Super Mario Sunshine | 17th Oct, 2020 | 11:00hrs | rating: 4.5/5
Collect shines in the toughest Mario game ever!
GAMEPLAY: Amazingly fast and expressive controls; Mario has never felt better and the level design really lets you find your own way of tackling things. Occasionally very difficult though, impossible for beginners, and there’s a lot of jank and bugs. (But surely this emulated Switch version is buggier than the original?!)
AUDIOVISUALLY: The visuals are simple by today’s standards, but very pleasing and coherent. I’ve never liked the music though, some stuff like the boss theme grates my ears.
STORY/PRESENTATION: The story is dumb, but the atmosphere and sense of place is great. Time flies as I explore random corners of the worlds.
Doesn’t matter that it’s janky; I love this game, and coming from Mario Galaxy, I much prefer that there’s actual challenge now, and how much freedom I have both with Mario and the camera. Just wish it had more stages, as it’s over quite fast when not bothering with the blue coins.