Super Mario Sunshine
Tags: psychedelic

Plot synopsis:
The game takes place on the tropical resort of Isle Delfino, which is shaped like a dolphin and comprises ten primary locations. The island is mainly inhabited by the races of the Piantas and Nokis. All the levels either have Piantas, Nokis or both. Delfino Plaza is Isle Delfino's largest city and the game's main hub.
Mario sets out for Isle Delfino for a vacation with Princess Peach, and her long-time steward Toadsworth. Upon a rough plane landing at the island's airstrip, they find that the once-pristine island has been polluted and plastered with graffiti. As a result of this pollution, sun-shaped objects called "Shine Sprites", the island's sources of power, have disappeared, and the island is covered in a perpetual shadow. The culprit seen spreading the graffiti is disguised as Mario, who is named "Shadow Mario". To help with cleaning the airstrip, Mario finds a Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device or F.L.U.D.D., a powerful water cannon which is toted like a backpack and is also created by Professor E. Gadd. Mario defeats a giant slime covered Piranha Plant and restores the airstrip, but he is subsequently arrested by two Pianta police officers who accuse him of vandalizing Isle Delfino with graffiti, despite the fact that he has only just arrived. He is put on trial, which turns out to be a mere kangaroo court where the judge immediately finds Mario guilty and orders him to clean up the graffiti and recover the Shine Sprites, in spite of Princess Peach's objection to the ruling. He is forbidden from leaving the island until he does so. The next day, after spending the night in a cell, Mario begins his adventure to find a way to clear his name and locate the real criminal, while restoring tranquility and order to Isle Delfino.
After defeating another slime-covered Piranha Plant and a sunken statue rises from the ground, they see Shadow Mario on top of the statue for the first time. He jumps off the statue, grabs Peach, and runs off with her. Mario chases him and takes him down by spraying him with water from FLUDD. Shadow Mario immediately creates a graffiti portal on the restored statue and escapes through it. Mario follows him through the portal that leads to Bianco Hills, one of the other areas of Isle Delfino where he defeats another slime-covered Piranha Plant and a hill, some trees and a section of wall rise up from the ground. After defeating two more slime-covered Piranha Plants and restoring the disappeared boathouse and lighthouse that unlock portals from Delfino Plaza to two of Isle Delfino's other locations, Mario follows Shadow Mario, who has kidnapped Princess Peach once again, towards Pinna Island, home of Isle Delfino's theme park. There, Mario defeats a huge Bowser robot being controlled by Shadow Mario (titled Mecha Bowser) by firing water rockets at it on the roller coaster, while also shooting down the Bullet Bills that Mecha Bowswer fires. It is then revealed that Shadow Mario's real identity is Bowser Jr., the youngest son of Bowser who wields a magic brush that creates graffiti which, like FLUDD, was also created by E. Gadd. Bowser Jr. turns the remains of Mecha Bowser into a hot air balloon and escapes again with Princess Peach, having been told by Bowser that Peach is his mother. When learning the truth, Peach is visually upset for a second. He is last seen heading for Corona Mountain, a volcano where Bowser is holding a family vacation of his own. After Mario beats Bowser Jr. in all nine areas (not including the Delfino airstrip), a flood falls upon Delfino Plaza, opening up a cave that leads into Corona Mountain that Shadow Mario disappears into. While most levels are restricted by this flood, the flood disappears after the player has entered Corona Mountain. Mario enters the volcano, and after getting through the volcano's inner cave, defeats Bowser and Bowser Jr. by flipping over the hot tub they are in using the Rocket Nozzle and super ground pound, rescuing the princess. Mario and the princess fall from the sky while Bowser and Bowser Jr. are falling onto platforms in the ocean. While the others are plummeting down, Princess Peach opens her parasol, and lands on an island beside Delfino Plaza on her feet, but on the same island, Mario gets his head stuck in the sand, but gets out. However, FLUDD becomes damaged during the landing, supposedly beyond repair. The Shine Gate's power is restored and the Toads repair FLUDD shortly afterward and Mario, Princess Peach and the others resume their vacation. Meanwhile, Bowser admits to his son that Princess Peach was not really his mother—but Bowser Jr. responds that he already knows and that he would like to battle Mario again when he is older, making his father proud.
After the credits, if the player has collected less than all 120 shine sprites, a picture shows Il Piantissimo, a sprinter that Mario raced during the game, finding the brush that Bowser Jr. used to vandalize Isle Delfino. However, if the player has collected all 120 shine sprites, a picture of the entire cast with the words "Have a relaxing vacation" is displayed instead.

Review: Super Mario Sunshine lives on the classic Mario, but takes it another level with even less side-scrolling than Super Mario 64, and a whole lot more sense of freedom.
The boss fights are fun instead of frustrating, the levels create more and more challenge, and the controls, despite the Side Somersault, are easy to master.Mario, Peach, and Toads head for a nice Hawaii plus Disney World vacation to Isle Delfino(watch for the inside joke on the GameCube's old working name "Dolphin") when Mario is accused for polluting the island with slimy graffiti, taking away Sunshine and the Shine Sprites, which have vanished, and making everywhere an unhealthy, dangerous, depressing-looking place.
The real culprit is someone who we all know, but has dressed up to look like Mario.
Mario must now use the new F.L.U.D.D.(Flash Liquid Ultra Dousing Device, watch for the bottom left corner of the screen when it analyzes Mario)water pumping backpack, which gameplay is based on, to defeat enemies, triumph over obstacles and solve the mystery of Who, Why and What happened?
As he collects Shine Sprites from missions, Sunshine will return to the darkened island.The music is great!
I love the mysterious and remixed tunes that appears in the Shadow Mario scenes, plus the obstacle courses, though some of the sunny, bright music doesn't fit the mood even if it fits the setting.Nintendo is starting to regain its' reputation to not have the best possible graphics, but having original gameplay that's fun and smooth.The variety of activities that you are aloud to do it great, and the ways to collect Shine Sprites are numerous.
The voices are fantastic and never boring, the graphics are as good as the many computer-generated images of Mario you see in video game magazines, and the cut-scenes are great and hilarious!
The perfect blue skies, glorious sunshine and beautiful water effects make you just want to pass through the screen and into the Isle of Delfino in the game itself.
So now it's up to him to clean it up across the various levels and worlds.It's one of those games that you can just keep on playing over the years and even put aside for a while before going back to it.
It makes for perfect escapism.However, the designers have simply tried to cram in too many controls on the Gamecube pad and, as a result, it's a very hard game to control.
Had it not been for this, I would probably have stuck with SMS to the end, but I had to just be done with it once and for all, otherwise I would have chucked my Gamecube at the wall.Graphics A Sound A Gameplay C Lasting Appeal B.
Nintendo finally delivers what it's always been known for: stunning graphics and addictive gameplay.
Nintendo finally delivers what it's always been known for: stunning graphics and addictive gameplay.
Few gaming icons are even half as recognized as Mario.
So when a new Mario game comes out, it should come as no surprise that there is a good deal of hype surrounding that game.
Super Mario Sunshine isn't groundbreaking or breathtaking, but it is a solid adventure game that no GameCube owner should be without.
Super Mario Sunshine begins with a plane trip to an exotic island, with fun, sun, and plenty of water.
Well on this particular adventure, Mario is framed by a clone who takes on a mercury-type shape shifting appearance, much like T-1000 from Terminator 2.
This clone looks incredible, from a graphical standpoint, but he hardly looks like Mario.
Super Mario Sunshine has some horrible voice acting, when you can actually hear it.
In the case of Super Mario Sunshine, though, that could be a good thing.
Away from your ears and onto your eyes, Super Mario Sunshine is quite a sight to see.
Each level is filled with interactive scenery, an incredible number of moving objects, and the best water effects ever seen on a video game.
Graphically, it's just amazing that the levels are so nice to look at, and so large.
The textures could use some work, but the water (which is truly astounding) and other great effects clearly overshadow the small graphic problems.
Super Mario Sunshine is visually stunning.
Throughout these huge levels, you'll be controlling a new and improved Mario.
Mario's goals include finding red coins, killing (and re-killing, as you'll see) bosses, locating certain items, or trying his hand some old-school platforming action.
Throughout each level, Mario will `accidentally' have his new jetpack stolen by the same fiend who framed him in the first place.
Without his new jetpack, you'll be forced to complete an obstacle course using only the old-school Mario techniques, like walk kicks and triple jumps.
Mario will work his way through a handful of unique worlds, scouring each world for hidden `shines', exactly in the same manner as he did looking for stars in Super Mario 64.
The camera might bug you in the beginning, but you'll find it to be one of the best cameras in any video game, ever, once you get used to how it controls.
Super Mario Sunshine is not your standard platform game.
They've also added a new graffiti system that fits nicely with the game.
The game is seen as `clean up the environment' from commercials and previews, and from the beginning, you might actually think that's the case.
An hour into the game, the entire `clean up that graffiti' act is practically gone, and you're back to good old Mario platforming fun.
Super Mario Sunshine's biggest achievement is its lack of gameplay flaws and its stunning graphics.
Most adventure/platform games have glaring gameplay problems, but Super Mario Sunshine has none.
Aside from some poor audio, there is nothing wrong with Mario Sunshine, and there is no reason that you shouldn't own this game.
Nowhere near as good as Luigi's Mansion, the game's puzzles are so repetitive and frustrating much of the game's fun is taken away.
Spraying off graffiti, hanging on hooks that are nearly impossible to grab onto, balancing on tightropes, talking to Delfino residents and some of them punching you all the way across the town, a bunch of new, useless moves and even the music is pretty annoying after a while.
Granted, the game is not entirely bad, it never gets boring just very, very frustrating.
Maybe it's just me but I think Nintendo didn't put as much effort and thought into this game as they have with so many others.Overall rating: 4/10.
The Sun truly shines in Super Mario Sunshine..
Super Mario Sunshine is most definitely the best Mario game out there.
Great graphics, Storyline, gameplay, and even replay value combine to make Super Mario Sunshine One of Miyamoto's best works, I would have to say.
This is the perfect sequel of Mario games, and with a few flaws, this game will be enjoyed to people of ages..
Throughout the years, Nintendo has christened, defined and set the standard with the release of a Mario title in the beginning of their console's five to six year run:  Mario Bros.
Mario's first solo incarnation on the Gamecube, Super Mario Sunshine, released more than a year after the Gamecube itself came out, is an effort worthy to be deemed a Nintendo and Mario title, but it lacks the groundbreaking and definitive qualities that its predecessors had, most notably Super Mario 64 when it debuted on the N64 six years prior.By groundbreaking and definitive, I mean that Mario 64 introduced to the world of gaming the sheer potential of  three-dimensional gameplay.
SM64 represented a paradigm shift in gaming, a changing of the guard, from 2-D to 3-D, from pre-rendered to real-time, bringing with it the glorious potential for innovation and interaction.
Helmed by the great Shigeru Miyamoto, Mario 64 dazzled gamers and critics alike, sold countless N64s, and most importantly it emphasized the most vital aspect a game can have--gameplay.Fast forward six years to the year 2002.
Super Mario Sunshine has just come out.
I play it and realize that there's just something not quite right with the game.
Two, games before Sunshine have rehashed some of the gameplay mechanics introduced by SM64, adding to the wear and tear of that general formula.
And three, Sunshine feels like a prettier yet restricted version of SM64.In Sunshine, you collect Shine Sprites, similar to the stars found in SM64.
Donkey Kong 64, a game I think was a letdown in many ways, uses this gameplay formula, as does the lovable Banjo Kazooie and its sequel.
Where Sunshine doesn't shine as brightly as its predecessor, however, is in its control mechanics and some aspects of its gameplay design.
Mario controls well enough, and your ability to manipulate the camera is improved, but in the end, this compromises--along with the way the levels and objectives are designed--the sense of freedom Mario 64 had.
Through the open-air level design of Mario 64, the developers utilized the full potential of 3-d gameplay.
Mario could launch out of cannons across whole levels, take to the sky with the wing cap and touch the heavens.
Sunshine takes that away with the exclusion of things that allow the player to improvise, and with the inclusion and reliance on the water cannon, the way the objectives are designed, and the restricted scope and design of the levels you play in.The premise of the game involves Mario, the Princess and her court going on vacation away from the Mushroom Kingdom to an island called "Isle Delfino." Upon arrival, a crisis has broken out:  the airstrip where they have landed is covered in a mysterious goop, and there is so much pollution that the sun is being blotted out.
The locals accuse Mario of these crimes and he is sentenced to mandatory labor to clean up the area with the help of a new gameplay device, FLUDD, a sentient water cannon with interchangeable nozzles.
These nozzles allow Mario to manipulate water in various ways, giving him the ability to move through his environment, clean up goop, fight enemies, and solve puzzles.
These levels are equally as exotic and sunny as the rest of the game, from the rolling, green Bianco Hills,  to the massively mycological and tribal Pianta Village.
Each level feels sharply distinct in its design and detail, right down to the musical themes that play, which conform to the personality and atmosphere.
In our real world, gravity holds us back:  we can't jump as high as Mario, we can't leap off a mountain and watch ourselves and hope we land on the huge mushroom with the star on it, moreover survive.
In a virtual world, gravity's not necessary, and especially with a 3-d Mario game, its full effects aren't necessarily desired..
Mario Sunshine i think is a fantastic game to play for the Nintendo Game Cube.
This was Mario's 2nd game for the Nintendo Gamecube as Mario Party 4 was released before this game.
A Great Mario Game!.
While this may debate-ably fall slightly short of later outings like Super Mario Galaxy, this game seemed to make for bigger and better things in the 3D Mario gaming sector.
It's amazing that Mario Sunshine managed to sell over 6 million units worldwide, because this game is one of the best Mario games in the character's 32 years of history.
Even an under-performing console doesn't keep quality games down from getting the attention they deserve.This game was effectively the true successor to Mario 64, and it shares a lot of the same sound effects, jumping mechanics and feels like what would have happened if that game got polished up and thrown into a different environment to the Castle.
In this case Mario is at Isle Delfino and the setting is an emphasized tropical and sunny paradise that feels like everything basically takes place at, or near the beach.
The only time the beach aesthetic doesn't come into play is when you enter the areas where Shadow Mario takes your squirt nozzle away.
Some of the time those levels feel like they could be outside the world of the game itself, like in the far reaches of space.Taking everything into account, Mario Sunshine is a fine piece from Nintendo's massive gaming library.
I had fun at first, but after awhile I noticed that there were two types of levels:1) Those that are extremely easy (though it might take awhile to figure out what you need to do).
Almost all of the obstacle course levels are like this.It's one of those games that derives almost all of its difficulty from the fact that you're trying to control a 3-D environment with a 2-D interface.
Most gamers would call that poor design.Probably the most annoying thing about the gameplay is the backward-loop high jump.
After you've spent 10 minutes climbing a wall, and you fall all the way down to the bottom again simply because Mario decided he didn't want to do a backward high-jump this time, you just feel like turning it off.
It never did.I found myself saying after just about every level: "I'm glad I'll never have to do that level again."Except for the gameplay, this game is excellent.
Yes folks, it's Mario, and don't get me wrong, I like Mario games (the best ones are Mario 3, Mario World, and Mario 64), but Sunshine SUCKS!!
In the game, Mario goes to a tropical island paradise but gets accused of vandalizing the place and Mario must clean it up.
Yes, the developers experiment with different concepts in Mario games, but these ones are horrible.
First, you like it, but then the repetition of the gameplay prevents you from liking it anymore.BOTTOM LINE: Not as good as the other Marios (I played the new Mario and Luigi game for Game Boy, and it was pretty good).
Skip this Mario game..
The Super Mario series were among the funnest I ever played.
I enjoyed all three of the original NES's Mario games.
It was the only Mario game I haven't beaten.
It was more frustrating than fun.The game is fairly repetitive and you see the same scenery over and over again - the only difference is that they add more and more enemies and more difficult tasks.
This is far from one of Mario's greatest games.
The game-play is even worse.
This game is WAY too challenging, and is almost unplayable.
Spraying the gooey plant things takes forever, and you lose tons of health also, you don't know where you're even supposed to be most of the time, and levels are unbeatable, and not in the good way.
Therefore, if you expect a nice solid Mario game, look elsewhere, because this is certainly a frustrating so called "fun new Mario game." 1/10 or: D-.
I absolutely love Super Mario Sunshine, this is one of the best super mario games i have played in my life, i also like Super Mario 64 that was from Nitendo 64.
Super Mario Sunshine is out to buy for the nintendo gamecube.
There are other super mario games for all networks, including, Super Mario Bros, Super Mario Bros 2, Super Mario Bros 3, Super Mario: the lost levels, super mario sunshine, super mario kart, super mario kart 64, mario 64, smash bros etc: Super Mario has been out for many many years, since the 1980's as far i can remember.
I remember the games for the nitendo and the super nintendo.
I also remember the movie which was super mario bros released in 1993, starring Bob Hoskins, Dennis Hopper and other actors who i can't name.
I give super mario sunshine 10 out of 10..
My son was very excited to see the new worlds and challenges of Mario Sunshine.
One of the Worst Mario Adventure games.
I don't know why the "also known as" thing has "Super Mario 64 II" there because this was NOT a sequel to Mario 64 in any way and will never be worthy of being one.
Mario Sunshine was just downright frustrating, it's not that it's too hard, it's just not fun.
Not like Mario Galaxy where everything was fun, and challenging at the same time, it only felt easy because I had such a great time playing it, but this?
I advise you to skip this Mario game like one of the comments said, first of all they added all of these dumb characters, like the Piantas which have like huge noses and then a tree growing out from their head (what's up with that???) and then they added almost NONE of the older Nintendo characters like Goombas, Koopas, they added all these new enemies.
Then you have this guy named FLUDD who is your helper the entire game which is like this water backpack and he's so annoying.
All of this new stuff is just crap man...this game is just a big disappointment, and doesn't deserve good ratings like some of the comments below me.
Now not everything in the game is terrible, the music is cool, but not any memorable tunes, and then of course, in these platform levels, the Mario Theme will be playing which I thought was cool, the graphics are really nice, and SOME of the challenges in the game are fun, that's...in the beginning of course, the game just gets too repetitive, collecting EVERY single blue coin just to get all the Shine Sprites?
Why can't it just be more simple like Super Mario 64?
Oh and also being repetitive are all the levels, they're all the same kind of theme, island theme...you know, on a beach, on the sand, tropical setting, but I mean, even though it all takes place on an island, they could've added like...you know, a Cave level maybe?
I mean come on, not JUST some island theme levels.
So yeah, this game is not good.4/10 PoorIf you want a Mario game, get a Wii and get Mario 64 on the virtual console, or get Super Mario Bros.
Just get anything BUT Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Bros.