Let me begin by stating that you’d be hard-pressed to find a bigger fan of the red plumber than me. My entire childhood and adult life have been spent playing the Mario franchise and enjoying all the classics that it has produced. However, I’m not one of those fanboys who refuses to criticize their favorite video game franchises. What I’m getting at is I’m not afraid to voice my displeasure with what Nintendo does with the Mario franchise.
And, if you are a fan then you have no doubt heard the rumors and ramblings over the last several weeks. You guys know what I’m talking about; the rumors about a potential collection of remasters coming sometime in the near future. Nintendo clearly wants to do something big for the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
If you want my opinion, though, I’m not that excited at what might be a remastered collection pack of the 3D Mario games. Don’t worry, I’m going to explain myself.
Most of the Titles Were Optimized for Their Console
Outside of Super Mario 64, the other three titles being discussed for this supposedly remastered collection were all optimized for the controller of the system that they were made for. The first one, Super Mario Sunshine, required the use of the “R” trigger for FLUDD. The triggers on the Switch controllers probably wouldn’t work that well and remapping the button to something else would just feel odd.
Then, you have the Galaxy games. Sure, there are some people out there who would rather play them without the motion control, but you can’t deny the impact it had. Gamers complain a lot about motion control and I’m not too high on it myself. But, for the Galaxy games, it was virtually perfect and actually made the experience even better. The only solution I can think of is if Nintendo designs them specifically for the Joy Con controllers. Personally, I hate those controllers as they are way too small for average-sized hands.
I’m So Sick of Remasters
Alright, the video game industry is just out of control with how many remasters are being released. When they happen once in a while, I have no problems with them. But, it seems like every day there’s a new remaster revealed. After a while, the allure leaves. I mean, is it so hard for video game developers to actually come up with something new?
I’d Rather Have a Sequel to Odyssey
If you gave me the choice of being able to play all the 3D Mario games on the Switch or playing the sequel to Odyssey, I would choose the latter within a millisecond. Regardless of the time Nintendo puts into this collection (if it even happens), I’d rather see them spend their time designing Super Mario Odyssey 2. There’s so much potential in the sequel and I would be very disappointed (to say the least) if it’s not being created.
Trust me, I get the allure and excitement of a collection of this nature, especially if they are full-on remasters. For me, though, I just want to see Mario take on new platforming adventures. I guess that’s just me.