Today is March 10th and… because of that, it’s apparently Mario Day.
What got me into Gaming was probably the N64 my father got me when it came out and I really enjoyed playing Pokémon Puzzle League and Super Mario 64 back then on it! It was amazing! I had a lot of fun. I’ve never seen graphics like that! I mean… we didn’t even have a computer or anything and at the time I was three years old or something, so it was already a miracle to see people inside TV… it was even more surprising to see you move a character on the screen in the way that SM64 made it possible. Before that day, I did already play some 2D Mario game on some sort of console before but I can’t remember what game or console it was as I didn’t own it… I was only at a friend’s house back then. But then we got SM64 and I had a lot of fun with it and what I really loved about it is… what this post is about.
SM64 didn’t only have different worlds to dive into and countless stars to collect but also three different chapters to the game with a boss fight at each of them. It was interesting and something I haven’t seen before… and while it is standard in a lot of Adventure/Story games nowadays that you have different chapters or areas with a boss fight at the end of it, it felt innovative at the time. I was terrified of Jolly Roger Bay and the eel that pops out of that ship but I wasn’t forced to do it. Similarly, I didn’t have to visit Big Boo’s Mansion either but it was completely optimal for me to visit… that piano was SCARY at the time… and the eel was the reason why I refused to learn to swim for ages. So, Super Mario 64 gave me options in the game and allowed me to find my own playstyle. At times, I would even have different solutions for the same problems, which was amazing and really great for me.
And later, I’d get into trying out Glitches and doing my first-ever 16-stars-run… and it was fun but going for 120 was more enjoyable for me personally, especially as I never timed runs. All in all, SM64 brought me lots of joy and I can’t wait to try out Galaxy, Sunshine, or Odyssey once I’ve got a Switch… it’s going to be fantastic. I love the freedom you had in SM64 and from what I’ve seen that trend continues in those titles.
And well,… I also used to enjoy the Mario & Luigi games on the NDS where you played in a turn-based fashion and had some strategic elements to combat… and Paper Mario has been a lot of fun as well… and if it hadn’t been for SM64 and some of the earlier Mario games on the SNES and that other console, I probably wouldn’t have gotten into gaming that early on…
Oh, and btw, if you haven’t yet, you can also check out last year’s post on MAR10 Day for the Super Mario Multiverse Collaboration!
Do you have any Mario stories or memories that you want to share? Let me know! Happy MAR10 Day!
Cheers!
This post was first published on Indiecator by Dan Indiecator aka MagiWasTaken. If you like what you see here and want to see more, you can check me out on Twitch and YouTube as well.
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