Three Mario classics gathered together, and each retains its brilliance. Mario 64's early 3D still fascinates, Sunshine surprises with tropical freshness, and Galaxy remains a peak of level design. A shame the emulation is so bare and the selection stops there.
Your verdict
Category
Platformer1 player3+
Description
Three landmark three-dimensional adventures of the moustached plumber gathered in one collection. Published by Nintendo, released worldwide in 2020. Classics from console to console brought up to date, higher resolution, adapted controls and freely playable soundtracks.
Super Mario 3D All-Stars review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
2/5
Story
★★★★★
"Classic"
Three iconic adventures gathered together, and with them three sonic aesthetics: the jazzy verve of Mario 64, Sunshine's soothing tropical pads by Koji Kondo and Shinobu Tanaka, then Galaxy's orchestral, galactic flights. Hearing these themes intact again plunges you straight back into decades of wonder.
Gameplay
"Masterful"
Bringing together three peaks of Mario platforming could have been enough, and each keeps its handling genius: Mario 64's free 3D still fascinates, Sunshine's water jet offers a unique sense of movement, and Galaxy remains a model of gravitational level design. Galaxy has aged best; Sunshine drags a fussy camera and the emulation stays minimal, but these classics still answer with joy.
Fun
"From the very first seconds"
Three milestones of 3D platforming gathered together, a chance to rediscover the freedom of movement that changed everything: running, jumping, flying through worlds open to invention. Nostalgia runs high, yet the joy of leaping about stays intact, lively and readable. Hopping between classics means diving back into a golden age of joyful game design.
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Easy"
Lifespan
"Average"
Technical info
💾4,6 GB📅18/09/2020
Published by Nintendo
Super Mario 3D All-Stars (Nintendo Switch) price, value & rarity
A textbook case of manufactured scarcity. Nintendo deliberately capped physical production within a window that closed on 31 March 2021, turning a mass-printed compilation into a speculative object. Its desirability stems not from a small initial run but from that abrupt cutoff, which cleared shelves and sent sealed copies climbing. The emulated Mario 64, Sunshine and Galaxy split purists, and that very debate is what keeps demand alive.
Memorable bosses
Three peaks of the plumber gathered offer a roster of guardians that each redefined their era: Galaxy's cosmic staging, where gravity flips the arenas, Sunshine's urban madness and slippery jousts, or Mario 64's pure 3D clarity. Every clash tests a precise verb of movement, from the charged jump to the spray, in a timeless school of game design.
Is Super Mario 3D All-Stars still worth playing in 2026?
This compilation remains a frustrating case. Mario 64, Sunshine and Galaxy are three peaks, and seeing them run in higher resolution is a treat. Yet the emulation does the bare minimum, with no modern comfort options, and Sunshine still suffers from its temperamental camera. The title's commercial withdrawal cemented its standing as a collector's item more than a practical reference. We still play it happily, above all for Galaxy, whose staging hasn't aged a day, but the package lacks ambition for a reissue of this stature.
