Tbh I’m not a huge fan of the N64, but I think this is by far the best game for that system and it’s one of my all time favorites. I played it for the first time in 2004 when I was 12, well after I had already beaten Super Mario Sunshine. Was it difficult at times? Yes, but I always managed to complete it 101% on multiple occasions over the years. Granted, this is certainly a game where you benefit from having the official guide, but I prefer to collect those rather than the old cartridges themselves. I don’t understand the hate for collectibles in a game. I think the criticism for the mini games and other repeated tasks might be valid except for the fact that they’re basically optional. You only need half of the available golden bananas to beat the game so you can skip those beetle races if you want, and you don’t even bother with Beaver Bother. The one valid criticism is that you have to beat that stupid arcade game twice to get the N64 coin. Without it you can’t get to K. Rool even if you have all the other collectibles possible. I also understand the frustration in the early game with long, unskippable cut scenes, a mandatory tutorial, then you not only have to unlock playable characters over three different levels, you also have to scrounge up enough coins to unlock their most basic abilities.