Super Mario 64 in the palm of your hand, what more could you ask for. But is it better than the original?
Once hearing about Nintendo's new portable system and once hearing that they are making this classic game so you can play it anywhere, it makes you think that this will be one spectacular game. On the other hand you think such things as, will the controls and graphics be as good and will it be the exact same game as Super Mario 64. I will tell you these answers.
The graphics are pretty much exactly the same as the N64 version but when you think about it, that's not a bad thing. It is a nice thing to have N64 graphics on a portable system.
The controls are a little on the mediocre side. They're not horrible but they're not great either. It is the camera that's horrible. The camera is very hard to get used to but once you get the hang of it, it makes the game a bit easier. But you just might not get used to it. The camera is the part of the game that is where I have to take some points off.
With the graphics not really improving (that's not a bad thing, but it's just the same thing) and the camera going a step down, there is still some parts of the game that's better than the original game on the N64.
- This time you don't just have to play as just Mario but you can play as 3 other characters. These are Yoshi, Luigi and Wario. It doesn't change the game to much but it gives it that little extra variety. In order to collect every star you're going to need to use all 4 characters. It is a cool idea and it really works. It makes the game better.
- There is also a rec-room in which you play mini games. You unlock mini games by catching rabbits throughout the game. This is pretty much the only time that you use the stylus in the game. Each character has about 10 mini games so there are about 40 in total. This is a great function in the game that is great to play when you just need a break for Mario's big adventure. You will even finding yourself wanting to play this game just for the rec room.
So is Super Mario 64 DS as good as or even better than Mario 64, probably not. I would say Mario 64 is a little better than Mario 64 DS because it is overall more fun to play this game on a TV rather than the DS. The Rec Room and extra characters make this game better but it does not make up for the camera or controls. Having said that this game is just a little bit worse than the original but it is truly hard to make something better or even as good as Super Mario 64. Overall this is an easy choice. This is a must buy and one of the best DS games out there. If you have a DS then you must own Super Mario 64 DS.