overdrive's Super Mario 64 DS review

I just started this game and I'm having lot of trouble understanding how I feel about it. I love the original game, so seeing all the new features here is a lot of fun. Playing as Yoshi is great, and all the random tweaks and new stars make it feel fresh again.

The controls are just dreadful though. There are parts that I just dread to play that should be easy, like the races with Loops the Quick, which were way harder here than they were on an N64 controller. The D pad on my DSi is just not good for this. The stylus hybrid option is probably the least terrible. The problem is how the center point where you tap the screen drifts with the stylus instead of staying fixed, so you'll eventually end up walking. Flying is basically impossible.

Guh, the controls on that port just ruined the game. I HATED all the areas where precision was needed. When it came to star-collecting to access places, I forced myself to get all of them in the more "laid-back" worlds and did the bare minimum in the more platform-intensive ones.

Yeah, I'm about 60 stars in and am just starting to feel like I have a handle on the control. It seems like (in general) platforms have been made larger or there are some safety net platforms to mitigate some of the issues. I'm almost exclusively using the two-hand controls (one hand on the control pad, which jumps/attacks, and then the stylus is for movement) and sometimes I feel confident. Then another stupid death.

It's overall such a confusing and mixed bag. Being able to snap the camera behind you (a la Ocarina of Time): great. New stars: great. Playing as different characters: great. New areas: wonderful! Loosing the race with Koopa the Quick because the camera and stylus send you hurling down the mountain: gross. I haven't done any stars in Rainbow ride yet. I might just not go into that course.