Since the boom in popularity of podcasts and social media-based Q&A’s, development stories about modern video games have become far more frequent and detailed. Many game companies now actively seek out the opportunity to talk about their development cycles. Using it as a way of promoting an upcoming or recently released game.
In the past, these stories were far more difficult to come by. Aside from the occasional interview, fans had little insight into the development of upcoming games aside from early gameplay trailers and official press releases. Some popular titles, however, would have armies of fans dissecting every piece of information about their favorite games. Eager to either learn about an upcoming title or retrospectively discover what their favorite games could have been. Super Mario Sunshine is one of these games.
With its recent re-release as part of the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection, fans have been able to learn even more about the classic GameCube game.
10 Super Mario 128
The iconic plumber has had the leading role in over 20 main-series Nintendo releases. The biggest gap between these releases was the six long years between Super Mario 64 in 1996 and Super Mario Sunshine in 2002. Super Mario 64 was Mario’s first 3D platforming adventure and was met with enormous sales figures and some of the highest-scoring reviews ever received by a video game. As is the case with any hit video game, fans wanted a sequel.
Anticipation for this sequel was so high that in January 1997, Shigeru Miyamoto joked in an interview about making Super Mario 128. Despite being said as a joke, fans latched onto this idea and rumors began to circulate. Including multiple edited pictures depicting Luigi in Super Mario 64. People falsely claimed that these were leaked photos of Super Mario 128.
In June 1998, however, Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed that Super Mario 128 was in development. Despite this confirmation, Super Mario 128 has never seen the light of day. The likelihood is that ideas from Super Mario 128 were used in Super Mario Sunshine.
9 Super Mario 128 Demo
Although a game with the Super Mario 128 name was never released, a tech demo was. The GameCube tech demo was showcased at Spaceworld 2000. The demo featured 128 Marios running around a small circular platform. The platform was populated with little more than a few boxes, with the idea being to show off the GameCube’s capabilities. Interestingly, the development of these small Marios was implemented into Pikmin.
One other mention of Super Mario 128 is in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Melee has a mission titled Super Mario 128 that sees players fighting 128 miniature Marios.
8 Super Mario 64 2
One other title that could’ve replaced Super Mario Sunshine was Super Mario 64 2. Much like Super Mario 128, the idea was to capitalize on the success of Super Mario 64 but was eventually scrapped.
Super Mario 64 2 was planned to be released on the Nintendo 64DD. The Nintendo 64DD was an add-on for the Nintendo 64 that had multiple benefits. It implemented a real-world clock, as well as persistent world design. These features were the driving force behind the concept of The Legend Of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. Due to the Nintendo 64DD’s poor sales figures, however, Majora’s Mask had a change in development, and Super Mario 64 2 was canceled altogether. Opening the door for development on Super Mario Sunshine to begin.
7 F.L.U.D.D.’s Original Design
Despite being the most iconic feature of Super Mario Sunshine, F.L.U.D.D.’s design was originally very different. The idea behind F.L.U.D.D. was born when Yoshiaki Koizumi, the inventor of Link’s Z-targeting mechanic, noticed that pressing the left and right shoulder buttons on the GameCube controller was reminiscent of pulling a water gun’s trigger.
Subsequently, the original design of F.L.U.D.D. was for it to be an actual water gun. The idea was scrapped, however, as Nintendo felt that a water gun would be controversial in the USA and could potentially result in an increased age rating.
Other scrapped designs included either Yoshi or Mario spitting water from their mouth. These ideas were pitched due to Nintendo being worried that Mario using any sort of tool would be offputting for fans. The success of Luigi’s Mansion eased these fears though. Interestingly, F.L.U.D.D. and Luigi’s Poltergust 3000 have the same fictional manufacturer, E. Gadd Industries.
6 A More Realistic Approach
Being the perfectionists that they are, Nintendo were dissatisfied with one of the mechanics in Super Mario 64. They felt that Mario’s wall jump wasn’t utilized enough. To ensure that Mario’s wall jump was more important in Sunshine, Nintendo implemented multiple buildings side by side into the hub-world. These buildings originally had a more realistic design, likely closer in aesthetic to the Metro Kingdom in Super Mario Odyssey.
The game would have also featured more human-looking characters. One of these characters, a brown-haired woman, can be seen briefly in an early trailer for the game.
5 Developer Research
When the idea of a more realistic city was replaced with a colorful tropical paradise, developers had a few different ways of getting inspiration.
Some developers had the envious task of traveling to tropical islands. Others invited travel agents to Nintendo offices to discuss ideas and concepts. Finally, some developers turned to travel brochures for inspiration. The developers would intentionally seek out brochures with misleadingly edited images, to get an idea of what an ideal tropical location would look like.
4 Train Travel
Along with the more realistic looking woman, another feature from the Super Mario Sunshine trailer that wasn’t utilized was a unique looking coin. These coins would have acted as a currency that let Mario board trains, presumably taking players to other levels. This feature never made it into the final product. However, some dialog can be found in the Japanese game files featuring discussions about purchasing train tickets and having them stamped.
3 Tramplin’ Stu
One final difference between the trailer and the final product was Tramplin’ Stu. Stu was a large onion looking enemy that chased Mario in the trailer. The chasing Stu along with the camera angle used looked reminiscent of the Indiana Jones inspired boulder stages from the Crash Bandicoot games.
Tramplin’ Stu didn’t feature in the final product, though some hackers have since put the giant enemy into the game.
2 Multiplayer Plans
A camera mode titled SMS_ISMULTIPLAYERMAP was discovered among the game files. The camera angle was likely planned to be used for a multiplayer mode. As well as the name heavily implying this, when Shadow Mario and Mario are close by, the camera will ensure that they are both kept in the frame.
Another file titled KINOPIO_SUNMEGANE.BMB is believed to be evidence that the Toad’s once wore sunglasses. This function was likely given to Mario at a late stage in development. Mario occasionally wears sunglasses in the game, although they don’t appear in Mario’s reflection. This oversight implies that it was a rushed feature.
1 Difficulty Differences
Implemented difficulty changes often appear across different versions of Nintendo games. A famous example of this is in Mega Man 2 for the NES where the North American version had two difficulty modes, Normal and Difficult. The other versions of Megan Man 2, however, didn’t have a difficulty setting. With North America’s difficult mode being the only difficulty setting in the Japanese and PAL versions.
Super Mario Sunshine is no different. Examples of difficulty changes include a section of the level Sirena Beach. Japanese players clean 99% of the hazardous goop, whereas other versions only required players to clean 95%. Furthermore, the European version of some platforming sections had platforms that moved faster than in other iterations. Significantly ramping up the difficulty.
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