While I was playing Dead Space, I suddently felt the urge to replay something alongside it. I was thinking Mario Sunshine at first but ended up deciding on Mario 64 because I never finished the Switch version before. Super Mario 64 is a game I always liked but not loved. I'm a huge Mario Galaxy fan and much prefer that game overall but after replaying this game, I'm happy to say I like/appreciate it more than I did.

I think the absolute best aspect is Mario's move set when you're in an open level. It's just an absolute blast to play in stages like those, which is why I really enjoy the first 2/3rds of this game. The last third, while not bad has more linear/slower levels like rainbow ride and tick tock clock. They just don't feel as fun in comparison to the prior levels I think. Wet-Dry world is the only world I think I outright disliked this time around, idk why I just didn't find it fun. Some of the stars in general can be really annoying by the endgame, especially the 100 coin stars. While I'm not in love with those types of stars, most of the time they're fine up until the last couple courses. Those can be real rough.

A criticism I have with this game is spitting you out of levels kinda feels like padding. Don't get me wrong, I honestly wasn't annoyed by this for most of the game but when you have levels like Tick Tock Clock or Rainbow Ride where it's a linear climb/ride to the top for at least half the stars, it gets samey having to do the same portion of the level over and over again. It's really only a big issue with those levels I feel, otherwise I'm fine with it but it still does feel like padding (which is maybe another reason why I prefer Banjo-Kazooie :trxll:).

While I much prefer something like Galaxy's OST, I forgot how good 64's was. It's so iconic and is all around really great. Another thing I really like is the early 3D atmosphere this game has. I mentioned it in my Doom and Croc reviews too but something about that specific aesthetic really does it for me. Tho it also can feel a bit too early 3D for my liking, which is why i prefer something like the Banjo games aesthetics more overall.

I was watching a video recently talking about some footage that showed people playing this game for the first time and being really bad at it. This was probably their first introduction to 3D games and it really made me think just how crazy this must've been to people that experienced this game at launch. It's incredibly revolutionary and very much holds up well nowadays.

I was gonna say maybe I like this less compared to something like the Galaxy games because I'm more nostalgic for those...but I played both Banjo Kazooie games at the same time as this game and I definitely like those more so I guess it's just a me thing. Either way, while I don't absolutely love this game as much as others do, this recent playthrough made me appreciate the game more. Despite the faults I have, it's still very fun and a great game overall. I was gonna give this a 7.5 but ah fuck it, I'll give it an 8 for now.

Oh also this version is automatically worse than the NA original because no Gay Bowser :trxll: