What Makes Super Mario 64 So Special? (A Retrospective)

[@DeanGetYourWings]

I'm one of those strange people who's never played Mario 64 so it does get a little tiring to hear KZbinrs say "Covering a big game, what's the point, everyone's done it what can I add to it" - No, bad mentality. Talk about what you love brother, that's what turns a boring fact spiel into a deconstructed masterpiece. It makes the league of difference just to listen to someone talk who just loves the game and wants to talk about it. Loved the video man please keep doing the retrospectives on the games you love. We really appreciate the effort that goes into long format videos like this.

[@chambeet]

You should play it! I’d be curious to hear a newcomer’s perspective. It’s one of the games of that era that has held up the best to me.

[@tianskullerud385]

Gotta agree with this! Although something is well known or famous by most, you never know if your own perspective might introduce someone new to the subject

[@DrMechano]

I actually really like the "loneliness" of exploring SM64's castle. It's not scary, but it does feel isolating in a peaceful kind of way. Later 3D Marios would have much more crowded and lively hub worlds (which are fine; I love Delfino Plaza and the Comet Observatory too), but the emptiness of Peach's Castle is oddly relaxing in a way that hasn't been replicated since.

[@MINE_OK]

35:03 At this exact point, if you were to hold up, you would find there’s a small crack that mario can squeeze through, so it’s not actually a softlock. Though I won’t lie, it is very hidden and I honestly really weird why they didn’t make it more obvious. I also thought I was stuck when this happened to me

[@KhakiCube]

Speaking as someone who grew up playing Super Mario 64, I at first adored the "liminal" interpretation of it. It brought back a similar sense of mystery and wonderment that the internet has largely gotten rid of. People tend to know a good chunk of a game before they actually play it now, so I loved the idea that a game could still have some hidden unknowable secrets to it. From a meta perspective, it was uniquely refreshing. But, I agree, and I started to get tired of it once people started acting like it was the truth or this was what Nintendo had intended.

[@TonesBalones]

Another use for fixed camera is for blindfolded runs. It normalizes the camera so Mario can move in exact straight lines. P.S. in SL you are not softlocked in the igloo. There is a small space on the back wall that you can slip past.

[@j_c_93]

The fixed camera mode is actually a remnant from the planned multi-player mode that was scrapped. They reworked it and added it to get the game because it's cool. I don't think it's supposed to have a use. It's just fun and I'm glad it's there.

[@CloudConnection]

That makes a lot of sense, thanks for the info!

[@Nintendista64]

You can escape the room with the bob-omb in snowman's land. There is a thiny space in the wall where mario can fit in

[@Okla_Soft]

Great work 🎉 When the 64 was new(ish) circa 97’ I got one and a copy of this game of course. I had Nintendo envy so hard during the 16-but era as a Genesis and Game boy owner. All I wanted was a new Nintendo console and getting the 64 was a very memorable and triumphant moment in my life. I still adore this game to this day, of course there’s been a ton of it showcased in soeedrunning and pop culture on KZbin. I once had a 120 star file that I would always fire up and get the 99x lives from the top of the castle and just roam around and traverse the secret underground paths. The N64 was the last true game system that I really connected with and adored, ever since this era of gaming I have been a casual fan at best. I own and play a switch (sometimes) but I’ve never been into games the way I was when this game was new and impressive. It says a LOT about Nintendo and Miyamoto and his crew that people still play and talk about this game to this day. Seeing this in the plastic bubble at toys r us in 1996 was incredible, it was definitely a watershed moment for the future of gaming.

[@Okla_Soft]

@@jarlwhiterun7478I was trying to describe what it was like to be 11 when this game came out. Was I talking about myself too much in a personal anecdote about nintendo and the 64? I’ve read the last 5 comments you made on various videos and you’re a troll and a dickhead in all of them, so go play in traffic, dork.

[@pappy2690]

One thing id have to argue is that his controls "grew over the years". Many later mario games removed certain moves and added different features, playing super 3d world and coming back to this game is a drastic example. Enjoying the video

[@JohnSmith-zw8vp]

I thought it was neat that you can make Mario break dance as well as baseball slide both foot and headfirst, and yes the adorable crawl! And how if you don't move Mario he'll fall asleep and dream about Italian food!

[@nathanielamoah1127]

It really showcases Mario’s personality in a unique and interesting ways.

[@themoabrigade]

I was one of those "full force on the control stick" kids.... to the point where in Thwomp's Fortress, I crawled to avoid waking the prana plants lol XD I also tried to walk next to the penguin in front of the giant snowman's head..... it was a pain, and even as an adult its STILL a pain doing it that way, was unaware of the head trick lol

[@themoabrigade]

@@jarlwhiterun7478 typos are a thing my bruh, it was also just a youtube comment..... no need to go all grammar dictator (dunno if that other word is still acceptable lol)

[@CloudConnection]

Sorry this took so long to come out, delays on both my end and VEGAS's end pushed this back a bit! And plus, I've got some pretty major changes in the works for this channel so that's been taking my focus. (Don't worry, it's all good stuff!) EDIT: And yep, I've been informed that you can in fact escape the igloo in Snowman's Land without the Vanish Cap. My bad on that!

[@grandcommander1140]

Love your stuff bro ❤ keep it up 👍

[@dorkondemand]

Great video! Is Vegas being incredibly buggy for you as well? It seems to be getting worse recently and my patience with it is fading.

[@jamesk7256]

This is the most important video you've ever done, so it was worth taking the time. Because SM64.

[@CloudConnection]

Vegas has always been somewhat of a pain but I'm honestly not sure what the deal is this time. It's a different kind of problem that I've never seen before (rendering a corrupt file). It was easy to work around but still frustrating to deal with (especially since this video took like 4 hours to render with my normal settings).

[@snailshaman7948]

B3313 is actually a really good rom hack, I was genuinely blown away at the quality. I was expecting "oooo spoopy creepy let's-a-go" but instead it's a brilliantly designed sprawling maze, which personally made me feel like a kid in the 90s again. Seriously give it a go.

[@PabbyPabbles]

I think there's a whole new genre hidden in B3313 that could be explored divorced from the creepypasta/beta lore, or even Mario stuff. Like a cross between Mario-like tight platforming and Yume Nikki-type mysterious world exploration

[@pafoneto1275]

​​@@PabbyPabblesEh no, it is just spooky creepypasta. That is, stop pretending is more than that just because you like it.

[@PabbyPabbles]

@@pafoneto1275 Eh, yes. Even with no creepypasta stuff, I believe you could [reiteration of my previous post]. Stop believing you can read minds and magically know when people are pretending or not

[@pafoneto1275]

@@PabbyPabbles You don't need to read minds. Just reading your comment is obvious you think this is more than that.

[@James101]

The fixed camera mode is amazing for all situations with narrow bridges or paths, fixing the camera allows you to run across the obstacle without the camera turning (which forces you to dynamically adapt your analogue stick as it turns which is fairly difficult). Fixing the camera makes it so easy. Just start holding R as you approach and release as soon as your through.

[@PokemonNerdNero]

Great Retrospective as usual Cloud! FYI you are not stuck with the Bom-bomb buddy in the igloo in Snowman’s land. You can squeeze through the back wall to escape.

[@CloudConnection]

Thanks for the tip! Now I feel bad for shaming the Bob-Omb Buddy, he was a true buddy after all

[@royals4lyfe]

35:00 Was just about to post this. In just about all of their games Nintendo is good about not leaving gamers stuck like that

[@spacepope8495]

The intro section of this is so good, a lot of info about some early 3D platformers I never heard before… really nice vid

[@hri7566]

my notes (full nitpick) 1. if i'm not mistaken, mario 64 runs in 32-bit mode 2. players have trouble getting into bob-omb battlefield 3. mario's moveset wasn't finalized for a long time 4. doing a rollout after diving will cancel all fall damage 5. while shadows help to land easier, the secondary function is being really easy to render 6. in the original code, there are comments next to a lot of the audio clips that describe what they are, one of which being "so long bowser"... proving that it's no so gay after all 7. you can't get stuck in the igloo, there is a space behind the back wall in the igloo where you can sneak against the wall 8. the underwater town in wet-dry world uses some textures from Ocarina of Time, and i remember hearing in some video somewhere that the developers liked to try the same things out in each game, including the idea of a castle-based hub world (ganon's castle, originally) and movable water levels (like the water temple)... it wouldn't be too far off to say it might've been part of zelda first, then they scrapped it there and stuck it in mario, maybe 9. input lag makes flying much harder 10. the luigi model is not included in the final game, it was only found because the code was leaked 11. if i'm not mistaken, either a toad or one of the message boxes after collecting enough stars notifies mario about 100 coin stars in the english version 12. there were models for some of the circular enemies before they were remade to use the 2d balls instead, so development time was not saved 13. as stated in the video that all voice lines were included in all releases of the game, the japanese version is missing peach's voice lines because leslie swan probably hadn't been cast yet because she did the english translation 14. my good friend august's website shows up in this video 15. some of the earliest levels created for the game during development were Bowser in the Dark World and the castle as for myself, this game holds a very unique place in my life as it does for many others if you fail to see why this game is so unstoppable and why it outlived its time, you are the correct person to play this game once you see past the limitations (both hardware limitations and developmental challenges), this game leaves a strong-flavored mark in the mind, and it's my favorite feeling

[@ClosedCasketVideo]

Thank you for talking about how this game isn't scary. That's always seemed so weird to me. I was 11 years old when this came out and never thought of it as "scary."

[@BradsGonnaPlay]

Creepypasta did irreparable brainrot to some people.

[@joevaghn457]

@@BradsGonnaPlaynah not that serious

[@r.a.miller9385]

Great video. I'd love to see you share your thoughts on the other 3D Mario platformers.

[@CloudConnection]

I certainly will, in good time!

[@deinemama6303]

One use for the fixed camera is getting to parallel universes. It's not really useful for casual playthroughs but in tool assisted speed runs it prevents the game from crashing on the n64 when going to parallel universes. If the camera follows Mario on n64, the game crashes

[@CloudConnection]

Good point, thanks for sharing! As someone who has a vague understanding of Mario 64's technical oddities but is in no way an engineer, it's easy for things like that to slip past me

[@KotBox]

That was a lovely watch. You mention how you wondered if there was any more that could be said about this game. This retrospective proves there alway will be. Even if it's talking about levels and ideas we've all gone over 1000 times, there's something special about getting to hear your own experience and perspective. The fact that I can be enthralled watching a near 90 minute video about a game I could beat in my sleep says a lot about its impact. Mario 64 will always be something I love to hear others discuss, and this video is a shining example

[@C0nnie]

Snowman’s Land 10/10 stage

[@volpe2077]

This is legitimately a great retrospective! Incredibly thorough, engaging and creative with the topics, and very well paced! Well done, what an enjoyable watch from start to finish!

[@n0dds]

A nice refreshing look at the well trodden classic that is Mario 64. Was fun to see a mix of past personal experience with the game paired with a more modern retrospective.

[@Ascension721]

I always consider my self a bit of a nerd when it comes to the 3D Mario games. Havent watched this yet and cant find the time currently but watching the intro has me intrigued. I already think you deserve more subscribers lol

[@caveirainvocada9438]

52:36 yes, SM64 is weird and the levels don't make a lot of sense, but I never understood how this makes the game unique??? Mario was always weird and sort of dream-like, there is even speculation that the whole series is directly inspired by Alice in Wonderland.

[@williamkennedy1083]

glad to know I wasn't the only one who struggled with those 3 100 coin stars you mentioned. They were the only stars I couldn't collect on my childhood save file. To this day, RR and HMC's never fail to piss me off when I do a 100%.

[@Khalith]

The hardest star for me was the wing cap red coin star at the top of the castle. I was 119 for the longest time and never quite got the hang of the wing cap controls. But eventually I managed to do just well enough to get it.

[@Kobalent]

22:40 the one use for fixed camera i can think of is preventing a crash when mario leaves to a parallel universe jokes aside, it probably was another "3D is new tech and we want to show off" kinda thing. could be decent for machinimas, or as a pseudo photo mode

[@cristoferchanimak]

That gradient wall at 54:00 I ALWAYS wondered why it was there. Like a door between those sections is even kind of helpful!

[@ian-wy5fw]

fantastic video as always, keep it up dude

[@R.GarrettCuthbertson]

These retrospectives are so pure it makes me hope one day you make them for games of my time like initial fps games, rpgs, and the like. Thank you for your hard work creating this content!

[@DrMechano]

This was a great retrospective. Thanks for making it, I really enjoyed watching it. One minor correction is that the Japanese version did not have *exactly* the same voice clips as the American version. The American release added a few new lines (such as the famous "So long-eh, Bowser!") that weren't present in the original Japanese SM64 release, but *were* present in the later Shindou release (an update of SM64 with Rumble Pak support that also patched a few minor things).

[@TheRedCometKid]

I have a use for the "fixed" cam! It's good for platforming in cramped spaces where the camera is hard to control, like tick tock clock, or downtown wet dry world, or the pyramid

[@TheT3rr0rMask]

Growing up our 64 sticks were busted, partially from usage and partially cus my older bro threw controllers when he got mad at a game (our SNES controllers were finicky as a result too, making me place the cord in such precise locations to make the inputs read). So growing up I played Mario with a stick that couldn't read the full push of the stick forward, forcing me to push as hard as I could to get at least 75% or so speed. Even still, I loaded up his file after he'd switched to GameCube and got the rest of the stars that he and my dad never got. It was an amazing moment, continuing when I went to visit Yoshi, which I'd only heard about from my cousins but never saw. The credits music alone sticks with me to this day, always puts me in such a creative and nostalgic mood in a way few games do. I eventually bought better controllers and would replay levels for the fun of it and to discover star objectives my brother had already completed. Playing the PC port a while ago I do think it holds up amazingly. Camera aside the level design is always engaging, and Mario's movement never gets boring. As great as later 3D Mario's are 64's freedom feels amazing. You can almost always make it to a star in the unintended way, and sure that's a result of the state of 3D game design at the time rather than intended it makes you look at games now and how gated they are. Sure it's "objectively better" to make sure the players always guided but I prefer the philosophy that the players never an idiot, and that they can get creative. Makes it feel like YOUR game and is just more engaging (players now even love this sorta "unrefined" freedom in games when it comes). Mix that w/the dreamlike setting and music and M64 truly feels like an adventure through your imagination. The control issues are there and they're even a pain to me but contextualizing it to the era it was made I think is fair. For newcomers I don't think it's necessarily worth learning and working against but the same goes for Resident Evil and some other early 3D games. The issues can't be ignored but almost every experimental pioneering software has those quirks. Mario 64 is what it is and it's not gonna appeal to everybody, but that's OK. It's the kinda game that makes me forget "Great game design, guys" and just immerses me into the experience. The game design and presentation coexist so perfectly that even w/its camera and weird objectives M64 holds merit today outside its historical aspects. Feels like the video game equivalent of a Miyazaki movie, just letting you soak in the world and creative whimsical child-like wonder. I do wanna jump off the horror laminar space thing too. The game is dreamlike but not in that way, and the devs clearly weren't trying to make some psychological horror experience. Early CG in general is kinda uncanny but all due to the tech. The dreamyness of 64 is in league w/the previous 2D Mario's. Mario World has that same sense of whimsey, and aspects of the castle like the tar pit are trying to mimick that early CG look like what you see on the cover (but dang that tar pit always stood out to Mr, as it looks like some early CG footage to me compared to the rest of the game). Anyway, this was an excellent video.

[@caedenggg3131]

i actually found the locked camera useful whenever trying to get the star in the cage in whomps fortress. i would climb the tower and lock the camera in the direction of the star and i would make my long jump almost everytime.

[@sketchman7392]

Having played this game as a kid, I do enjoy what it has to offer and even learning about its legacy many years later astounds me! 🥰 Your retrospective puts it in a way that shows how much it means to you while it allows others to rekindle the love for the first Super Mario game ever to be made in 3D. ❤🎮

[@smintili]

True, games like Banjo-Kazooie had even more themed entrances, but Mario 64 already had: Jolly Roger Bay Bowser in the Dark World Tower of the Wingcap Big Boo‘s Haunt Hazy Maze Cave Dire Dire Docks Tiny-Huge Island Tick Tock Clock

[@ShirakoriMio]

Ah yes. Mario. The first Vtuber.

[@cookietehcat]

This is a great video but I think you absolutely are over-analyzing the whole "mario 64 is creepy" stuff, although of course I have to agree with any internet trend it can go too far or have issues with quality at times. Your explanations and such are rooted in very reasonable and logical roots but this entire sort of thing isnt about that, its about the emotional aspect and what the game makes one feels rather than what the intent was. Something can be intended in one way but lead to vastly different reactions, I know for me I was terrified of mario 64 when I was little, I would frequently avoid many parts of the game because I got such a feeling of dread, and for me I wasn't *too* prone to getting scared by many games, being exposed to stuff like resident evil or horror movies very early on, so saved most of my nightmares for those. While the empty-feeling and abstract environments were a byproduct of the time and there was reasons for it, it doesn't change the eventual reactions people will get from being presented such. I'm not scared of Mario 64 at all anymore, but I *do* find its early 3D aesthetics dream-like and strangely fascinating, because well, they are strange! They were produced by limitations in knowledge and tech, and I'm well aware of that, but I think it doesn't change the reaction for me and many others. No matter how many times I replay this game its a feeling I can't shake, long before it was trendy. I feel like the main reason such a thing caught on was many people could relate, I think its overly cynical to assume otherwise. Its a big part of what makes me love the game aside from the gameplay and legacy, probably the biggest part nowadays due to the dated nature in many regards, but that doesn't mean it cancels out the rest. I think the pattern you see with mario 64 in trends is people discovering and analyzing different parts of the game, different reasons to love it. The mechanics, the design, the art direction, etc. With any art people will like things for different reasons, often that doesn't line up with the intent of the developer. Are speedrunners or people fascinated with breaking down the engine wrong for enjoying the game the way they do? Even though it falls out of the intent of the developers or what the game really is? I don't think so, and it seems you don't either. I don't see why artistic and emotional interpretations have to be any different. (Purposeful misinfo aside, of course, although... a lot of this stuff pretends to be real for the whole immersion but id imagine most people know its fake) I think it's easy to dismiss these kinds of things, but it does lead to a lot of awesome creativity, like the videos inspired by the mythos as you established. B3313 is one of my favorite experiences as of late, and it wouldn't have existed without all this. Probably overly long and rambly but wanted to get my thoughts out on that segment. I can understand the frustration from the ensuing oversaturation such trends cause but the section did feel a bit overly bitter to be honest. That aside, this was a great analysis, keep up the good work!

[@PabbyPabbles]

48:30 now that I'm REALLY staring at it, the last word on the first line seems to start with コード

[@iFish12]

I’ve only ever played the DS release, I loved it. Brings me back to 2004. I have more fond feelings about Mario sunshine though

[@zerotankor]

46:20 EXCUSE ME?!?! YOU CAN PASS THROUGH THOSE WALLS?!?! 25 YEARS IVE BEEN PLAYING THIS GAME?!?!

[@bsperoz]

1:21:15 And THERE'S the ending. I can can tell because the music just switched keys!

[@shadowbowser5674]

Super Mario 64 is still a masterpiece to this day imo, I love it so much! Not my favorite 3D Mario game but definitely up there, It’s my favorite N64 game tho.

[@warioland523]

This is a game that I still enjoy but even as it starts to show signs of it's flaws over the years I still can't hate the game because of it. Yes the game is flawed. It is the first 3D Mario game. It's to be expected as it was treading new waters. But despite said flaws the game isn't bad. Each level does try different things and offer new platforming challenges in a 3d space. The versatility of the moves are also fun and it's just crazy how many different ways one can sequence break this game

[@riftshredder5438]

There is a way to get out of the room where the Red Bob-Bomb is without the vanish cap, do the backwards flip jump to get over the wall

[@mysticalcomments]

I have a use for the fixed camera mode! It prevents the game from crashing when traveling to Parallel Universes!

[@j_c_93]

I think I like the levels a lot more than you do, lol. To me, these are still some of thr most fun and memorable platforming levels ever.

[@yojoeski]

He called it when it comes to Mario's voice post Charles Martinet. That said, I'm old enough to remember the Super Mario Bros Super Show and to me, I've always associated Lou Albano as the voice of Mario simply because he sounds like an actual Italian American from New York which is what Mario is supposed to be.

[@James101]

Just so you know, you don't get stuck in the igloo when talking to the bobomb when the vanish cap runs out as there is a way out you just need to find it.

[@smintili]

At 35:10, you could’ve just shimmied along the wall behind the pink Bob-Omb to get out of that chamber.

[@whitekj03]

Keepin it G 💯 good watch man, a memorable retrospective for a once in a lifetime gaming experience.

[@NintenJoeGamer]

35:11 I'm pretty sure you don't need the vanish cap to get in this room or at least I know you don't need it to get out. The snow wall doesn't fully extend to the ceiling allowing you to climb out or at least one of the walls doesn't extend to the ceiling.

[@afterdinnercreations936]

For Rainbow Ride, just long-jump to the pole behind.

[@royals4lyfe]

42:37 there are 15 secret stars, not 30. There are 15 worlds, 7 stars in each (6 objectives and then 1 100 coin), so 105 total in the worlds.

[@hi-ougidemonfang]

One of my favorite fun facts that we learned from pannenkoek2012 is that every Frame Mario’s hat is stolen from him. And returned to him every frame if he is in bounds.

[@HestnetIT]

Glad I'm not the only one who couldn't work out how to get past the deku tree.

[@SheepUnderwater]

Did you know on the red bob-bomb buddy in the igloo you can slip through the corner where the two snowy walls meet? You don't have to exit the level to get out of there.

[@RedHatGuyYT]

this is like the eighth in-depth retrospective about this game

[@FirebirdDude]

The music is perfect in Super Mario 64.

[@SillyInsaneGamer]

I have seen a lot of people praise mario 64, and I too played it for years and years and it's a true special title. But it's nice to see someone talk about the levels in a more fair way, because they really got boring and pretty tedious after the first few. Some levels I even forgot existed until I saw this video, and some were special .. like the tick tock clock, but just frustrating to play over and over. It's the king of platforming, but in terms of levels and other aspects, I do think it really wasn't as creative, either way, good video! Even though many did their take on the game, I feel you've said a lot others haven't so don't worry there, you've got yours handled really well! :)

[@joshp3446]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I could have swore that the pink bob-omb buddy in the igloo was in a spot where you could just walk to. I distinctly remember hugging a wall and finding a tiny path in and out l, no vanish cap needed

[@Pladomiter]

You’re correct

[@newguy371]

I really enjoyed the video and your take on the game. I have two corrections though. One, Charles Martinet's first game as Mario was the Super Mario Bros. pinball game. Most people don't know this since he wasn't credited for the role. Second, Super Mario 3D All-Stars had a physical release, so you can still buy it, but the NSTC version is pretty pricey.

[@gabrielhersey5546]

Masterpiece The birth of true 3D on console

[@Zeevolts]

Had me at first, but part 5 was a no sell. I think you're definitely talking down to your audience here.

[@joevaghn457]

Yeah the his tone and word choices come off badly

[@doomisforu]

Actually you don't need the vanish cap to talk to red bomb in Snowman's land. You can actually squeeze behind the wall

[@oreocookie1331]

What made it so special is Nintendo was able to perfectly replicate on screen how everyone visualized the 2D Mario experience to be in a 3D world.

[@mrafterlife781]

I know no one cares, but I just wanted to say thank you for helping distract myself from my thoughts....just found out some pretty bad stuff in my life and you at least got me away from them for an hour and a half...

[@cubbybeech9250]

Hope you’re doing better, Mario 64 for ever!

[@bodacious117]

I’ve never got on top of the penguins head lol.. never thought even thought about a that

[@TheBlackRam666]

Suuuuuure you never got jump scared by that piano, riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight

[@vitlaska]

There's something about "loneliness", the wave of nostalgia, liminal spaces, and all of the imagery of running towards the better past, that reached its peak in 2020/2021. I'm not surprised it manifested through super mario 64... It's absolutely right to criticize the fetishization of the game, given the proliferation of the aesthetic parroting going around. Given the contexts on the game's origin, as said in the video, the landscapes created by the Mario Team were very successful design wise for sure, and many of them are thematically solid as well even though being their "basically first" 3D project. I think they did such a good job on the realism (for the time) of the game's textures, animations and sound design that they made the kids pee pee themselves lol, seriously, after this game, nintendo would turn into maximum overdrive into focused style directions for their flagship 3D Mario titles. An artwork can be recontextualized without overwriting the initial text, and specially in games, in my opinion of course: the inner design and machinations behind it will still be present no matter how you play or "read" it.

[@LordLemmysLabs]

Frankly. I think you definitely were overanalyzing the liminal spaces thing. I don't think anyone was ever trying to claim SM64's liminal spaces were intentionally scary or unnerving. That whole eerie liminal space thing is sort of a natural side-effect of early 3D gaming, mostly N64 and PS1 games. They often have this strange aspect of empty, lonely locations. Combine that with the duller color palettes early 3D games had, the short visual ranges with fog meant to hide pop-in, among many other limitations related to early 3D gaming, it can create an unnerving feeling. Throw in the lower visual and audio fidelity of analogue TVs compared to what we are now used to in modern times and it just adds to the eeriness. I also don't think it has anything to do with COVID, a lot of these things were discussed well before COVID, but the term "liminal" wasn't really in popular usage yet. I know for sure Wet Dry World has had that eerie off-putting reputation for a long time now, especially with the background image and the abandoned town. I know that level made me feel uneasy as a kid... But at the same time, I didn't hate that. It sort of fueled the mysteriousness of the level, which was something I enjoyed. That said, yeah, some people do go overboard with the creepypasta/liminal space stuff.

[@hunterweeks6091]

I had no idea you could do fixed camera mode on this game. Omg

[@AdventVFX]

People(me as a kid) finding it off putting isn't at all a criticism, its one of the things keeping me back and that is why people had an obsession with making creepypastas, fake betas, or liminal space renders based on those feelings and realizing it. Of course in retrospective its not scary at all but imagine being a kid alone in a dark room exploring this unknown empty castle with your imagination going wild, I don't think thats something that is unexpected cause kids react differently. That whole trend was just a creative outlet for players who weren't able to express their experiences till now because of the pandemic giving a lot of free time and having the technology very accessible compared to before.

[@AdventVFX]

all that's to say is that this game has impacted people in so many different ways for being the first of its kind and I think its a testament to that, at the end of the day it made players use their imagination to such an extent that it is used as a creative outlet and I think thats beautiful I really don't get your disdain cause at least from my point of view nobody uses this liminal space point to undermine the game design in any way.

[@gamingnavi]

Use for the fixed camera angle: making Mario shitpost videos for KZbin in the early 2000’s

[@CloudConnection]

Finally, we can make Mario 64 AMVs

[@casssss]

I played SM64 a bunch in the late 90s and I never realised there was a fixed camera until I saw Bubzia use it in his blindfolded speedruns

[@georgeerniej]

Fixed camera mode is useful if you want to visit a PU without the N64 crashing (someone already commented this, didn't they?)

[@nomenclature7662]

3:38 ....is this from a movie called "the minds eye"? I used to watch it w my dad 😮

[@shirleyjenlion187]

the only thing that scared me as a kid was bowser's laugh, lol

[@kaih6560]

About the scary stuff. Back then I had no internet and I was scared as a kid. There were some kids in my class who had nightmares about this game. My theory: it was the first 3d game for most and it looked better like lets say Starfox for Super Nintendo. It was a deep level of immersion this is what scared people I know not the game being creepy in itself. Even the piano was merely a jumpscare. Banjo Kazooies ghost level was much scarier. Wet Dry world was really creepy and still is. The world has an eery feeling especially the little town. I mean what was it doing. The inhabitants could not see the sunlight even if the water level was low. In my opinion the controls were really good but the sideways sommersault gave me trouble back then. Today I can do it easily. To this day i did not see the bullys are 2d thanks for destroying everything.

[@Flare8295]

There's no way in hell Super Mario 64 is the most mysterious Mario game over Luigi's Mansion

[@shadeblackwolf1508]

I feel nintendo really dropped the ball with 3d allstars. the original allstars point was to take legacy games up to then current graphical standards.

[@Gruntilda-Winkybunion]

Finally a new video 🎉🎉🎉

[@bsperoz]

1:12:38 That game made me HATE MARIO. I became a Sonic fan UNTIL COLLEGE when I FINALLY picked it up digitally on the Wii, but a used N64 controller, and got all 120 stars and beat Bowser (I had previously gotten 70 something as a child but couldn't beat the last Bowser...)

[@Sebastian-B-Sellebjerg]

Great content, hope you get more subscibers.

[@Perc1000]

this really is that "heres my video essay on why spongebob is funny" "part 1: early cinema 1894-1926"

[@CloudConnection]

Just be thankful this video is only 82 minutes. It could've been longer

[@j_c_93]

Personally, I wouldn't say that. Some KZbinrs do go way too deep into irrelevant shit but I don't that happened in this video.

[@LilLorThatGamerFoo]

Your video came out just about a month before Charles retired lol

[@FirebirdDude]

Super Mario 64 is one of the most responsive games ever!

[@xKazIsKoolx]

I respect the fuck out of you for not putting a shit ton of ads throughout the video. It was so nice to just be able to relax and not touch the fucking remote every 5 minutes for once

[@AprilTeniente-nd5hh]

Mario was saying King Bowser, but he's actually saying something different

[@SunshineSuperstar]

2401 is not a rumour, its a prophecy!

[@hpswagcraft]

Drinking game: Take a shit every time Cloud says "on the hole"

[@hpswagcraft]

...I meant "shot", but I'm leaving it because it's even funnier this way.

[@connorgross3410]

The only use of fixed camera is to keep the game from crashing when you go to a PU lmao

[@dmas7749]

if i made fun of you for not knowing about the web in OoT then you'd have to make fun of me for not knowing how to beat king bob-omb since i tried throwing him off the island and went "well, that didn't work" i remember trying to bring a bob-omb up there, before DS came out lmao.

[@coyohma8947]

Who’s here after TA-viable carpetless

[@Flare8295]

Rainbow Ride>Tick Tock Clock

[@Dio-zr7ww]

This is actually a super well done video.

[@sigmario859]

23:05 about the camera. I had a friend tell me SM64 camera aged like milk to which I responded “It still holds up, what’s wrong with it?” I was so used to how janky the camera was that I didn’t realize how kinda awful it could be in critical situations. I do now, but it still baffles me how I had such an easy time as a kid learning how to use it versus now as an adult to where I’m still used to it, but my God. It’s not horrible, but I can see why it would keep some people now from finishing the game because of unfair deaths.

[@CrobatmanIamthenight]

But most the mario 64 being scary is stuff from years ago Lu