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curl-6 on 05 January 2014
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Michael-5 said:
curl-6 said:
Michael-5 said:

Yea, but in 12 years is that a big upgrade? It's still the same platforming Mario, walking on the ceiling.

I mean I didn't love Super Mario 64 for the Big/Small World levels. I liked it for the traditional (buck wacky) Bowser Levels, and tossing King Bob-omb off the top of his mountain. Same for Galaxy, I mean it's a great game, but just not as shocking as Super Mario 64.

Graphics are a big reason though, Super Mario 64 for the time was the best ever. Super Mario Galaxy was only the best on the Wii.

But it's not the same, by altering the role that gravity plays you fundamentally alter the whole structure of the platforming and level design.

I tend to place gameplay above graphics, but that's just me.

I place gameplay above graphics, and I don't see a "fundamental" difference to gameplay. Yoshi in Super Mario World "fundamentally" changed gameplay, but gravity only feels like an extension of the platforming what was already there.

Graphics give that wow factor though, Super Mario 64 was just a ridiculous game, especially for the time. So good that every Mario since to me feels like an extension of the same game. Same with Zelda and OoT (except the gameplay in SS feels different enough to me), same with Metroid Prime, same with Halo, etc.

Plus the art direction in Galaxy does throw me off a bit. A giant flying castle with a very round and cuddly Bowser stealing princess? It's not as epic as the very silent castle, with you randomly exploring it, jumping in random paintings with no direction at all.

Since platforming by its very nature is essentially "fighting gravity", having that gravity be spherical, or switching locally in real time compared to always being straight down is, in my view, as big a difference as going from baddies that just charge you in 1993 Doom to baddies that take cover, flank you, and work in a team like in today's better FPS games.

And art direction is subjective, so fair enough. I would argue, however, that SM64's art direction is restricted by its tech here; if they'd have Wii level graphics whose to say Bowser wouldn't be rounded? It may have just been N64's polygon ceiling that made him angular.