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Editorial: The History of Mario, Part 5Posted on Sun, Jun 20, 2004
Super Mario Sunshine
Released: 2002
System: GameCube
With Super Mario Sunshine, Mario finally returned after a six-year-long hiatus (in which he mostly filled his time with a lot of partying and a little golf and tennis) in a new 3D platforming adventure. But considering the game had to follow the genre-defining magnum opus and series crescendo that was Super Mario 64, it’s understandable if many think SMS just wasn’t quite up to snuff.
Shigeru Miyamoto likened the relationship between SMS and Mario 64 to that of Super Mario World and Super Mario Bros. 3, in that instead of trying to completely redefine the entire experience, SMS enhances on the foundation laid by Mario 64 in every way. And although that does make it a much-improved game, it also makes it a very familiar game. Just like Mario 64 (and to be fair, most of the 3D platformers released in the six years after Mario 64’s release), you progressed by collecting certain items (Shines, in this case) that are hidden throughout the main levels, gathering enough to move on to the next goal. The main levels are connected by a central hub (Isle Delfino), which also contains a few secret Shines itself. Like its predecessor, SMS wisely did not get too rapped up in the item collection aspects, remembering that the Shines are merely a goal to achieve; the real fun is in completing those goals.
Surprisingly, the story initially seamed to be a lot different and more developed than prior Mario games. Mario and Princess Peach set off for a vacation in beautiful Isle Delfino, but they quickly discover when they arrive that the isle is covered in some strange sludge, and the person who spread this heinous pollution happens to look a lot like Mario. The idiotic locals who don’t know any better convict Mario of the crime, and sentence him to clean it all up. Unfortunately, once you discovered that the true identity of Mario’s doppelganger was Bowser’s kid (who was not, mind you, one of the original seven Koopa Kids, leading one to wonder just how many children Bowser has fathered), the story quickly devolved into the familiar territory of a kidnapped princess in need of a plumber to save her.
The biggest new feature in SMS was Mario’s water tank, which was called a Flash Liquid Ultra Dousing Device (one of those contrived names created specifically for the acronym to be FLUDD). With FLUDD, Mario had a lot more gameplay options than he did in Mario 64. You started with two standard nozzles, which allowed you to spray and aim a stream of water that could be used to wash away the sludge (among other things), and to spray water down like a jetpack and hover in the air for a few seconds. Two other nozzles became available further into the game: the rocket nozzle would shoot one strong blast off water to send you rocketing into the air, and the propeller nozzle let you glide across land and hydroplane across water at a quick pace. Besides FLUDD, Yoshi also got back into the swing of things to give Mario a hand, after his brief and non-playable appearance in Mario 64.
Another memorable aspect of SMS was the so-called “void” mini-levels. To acquire some of the Shines, you needed to make your way through various obstacle courses, and you didn’t have FLUDD to help you. Being obstacle courses, they consisted of a bunch of obstacles like revolving blocks, spinning platforms and rotating cubes, which floated in what was basically a void of empty space (hence the nickname). These void levels were like a direct throwback to classic Mario platforming gameplay, where there were no Shines, Stars, Jiggies, Cogs or other such knickknacks to collect, and the point was simply to get to the end with nothing but your dexterity and reflexes.
While SMS didn’t quite earn the same respect and popularity as other Mario games, it was still a fine addition to the series. It’s certainly not the end of the rode for Mario, though—surely large turtles will still get love-starved, princesses will continue to get kidnapped and heroic plumbers will be needed to save the day. So just what does the future hold for the world’s most famous plumber (who just recently was the first video game character to be featured in the Hollywood Museum of Wax)? Not much is known yet, but Nintendo has stated that at least one more true Mario platformer will be hitting the GameCube, which is currently under the tentative (and enigmatic) title “100 Mario’s.” Whatever lies in Mario’s future, let’s just hope Nintendo comes through and doesn’t end up making us wait another 6 years for it. After all, princesses aren’t going to rescue themselves.
Index:
Part 1 - Overview
Part 2 - Super Mario Bros 1 + 2
Part 3 - Super Mario Bros 3 + World
Part 4 - Super Mario World 2 + 64
Part 5 - Super Mario Sunshine
Part 6 - Spin-Offs
Part 7 - Spin-Offs, Continued
Part 8 - Shigeru Miyamoto Biography Posted By: Kris Pigna - 3455 Reads
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