Super Mario 64 - Impact and Legacy

Impact and Legacy

Critics attribute the initial success of the Nintendo 64 console to Super Mario 64. Edge magazine referred to it as the Nintendo 64's "key launch title". Game Informer commented that the game helped the launch of the Nintendo 64. Official Nintendo Magazine and GameDaily also attributed some of the initial excitement of the Nintendo 64 system to the release of Super Mario 64. Though the system was initially very successful, it eventually lost much of its market share to Sony's PlayStation. 1UP.com attributed this decline to Nintendo's use of cartridges and the design of the Nintendo 64 controller, which were reportedly implemented by Shigeru Miyamoto for Super Mario 64. The game also set many precedents for 3D platformers to follow. GameDaily listed the game as one of the "Most Influential Video Games" and stated it "defined the 3-D platform experience, influencing numerous designers to create their own, original offerings". GamesTM noted many game companies, including Nintendo, have tried to develop a platform game to match up to Super Mario 64. Super Mario 64 was notable for its sense of freedom and non-linearity. A central hub, where controls can be learned before entering levels themselves, has been used in many 3D platformers since. In addition, the game's mission-based level design was an inspiration for other game designers. For example, Martin Hollis, who produced and directed GoldenEye 007, says "the idea for the huge variety of missions within a level came from Super Mario 64".

Super Mario 64 was the first game to have a "free" camera that could be controlled independently of the character. Most 3D games at the time used a first-person perspective, or a camera that was fixed in position relative to the player's character, or to the level. To create freedom of exploration, and more fluid control in a 3D world, the designers created a dynamic system in which the video camera was operated by the in-game character Lakitu. Nintendo Power stated the camera-control scheme was what transitioned platform games into the 3D era. They would again cite Super Mario 64, along with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, as two games that "blazed trails" into the 3D era. Edge stated the game changed "gamers' expectations of 3D movement forever". The camera system would become the standard for 3D platform games in the future. The Nintendo 64's analog stick allowed for more precise and wide-ranging character movements than the digital D-pads of other consoles, and Super Mario 64 used this in a way that was unique for its time. At the time, 3D games generally allowed for controls in which the player could either control the character in relation to a fixed camera angle or in relation to the character's perspective. Super Mario 64's controls were fully analog, and interpreted a 360-degree range of motion into navigation through a 3D space relative to the camera. The analog stick also allowed for precise control over subtleties such as the speed at which Mario runs. Super Mario 64 was of the first games to implement the system.

Because of the game's popularity, rumors about glitches and secrets spread rapidly after its release. The most common rumor was that Luigi was a secret character in the game, fueled by illegible symbols in the castle courtyard that resembled the text "L is real 2401". This same texture would reappear in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on a plaque in Dodongo's Cavern. IGN received so many questions and supposed methods to unlock Luigi that the staff offered a US$100 bounty to anyone who could prove that Luigi was in the game. The number of false codes submitted to IGN dropped dramatically, as Luigi's inclusion was proved to be a myth. The April Fools' Day 1998 issue of Nintendo Power claimed that the cryptic phrase would be discussed on the non-existent page 128, and also featured a facetious article titled "Luigi 64", commenting humorously on the rumor.

On May 5, 2011, Super Mario 64 was selected as one of the 80 games that will be displayed at the Smithsonian American Art Museum as part of "The Art of Video Games" exhibit that opened on March 16, 2012.

In an interview with The New York Times, Rockstar Games head writer and VP of creativity Dan Houser, when asked about influence from other games stated, "Anyone who makes 3-D games who says they’ve not borrowed something from Mario or Zelda is lying."