Mario 64 is one of, if not my favourite game of all time, and Mario Galaxy isn't far behind. I think that's why I dislike this game to such a degree. I really enjoy 3D Mario and I want this to enjoy this game but I just don't like it at all.
The movement is undoubtedly the best part about this game, similarly to 64, but unlike Mario 64, the controls are not complemented by the level design nearly as well. The levels and the missions within those levels felt like they were designed with JUST the idea of F.L.U.D.D., and not all the other crazy shit Mario has in his arsenal.
Sirena Beach is a good example of this. Outside of the obligatory missions that involve secret levels, they literally just boil down to "Go here, spray this, proceed" or "Scrub this specific area clean". The King Boo mission doesn't fall under this formula, but it's not particularly well-designed either.
I think this is why the secret levels are my favourite part of the game. When F.L.U.D.D. is out of the picture, the levels are created in a manner that encourages you to utilize the moves you've been given and get creative. It's where the game really shines (xd), because as I said earlier, the controls is the best part of the game.
Level design and F.L.U.D.D. aside, the missions are just kinda... boring? They aren't bad or anything, but to me, most of them just aren't interesting at all. I feel like I explained why I think this with the Sirena Beach example from earlier.
The "get 7 shines from every stage" is the most egregious part of this game to me, and is one of my least favourite designs in any video game that I've ever played. Aside from forcing you to play missions you don't want to, it makes half of the content in the game redundant, if you're not going for 100% that is. You can chalk it up as just "optional content" but I hate the idea that some shines are inherently worth more than others, especially when Mario 64 just demonstrated how fun having the freedom of choice when it comes to selecting what missions you want to play and which ones you don't. I'm seriously struggling to find a single find a single upside to this type of design. It's bad game design and a big enough issue to straight-up kill the game. There's a reason why they went with the 64 approach when it came to selecting levels and missions in Galaxy.
I'm not gonna comment on the story and voice-acting, because I don't care. The game has way more prevalent issues that I just went over.
A lot of the issues I have with this game probably, definitely come down to personal preference, but I hope I still got my points across well.
The movement is undoubtedly the best part about this game, similarly to 64, but unlike Mario 64, the controls are not complemented by the level design nearly as well. The levels and the missions within those levels felt like they were designed with JUST the idea of F.L.U.D.D., and not all the other crazy shit Mario has in his arsenal.
Sirena Beach is a good example of this. Outside of the obligatory missions that involve secret levels, they literally just boil down to "Go here, spray this, proceed" or "Scrub this specific area clean". The King Boo mission doesn't fall under this formula, but it's not particularly well-designed either.
I think this is why the secret levels are my favourite part of the game. When F.L.U.D.D. is out of the picture, the levels are created in a manner that encourages you to utilize the moves you've been given and get creative. It's where the game really shines (xd), because as I said earlier, the controls is the best part of the game.
Level design and F.L.U.D.D. aside, the missions are just kinda... boring? They aren't bad or anything, but to me, most of them just aren't interesting at all. I feel like I explained why I think this with the Sirena Beach example from earlier.
The "get 7 shines from every stage" is the most egregious part of this game to me, and is one of my least favourite designs in any video game that I've ever played. Aside from forcing you to play missions you don't want to, it makes half of the content in the game redundant, if you're not going for 100% that is. You can chalk it up as just "optional content" but I hate the idea that some shines are inherently worth more than others, especially when Mario 64 just demonstrated how fun having the freedom of choice when it comes to selecting what missions you want to play and which ones you don't. I'm seriously struggling to find a single find a single upside to this type of design. It's bad game design and a big enough issue to straight-up kill the game. There's a reason why they went with the 64 approach when it came to selecting levels and missions in Galaxy.
I'm not gonna comment on the story and voice-acting, because I don't care. The game has way more prevalent issues that I just went over.
A lot of the issues I have with this game probably, definitely come down to personal preference, but I hope I still got my points across well.