain the star your after. Luckily Nintendo did find a way around this in allowing you to find hats. Around areas you will find hats of the other characters laying around, donning one will change you into this character in till you get hit. If you're good enough you will find a way to snag the star without having to go back to the Princess room in order to switch out characters.
Mini games.
There are unlock able mini games that can be found in the game (and most of these where used in New Super Mario Bros) by catching rabbits. Each character as color coded rabbits and mini games to unlock. Catching the rabbits give you the keys to unlocking the mini games and they can be access through the main menu or through the Princesses Room. These all use the DS touch screens and some of them can be fairly addictive but I wouldn't pick up the game just for them.
The bad parts of the game.
30 more stars then the original, 3 extra characters to choose from, and several mini games what could go wrong with the game. Well if you read the beginning of my review I said Nintendo made the game to prove the usefulness of there analog stick in 3d gaming. And the DS is well stick-less. So you have a rather confusing set up for the use of the digital pad. Holding down Y and pressing the controllers will cause you to run, while letting go of Y will cause you to walk slowly. However the digital pad gives you a lot less freedom to move and some tricky areas it's almost impossible to get around and makes some areas that where moderately hard, now down right impossible. Nintendo gives you the option to use the touch screen like an analog stick but that causes more problems then it solves. After playing through this game it became brutally obvious to me why there aren't many 3d action adventure titles for the DS. The DS controls just aren't made for it and this launch game proves this major weakness.
Final Recommendation.
It still as all the charm of Super Mario 64 and adds on to it with more characters and stages. The controls though are a major downer as the game was made for the analog stick, I won't say it ruined it for me but it kept it from being the same experience I had with the original 10 years ago. Maybe will be lucky and Nintendo will turn this into a Super Mario 64 DX for the Wii's VC and we can have all the good upgraded stuff and the good old analog stick.
