The Nintendo 64 classicSuper Mario 64came back into the spotlight this year with the release of theSuper Mario 3D All-Starscollection for Mario’s 35th anniversary. Nintendo has supported3D All-Starswith updates adding inverted camera controlsand other features, which has no doubt kept some going back to its old-school titles.
However, it has also been a big year for Super Mario 64fans thanks to a number of behind-the-scenes discoveries. Most notable was the discovery that a pre-launchversion ofSuper Mario 64had files for Luigi, bringing truth to a 24-year-old rumor based on a fountain some believe read “L is real.” Today, the Twitter account for Supper Mario Broth, a blog dedicated to hosting obscureSuper Mario-related content, shared another interesting tidbit about the N64 game’s design.
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Supper Mario Broth shows fans that the animation for walking through doors has priority over death inSuper Mario 64through a 10-second clip in which Mario dies from fall damage at the same time as he enters a star door. Many in the comments remark about how silly it looks to see Mario casually walk into an untimely death, though others are more interested in the potential for this fan-favorite gaming mascot to literally cheat death in the first place.
Even before the release ofSuper Mario 3D All-Stars, the status ofSuper Mario 64as one of the first true showcases of 3D game design has offered Nintendo’s title a lot of staying power in gaming culture. The “L is real” fountain theory is just one example, with other fans showing their affection for the game by modding its levels into other titles oradding characters like the Mad Piano intoSuper Smash Bros.
However, the Switch collection ofSuper Mario 64,Sunshine, andGalaxywas not met with all positivity upon release, despite it going on to be a blockbuster success. One major complaint from fans centers around its limited availability, thoughNintendo of America president Doug Bowser has defendedSuper Mario 3D All-Starsonly being available until March 2021, saying the decision came because it is an anniversary title.
Other complaints levied against the collection include its seeming lack of extra content surrounding the games, as well as the fact it did not offer uniform improvements to things like aspect ratio forMario 64. That being said, fans have discoveredfun speedrunning bugs inSuper Mario Sunshineand more, and overall it’s hard to say that making the trio of games more accessible is a bad idea.
Super Mario 64is available now on Nintendo Switch throughSuper Mario 3D All-Stars.
