Things that suck about.... any Mario game.

64-Bit Nintendo Machine

64 Bits of Power!
You couldn't play battle mode in single player for like the first four Mario Kart games!
 
Battle Mode has no purpose other than entertainment in Mario Kart 1-7 (idk if this remains true for 8?), there's no trophies to earn and it doesn't keep score of wins
 
I mean don't you play a game for entertainment?

Isn't that like, the sole purpose of a game to begin with?
 
Super Paper Mario's entire gameplay was bland and boring and the levels were too easy and they should've kept the gameplay of the previous games.
 
I'd agree it would've been better with the traditional RPG gameplay, but for me since the gameplay in the RPGs is a means to advance through a good story, and it's never been so bad it brings down the story imo, I'm fine with SPM and would prefer it any day over the games that don't bother having good gameplay OR a good story.

Another thing, Sticker Star's gameplay is arguably better or worse than SPM's, but I'd tolerate it just as much if it made up for it with a good story to keep me engaged like SPM did. If the game isn't gonna bother with a story, I'd rather it just be a main series game so I can run freely jump around a platforming environment, slow-paced games focused on NPC interaction and turn-based battles that don't have a story are really not my cup of tea. SPM may have mediocre gameplay but at least over 10 years later I can fondly look back on the characters & narrative that just really clicked with me and I still find myself drawing fan art of to this day. I can't say that for anything Paper Mario has touched since.


But you did remind me that once upon a year or so ago I wanted to aspire to port SPM to TTYD's engine since the assets are compatible, so we could experience what SPM would be like with the traditional Paper Mario battle system. Unfortunately reality hit that one hard, having compatible assets alone is hardly enough to make such a thing. Though there was a recent Blender importer for TTYD I saw footage of on Twitter that might remove some of the hurdles but that sort of project is still far off. Might be possible in PM64's engine with Star Rod but then the SPM assets would have to be rebuilt in the N64 style.
 
Mario Party 2: That game is heralded as the best Mario Party, mainly due to the fact that it's the first one that hits the right notes. The problem is, that game has an unlock system that can be a hurdle. Yes it's true that Mario Party 2 is much more generous with coins in comparison to its predecessor, but that doesn't stop it from having an unlock system that requires a lot of play time.
- Every minigame can only be unlocked after you (1) played them on a board once, and (2) purchase it with coins
- Minigame Coaster is only unlocked if you do the above for every 4-player, 1v3 and 2v2 minigames.
- Minigame Land is only unlocked after a number of minigames are purchased, so unlike Mario Party 1, you can't delve into this right away.
- Certain minigames can only be unlocked if you finish the Minigame Coaster, including the Hard Mode. They are the Battle and Item minigames. The final minigame is very difficult since you are thrusted into a 4 player minigame where 3 CPUs gang up on you.

Thank you for reading.
 
  • The fact that Nintendo thinks it's a good idea to have the game freeze every time someone gets hit in multiplayer. Seriously, it's been in every platformer, and while it isn't a problem in single player, in multiplayer it just throws off the other players. For anyone who's played the Mario vs. Luigi mode in NSMB DS, you'll remember that it didn't have this at all (you'd just take damage but the game would keep going), so I don't understand why they don't get rid of it for future games as well.
  • The lack of VS. mode and Waluigi in Mario Kart 7. An option to play any course whenever and however you want rather than having to play through the Grand Prix cups, and a fan-favourite character such as Waluigi (and therefore you'd think would've had high priority when it came to making the cut), it still baffles me why they decided to not include these.
 
At least in SMM2 multiplayer the game only freezes for the player getting hit, aka they lose time in VS for an additional punishment since the other players get time to catch up/ move further ahead. Unfortunately, it also does that for power-ups so sometimes you can get punished for grabbing a mushroom even if it's right in your path.
 
As if linear = bad?

Linear levels can be done right... if done right.

Although I do admit it does sound like a missed opportunity when the game takes place in space of all places. However, even then, some galaxies do open up with an open planet. Shiverburn's first mission, whatever the bee galaxy is called, Melty Molten, and even then, the level design is there, however you put it. Again, not being a fully open world is not at all a detriment to the experience.
 
I'm glad they moved away from having to buy minigames to play them in minigame mode after the second game. Although it still is annoying that you have to play the minigame in the board game before being able play them in minigame mode.

No Single Player VS mode really did lower my opinion on MK7. I was so used to MK DS and it's single player VS mode that going to 7 felt like a step down. Even Super Circuit had a free run mode. For some reason, there was never a Single Player VS mode on the home console games until Wii. (At least someone made a code for Double Dash that replaces Grand Prix with a VS mode in 1 Player mode, so that's great).
 
The water levels tend to be very weak in any Mario game. The physics are just awful. Mario is slow, he swims as if his legs are weighing him down like anchors (except probably in 64, Galaxy, and Odyssey?) Which doesn't resemble real life at all, he sinks like a rock (which no other swimming character like Rayman or Kirby do, p sure Dk and Diddy don't sink like him or have super awkward swimming animations) and is as mobile. Mario rarely can attack underwater too so water levels end up being a slow and frustrating obstacle course. That there are powerups to improve the experience (briefly before you get hit since it's not often you get them) just highlights how bad water levels are.

3D games aren't much better. Sunshine probably has the worst water controls, where it makes that toothbrush boss thing a chore despite having a unique set up.
 
I wouldn't use it myself for housekeeping duties. Imagine cleaning the insides of that thing.
 
It's been proven over and over that Peach is a badass and can be on par with the bros. and the toads; yet they continue to make her the damsel in distress on their 2d sidescrollers, I thought 3d World was revolutionary, yet they didn't keep it as a trend in their later games.
 
This series will throw anyone in the "damsel" position whenever it feels like it so it never really bothers me.
 
I view Toads as frantic little NPCs and not much more, so whenever they get prioritized over Peach for being a playable character it bothers me. My perception of the characters mainly comes from the RPGs since those games are more focused on character development and interaction, and seeing how business is done in the Mario universe. And there, yep Toads are the basic citizens, any Toad that's more notable is a distinct one like Toadette, Toadsworth etc. And still they're helper NPCs not playable. Peach has been playable on a few occasions and is generally portrayed better in the RPGs.

So why does she always get stuck as a "go towards this" marker while Toad is a selectable character so often these days. I like to think Peach could hold her own in an attack from Bowser's army far longer than the shrimpy little Toads. At least enough to fend them off until the Mario Bros. got there. Toad I could only see screaming and running away.
 
In my point of view, I really enjoy being a Toad because of their shrimpy nature in spite of all the bigger dangers he has to through. I really like how I can play as a Blue Toad in Super Mario 3D World, or Toadette in NSMBUDX and Super Mario Maker 2. I think his species in general is a very important to Mario and he's been there since Super Mario Bros. Peach is convenient for plot and Bowser reasons, so that really just leaves us with Toad, and to fit the 4 player quota for these games, I think that's why they went with him. Not to mention, he's just an attractive character to use in my pov: small, cute, and brave, which I synergize quite well with. He's also pretty unique, I don't think there's another platformer where I can play as a little mushroom man.

I think him being there is why you can play as a generic Koopa or Shy Guy in Mario spin-offs...some people just like the generic species and love to them represented by a random member of their species. Toad is one of them, though Toad's status as a single character is a bit more defined than the Boo you see playable in Mario Party.
 
At-least there was toadette that time, she should remain a constant P4 with Toad as P3, if/when Peach is not a player. I enjoy having a girl representation especially in a children's game commonly played by all genders.
 
yeah but I'd keep Toadette as P5 or P3 with Peach as P4 personally. Peach doesn't always need to have her float when they seem to have no problem removing Luigi's higher jumps whenever they need to keep gameplay constant, so they could do the same for Peach. Also Peach isn't even kidnapped in Super Mario Maker 2, she could've easily been playable.

Of course ideally we could have a larger selection of characters in general. I liked the variety in SM64DS especially including Wario. And Yoshi as a standalone character. I'd like to see another game like that, but maybe combined with 3D World's co-op style. That way we can have Mario, Luigi, Wario and Waluigi running around a level. (Waluigi was the one thing I felt was missing in SM64DS, that is once I knew of his existence as that game believe it or not was my first major exposure to even Wario)
 
In the Mario Kart games, a blooper, one of the most useless items, can be obtained in the same position as a bullet bill, golden mushroom, or basically any other useful item (as low as 9th in Wii, 6th in 7 and idk about 8/8DX) How do they think that a blooper is as useful as any of those items?
 
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