/vr/ - Retro Games

[Anonymous No.10001796]

Was it really as good as they say? I've actually never played it (even on emulator) but I'm curious as to how good it actually was. Main complaints I've heard are:
>Controls are good EXCEPT when really precise movement is needed (narrow platforms etc)
>Too much repitition
>Camera sucks in places
Also IMO the visual design of the levels seems a bit bare-bones but I can give that a pass because it was an N64 launch title and one of the first of its kind. Bobblehead Bowser was a bit weird though.

[Anonymous No.10001806]

>>10001796
I don't like how mario will try and walk in a circle rather than just turn back around, when trying to turn around sometimes you might walk your ass off a platform because he just doesn't want to just turn around, he has to circle back.

and the only other problem is the camera, it's set to specific spots, and you can only snap it to those other spots only. there's a part in wet dry world where the camera seems like it's an enemy combatant.

but other than that it's great. you pop back out of the levels after each star but that's so you can decide to go to other levels and switch it up so you dont get burn out.

if you play the PC port then it's nearly flawless, and why not do that. there's a branch of the port that's online multiplayer, and it has public lobbies. you can co-op with strangers right now. but do not say racist stuff, I got kicked from a server because someone pissed me off and I told him what he was.

[Anonymous No.10001838]

>>10001796
It was incredible at the time. I think it's suffered the same fate as the classic Sierra games in that they're meant to be played in a very different manner to how people (myself included) play games now. You were meant to just explore and experiment and have play sessions where you didn't achieve anything. I think it's fortunate that it managed to find a new lease of life through speed running, and while that isn't for me, it's impressive to watch.

>>10001806
I also agree with anon regarding the circle walking. That was really my only bugbear on returning to it.

[Anonymous No.10001840]

Controlling Mario feels great, which is the real core value of the game, and it gets more fun the more you play, and the more you master those controls.
The game has this interesting, surreal kind of tone to it, due to heavy use of stock textures, and Nintendo learning how to do 3D graphics in general, during the development of the game, and a lot of people like that. The fact that one of the more memorable enemies is just a round marbled texture with legs is distinctive. You only got those kind of things in games in that exact window of time.
In terms of level design, it's a bit dated, and I think 3D Mario level design has only really kept getting better over the years.

[Anonymous No.10001847]

>>10001796
At the time it was, you should really give it a try. Anti-Nintendo shitposting aside it's an essential 90s game

[Anonymous No.10001859]

>>10001796
While these are legitimate criticisms, it's mostly fun unless you are going for 100% competition. Then you'll need to complete the frustrating stuff too.

[Anonymous No.10001892]

>>10001859
>unless you are going for 100% competition
If it wasn't for the obnoxious garbage 100 coin stars this game would be fun to 100% all the way through

[Anonymous No.10002057]

In 2023? It's better than they say.

[Anonymous No.10002064]

It's one of the best games ever made

[Anonymous No.10002067]

It is absolute trash and anyone who thinks it's good has nostalgia goggles from playing that shit as a kid when you actually had patience for its trash.
BUTBUTBUTSPEEDRUNNERS! When you dedicate all your free time to learning every single quirk and nuance of something, you can be "good" at it too, no matter how bad it is. I was good at fucking ET on the VCS when I was a kid and I have no goddamn illusions about that game being anything but trash.

[Anonymous No.10002094]

>>10002064
this

[Anonymous No.10002141]

>>10002067
Oh hey its you!
Its your UPS driver, nobody was home so iIjust left your 50 coint box of enormous black dildos at your door.

[Anonymous No.10002161]

>>10002067
>It is absolute trash
>critically acclaimed at release
>continues to sell bucketloads on every virtual console re-release
>frequently hits top ten games of all time lists
You might not like it, but calling it "absolute trash" is just pathetic and attention-seeking.

[Anonymous No.10002218]

>>10002161
There's a contingent of people who absolutely seethe at Nintendo's success and try to undermine it at every turn, claim they're overrated or don't deserve the praise. I know one IRL, he grew up on SEGA and Sony games and has a massive chip on his shoulder about how people would generally rather talk about games like SM64 and Banjo than Croc or TY the Tasmanian Tiger.

[Anonymous No.10002223]

>>10001796
>I've actually never played it
Emulator, PC port or original hardware.
The remake is OK too but pretty different.
Why make this thread?

[Anonymous No.10002272]

>>10001796
The game is fine. The complaints are somewhat valid but they don't really hinder the game at all. It was still kind of revolutionary for its time, though imo it's not the best 3D platformer of that gen or even on N64.

[Anonymous No.10002312]

>>10001796
>Was it really as good as they say?
yep. It's the only /vr/ I can play time and time again and never ever get bored of it. who knows how much of it is based in nostalgia but I played DK64/Banjo/Crash/Spyro at the time and I never go back to those (except Crash 2/3, but that's apples to oranges) so I think there really is something special about SM64

>Controls are good EXCEPT when really precise movement is needed (narrow platforms etc)
I think this feels more like the victim of the camera. Specifically in those upper level sections of wet-dry world and Tik-Tok Clock. But it's also so deeply ingrained in how I play the game that even with the source port allowing for a much better camera I still prefer lakitu.
>Too much repitition
They definitely cheaped out on a few stars. And they seemed to have given up on boss fights after the first two worlds (lol) besides bowser of course. I do love the Pyramid boss though, but I think most players don't even get that star.

The design definitely feels barebones in a lot of places and you can tell that they went all out on some levels (cool cool mountain, boo's haunt, hazy maze cave) and slapped together others just to increase the course list (wet-dry world, rainbow ride, snowman's land)
But all in all it's still one of the best games ever made and the only TRULY essential N64 play for any serious gamer.

I just wish they would have made a sequel towards the end of the N64's life. I can only imagine what they would have come up with for level design and new mechanics.

[Anonymous No.10002326]

>>10002312
I dislike Wet Dry World but I always liked Rainbow Ride. I didn't even find Snowman's Land until later because of where it's located

[Anonymous No.10002360]

>>10002067
Why would you post that image if not to discredit your own argument? Did you even read it?

[Anonymous No.10002367]

>>10002326
wet dry world always confused me as a kid. it has a weird spooky feeling despite not being scary or dark at all.
when I figured out the water height trick it absolutely blew my mind that they could do something like that. The last two stars I was missing in the game finally came to me and it was such a cool moment

[Anonymous No.10002379]

>>10001796
I played it a bit and one thing I will say about it is that it delights in itself and it's own 3D-ness. Yes, you CAN climb that tree, yes, you CAN look under that bridge, and there's usually something interesting or rewarding hidden away there. Contrast this with the massive, vacuous empty spaces presented by Morrisons or GTA games. I much prefer the Nintendo approach.

[Anonymous No.10002437]

Why don't you play it for yourself and find out? Seriously, what is the point of this thread? Are zoomers that scared of playing old games?

[Anonymous No.10002442]

>>10002218
It really is curious, but most if not all of the confirmed schizo shitposters from /v/ are anti-Nintendo: Rugarell, manly tears, ACfag, Quentin.
And here on /vr/ we have the diet version of those, australia-kun.
I suspect it's all people who had sad, traumatic childhoods and they grew up seeing normal children growing up with Nintendo? and they hold a resentment to the company because of that.
Otherwise I don't get it, but yeah there is a connection between mentally ill spammers and being anti-Nintendo.

[Anonymous No.10002465]

BING

BING

WAHOOOOOOOOO !!!!!!!

[Anonymous No.10002473]

>>10002442
>I suspect it's all people who had sad, traumatic childhoods and they grew up seeing normal children growing up with Nintendo? and they hold a resentment to the company because of that.
The guy I'm referring to didn't have a traumatic childhood from what I know. I really think he's just mad that nobody wants to talk about the games he grew up with and they'd rather talk about Nintendo instead. It's something like an inferiority complex.

[Anonymous No.10002478]

>>10002465
/v/ console war meme

[Anonymous No.10002490]

this is still the last mario I ever gave a shit about because he was still allowed to just hop around the place without being suffocated in gimmicks.

[Anonymous No.10002496]

>>10001796
go back to >>>/v/
this board is not for minors

[Anonymous No.10002617]

>>10001796
Are the controls and camera complaints a revisionist thing? Or are they pushed by people who didnt grow up with the game?I played SM64 as a kid when it came out and replayed it a many other times growing up, and I never felt stunted by the controls or the camera. If anything, everytime I picked up the game I was pleased with how well Mario controls when compared to other 3D platformers.

[Anonymous No.10002621]

>>10002064
not this

[Anonymous No.10002949]

>>10002437
Muh muh liminal space !!! This is not how a real castle would be !!!

[Anonymous No.10003010]

>>10001806
>I don't like how mario will try and walk in a circle rather than just turn back around
he will 180 if you flick the analog up hard instead of slowly moving it up. i saw this exact same complaint from some faggot youtuber too

[Anonymous No.10003017]

>>10001796
yes, its literally the only 64 game still worth playing

[Anonymous No.10003030]

>>10003010
this game ismeant to be played using the n64 controller. playing in any other way will make it not work right and feel right. these kids probably play on a shitty emulator and don’t know what is missing

[Anonymous No.10003281]

>>10001796
>I've actually never played it (even on emulator) but I'm curious as to how good it actually was
Well you're in luck fucktard there's a very easy way to learn how good it is and it's called fucking downloading it and playing it on an emulator you FUCKING INVALID

[Anonymous No.10003305]

>>10003030
>>10003010
he will only cut a hard 180 if you are running, after which point he will slide and you can perform a backward or sideflip whatever

[Anonymous No.10003429]

>>10003010
and even then, mario will also do a 180 if you have him crawl. I do this to carefully position myself all the time.
git gud, zoomies

[Anonymous No.10003432]

>>10001796
>Controls are good EXCEPT when really precise movement is needed (narrow platforms etc)
Who told you this?

[Anonymous No.10003435]

>>10003017
more or less this if you aren't autistic about mario kart or wait actually Mario party 2/3 are also worth playing this guy doesn't know what he's talking about

[Anonymous No.10003453]

>>10002218
We're not seething at Nintendo when we state the n64 sucked. It's the same as criticising virtual boy

[Anonymous No.10003463]

>>10003453
oh please

[Anonymous No.10003923]

>>10002067
I like it more now than when I was a kid. I liked Mario 64 as a kid, but I always liked DK64 more. Mario 64 has obviously aged better.

[Anonymous No.10003926]

>>10003453
The Virtual Boy's not actually that bad either. It's got some games, for what it's worth.
The problem with so much of retro gaming culture, is it got caught up in AVGN mania, and thinks hating something is better than finding it's good qualities and trying to appreciate it.

[Anonymous No.10004417]

>>10002223
>Why make this thread?
Honestly out of curiosity; I fully intend to play the game, I think it looks a lot of fun, but it's one of those games that has a borderline-mythical reputation online to the point where honest discussion is hard to have at times because views on the game can be clouded by nostalgia or console-warring faggotry (both for and against the game).
Objectively it looks like a really fun game with some minor flaws, but in some circles saying something as harmless as "I wish the camera was a bit better" or "It'd be nice if collecting a star gave you the option to stay in the level or go back to the castle" can drive people into a frothing rage for levelling any criticism (no matter how small) against a sacred cow.
Again though, I fully intend to play it. Was just interested to see what /vr/ thought.

[Anonymous No.10004428]

>>10001796
it's a pretty cool game, i never played it a ton like a lot of people, but anytime i did play and just explore levels it was a lot of fun.

i remember it having really cool level design, lots of secrets and stuff.
it's one that i would like to go back and play on emulator now for sure.

[Anonymous No.10004470]

It's a good game and I even bothered to get all the stars, but I really don't understand why it has attracted such a strong obsession with dissecting it to the tiniest, most insignificant details. I'm not complaining, I just don't get why.

[Anonymous No.10004493]

>>10002617
Camera issues are mentioned in old reviews, but they obviously weren't enough to bring the ratings down much.
https://www.gamerevolution.com/review/32564-super-mario-64-review
>The biggest flaw in the gameplay is the camera angles from which you view the action. Nintendo obviously spent some time developing a ‘smart-cam’ to follow the action from useful angles, but it doesn’t work as well as it should. Often your view of Mario is blocked by large objects. If you have the time you can usually rotate the camera manually, but that doesn’t help when the thing blocking your view is the boss that you’re fighting. There is a camera mode that follows directly behind Mario (the Mario butt-cam) but it’s generally not a very good perspective. Jumping Flash solved this problem by relying on a 1st person perspective (and sky-high jumps), but that still wouldn’t be a very useful angle for Mario. Unfortunately, the camera really just needs to be even smarter.

https://www.ign.com/articles/1996/09/26/super-mario-64
>Overall, the biggest obstacle in the game is finding the correct viewpoint. The camera, which moves on its own (unless directed manually by using the four gold buttons), tries to find the optimal angle to view the action, though occasionally you're simply not able to see where you're going. Additionally, frustration sets in as you spin the camera around while simultaneously attempting to run across a moving plank or tip-toeing across a tiny ledge. But getting the hang of SM64 is all a matter of practice, and as soon you catch on, you will execute these skills unconsciously.

[Anonymous No.10004536]

The movement and engine might be the GOAT as far as platformers are concerned. A sequel with many hard linear levels akin to the Bowser levels would've been extraordinary.

[Anonymous No.10004609]

>>10001796
The flying in this game is absolutely atrocious.

[Anonymous No.10005795]

People have known that Super Mario 64 is the GOAT since the day it released.

[Anonymous No.10006059]

Yes
t. just played it for the first time a month or two ago

[Anonymous No.10006548]

>>10004417
It's a classic, but that doesn't mean the game is perfect. The tiny levels and the repetitive structure were very obvious flaws even for the standards of time.
>>10005795
I wish magazines like this one had told me about the good and bad things of the game instead of acting like fanboys. Don't remember which one was, but one of them even claimed that the game had no popping. It's not a serious problem by any mean, but the game does have popping. Why fucking lie to your readers? Because of things like this I completely stop paying attention to reviewers, which is kinda sad because I think it's a great game overall.

[Anonymous No.10006550]

>>10005795

realizing that I could inch the stick forward and Mario would creep past the sleeping piranha flower was a real "holy shit" moment

[Anonymous No.10006641]

>>10001796
it's extremely good, at the time it was so crazy you can't imagine

[Anonymous No.10006653]

>>10004609
All you wanna do is zoom a zoom zoom zoom in my /vr/