Sunshine is legitimately bad? :O
I mean, I can understand that some people wanted more world variety, although I'd say the island theme was refreshing in how thoroughly it explored that setting, to the point you could see Pinna Park from Delfino Plaza or Ricco Harbor from Bianca Hills. Sunshine had a strong sense of place, even if my SM64 upbringing had me craving a snow world.
And I can understand that much of the best platforming was reserved for the FLUDD-less sections, and that the camera could be a pain at times (that Ferris wheel in Pinna Park, oh lawd), and that cleaning up graffiti or hosing down an ever-multiplying stingray wasn't perhaps game design at its finest.
But there was so much I loved about Sunshine, from simple stuff like spritzing the ground with water and belly-sliding at high speed, to hanging off a tightrope and propelling myself in circles before releasing and flying through the air. Delfino Plaza remains the most fun hub world in a 3D Mario -- platforming up the buildings and running across shingled rooftops was sublime -- and I also loved the Turbo Nozzle -- a sort of makeshift Wave Race in my Mario! -- as well as the Rocket Nozzle, which was used to great effect in the final battle. Certain setpieces, like Mecha-Koopa on the rollercoaster or the giant Wiggler on the beach, were exciting and never got old. So much cool stuff packed into Mario's one-off vacation... even if other elements were rough around the edges.
I can see how it's the black sheep of the mainline Mario games for some people, the "SMB2" of the 3D Mario titles, but it's certainly not terrible and is better than the vast majority of other platformers out at the time.
