Super Mario RPG - DF Tech Review - The SNES Classic Shines On Switch
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- Опубліковано 16 чер 2024
- Nintendo's 1996 collaboration with Square yielded the excellent Super Mario RPG for the Super NES and now, decades later, the game has been remastered into full 3D for Nintendo Switch. John Linneman goes back to the original, stacks it up against the new game, then critiques it on its own merits as a 2023 Switch release.
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00:00 - Introduction
01:18 - The Original Game's Visual Design
02:21 - Comparisons between Switch and SNES
08:49 - Visual Features and Image Quality
11:15 - Performance Analysis
13:52 - Music Comparison - Arranged vs Original
15:09 - The Wrap-Up - Ігри
So nice to see a studio give a legacy title the respect it deserves.
Artepiazza has always done that. By far the best remake developers on the market.
@@NikoofDeathI disagree, I believe that Toys for Bob was the best.
Isn't ArtePiazza a Square Enix studio? Majority of games they've done are Dragon Quest and Romancing Saga 2 and 3.
@@oreocookie1331
What????
If only Konami felt the same way for MGS.
DF That transition at 0:29 of the video to the switch version was 👌🏻👍🏻
very kino
It was 🤌
It's from the original reveal trailer I believe but yeah it's fire.
best part watching this , being a programmer, i don't think they did anything or very little on this version. :) game same, just put new paint on it.
Even with the frame drops, it’s impressive that Artepiazza pulled off this level of performance and fidelity with the notoriously inefficient Unity on the Switch. Like John, I really really appreciate the care that went into making the FMVs look good and actually 60 FPS. Something that, for some reason, a lot of other developers could not care less about.
Us old Final fantasy \ squaresoft folk are going to have a hay day with this game, feels good ;;;____;
@@Ozzianmaninefficient on Switch in particular, not in general.
@@OzzianmanI think it’s more about the reputation of Unity games on switch. Not many games utilize it very impressively on the platform
Gonna emulate it on my Rog Ally.
@@Ozzianman how is it a myth when the proof is in the pudding every time?
In this game and SMB Wonder the art is so clean that I really can't tell if something is pre-rendered or using polygons.
nahhhhh graphics on any console aren’t good enough for that yet and you didn’t just say that for NINTENDO games
@@ChaddingAroundYT yeah its annoying how nothing looks like the SNES's DKC yet.
@@ChaddingAroundYT it's pretty true for switch, but it's usually running at 1080p at best. Its a lot easier to blur the line at a resolution that was new near two decades ago.
@@ChaddingAroundYTit literally comes down to the art style and OP is completely on point for the unique way the sprites were made in wonder.
@keithschachle571 1080p was only "new near" in 2003? Huh?
That was only 2 years into the GC's life, and 720p was barely a thing, and few TVs had it. The first 1080p displays for consumers didn't release until 2006-2007, and they were absurdly expensive.
It took several years into the 360/PS3 gen for 1080p TVs to become more widely adopted, and most console games never hit that (PC versions did though).
You can even see old reddit threads from 2013 where people are talking about when 1080p will finally become the "standard" in gaming. That tells you how long it took for it to become universally adopted.
Video game demos or main menu attract modes are a long lost art of video games that I really miss. I know they’re a holdover from the Arcade years, and like lives have gone the way of the dodo, but it is one of those things that shouldn’t have gone away.
Super Metroid has some of the basic main menu demos that show you super cool tricks and secrets that you might’ve never figured out, If you’re just willing to wait and see what the game will show you.
Fire emblem and smash bros still do that
@@JordiumZonly for smash
To this day I still touch nothing upon booting up a new game for the first time, waiting to see if any videos play after going AFK for a while. I'm always disappointed when nothing happens. I'm definitely a 90's gamer!
Up to N64 too, with OOT's intro, so perfect!
I too miss that functionality and I'm inclined to wonder why anyone would stop doing it.
It is impressive what Nintendo and third party devs managed to do on such an ancient hardware for today's standards. They really pushed the Tegra X1 to its limits.
It really makes me want to see what Nintendo could pull off with a ground-up game on modern hardware. Imagine the next Zelda was on PC? Considering what TTotK managed to pull off on Switch the sky would be the limit.
Art style is good at hiding it's technical flaws..
@@anonony9081
I image if Nintendo start to be 3rd party they would put out the effort anymore.
Image Zelda but the gameplay is much worse
@@anonony9081 I would love to see it. Imagine TOTK with full 3D volumetric clouds like RDR2s, farther LOD for grass and trees. It can keep the art style but add so much more and look great ( It already looks nice ). Heck I have been running TOTK in UW on my QD OLED using the emulator and even just a res bump was huge for it.
Imagine what they would do with the new machine in about 4 years.
This will be my first time playing this. Given the comparisons between this and the original, it looks absolutely stunning. Aside from the sudden drops, this looks very well done. Can't wait to get it.
Ohhh you’re in for a good time then!
In what way do you mean stunning? Like "for a switch game"?
@@syphonunfiltered
Like as in compared to the original SNES game, as his comment clearly stated.
ArtePiazza did a good job here. Recreating old games in Unity or Unreal Engine always fascinates me.
I think Super Mario RPG is the perfect example, why more games should use a fixed camera like this. The fact that the game can look this good while running mostly great without using dynamic resolution is a testament to that.
Great video John! That transition in the river seen was incredibly smooth! I'm so happy to hear that this is such a good experience for new and old players alike
Really appreciated your comments on the music and the furigana! Shows how much knowledge and attention to detail goes into your videos
I got to admit, I still love the way the SNES version looks.
I like it a lot better myself
@@Decenium I can appreciate them both. I remember back in 1996 when commercials started coming out for it, the game looked so good I thought it was going to be an N64 game due the commercials airing only a couple of months before the N64 launched. The original art style just brings back a lot of nostalgia from when, IMO, gaming was in a better place.
Same that’s actually impressive
the snes one has a lot more of a surreal art style, the switch version feels extremely sanitized to me comparatively
I have it on my Wii U the last purchase from the store closing so I might get this remake later on
I find it ever so fascinating watching games that use Unity/UE4 on Switch because you can really see how far them engines have come since the Nintendo Switch's first year. I mean you can't argue about it, some games did struggle, but then years have come by and the optimisating of the engines have done so much over the years and if you take the time to look back at earlier videos, it is really impressive.
It also bodes well for Nintendo's next platform because the engines are so well polished for Nintendo now. You got take into account Wii U barely had any support like this, and now we can go into a generation that will not only have the support, but have optimisations pretty tight on. I'm hopeful that the successor will have some really clean UE5/Unity titles from the get go!
I can't wait to play this one, it would be cool if Square Enix and Nintendo collaborated again someday
Maybe if the game sales well they do part 2
@@michaelmacorso4479 That would be fantastic :)
@albertobalsalm8647it's basically Enix 😂. It wasn't a merger of equals, Square was such dire shape after the Final Fantasy movie bombed. Enix management took over. Most of Square's management left after the merger. They did retain much of Square's younger staff at that time, which is why Kitase and Nomura are still there.
@@michaelmacorso4479 My thoughts exactly. Maybe if it does really well, it might push the paper mario franchise back towards this(not sure if they would sequel this or build off paper mario's current state) First pre-order I made in a decade.
@albertobalsalm8647still waiting for a Xenogears remake
This was the most I've ever paid for a game -- $70 in 1996. I'm sure that's like $200 now.
I think this remake is absolutely gorgeous and even fascinating, especially in a side-by-side comparison. The art direction and how they expanded the original in each scene is just really interesting and gratifying.
This makes me want to see other games (even originally hand-drawn rather than rendered and rasterized ones) get this kind of treatment.
It was a big financial commitment for the die-hards like you in 1996! The N64 would release only 8 months later at $199.99 and it’s incredible 3D visuals were have already been shown off.
N64 games cost $60-80 ($115-150 today) so most people were very picky in selecting which games to buy. With the revolutionary Super Mario 64 releasing later that year, this game was severely under appreciated.
I remember paying exactly $102.59 for mk ll for the snes from Radio shack back when that game was new.
$80 for Chrono Trigger in 1995. 3rd Party games were much more expensive even though both games were 32-megabit carts. Importing games was much more expensive, I remember getting Tales of Phantasia for $120. That, to me is still the best looking game on the SNES.
@@thealgorithmisbrokenhow??? It was $70 without tax at toys r us back in 1994. The most expensive games at that time was Phantasy Star 4 and Virtua Racer both were released for $100, unless you imported.
@@BurritoKingdom Canadian.
Another pristine video from John and DF. We are very lucky to have such an incredible outlet.
Really wish Secret of Mana could've gotten a quality remake like this.
Thanks so much for always taking the time to also cover the music and sound design, as well as the visuals. Yoko Shimomura is a legend and I'm thrilled we get the option to listen to the original SNES music - between this and the Star Ocean Second Story R remake, I'm pretty stoked - also still hopeful for that Chrono Trigger remake some day.
It’s incredible how much work goes into these videos. Even such a little thing as mimicking the font for the title card. Can’t imagine that’s a simple task.
I’m curious how do they mimic the fonts so well?
@@iron_recluseAI
@@XXtheJUMPoffXX that’s cool I need to learn how to do that
@@iron_recluse Yeah I’m sure there’s a computer program that can scan a font then recreate it for you
Excellent video. Thanks for the hard work on this technical review.
Wow, this really shows that with "ancient" techniques like planar reflections and precalculated lighting, you can achieve visuals comparable to raytraced graphics even on low spec hardware. Valve is taking the same approach with Source 2, but not many developers seem to do this anymore even though it's a perfect match for something like the Switch. Every time a game has a compromised realtime approach to reflections or GI, I think back to Half-Life 2 and its perfect reflections in 2004.
If RT was actually used in this game, there'd be a lot of darkness inside buildings and other places.
It's far from similar to ray tracing. It does look good tho.
Source has raytraced graphics, they're just compiled on runtime by vrad. There's even the -smooth setting to dictate the number of ray bounces it uses.
As someone who hasn’t played/seen much of the original, I’m a little surprised at how well the originals art style holds up
Good review! I really like what they did with the music.
I love when John reviews Switch games, let alone Switch remakes of older games. It's a perfect fit.
Dear Jhon, thank you so much on adding that final touch about the subtitles. I'm a Japanese learner and I really missed those small furigana letters. I know basic composition and I understand it but there are a lot of new words and finding them while playing games takes a lot of time. Btw this game pretty good!!!!
extremely useful video, thanks for such an in-depth review that didnt go over 20 min, really good how you handle all the info and small details added to the game
Another awesome video from John, nicely done I'm always looking forward for more of your video which breaths love, passion and dedication!
I love your work, John. Your videos are a delight to watch.
That soundtrack comparison section was really clean! Super satisfying to listen to.
Gonna be my first time playing!
I can’t get over how gorgeous this game looks!
Great video, thanks for sharing! I'm impressed by how complete the coverage of all aspects of the game
Hey John, Question regarding the Image Quality: Is the pixelated border around Mario and other characters a result of the upscaling of the video to 4k or is that actually as visible when playing it, as when watching your video?
Looks great- it's not every day that you see a remake that is simultaneously faithful to the original *and* a drastic improvement!
Also, 60fps FMV is such a nice touch! How is it that seemingly no one else besides Hal Laboratories and Team Silent bothered to pull this off in the past 20+ years?
when the hell did Team Silent do 60fps FMV?
@@StarRain6 The PS2 version of Silent Hill 2. To my knowledge, this was not carried over to any ports, nor does it work properly in emulators.
It apparently uses some form of interlacing, where two frames of animation are packed together in a single frame of video, and the video codec knows how to split the frames out and play them at the right time.
@@3dmarth interesting i never knew that! Too bad i cant try it out on emulator...wait a minute does Silent Hill 2 gameplay also run in 60fps on a PS2, I dont think so?
@@StarRain6 No, just the FMV, ironically.
There are 60fps mods for gameplay, which are available for PC and I think PS2 (emualtion) as well now, but you won't get that on console.
PS: I saw a comment somewhere, indicating that PCSX2 might support the 60fps FMV now. Haven't verified it for myself, though.
Thanks for making the point clear that reconstruction and TAA would clearly reduce the image quality at lower resolutions. Far too many people are under an impression that these techniques work well at lower resolutions.
The more and more reviews I watch of yours, the more I think you might be my favorite
I’m old and played it in 1996 and now again in 2023. Both are fantastic games and deserve to be played.
0:28 nice transition
I appreciate the use of PSO music at 10:00
Great video! Love seeing the remake side-by-side with the original! Thanks for making this!
"PSO"?
Great Vid! Definitely playing this Day 1. Also, PSO EP3 Unguis Lapis music...nice!
I’m almost finished with the game, the XP has been great, my only complaint is that the game’s difficulty was nerfed to oblivion, even while playing on Normal mode it is noticeably easier at least for veteran of the original like me.
get the super suit yet? ;)
so hyped. the SNES one is one of my fave games. Friday can't come fast enough.
14:49, I had that theme in my head for ages without knowing from which game it came from, thanks for making me know about it
16:10 It's evident in the video but I'm still surprised to hear you actually mention this. These games having the multiple language options like this is always a treat for me.
Appreciate you pointing out the furigana - I love practicing my Japanese with rpgs but it can be tricky to find the right balance for my level.
Ravum Aedes Sacra from Phantasy Star Online Episode III: C.A.R.D Revolution at 10:00? That’s a deep cut. Props.
Good work as always. Still baffles DF shows the new content on the left vs. the right given how timelines show newer thing on right.
I appreciated seeing you play the game in its original language in this video. Nice touch!
Fun fact: In the original game, a glowing image of the 4 poker suits (card symbols) appeared when some characters are charhing their attacks:
Mario had the Spades
Mallow had the Clovers
Bowser had the Diamonds
Peach had the Hearts
Geno has the Stars, as there are only 4 poker suits.
This effect was removed in the remake.
I was SO wanting to see these comparisons, having never seen the original game which I see looks so impressive for the time.
Great video. John Linneman's video essays on classic games and their remakes are the best in the biz.
Don't like how Nintendo remasters old music. They always do this classical instrumentation take, and it ruins the unique sound the original music had, and has way less "punch" to it if that makes sense. You can clean up the quality but keep similar sounds to what was used. The original hardwares sound limitations is the reason we got such unique great music in the first place.
Well said.
Thanks, John.
I have ribbed you in the past, but one thing is clear: you really love your games, and that comes across in the content you produce. I have learned to really appreciate your work, and look forward to your content.
John is the only guy in the team who doesn't just focus on technical aspects (like frame rate and resolution) but also highlights artistic aspects including music.
What did you rib him for?
Thanks John! Excited for this one. Classic, nostalgic game for me.
Amazing review!!! DF is always on point!
Love your reviews John. You always deliver a thoughtful treatment of the material.
@MyPie9042- So, he's always good?
Amazing how he's been hounded by Xbox fanatics for years for "hating Xbox" based on some out of context comments from a decade ago, and now it turns out he's getting paid by Xbox, apparently.
@MyPie9042- "you Xbox fanatics"
Ah yes me the Xbox fanatic who has owned a grand total of **checks notes** one Xbox console (360) and all PS consoles.
It's almost like some of us just aren't into the whole console warrior thing, so we don't see all this imaginary shilling. DF can get accused of being paid by both sides in the same video, that tells you everything about how valid those claims are. Fanboys can't see their own bias and accuse neutral parties of it.
Hi John, I wanted to say that you can also use a powerfull WIFI6 USB Stick or PCI card to create a hotspot from your PC and connect your VR headset to it. The latency and image quality is almost native and this works for other streaming like Steam aswell. Since mentioned this in the last DF Direct.
i cant wait! its been so long that i been playing mario games lately but ive been back on board since mario wonder and its great to see mario never lost its spark!
Excellent spot with the furigana mention! Another game I can recommend to my friends who constantly tell me they are trying to learn but then read and watch everything in English. LOL
Looks great! Something he didn't mention, that i would like to know is if and if how the timed battle button presses worked.
All the crew in DF are incredible but you passion for video games make u my favorite john, alex B you are second close Hahaha thank u guys.
That soundtrack at the beginning, is that from the mobile Tales of Luminaria game? I remember playing that game all the time. The sdtk is really good!
pretty interesting, ive been playing emulated and noticed some of the camera judder and assumed it was down to emulation and something with vsync, but seeing the actual switch performance it seems like it happens in all the same places. so likely not hardware, and something with how the in engine cutscenes are being handled.
Excellent review as usual, John. The only Mario game from my childhood I never owned myself or completed, so I’m really looking forward to this one.
Thanks for pointing out the furigana! I might actually grab it for that even.
Digital Foundry is my favorite youtube chanel. Tnks for your work DF.
What i'd give for Sonic 3D to have this kind of stunning & faithful overhaul.
This really puts the Diamond and Pearl remakes to shame.
Thank you so much for mentioning the furigana, that actually was the tipping point for me to buy
Been playing for a last couple of days, and comparing Switch release to original SNES I played for the first time, circa 2000 (on emulator) put remaster shining. Everything looks so cool, nice but with attention to details and most important - original feel and look. This must took hell of a lot of time, exhausting work and passion. LOVE IT.
For the most part, the new sound track is great. You really need headphones to appreciate the extra layers and instruments. The 2nd Booster Tower song is 7 minutes long in the post-game Music Player and is just a acid jazz trip.
MIght be a mixing issue, but there are a few tracks where the bass melody was maybe reduced too much. I was kind of disappointed with the new Smithy Fight Theme, the intense organ of the original is just way too weak in the new one and takes away the intensity, IMO.
The new Culex theme knocked my socks off, though. That can only be unlocked in the Music Player after defeating Culex again as part of the boss re-fights.
The other thing worth mentioning is that Mario still only moves in 8 directions, just like in the original. However, the extra frames of animation for transitioning directions is sooo smooth it looks like analog 360 movement.
For those wondering what song plays at 6:07, it's from Musashi Samurai Legend called "A New Hope Industrial Version".
Love those Donkey Kong Country era pre-rendered looking textures and lighting on the environments.
Thanks as always! Looking forward to playing this one again after so long.
Great video John!😊
Oh my goodness, that new world map music is gorgeous!
My favorite snes game it looks incredible from what I’ve seen so far, I can’t wait to play. Great work as always John
Phenomenal analysis! Going to replay the heck out of this game!
I think one of the coolest things in this remake (and you can even see a couple examples in the comparison) is the little animations Mario does. Like the bridge at the start bit mario does nothing in the SNES version but freaks out in the remake.
Reminds me of the golden sun animations!
Good video, I like the fact that they kept the art style. The modders who did the unofficial HD remake of Mario Kart 64 did the same thing.
I loved "Mario & Luigi - Superstar Saga" as a kid for Gameboy Advance - this seems like a title I'd enjoy, too. Never would've caught of it if it weren't for your video, thanks!
You'll love this! I liked that series as well!
You are a man of culture for that PSO soundtrack, so glad to hear it still alive
I do feel that the rearranged tracks lack some of the punch of the originals. The lead melodies are getting a little lost in the mix. And for better or for worse, lo-fi crunchy beats gave way to smoother and more subtle instrumentation. Despite appreciating the new soundtrack, I do still prefer the original for its impact.
Okay but did they disable the dpad and force the analog stick on you like the gd links awakening remake or were they normal
Always a pleasure to listen to John
It's lovely hearing the direct comparisons between the music.
14:50 I just got chills...I cannot wait to play this game
That soundtrack sounds awesome
4:42 Where is the outdoor light source here? There's a window in the top left and presumably another window in the bottom right, yet the light seems to come through both of them at right angles. I realize I'm nitpicking, but I just thought it was weird how John comments (positively) on the light shafts, but didn't notice this. The game does look fantastic overall.
john you are propably my fav games journalist. true love for video games
🤯They pulled it off! Everyone is happy! 🥳
Mario RPG was originally developed by Squaresoft and the last Mario game release for the SNES
John you rule dude. Always love watching your videos
Shout out to the Phantasy Star Online Episode III music in the background of the performance section!
I find the music to be more shrill in the new release. How unfortunate. Besides that super excited one of my all time favorites.
We never got Super Mario rpg in Australia. I was a massive Squaresoft fan and was saddened when it was decided it wasn't going to be localized. It's so amazing to finally have a legitimate way to play it!
this game looks amazing! incredible how a 3D rendered game can maintain the original vibe so much.
Some great insights, John!
I feel the music in the remake almost loses some of the SNES/SFC punchiness. Some of the instruments feel pushed further back, losing some of its grandiose feel. But still an upgrade! That camera studder doesn't feel great, but I am willing to bet if the Switch 2 is backwards compatible this will run perfectly.
Great work John!
Played 2 hours before bed tonight, it is fantastic, great video!
I forgot about finishing this video halfway through the third ad break. 😢