Super Mario Sunshine Is Back In An Unexpected Way
Modders have been seriously outdoing themselves lately. This month alone we've seen Death Stranding played via treadmill, the frustratingly accurate experience of Red Dead Online recreated in Dreams, and now Super Mario Sunshine 64. This mishmash of Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine is a rivetingly retro project playable today.
Super Mario 64 is a fan favorite in the long history of Mario games, despite (or perhaps because of) its blocky graphics and old school feel. Super Mario Sunshine didn't enjoy near the same success that other Nintendo titles have. While it has its merits, the game just wasn't for everyone.
Kaze Emanuar and a group of his fellow modders saw fit to combine the two games in a minihack of the first three levels. The sunshiny world of Isle Delfino is rendered in sharp, low-def graphics that prove a somehow more nostalgic take on the 2002 GameCube title.
Prospective players can download the first three levels of Super Mario Sunshine 64, but that's likely all they're going to get. Let's take a look at why.
The challenges of modding
Making this minihack was no walk on the beach. Kaze Emanuar explained that after a year and a half of work, he and his fellow modders decided to "mercy kill" the project. The initial aim was to essentially port Super Mario Sunshine into the graphical world of Super Mario 64, but the challenge proved too great.
Kaze Emanuar decided it would be best to release what they had so far to give players the chance to experience this unique take on Super Mario Sunshine. When you come to the end of what content Kaze and Team Kornersoft rendered, you'll find an apologetic message from the devs and a challenge to find all the blue coins in the world.
Despite the project's incomplete status, the internet is very much impressed with Super Mario Sunshine 64. Many commenters are already lamenting that Nintendo might catch wind and shut down this mod. Nintendo isn't known to let these things slide, after all. Until then, you have a delightfully older version of a newer game to play.