Super Mario Sunshine - Reception

Super Mario Sunshine was commercially successful, having sold 5.5 million copies as of June 2006. In 2002, Super Mario Sunshine was the tenth best-selling game in the United States according to the NPD Group. It was re-released in 2003 as part of the Player's Choice line, a selection of games with high sales sold for a reduced price.

Super Mario Sunshine received critical acclaim by game reviewers. IGN praised the addition of the water backpack for improving the gameplay, and GameSpy commented on the "wide variety of moves and the beautifully constructed environments". The game received a perfect score from Nintendo Power, who commended the "superb graphics, excellent music, clever layouts, funny cinema scenes and ingenious puzzles". GamePro also gave Super Mario Sunshine a perfect score, stating that the game was "a masterpiece of superior game design, infinite gameplay variety, creativity, and life." The American-based publication Game Informer said that the game is arguably "the best Mario game to date." ComputerAndVideoGames.com also mentioned the game is "better than Super Mario 64." The game placed 46th in Official Nintendo Magazine's 100 greatest Nintendo games of all time.

Some reviewers criticized the game. GameSpot criticized the various additions, including the water backpack and Yoshi, calling them "mere gimmicks." They also criticized the camera system, and cited that the game seemed somewhat unpolished and rushed. They also criticized the voices, stating that "Super Mario Sunshine's FMV also houses some of the lousiest voice-over work to be found on the GameCube. None of the voices fit particularly well. Princess Peach sounds too ditzy, Mario is limited to grunts and other nonverbal communications, and the game's bad guys are completely miscast and downright disappointing." Matt Wales of ComputerAndVideoGames.com accused the game of having a "distinct lack of polish."