Topic: Why hasn't Mario 64 been remade in HD/3D?

I woke up in the middle of the night with a thought: why hasn't Mario 64 been remade this generation? We did get 64 redone for the DS, but as far as I know, it didn't significantly alter the game's looks and only added in some extra character options mostly.

So the most mind-boggling thing, for me, is why Nintendo hasn't done an entire revamp of the classic. I'm talking entirely redone graphics, better camera, fixed/crisper controls, additional levels/stars/challenges/ etc.

Imagine a beautifully redone Mario 64 - with an entirely revamped look in HD. Or even a revamp more akin to the Zelda 3D remakes.

But it hasn't happened. Why? Is Nintendo saving a 64 remake for a later date to surprise fans on down the road, or is it something that has been decided on as off-limits for whatever reason? Would the game not translate well if it was redone? Is it too much of a class to completely redo? Would it be too gimmicky? Sound off with your opinion!

I think the more concerning thing here is that you were awoken in the middle of the night because of a thought about Mario 64 lol

Probably because they don't see much of a point in re-remaking a game unless they have something significant to add to the experience to justify it. 64 already got a wonderful remake on the DS that added a ton of content to the game, and I can't imagine what else they could do with it at this point to up the ante. If they want to re-release it on a modern console they can just use Virtual Console.

@Bolt_Strike, it might just be me, but I hardly would even consider the Mario 64 for the DS to even be a remake - it feels more like a port with just a few extras thrown in. I consider a remake to be when the game, in some way, is completely reworked - such as the three Zelda remakes this generation.

So in that regard, completely reworking Mario 64 is, to me, just as much fair game as remaking OoT, MM, or WW.

They're saving it for a rainy day.

Anyway, SM64DS is way more of a remake than any zelda game rereleased this generation.

Edit: @Bolt_Strike, actually I am wrong. Somehow, I never realized that they actually DID rework the graphics in Mario 64 DS - not to mention new levels, gameplay, etc. OOPS. Lol.

cmon , that is the definition of a remake... adding 30 stars, add a few extra levels and add 3 characters and caps. What more do you want?

If there's any Mario game that could use a remake at this point, it's Sunshine. It's the oldest Mario game without a remake, it's very different from any other Mario game, they could add new nozzles to change things up, and it's just begging for more levels (7 main levels is not a satisfying number at all, there should be at least 10-12). Although I don't expect them to work on any more remakes until the NX, so it'll probably be a while.

This goes for either Sunshine or 64. But I don't really see the point in remakes. If they want to revamp the game, make something entirely new and borrow elements from that game. 64DS wasn't nearly as good as the original in my opinion. Remakes usually do more harm than good to the original, especially when the original was already a solid game to begin with.

@Octane Aside from slightly wonky controls, I can't see any reason to like the original over the DS version. The DS version was an improvement in almost every way.

There's VC version of Super Mario 64. Also, the game already been remade for DS.

@Bolt_Strike: I really disliked the controls, the D-Pad in combination with a run button don't work in 3D. I'm sure the game would've been better on the 3DS. I also didn't think that the inclusion of extra characters was necessary, but the controls were my biggest problem with this game.

... Pretty sure Super Mario 64 was in "3D" to begin with.

Snark aside, there isn't an HD Remaster that I want more than Mario 64. A smart company would realize that it's one of the best games ever made and that they could make lots of money if they re-released it in HD, but this is Nintendo we're talking about. Say what you will about Sony and Microsoft; at least they update and re-release their games.

I fear that the release would get an P-Acorn suit when you failed a level three times in a row...

I would definitely buy a rerelease of Mario 64. I played the Mario64DS with the thumb stylus. That was a new way of controlling at that time and I must confess: It really worked great with Mario 64.
However, they game was great but I could not love it like the original. The new characters didn't fit for me and 3D games on a small screen was inferior to the TV experience.

Because Super Mario 64 DS was already a good remake, we don't need another one. Unless you're willing to remake Super Mario 64 DS in HD... that would be interesting.

A smart company wouldn't waste an HD remaster of an amazing game by releasing it on a failing console. This has nothing to do with the Wii U experience, but the numbers simply don't justify doing it, and they might be better saving it for a future console. Also, why remake a game that already had a remake in the last gen?

Sorry, but that doesn't make sense after all. Instead of developing a complete new game, you can simply remaster an existing one (see Zelda: The Wind Waker). This is not expensive and for a "failing" console the better option. With your logic the WiiU would not get one single game since all are saved for later.

What do you mean by "last gen"? Mario 64 DS is more than 10 years old.

I would buy this in a heart beat for the 3ds. With all the remake happy Zelda games I'm surprised we haven't seen one Mario 3d game either console or 3ds. Really strange by them if you ask me. I think a Mario 64 3ds could easily sell a million so why not do it?

LoZ: Wind Waker came out when there was still hope that the Wii U's poor sales would turn around (I'm not bashing the system, I love mine, it just looks like it's winding down) and when the developers of the new Zelda game were getting to grips with HD programming. In my mind, and you are obviously free to disagree with this, it would make more sense to remaster a game like Mario 64 for the next console (that the game is held in such high regard would excite people and likely drive sales for the new hardware) than release it on a console that in all likelihood is going to be slowly phased out in the next year or so. But again, this is just my opinion.

As to your last question, Mario 64DS is last gen (DS and Wii) VS current gen (3DS and Wii U).

Yes, I agree, that we can have different opinions

The WiiU will only phase out when there are no more games. And since no Third-Party will do the games for the last period, Nintendo has to do the work. And I guess, a Mario 64 HD would be a good fill-in. However, I simply love the game

I understand the term "last gen" as "DS and Wii" but it is very inaccurate when the game is 10 years old and on the one hand there is a handheld and on the other hand an HD console. For example there were many ports of GameCube games to Wii, i.e. "last gen" to "next gen". And this games were easily just 5 years old.