Why Is Super Mario Sunshine So Polarizing?

Recently, Nintendo actually did the unthinkable: They added a 24-year-old game to their Nintendo Classics service on Switch 2! You know, something they could have done at any time for the past year and change and just chose not to!

In all seriousness, I appreciate the chance to play 2002 GameCube title Super Mario Sunshine on my Switch 2, as it’s simultaneously one of my favorite games of the era and a fairly unique experience. But that’s the thing: Sunshine’s uniqueness has made it an all-time classic to some and a wild failure to others. Why is that the case?

To discuss this topic, I spoke with David Silbert, Editor at The Punished Backlog and Sunshine superfan, to get his take on all things Super Mario Sunshine: the good, the bad, and the F.L.U.D.D.

How We Feel About Sunshine Overall

Sam: I know you’re generally a fan of Super Mario Sunshine. Just so readers can have some context going into this discussion: What’s your history with the game, where do you rank it among your favorite GameCube titles (and possibly favorite Super Mario games), and what do you find so special about it?

David: Coming out of the gate with the big questions! I shared my origin story as part of our best GameCube games list, but to recap: Sunshine was special to me precisely because it was the first console video game I ever owned. I didn’t grow up with a Nintendo 64 or PlayStation 1; my only exposure to Mario 64, Spyro the Dragon, and other ‘90s platformers was through “video game flex time” at my local summer camp.

In 2002, my parents gifted me a GameCube Costco bundle for Christmas that came with — you guessed it — Super Mario Sunshine. And I tore that game up. Luigi’s Mansion, Scooby-Doo! Night of 100 Frights, and All-Star Baseball 2003 rounded out my initial GameCube line-up, but it was Sunshine that forever endeared itself to me.

Part of it was the slick visuals and gorgeously rendered 3D environments; another part was the catchy tunes. I’d roam Delfino Plaza for hours — bopping to the groove, enjoying the scenic views, and engaging with the charming townsfolk. But of course, the main draw was the gameplay: the inventive levels, the wild F.L.U.D.D. powers, and the expressive (if finicky) controls. As a platformer on the GameCube, Sunshine was without equal.

If I had to rank it, Super Mario Sunshine sits right below The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on my list of GameCube all-timers. Likewise, it’s second only to Super Mario Galaxy 2 as my favorite Mario title ever. It’s been surpassed mechanically, but it’ll always hold a special place in my childhood gaming memories.

Sam: Nothing makes that four-year age gap between the two of us feel bigger than you saying the first console you ever owned was a GameCube. (It was my third!)

So, I’ve always been pretty fond of Sunshine. It was one of my favorite GameCube games at the time, and offered a ton of cool, unique ideas to the Super Mario formula that deserve a ton of praise (e.g., its thematically cohesive world, the use of water for gameplay purposes). Not sure where I’d rank it now among my favorite games on the console (it has to sit firmly behind Super Smash Bros. Melee, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Resident Evil 4, and Soulcalibur II at the very least) but it’s still something I thoroughly enjoy.

That said, I also think it’s one of the worst 3D Mario games. It has the clunkiest controls, the most annoying progression structure (you have to get the seventh Shine Sprite in every world in order to face Bowser rather than a set number of sprites like you do in every other 3D Mario title), and its approach to blue coin collecting straight-up sucks. Whenever I replay Super Mario Sunshine, I have a mostly good time, but the blemishes are there and clear for everyone to see. 

Why Is Sunshine So Polarizing?

Sam: Frankly, Sunshine is definitely on two unofficial games lists for me: It’s 100% on my “you had to be there” list (along with GoldenEye 007 and Donkey Kong 64) as well as my “worst great games list” (along with The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and Starfield). I know you love it dearly, but what’s your response when you hear people be especially critical of Sunshine? Do you think it’s fair?

David: I think it’s fair. I dusted off my copy of Super Mario 3D All-Stars the other day, and though I still personally think Sunshine holds up exceptionally well, it’s hard to argue its controls aren’t a bit obtuse. The inverted camera alone (which thankfully can be remapped in All-Stars, if not also in the NSO version) made me want to tear my hair out back when I was seven. I personally didn’t mind the progression system or blue coin hunt — so to each their own there — but I get it just wasn’t the Mario 64 sequel that I imagine most fans would have preferred.

But hey, I would counter with this: Often, it’s the game with a bit of jank that ends up endearing itself to players more than the game that’s technically flawless but perhaps a bit soulless. Take two of Hideo Kojima’s oeuvres: Metal Gear Solid 2 and Death Stranding. Both have their obvious drawbacks — MGS2 with the protagonist bait-and-switch, Death Stranding with the absolute chore that is the minute-to-minute gameplay — but I think those qualities only ended up enhancing both titles. Art is inherently human, and being human means being imperfect.

The same goes for Mario Sunshine. Its worlds aren’t as polished as Mario 64, and its mechanics aren’t as imaginative as Galaxy 1 and 2. It’s easy to clown on F.L.U.D.D.’s design, voice, controls… you name it. But there’s something truly special about using the Turbo Nozzle to zoom through Delfino’s streets, or using the Hover Nozzle to navigate treacherous ink in Ricco Harbor. Those worlds meant so much to childhood me, and I think they still hold a ton of charm and merit today.

The Jank Is the Point

Sam: That’s an interesting point, and one I think Bennet Foddy pointed out as well: The game is by far at its most interesting when it’s really wonky and weird. Like, as much as people point out how difficult the Sandbird segment is, I think it’s kind of incredible? The player has to have a particular command of the bizarre controls and physics in order to collect all those red coins, and I think a lot of folks’ (understandable) unwillingness to master that wonkiness causes them to miss out on that feeling. 

Even the non-F.L.U.D.D. missions — the “secret” stages, so to speak — were kind of remarkable for the time. You can see the early inspiration for Galaxy in them. Rotating platforms that look like toys, hazards that require expert use of wall jumps, sandy blocks that disappear after you step on them… Super Mario 64 didn’t quite have that. Sure, these levels can be annoyingly difficult given the unforgiving nature of the camera and the controls, but there’s drops of brilliance in them.

Ultimately, I think that’s Sunshine’s legacy: It’s a good game that is very close to being an incredible one. Every part of what works exposes another that doesn’t. Perhaps more polish could have fixed a lot of it, but I think it’s tough to deny that Sunshine’s best ideas are especially clever and interesting. I think that’s why I often compare it to Skyward Sword: Most of the good stuff is obviously good and cool, so how one feels about it is determined by how much the bad stuff bothers them.

How Low Can Mario Go?

Sam: But now I have to know: What would you say is the worst 3D Mario?

David: There’s an easy answer here, thankfully, and it’s Super Mario 3D World. I imagine a decent contingent of Mario fans would say 3D Land, but I actually loved that game. Its novel use of the 3DS hardware — long before Nintendo decided to punt on 3D altogether in favor of the 2DS — was evident in everything from its dioramic backdrops to its creative levels and clever take on perspective.

3D World, on the other hand… Well, I really just kinda hated it. Without the charm of its handheld predecessor’s pop-up effect, 3D World ironically falls flat. The levels are “been there, done that.” The structure, pacing, and design of these environments err closer to a traditional 2D Mario than the sprawling sandboxes I’d come to expect from Sunshine and even both Galaxy titles.

Perhaps that’s on me for expecting too much of 3D World, but when I play a big Nintendo title on a big piece of hardware (RIP the Wii U), I expect big things. It’s an objectively fine game, and I have no doubt the enhanced Switch version adds much to the core experience, but the title I played back in 2013 was by far the most disappointing Mario I’ve ever played.

What say you?

Sam: Oh man, I absolutely love 3D World! I get it, it’s not quite the world-wrecking Mario game you wanted at the time. Still, I think 3D World is, in many ways, the Mario game I had always wanted, something that blends the best of the 2D and 3D titles with plenty of its own flavor (new power-ups, co-op, Captain Toad missions).

It’s tempting to say 3D Land is at the bottom, which actually is a testament to how great the series is as a whole. I really like 3D Land! It’s stupidly easy and probably the least creative of the 3D Mario titles, but it has really solid level design and buttery smooth controls. It’s an absolute joy to play, even if it fails to present enough new ideas.

The more I think on it, though, I’d argue Super Mario 64 DS is the worst 3D Mario of all time. I adore Super Mario 64, but somehow none of the enhancements for the DS remake actually improve the game. If anything, most of them make it worse. Having to change characters constantly is a chore, the new levels are overly simplistic and lack the imagination of the N64 original, and controlling Mario and friends with the D-Pad just doesn’t work for me at all. It’s still a fine game, but it’s the rare example of a remake I’d say is definitively worse than its predecessor.

If anything, we’re both sort of arguing in different ways, though, that Sunshine, despite its faults, can’t be the worst. It’s too creative and too interesting to ignore.

Do We Need More Sun?

Sam: Switching gears just a bit: Would you want a Sunshine 2? Would you prefer Nintendo take another crack at Isle Delfino or do what they normally do and make something totally different?

David: My heart wants a Sunshine 2, but my gut tells me the ship has sailed. It’d be very un-Nintendo-like to greenlight a sequel when Sunshine’s world and characters have been overlooked for so long. Like, sure, the Mario Kart games have referenced various Delfino locales, as has Super Smash Bros. But it’s clear to me, nearly 25 years after Sunshine’s original release, that we’ll likely never get a follow-up, and that’s okay.

Having said all that… If Nintendo were to do the unthinkable, the announcement would go down alongside Final Fantasy VII Remake and Beyond Good and Evil 2 (RIP) as one of the greatest video game reveals in history. I’d be elated. One of our industry’s biggest “what ifs” would finally be put to rest. I could stop dreaming about a Chrono Trigger remake or a Hotel Dusk remaster. Life would be good.

Naturally, that’s why I’m 100% confident it’ll never happen.

Sam: Hey, the Knicks won the championship. Anything can happen!

In all seriousness, I don’t think Nintendo ever revisits an idea like Sunshine again. If they wanted to, they would have done so already. It would certainly feel like a big deal if they did, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

Still, I think the lack of a return to Isle Delfino actually further enhances the value of the original. It’s become a gem of its time, something that represents an era when big companies were more willing to take chances on bizarre ideas, especially ones involving their most popular IP. So much media now — games, movies, TV shows — feels so risk-averse that Sunshine comes off as uniquely refreshing, warts and all. For that reason alone, I will always love Sunshine.

I still hate the Pachinko Game, though. That shit fucking sucks!

David: Yeah, that one’s rage bait for sure! Like I said, Super Mario Sunshine is rough, but still a gem.

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What do you think of Super Mario Sunshine? Does it hold up? Is it the best/worst 3D Mario game? Let us know in the comments!