Take this. This entire, delightful rope structure (which by the way, is one of the most fun mechanics in gaming) that stretches along the entire upper level, never gets used on the main missions for this levels. In the 100 coin/blue coin hunt, it’s indispensable.
... it feels more and more like you’re deliberately trolling me with your every post about Sunshine, lol!
Even more so because I’m replaying SM64 and I’m having the best time I’ve ever had with this game! After my one and only 120-star run, so many years ago, I’d never replayed the game this thoroughly, practically skipping whole levels every time. But not this time. This time I’m really, really enjoying it.
What can I say? Everything that feels wrong with Sunshine, I find it executed almost to perfection in 64. The camera, while not being as free as in Sunshine, feels so much better in framing exactly what you need 90% of the time. The perception of depth and distance is leagues ahead of Sunshine, where I always have trouble judging distances. I’ve basically never missed a coin while swimming in 64, whereas that red coin fish in Noki Bay in Sunshine is pure hell. You fall down a cliff or into a pit? No ”Too bad!”, no death fanfare, no loading screens - a couple seconds, a little hop, and you’re back into the level. And the game just feels so much fun. Running and jumping around is a joy.
The only thing I still don’t get after all these years is flying with the winged cap. Thank God there’s only a couple little stages built around that.
SM64 is incredible. It’s a game designed around the experience of getting to grips with 3D gaming, and it’s so perfect. One of the few games I enjoy more and more as time goes by.