Because you jump on Mushrooms' heads to defeat them. Mushrooms !
If you didnt get what I meant to say ( quite propable ):
It's a gameplay decision.
In 2D Marios you always shrink / die when being hit only once.
In 3D installments you have a life bar. Dying instant on a lava ball would ridicule the whole system.
Now if your alluding to FALLING into lava, that's possibly right.
My explanation would be : You have to play much longer if you die in 3D mario to reach the point where you died, in 2D mario its usually just a few steps from the last checkpoint.
And, for me, the parts in Mario 3D with instantkill quicksand ( not the one you can jump out of ), have always been the most fearsome, dungeon-esque, and deadly parts.
Remember the interior of the pyramide in Mario 64, then compare it to the interior of the volcan - also M64- in the lava level ( you jump into a little aperture and land inside the volcano )
In which of both did you feel more scared ? - For me its clearly the pyramide
- Would be my way of explanation, in the end its a pure gameplay decision. Noone wants to die instantly when falling anywhere ( those quicksand spots have always been very rare ) - just imagine all the casuals :)
How can 720p be considered HD when it looks like ugly snow grains on my 22'' screen?
