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Discussion How do you feel about Mario 3D land?
- Thread starter Steve
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I'm actually the opposite of them. Galaxy 1 might be my favorite Mario game but Galaxy 2 is pretty low on the list. I preferred the higher focus on gravity based gameplay. The levels were slightly more open, which I appreciated, and much larger (Most galaxies have double the amount of stars than 2. I think it also has superior music, atmosphere, and level design. The themed levels such as fire, ice, sand, and water, were all a lot more interesting in the first game to me. It also doesn't rely as much on prankster comets, and secret hidden stars, which I found boring to search for. Cloud Mario is OP and not very fun to use. I prefer the Comet Observatory to Starship Mario. I also wasn't a fan of the recycled content from Galaxy 1, 64, and Sunshine.
PixelKnight
Observing the process
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I enjoyed 3D Land. It was a good game, but I think 3D World’s multiplayer overshadows its concept.
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- He/him
It's ok, I probably would have enjoyed it more if I played it prior to 3D World but since I didnt it was really hard not to compare it to World and compared to it, feels kinda flat..
NamelessGB
Cappy
This right here
The beach theme carried the entire 3D Land experience for me. Best beach theme in a Super Mario game. It's sooo good
World 8 castle's theme is the second best song in the game. Sounds like a song that might have been written for Galaxy but was scrapped and used here instead
In other words 3D Land would have zero good (original) things about it if Mahito Yokota wasn't involved in some way
Earthbounder
Boing!
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I haven't played it since launch, but I remember feeling it was dull.
SuperPhil64
Cappy
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I love it, probably more now than I did back then. It's defnpretty vanilla looking but the level design overall I feel is mostly bettee in 3D Land than world due to them being designed for single player.
I also do have fond memories from when it first released. It was like, the first great 3DS game after a let down of a launch lineup and despite wishing it would have been a bit more open like Mario64 I wound up really digging what basically was a 3D version of the 2D games.
I also do have fond memories from when it first released. It was like, the first great 3DS game after a let down of a launch lineup and despite wishing it would have been a bit more open like Mario64 I wound up really digging what basically was a 3D version of the 2D games.
More or less the only 3D mario I somewhat enjoyed. The Galaxy games were good, but for both Mario sunshine and 64 DS it felt like I had to fight the camera.
With that said I have to confess that I have never been especially good at 3D games of any kind and 2D mario is one of my favourite experiences.
With that said I have to confess that I have never been especially good at 3D games of any kind and 2D mario is one of my favourite experiences.
Stilt Village
GBA
The gap between my Galaxy rankings isn't quite as extreme, but I have Galaxy 2 at the top and the first one in the lower half and I agree with a lot of this.
I'd also add that Galaxy's "second half", the 60 stars that are intended to be optional (and also mostly consist of repeated content), is surprisingly bad. There are some pretty miserable levels in there, like Sea Slide Purple Coins. Things like the Prankster Comet challenges got a lot better in 2.
And to expand on the general level design, Galaxy is just really frequently not much of a platformer. A lot of mostly flat (or round) terrain, a lot of going around collecting star chips and lighting torches and catching rabbits instead of jumping through obstacle courses. It's like they made a linear 3D Mario but were still hung up on how the mission design for the sandbox ones worked.
Sky Walker
Cappy
I enjoyed it but thats it. It's polished and well crafted especially for its time, and suitable for the device it was developed for. But thats the norm for 3D Mario games lol "aside from Sunshine". So at the end ? it's really "basic" in all terms. [3D] segments are neat but they are rare. Barely better than NSMB just because 3DL had somewhat better art aesthetics.
One thing that really colors my view of the 3D Mario games is that I only play and view them in the context of 100%. For me there never are optional stars, so Galaxy’s repetitive content like fighting that top boss on the same planet four times with virtually no variation is very keenly felt especially on replays.
Yeah fully agree on the flat level design issue which is made worse by the more simplistic movement and also the prankster comets being a big step up in Galaxy 2.
kaya bunji
Boo
I liked it more than 3D World...it felt like it did linear 3D better. I assume this is not a popular opinion.
Horror Kid
Bob-omb
I had more fun with it than 3D world as well.
Only game where I liked to use the 3D for longer stretches.
Only game where I liked to use the 3D for longer stretches.
Elementary
Octorok
I liked it. I did not like that if you died more than a few times in one stage you'd lose the chance at a perfect save file.
Dizzle
Like Like
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Wait so do you like any of them, then? I can't think of a single 3D Mario game I would want enjoy beating 100%.
It’s one of my favorite series of all time with Super Mario 64 being my favorite game of all time
Any time I play the games I always go for 100% and have a huge blast doing so. Well except Galaxy…more of a regular blast there with some frustration mixed in haha.
Dizzle
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It's just interesting. If I felt compelled to 100% the games my ranking would be entirely different. Odyssey would be at the bottom instead of near the top. I guess 3D Land would be #1? I would like the whole series less for sure.It’s one of my favorite series of all time with Super Mario 64 being my favorite game of all time
I actually wasn’t too hot on Odyssey the first time I played it, but on replay I really got into its groove more. I’m certainly not a speedrunner, but figuring out how to chain a bunch of moons together efficiently is quite fun.
To be clear on Odyssey though, I consider 100% the 880 normal moons not getting every costume and maxing out at 999 though I’ve done the latter at least before.
Regulus Tera
Ruffian
It’s a bit “New Super Mario Bros… but in 3D” until you get to the post game, and you finally start seeing the type of level design finesse EPD Tokyo was known for.
3D World is a better implementation of the same concept (andarguablythebestimplementationofMarioeverbutthatsadiscussionforanotherthread), but it’s a disgrace that it was left out of the 3D All Stars Collection alongside Galaxy 2.
3D World is a better implementation of the same concept (andarguablythebestimplementationofMarioeverbutthatsadiscussionforanotherthread), but it’s a disgrace that it was left out of the 3D All Stars Collection alongside Galaxy 2.
TheGreatMightyPoo
Like Like
I like it a lot.
Better than World.
End boss was terrific.
Better than World.
End boss was terrific.
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In 2021, I did a 3D Mario game ranking for another forum, where I wrote elaborate write-ups for each game. I have my write-ups saved and I re-read my entry for Super Mario 3D Land, which I think is still indicative of my thoughts. I tweaked it a little and I will share what I wrote here. It's a long read so there's no pressure to read all or any of it:
In my pre-teens, a few years after Super Mario 64 came out, I went through a negative phase for that game. It was possibly due to me replaying the 2D Mario games I grew up with that I came to the (misguided) conclusion that Mario 64 was not like those games, and therefore, not very good. The worlds were too open, there were no permanent power-ups like fire flowers and raccoon tails, and the tone went for the weird and atmospheric rather than the bouncy and colorful. In those days, I started to yearn for a 3D Mario that felt like the 2D Marios, but I came to a bit of a standstill when I realized I couldn’t imagine how a 2D Mario game would work in the 3D space.
If I had a window to ten years into the future and got to see Super Mario 3D Land, I would have gone “YES! THIS!”
3D Land is what happens when you take Super Mario Galaxy 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Bros. 1, put them in a blender and slap the result onto a handheld with stereoscopic 3D. The gameplay is three-dimensional in a loose sense, as we are back to the level structure of the 2D Mario games rather than open worlds to explore. Here we have the same playful level design of Galaxy 2 in a 2.5D space with Mario 3 power-ups and the level-by-level structure of Super Mario Bros. 1, and it all works very well. It’s about as “Mario” as you can possibly get.
For a long time, this game was a blank spot in my memory. I knew I played it back in 2011 and enjoyed it well enough, but it always occupied this sensation of “meh” in my head. In fact, when I last ranked the Mario games as recently as October 2020, this was the last-place entry on the list. I had it in my head that, because I didn’t remember anything from it, the game must have been pretty bad. This last week, I decided to replay it for the first time in years, which kind of gave me the idea to make this list in the first place.
This game is a lot of fun! Way more fun than I remembered. If you want a pure Mario experience that you can pick up and play whenever, this is a great one to fill that urge. The levels are quick and bite-sized and autosave after you complete each one, allowing you play for just a couple of minutes at a time if you need that instant Mario fix. Probably the best part of it all is that there are 16 whole worlds worth of levels to play as well, which means it will keep you occupied for quite a while.
The level design doesn’t exactly have anything that will blow you away like Galaxy, but it gives you that sheer rush of fun something like Super Mario Bros. 3 would, which makes sense given how much the power-ups and design philosophy borrow from that game. One area this game excels that no other Mario game can, though, is the 3D functionality of the 3DS. I rarely ever used this function on any given 3DS game, but on my latest playthrough, I decided to crank it up for the entire game, and it makes such a difference. These levels pop so much in 3D that I can’t imagine playing them without the slider turned up ever again. It makes me wonder, considering how much Nintendo banked on the 3D capabilities of the 3DS, why they never utilized it to this degree on any other 3DS games. 3D Land is a game that was obviously built with the 3D capabilities in mind, as it adds so much depth and character to the experience.
I think what also sets 3D Land apart from 2D Marios such as Mario 3 and New Super Mario Bros., is the lack of consistent world themes. Remember how on the third New Super Mario Bros. game, you were getting so unbelievably sick of grasslands -> desert -> water -> snow, etc. etc.? Here, 3D Land just flat-out eschews world themes altogether. You may enter a world with a yellow background and assume desert, but you’ll find yourself in grassland and water areas with no rhyme or reason. This might disappoint people who enjoy levels to feel grounded in a particular theme; however, for me, I found it to be a breath of fresh air. It meant the devs were able to think outside the box and just give us level after level of whatever ideas they had, rather than thinking “okay, now we need five desert levels and five snow levels.” To jump from an abstract ghost world to a water level to a floating block level to a desert level actually feels great and gives me a feeling of never knowing what to expect.
I do think 3D Land falls flat in a couple of areas, however. Remember how I said I forgot about 3D Land for years? Yeah, there’s a reason for that. While it’s a lot of fun in the moment, it all kind of blurs in your mind and makes you go “yep, that’s Mario.” It’s perfectly enjoyable but there is no single level that will jump out in your mind as “oh that was incredible” like Galaxy or 3D World would. It’s just Mario for the sake of Mario, and that’s totally fine; we don’t need every game to blow our minds. Sometimes we just want some relatively mindless fun and that’s perfectly acceptable.
Also annoying is the criteria for 100% completion. Collecting every star coin, the top of the flagpole, and clearing all 80+ levels with two different characters is just mindless busywork and unlocking the final level doesn’t justify it. You’d think just collecting the star coins alone would be enough, but they decided to pad the hell out of it for no real reason. Unlike 3D World, the levels just aren’t fun enough on their own to make you actively want to play them over and over. My recommendation is to basically get as far in the game as you are willing to keep playing it and then stop when you’re ready.
Is Super Mario 3D Land an enjoyable game? Absolutely. Is it a particularly memorable one? Not really. I do think it is a lot better than I initially gave it credit for, and if you passed it up before, I urge you to at least give it a try. If nothing else, you’ll get some good fun out of it and it will at least please you more than the average New Super Mario Bros. will.
In my pre-teens, a few years after Super Mario 64 came out, I went through a negative phase for that game. It was possibly due to me replaying the 2D Mario games I grew up with that I came to the (misguided) conclusion that Mario 64 was not like those games, and therefore, not very good. The worlds were too open, there were no permanent power-ups like fire flowers and raccoon tails, and the tone went for the weird and atmospheric rather than the bouncy and colorful. In those days, I started to yearn for a 3D Mario that felt like the 2D Marios, but I came to a bit of a standstill when I realized I couldn’t imagine how a 2D Mario game would work in the 3D space.
If I had a window to ten years into the future and got to see Super Mario 3D Land, I would have gone “YES! THIS!”
3D Land is what happens when you take Super Mario Galaxy 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Bros. 1, put them in a blender and slap the result onto a handheld with stereoscopic 3D. The gameplay is three-dimensional in a loose sense, as we are back to the level structure of the 2D Mario games rather than open worlds to explore. Here we have the same playful level design of Galaxy 2 in a 2.5D space with Mario 3 power-ups and the level-by-level structure of Super Mario Bros. 1, and it all works very well. It’s about as “Mario” as you can possibly get.
For a long time, this game was a blank spot in my memory. I knew I played it back in 2011 and enjoyed it well enough, but it always occupied this sensation of “meh” in my head. In fact, when I last ranked the Mario games as recently as October 2020, this was the last-place entry on the list. I had it in my head that, because I didn’t remember anything from it, the game must have been pretty bad. This last week, I decided to replay it for the first time in years, which kind of gave me the idea to make this list in the first place.
This game is a lot of fun! Way more fun than I remembered. If you want a pure Mario experience that you can pick up and play whenever, this is a great one to fill that urge. The levels are quick and bite-sized and autosave after you complete each one, allowing you play for just a couple of minutes at a time if you need that instant Mario fix. Probably the best part of it all is that there are 16 whole worlds worth of levels to play as well, which means it will keep you occupied for quite a while.
The level design doesn’t exactly have anything that will blow you away like Galaxy, but it gives you that sheer rush of fun something like Super Mario Bros. 3 would, which makes sense given how much the power-ups and design philosophy borrow from that game. One area this game excels that no other Mario game can, though, is the 3D functionality of the 3DS. I rarely ever used this function on any given 3DS game, but on my latest playthrough, I decided to crank it up for the entire game, and it makes such a difference. These levels pop so much in 3D that I can’t imagine playing them without the slider turned up ever again. It makes me wonder, considering how much Nintendo banked on the 3D capabilities of the 3DS, why they never utilized it to this degree on any other 3DS games. 3D Land is a game that was obviously built with the 3D capabilities in mind, as it adds so much depth and character to the experience.
I think what also sets 3D Land apart from 2D Marios such as Mario 3 and New Super Mario Bros., is the lack of consistent world themes. Remember how on the third New Super Mario Bros. game, you were getting so unbelievably sick of grasslands -> desert -> water -> snow, etc. etc.? Here, 3D Land just flat-out eschews world themes altogether. You may enter a world with a yellow background and assume desert, but you’ll find yourself in grassland and water areas with no rhyme or reason. This might disappoint people who enjoy levels to feel grounded in a particular theme; however, for me, I found it to be a breath of fresh air. It meant the devs were able to think outside the box and just give us level after level of whatever ideas they had, rather than thinking “okay, now we need five desert levels and five snow levels.” To jump from an abstract ghost world to a water level to a floating block level to a desert level actually feels great and gives me a feeling of never knowing what to expect.
I do think 3D Land falls flat in a couple of areas, however. Remember how I said I forgot about 3D Land for years? Yeah, there’s a reason for that. While it’s a lot of fun in the moment, it all kind of blurs in your mind and makes you go “yep, that’s Mario.” It’s perfectly enjoyable but there is no single level that will jump out in your mind as “oh that was incredible” like Galaxy or 3D World would. It’s just Mario for the sake of Mario, and that’s totally fine; we don’t need every game to blow our minds. Sometimes we just want some relatively mindless fun and that’s perfectly acceptable.
Also annoying is the criteria for 100% completion. Collecting every star coin, the top of the flagpole, and clearing all 80+ levels with two different characters is just mindless busywork and unlocking the final level doesn’t justify it. You’d think just collecting the star coins alone would be enough, but they decided to pad the hell out of it for no real reason. Unlike 3D World, the levels just aren’t fun enough on their own to make you actively want to play them over and over. My recommendation is to basically get as far in the game as you are willing to keep playing it and then stop when you’re ready.
Is Super Mario 3D Land an enjoyable game? Absolutely. Is it a particularly memorable one? Not really. I do think it is a lot better than I initially gave it credit for, and if you passed it up before, I urge you to at least give it a try. If nothing else, you’ll get some good fun out of it and it will at least please you more than the average New Super Mario Bros. will.
OctoSplattack
Chain Chomp
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It was a solid game. The little interstitials with Peach were charming, and there was some neat use of the system's 3D in those smaller puzzle rooms. That said, it also isn't that memorable? I originally started off this post going "it was okay, I guess" before the details started coming back and I remembered "oh, wait, I used to play this thing regularly and had a lot of fun with it."
Undeniablybiased
Moblin
I want it ported to the switch. Tanooki suit > Cat suit.
It’s a very snappy game and jumping around these levels feels really good. Even better than 3d world in a lot of ways I can’t really explain.
It’s a very snappy game and jumping around these levels feels really good. Even better than 3d world in a lot of ways I can’t really explain.
buildz
Piranha Plant
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A very nostalgic game - I remember getting it for Christmas back in 2011. The definition of cozy, perhaps "fast food" Mario (as it is rather generic, though not bland like New Super Mario Bros. Wii) - a game I've replayed a good few times over the years, and one I've enjoyed each time.
Always thought it had solid level design and a great amount of unlockable content. That said, Super Mario 3D World outshines it in pretty much every way - with more creative level designs and more content (less rehashed levels, but regular levels are themselves longer).
Always thought it had solid level design and a great amount of unlockable content. That said, Super Mario 3D World outshines it in pretty much every way - with more creative level designs and more content (less rehashed levels, but regular levels are themselves longer).
it's fun and uses the 3D well. I did 100% it at launch and completely forgot I did so a few years later, so I don't know how memorable it is.
Undeniablybiased
Moblin
JazzyFuture
Koopa
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3D World has much better theming but honestly I think I prefer the smaller more compact levels of 3D Land.
3D World's Switch port sped up all the characters and just feels actually awful compared to the WiiU one. Yeah, the levels are longer but they're still designed around the speed that was there on WiiU, so jumps just don't flow right.
3D Land is better than Odyssey
3D World's Switch port sped up all the characters and just feels actually awful compared to the WiiU one. Yeah, the levels are longer but they're still designed around the speed that was there on WiiU, so jumps just don't flow right.
3D Land is better than Odyssey
Ripfeld89
Tektite
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- he/him
I played 3D World first and that really felt like the ideal order to go in ultimately. I was pretty put off by its multiplayer focused level design, it makes too many concessions to accommodate 4 players, it felt like an arcade beat-em-up but without any interesting combat, or just NSMBU with some extra depth added. Getting around to 3D Land later was a breath of fresh air, I could just focus on me and the stages felt free to explore more interesting formats. Sure the aesthetic of the whole Sprixie Kingdom is a very welcome change of setting, it doesn't really make up for what was lost.
Sure you can solo World, but it feels awfully empty at most times. It's clear a core element to its enjoyment was meant to be those moments when you and some friends or family are just idly goofing around the playground-like spaces, and the limits of that really start to show when you're just Mario and start to remember what actually hopping around for its own sake was like in the more robust movement systems of 64 and Sunshine. On a 3DS game with a circle-pad it feels way more acceptable that they had to restrain the controls the way they did, but on a console it's like you've got weights on for no good reason.
Sure you can solo World, but it feels awfully empty at most times. It's clear a core element to its enjoyment was meant to be those moments when you and some friends or family are just idly goofing around the playground-like spaces, and the limits of that really start to show when you're just Mario and start to remember what actually hopping around for its own sake was like in the more robust movement systems of 64 and Sunshine. On a 3DS game with a circle-pad it feels way more acceptable that they had to restrain the controls the way they did, but on a console it's like you've got weights on for no good reason.
Cubs017
Like Like
I think it’s great…or at least, I did when it came out. I foolishly sold my 3DS so I haven’t played it in at least 8 or 9 years. I do remember being kind of frustrated with some of the later levels and having to collect the star coins or whatever they were. I prefer a meatier main story opposed to post game stuff.
DiddyRescue
Rattata
I wasn't a big fan. I like 3D Mario games that are more about exploration and open levels, rather than linear 2D obstacle courses which 3D Land was trying to emulate.
I remember being disappointed when I went to one of the Mushroom houses and saw a big open field and none of the other levels delivered on that idea. It's cool that Bowser's Fury delivered on this a bit though.
I remember being disappointed when I went to one of the Mushroom houses and saw a big open field and none of the other levels delivered on that idea. It's cool that Bowser's Fury delivered on this a bit though.
TheRealWario
Piranha Plant
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perfect game
sometimes simplicity and brevity are the best options
sometimes simplicity and brevity are the best options
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- Any
Also it was developed in a year and a half which is crazy, even for 2011.
ethanswift
Switch Online N64 Player
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- he
3D Land is a great game,
but I hesitate to consider it a 3D Mario game.
but I hesitate to consider it a 3D Mario game.
Evil Lucario
Star Successor
It's a good game, but the postgame reuses way too many levels and ends up being a drag. The super final level also requires you replay the entire game AND postgame as Luigi, which is insane padding compared to Galaxy 1 where Grand Finale Galaxy isn't that interesting so you don't need to do it, and Galaxy 2 at least changes enough with the Green Stars so unlocking Grandmaster Galaxy isn't bad.
