Introduction
Super Mario 64 is a Nintendo 64 game released in 1996, created and published by Nintendo. It was also the first 3D-based Mario game in the Super Mario series. We all love Super Mario 64 for many things, such as its unique personalization and giving the player the ability to travel from various worlds, ranging from battling Bob-ombs to being up in the clouds and over a colorful rainbow on a flying airship. And Mario can do so much more compared to his earlier years, such as punching and kicking enemies as well as performing long jumps and backflips. Super Mario 64 was an astounding hit for its time and still proves to be enjoyable and forever loved by Super Mario fans (like me) over the years. Super Mario 64 is incredibly fun to play, but it does carry some very terrifying moments. Here is my take (in no particular order) on some of the scariest moments in Super Mario 64.
1. The man-eating piano in search of plumber blood!
Big Boo's Haunt is a spooky-themed course that is bombarded by Boos, eyeballs and spiders. While there are also books and chairs being thrown at Mario, there sits this lonely piano. Sitting in a corner of an empty room just waiting to be used to play a catchy tune, or so we think! What Mario doesn't know is that the piano is a trap created by Bowser and it is out to murder him! The piano is suddenly lunging after Mario with a tune that rings music into Bowser's ears. Before you know it, the piano is victorious and Mario is lying on the floor injured from the piano's vicious attack. I consider the evil piano as one of the craziest jump scares you'll witness out of Super Mario 64.
2. Can the eel come out to play? I highly doubt it!
Now that I've covered one of the scariest jump-scares you'll see out of Super Mario 64, there's the giant eel from Jolly Roger Bay. Jolly Roger Bay is known for its calm waters and relaxing music. Although Jolly Roger Bay is a peaceful world, there's a sea-like monster lurking in the depths of the water just waiting to harm anyone who goes near it. Mario's objective in acquiring one of the missing Power Stars is to lure the eel out of its hiding spot and grab the star from its tail. This is a hard task for Mario to complete, as he has to grab the Power Star before the eel decides to take a bite out of our heroic plumber. If you're able to acquire the Power Star, consider yourself lucky because the eel will be awaiting your return.
3. Got that sinking feeling? That's because you are sinking!
Here we are in Shifting Sand Land, the land of shifting sand. This world is full of nasty Pokeys, rolling boxes, and tornadoes. Of course, we can't forget the biggest enemy of this sandy world, quicksand. Yes, it's all over the place and Mario must be very cautious of where he's going or he could end up in a sandy grave. One of the scariest moments of Shifting Sand Land is when he gets stuck in some quicksand inside the pyramid. All Mario can do is struggle but he is helpless as no one is there to save him. His last effort at freedom is to extend his hand in hopes that some other mysterious hero pulls him out of his doom, but his efforts have failed and he is gone forever.
4. Choking on poisonous fumes in the depths of the underground caves
Our hero now arrives in a world known as Hazy Maze Cave, a maze-like cave that has vicious spiders and toxic gas. The only way Mario can go through the toxic maze is to use a power-up known as the Metal Cap which is located in green- colored boxes throughout this world. The Metal Cap can help Mario complete the dangerous maze without breathing in any contaminated air. There is one catch, this is a power-up that has to be unlocked by entering a secret level and pressing a giant green switch before you can use the metallic hat. If you don't know where the secret of the Metal Cap is, you may want to navigate the poisonous maze as quickly as possible before Mario starts choking to death. Mario can only last through the maze for so long until he starts coughing from the gaseous fumes of the underground cave. Before you know it, Mario can no longer breathe and falls over succumbing to the toxic fumes of the underground maze cave.
5. Drowning in the water worlds
One of my very own biggest fears in life is drowning. Although I can swim, it was something that always scared me. I was never a fan of seeing people drowning in scenes from various TV shows, movies, and most especially video games. Super Mario 64 is one of those games that has etched that fear into me even more. Just watching Mario clutching his throat and gasping for air was just a bit too much for a then-6-year-old girl to see in a Mario game. I always try my very hardest to keep Mario from running out of oxygen, whether it's from collecting coins and inhaling bubbles from underwater treasure boxes to replenish his air supply while staying underwater for long periods. Enemies such as clams, giant eels, and sharks are just enough to quickly deteriorate the life of our good old Italian plumber into becoming a drowning victim.
6. Heading to Electric Avenue with electric Amps
Some worlds have enemies known as Amps that are simply there to electrocute Mario. Amps are round metallic-looking orbs that fly around just looking for someone to put their voltage into. That "someone" they want to zap is, you guessed it, Mario! When an Amp touches Mario, he starts shaking uncontrollably as electricity goes through his entire body. Once the electricity has taken the life out of Mario, he goes limp and falls onto the ground completely lifeless. And as for the Amps, well, they are feeling victorious over their electrifying achievement. Jerks.
7. Swirling around in whirlpools
Dire Dire Docks is a course that many people love because of its theme song. You simply cannot go wrong with the music in Dire Dire Docks. There's one thing that really "sucks" in Dire Dire Docks, and that is the dreaded whirlpool. This whirlpool is there to prevent Mario from collecting coins and opening treasure chests. If Mario gets too close to the whirlpool, he is pulled in and gets sucked down to his doom and drowns.
Conclusion
This pretty much covers my views of the scariest moments in Super Mario 64. I hope you enjoyed reading my article. I will be making more Mario-related articles soon. In the meantime, stay tuned!
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