22nd February 2003, 8:09 PM
Mario has a tough job, what with all those evil turtles and freaky walking mushrooms to contend with, and from time to time, he deserves a vacation. Even that can't go right for the world-famous plumber. Upon flying out to island paradise Island Delfino with Peach, they are forced to land short on the runway due to a huge puddle of some paint-like substance. Mario crosses it and asks for help, and he's <i>blamed</i> for the mess! As he approaches a water pump he'll use to clean the mess, it props up and introduces itself as FLUDD, created by none other and Professor Gadd from Luigis Mansion. FLUDD identifies Mario and agrees to help him. Upon cleaning up the mess, the Delfino authorities take Mario away and throw him in jail. He is later released, and is sentenced to clean up all the graffiti which now covers Delfino. But one question lingers, why do they think Mario is behind it? You'll have to play to find out.
Gameplay is very smooth here, controls are straightforward and easy to use. It utilizes the analog functions of the L and R key, if you press R down partially, you can move while spraying, or you can press it down all the way to shoot out a stronger and longer reaching stream of water. Mario has a lot of jumps too, and they are all pretty simple to execute. If you turn the control stick 360 and then jump, you'll do a spin jump which sends you higher than the usual jump, and also gets rid of any goop which may have gotten on you. FLUDD has two functions at any one time, there is the normal spray, then one of three different nozzles can be attached. The HoverNozzle allows you to hover (obviously) for a few seconds, the Rocket Nozzle makes you blast high into the air, and the Tubo nozzle boosts your speed, even when swimming.
This game is <i>not</i> about just cleaning up messes like it may appear to be. There are plenty of puzzles to be solved, some force you to do them without FLUDD to help you.
Alas, as good as <i>Mario Sunshine</i> is, it has its flaws. First, there is a lot of stuff happening on the screen at one time and at times there can be some noticeable slowdown. Also some of the camera angles, even though it moves with Mario, can be constricting and there are some times when you can't even see your mustached hero. But the good far outweighs the bad in this game, the slowdown is only for a few seconds, and only at some times do you have trouble with the camera, otherwise, its a great Mario adventure with lots of puzzles and plenty to do. You'll never be bored in this game.
I give <i>Super Mario Sunshine</i> a 9.4 and if you own a GameCube, this is a game to buy before all others on that game rack at the store. Besides, no Nintendo system is complete without a Mario adventure.
Gameplay is very smooth here, controls are straightforward and easy to use. It utilizes the analog functions of the L and R key, if you press R down partially, you can move while spraying, or you can press it down all the way to shoot out a stronger and longer reaching stream of water. Mario has a lot of jumps too, and they are all pretty simple to execute. If you turn the control stick 360 and then jump, you'll do a spin jump which sends you higher than the usual jump, and also gets rid of any goop which may have gotten on you. FLUDD has two functions at any one time, there is the normal spray, then one of three different nozzles can be attached. The HoverNozzle allows you to hover (obviously) for a few seconds, the Rocket Nozzle makes you blast high into the air, and the Tubo nozzle boosts your speed, even when swimming.
This game is <i>not</i> about just cleaning up messes like it may appear to be. There are plenty of puzzles to be solved, some force you to do them without FLUDD to help you.
Alas, as good as <i>Mario Sunshine</i> is, it has its flaws. First, there is a lot of stuff happening on the screen at one time and at times there can be some noticeable slowdown. Also some of the camera angles, even though it moves with Mario, can be constricting and there are some times when you can't even see your mustached hero. But the good far outweighs the bad in this game, the slowdown is only for a few seconds, and only at some times do you have trouble with the camera, otherwise, its a great Mario adventure with lots of puzzles and plenty to do. You'll never be bored in this game.
I give <i>Super Mario Sunshine</i> a 9.4 and if you own a GameCube, this is a game to buy before all others on that game rack at the store. Besides, no Nintendo system is complete without a Mario adventure.