I would love to see a 3D Mario that captured the essence of the 2D games. That is; get from beginning to end, destroying enemies, dodging obstacles, fast paced arcade style action, heavy emphasis on powerups, etc.
I do enjoy the 3D Mario games, and Mario 64 remains not only one of my favorite Mario games, but one of my favorite GAMES in general. However, they simply don't beat the classic 2D Mario games. They aren't quite as addictive, and aren't as fast paced "pick up and play."
At least make a 3D Mario game similar in quality and style to Mario 64. Sunshine was a decent game but largely disappointing environment and stupid gimmick of the waterpack. Galaxy was a step in the right direction, but I wasn't too fond of the small planets. The concept of "galaxies" and different (mostly) small planets is somewhat uninspired (from an atmospheric viewpoint), and falls short compared to the epic environments of Mario 64, and the thrill of jumping into paintings, experiencing massive and different worlds.
What the Mario series TRULY needs (whether 2D or 3D), is a step into a whole new set of worlds, like the Mushroom Kingdom and Dinosaur Land, but with new environments. We've seen the same old water worlds, ice worlds, fire worlds, and desert worlds.
But what about something fresh like, oh say.. crater world, where you dodge asteroids. Or glass world, where you slip and slide around and can crack walls? Or chemical world, where Mario enters a toxic environment and can be killed by radioactive waste or be hindered by exposure to radiation? The possibilities are really endless if you be creative. Mario needs to recapture that essence of venturing into the unknown and the insane. To truly change and bring fresh ideas for the Mario games, you first change the environments, and the rest will follow.







