If this is your favorite 3D Mario game, what makes it stand out to you beyond just nostalgia?

>>712799359 (OP)
It's the only that's actually about running around as Mario through a bunch of levels without some horrible gimmick getting in the way.

Mario has fewer moves in every other game to come out after it. Shit's lame. I want more moves.

It doesn't have a gimmick also it really feels like the fleshed out the mario world with everyone having their own kingdom or zone sorta.

>>712799359 (OP)
no gimmicks, no bullshit, just pure bing bing wahooing in 3D

The game was built with fun in mind, they barely changed the stock 3D functions like rotation, parenting, transformation, billboarding, texture and model swaping, but focused on using them the best way possible,

f you go and replay it on a N64 or even the DS version, the movements is absolutely fluid and responsive, even to this day it has a great feeling among platformers

>>712799478
Odyssey is the most acrobatic Mario has ever been though

I like Bowser's giant head

Being a transParent =/= invisible, reminds me a lot of that invisible frodo review.

>>712799559
>Odyssey
Doesn't count.

Nothing, it's the nostalgia.

Mario feels hefty as hell which makes the mere act of moving around really satisfying, later games made him too light. Also playing this with a N64 analog stick is legit an unique experience because much like Mario the stick was much heavier than the shit we have today, literally no other 3D platformer has recreated that feeling

i never played another mario game after this
there was no point, they'd never get any better and i've been proven right

>>712799559
Lol not at all. Sunshine takes that place

>>712799437
This.
It's pure platforming, not a single star takes control away from you or asks you to do some retarded mini game.
Half the stars in Galaxy are some dumb Wiimote shit that has nothing to do with actually controlling Mario.

>>712799437
fpbp. That's all there is to it.

>>712799437
This, and also the fact that, with a few exceptions, you can get any star you come across even if it isn't the one you selected when you entered the course

I mean the castle is just cool as fuck. Playing it for the first time there is so much to discover. When you knew nothing about the game finding stuff like the metal cap felt like exploration. Really really good design

>>712799359 (OP)
It's not my favorite Mario because I don't like the controls, they're slippery and Mario feels heavier than he should but the game is really easy to pick up and play, the levels are perfect size with plenty of variety and freedom so you are always having fun and looking forward to the next star.

>>712800540
>not a single star takes control away from you or asks you to do some retarded mini game
>sliding levels
>flying levels
But yes at least you are not playing as some fucking cactus or fork with only one move.

>>712799359 (OP)
The best gameplay, pacing and overall feel.
The Princess' castle is the ultimate HUB world, and every level is a delightful, bite-size, abstract LEVEL. The game does not over-handhold you, and does not bombard you with endless cutscenes either.