From the Nintendo Vault: Super Mario 64

"From the Nintendo Vault" is a feature in which I will pick a game from Nintendo's library of games and review them.

Now, I'm a Nintendo kid. My first console was the Nintendo 64, and it still works to this day. It was part of their Funtastic series, and it was the Fire-Orange color. I have a backup which is a original copy. My second console I personally owned was a Gamecube, and it was a special copy that came with "The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition" and I'm still working through that one!
It came with the original NES Zelda, it's sequel, Ocarina of Time, and it's sequel and a short demo for Windwaker (which is my favorite Zelda, and serious contender for my favorite game). So, that is my background on Nintendo, and the first game I ever finished and game owned was the game we are looking at today.

Super Mario 64

Intro: The game starts off with a weird Mario head, which you could screw around with and make his head all shrunk and make him bug eyed. Good times. You then go into a save screen where you choose a save and start the game.

Starting Scene: This scene needs talking about for just how good it was. It starts with letter from Princess Peach inviting our favorite plumber over to the castle for some "cake" (obligatory sex reference). Then comes in the memorable entrance. A Lakitu Brother comes flying in with a camera on the end of a fishing line, does a fly around the castle, and focuses on Mario jumping out of a pipe, and says this.
“Good afternoon. The Lakitu Bros., here reporting live from just outside the Princess's castle. Mario has just arrived on the scene, and we'll be filming the action live as he enters the castle and pursues the missing Power Stars. As seasoned cameramen, we'll be shooting from the recommended angle, but you can change the angle by pressing the Buttons."

We then find out the Power Stars of the castle are missing, and that Bowser has stolen them! OH NOES. It is then up to you, as the player and Mario, must collect the stars and rescue the princess for that "cake".

Controls: Pitch perfect. Moving as Mario has never felt better. He turns on a dime, jumping feels sublime, even though going from moving to standing still and punching is kinda weird. The only issue I have is the Lakitu Bros. camera control. Compared to today's standards, the camera is clunky and slow, and feels weird. But it's still a blast to jump around as Mario, if you are staring into the side of a mountain.

Music: So memorable. With classics like "Bom-Omb Battlefield" "Dire, Dire Docks" And "Slide Theme"
You seriously cannot go wrong with this game's music. It's full of whimsy and wonderment that you can't be hating on it.

Gameplay: It's Mario. You should know this by now, but if you don't, Super Mario 64 is a 3D platformer (one of the first to do it correctly), where you jump, climb, slide, and smash enemies in order to find Power Stars, 60 out of which you need to fight Bowser and finish the game. The castle is a hub-world, allowing you to run around it and jump into portraits (sometimes in rooms, others in halls) which are the worlds in were you find the stars. Once you have 8, 30, and 60 stars, you can enter 3 "Bowser" worlds, which ordinarily have tough platforming sections, and the big fight against Bowser.

In Short: Super Mario 64 is a fantasic game, with so many things to be praised, like the music and revolutionary 3d platforming, that its shortcomings are shadowed. Go buy a Nintendo 64, a copy of this, and have a ball.

I'm Darahas, for politcally (in)correct gamers saying, until next time.