Star Revenge 3: Mario on an Saoire (formerly called Mario on an Saoire 64) is a ROM hack made by BroDute. It was released on September 20, 2013 and contains 65 stars.
On November 20, 2018, this hack got a remake: Star Revenge 3.5: Vacation of Cursed Dreams.
Changes
This hack is very unique in terms of what its changes are within the game. Besides plenty of unique changes to various sections of the game, it also keeps most of the changes implemented in the three previous games (Star Revenge 1, Star Revenge Redone v1.3 and Star Revenge 2 Act 2 Night of Doom).
- The most obvious change is the Overworld screen/function and how all levels act as HUBs in terms of pause screens and how collecting stars work.
- Most enemies have new design (except for Fly Guys, Chain Chomps, and Piranha Plants. They are identical to how they were in Mario 64).
- Other objects such as coins and stars were also recolored
- Red Coins are now Blue coins
- Stars are now Rainbow Stars
- Addition of Troll Stars
- 8 New Custom Levels and 7 Secret Levels
- New Custom Music for each level
- A new plot, though it is somewhat disjointed
Problems
- Due to the new level layout, it is impossible to see any clue to the stars in the level besides the first one. But the official download link has an included text file with star names for every star.
- Though not many are actually THAT hidden
- Also due to the level layout, there is no way to look at how many stars you got in any level but the one you are in unless from the main HUB.
- Backtracking to levels is somewhat of a pain since you have to go through each level from the starting HUB every time you reset.
- Some objects are very slippery (like rocks or roots of trees)
- If you do not save and load a save state after going through the starting pipe, the star textures may be off (a Bob-omb buddy informs Mario of this when he enters the harbor).
Changes in 1.1
- Star Select retained in 1.1
- 6 blue coins and 80 coin stars
- New Title Screen
- 1.1 now starts with 25 lives while 1.0 only starts with 1 life.
- aglab2's Parallel Cam was added in 1.1
- 1.1 Removed sound effect in Dorcha Wiggler Fight
- 4 Fire Spitters are now 4 Amps in Dorcha Wiggler Fight
- 1.1 changed from 25 seconds to 27 seconds in Slide.
Plot
The plot of this game is not very serious and has very little purpose other than to have a plot at all. The story takes place on Island An Saoire, a vacation spot for Mario, the Princess, and her servants. The island seems to be ran by a race of blue Bob-omb Buddies, who are very comforting to Mario being there. After Mario takes a pipe in a boat to the island next to Peach's renovated castle, he is free to explore the island at his own comfort. While exploring he will find various Rainbow Stars, which he may choose to collect. After collect your first star, the game will make the player wonder what the purpose of these stars are and why they are here. Sadly, the game never truly elaborates on the purpose of the stars.
After he goes through the initial harbor, beach, and bob-omb village, he will arrive at the castle of the island. In here he finds a hidden volcanic cavern in the basement where he find the first boss that exclaims that it doesn't matter how many Rainbow Stars the player has, and he wants them himself. Also within these caverns are rainbow color glitter. With the key to the rest of the island, Mario travels through a factory, desert, and finally a volcanic island where an evil Wiggler seems to be wreaking havoc, and also exclaims that it does not matter how many stars Mario has collected. If Mario loses the fight to this Wiggler, though, he lands in a warped version of the castle area where everything is dead, implying that this Wiggler plans on destroying everything. The princess is also never seen or mentioned outside the castle. The credits are also replaced with a playable level, where she is not present either.
Level Design
The levels are the main difference between this hack and other major ones. Just as in Mario 64, each of the main levels has 7 stars to collect, the 7th always being a 100 coin star. The difference is that unlike other hacks, when you collect a (main) star or die, you will appear at an spawn point for that level. This not only means that Mario can avoid the redundancy of the star select screen and jumping into a course, but it also saves your progress with collectibles UNTIL you enter another level. When Mario dies or collects a star, the amount of coins he has, the amount of Blue Coins he has collected, the enemies defeated, and number of secrets he has discovered will stay the same. This makes collection missions a lot less tedious and punishing. Another application of this is the fact that normal coins stay the same. After finishing a level, Mario gets a 1-up for each 50 coins he has. Since the coins keep through the level, this makes getting 1-ups very easy as each star (including troll stars) will give you at least one. That being said, it is highly recommended to attempt to get the 100 coin star first as this will lead to multiple 1-ups per star.
Troll Stars make a return from Star Revenge 2: Night of Doom, though this time more manageable. Troll Stars look like normal rainbow stars, but do not increase the star counter. In the previous title, their purpose was to frustrate the player as well as act as an indication for a nearby hidden star. While they still accomplish both of these purposes in this game, it is significantly less problematic as you spawn in the same level with all the enemies defeated before. Also, since the levels are much shorter, less backtracking is needed. They can also be used to your advantage as they will give Mario 1-ups if he has enough coins or even as a shortcut through some of the level is the spawn is after the star.
The creator of this hack made the levels with the intention of exploring ever bit of them. This is only bolstered by the lack of hints, allowing even smaller levels as these to be interesting. All the levels are also very uniquely themed and never get tiring. The beginning levels focus even more heavily on the exploring as the stages are not dangerous (and covered in water) and very intriguing. The later levels harbor more of a focus of platforming over dangers such as bottomless pits and lava. Cap switches are also in this game, but besides the Vanish Cap (which is odd since the creator adamantly hates this cap and deleted from most of the later games in the series), all of them are seldom used.
The level order is also up to the player. The only star requirement in the game is 35 for the final boss and the Metal and Vanish Cap to progress,. You can travel to every part of the island without obtaining a single star. The warp points to the levels are pipes or paths which are in the open. The penalty to this is that if you game over, you start all the way back at the HUB. Thankfully then paths are always close together so it is not even that tedious. Cap Switches also require no stars to get, so it recommended to get them all before collecting any stars (especially since the first level requires Metal Cap for one of them).
Reception
This game is a very relaxing adventure game that is great for honing your skills or just taking a break from another hack. The difficulty varies, as some of the platforming in even the earlier levels are quite hard, but there is no penalty for taking damage as there is water everywhere. The later levels are the opposite, they are a challenge but not overly difficult to the point of frustration. The lack of clues do add some crypticness into the game, though most of the stars can easily be found if the player explores a bit or talks to a friend native of the island.
Play this hack if: You like exploring wide areas and appreciate islands.
Avoid this hack if: You are impatient when you can not locate a star.
Levels
| Name of level | Level(s) replaced | Stars [1.0-1.1(1.2+)] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overworld | Castle Grounds | 2 (3) | The two Stars here are both held by a rabbit. v1.2 later with 6 red coins. |
| Palm Harbour | Bob-omb Battlefield | 7 | |
| Carraig Beach | Whomp's Fortress | 7 | |
| Park an Gleann | Jolly Roger Bay | 7 | |
| Majestic Mountains | The Princess's Secret Slide | 2 | To get to this level, find a warping spot in Park an Gleann. The Metal Cap Switch is located at the end of the slide. |
| Castle Saoire | Cool, Cool Mountain | 7 | |
| Castle Saoire Sewers | Castle Interior | 0 (2) | The Wing Cap Switch is hidden somewhere in this level. v1.2 later with 6 red coins. |
| Icy Grey Caverns | Big Boo's Haunt | 7 | The first of two mini-bosses is located in this level. |
| Battle in the Caves | Bowser in the Dark World | 0 (1) | The key that will open the door to Abheinn Factory is in this level. v1.2 later with 6 red coins. |
| Abheinn Factory | Hazy Maze Cave | 7 | |
| Sandy Teampaill | Lethal Lava Land | 7 | |
| Volcano Lu'ithreach | Shifting Sand Land | 7 | |
| Dorcha Wiggler's Destination | Bowser in the Sky | 1 | This is the final boss of the game. |
| A Bad Ending | Wing Mario Over the Rainbow | 1 | The level is a completely darkened, graveyard-like version of the overworld. If you lose the second (and final) boss battle, you will end up here. |
| The Ending Isle | Bowser in the Fire Sea | 2 (3) | If you win the second (and final) boss battle, you will go to this level. Upon collecting the Red Coin Star, you will then be sent back to the overworld. Toad holds the other Star in this level. |
| Little Japan | The Secret Aquarium | 1 | There are 100 Purple Coins in this level (each worth 2 regular Coins).
To get to the level, first Mario must first activate the cannon in the courtyard by finding the buddy inside a tree, then running into a fake wall behind the top tower of the castle. |
Music
| Used in | Song Sequence |
|---|---|
| Press Start Screen (1.0 - 1.1)
Majestic Mountains |
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red/Blue Rescue Team - Sky Tower |
| File Select Screen | Super Mario 64 - File Select |
| Overworld | Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga - File Select |
| Palm Harbour | Bomberman 64 - Blue Resort |
| Carraig Beach | Kirby's Adventure - Orange Ocean |
| Park An Gleann | Hotel Mario - Main Menu |
| Castle Saoire
Star Select (1.1 later) |
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars - Margarie Margarita |
| Hidden Sewers | Super Mario Bros 3 - Fortress Theme |
| Icy Grey Caverns | Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time - Thwomp Caverns |
| Abheinn Factory | Donkey Kong 64 - Fungi Forest (Night) |
| Sandy Teampaill | Donkey Kong 64 - Angry Aztec |
| Volcano Lu'ithreach | Bomberman 64 - Red Mountain |
| Boss Fight | The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - King Dodongo/Volvagia Battle |
| A Bad Ending
Battle in the Caves (Boss) |
Pokémon Red/Blue/Yellow - Lavender Town |
| Battle in the Caves (Reds) (1.2 later) | Wario Land 3 - Colossal Hole, Cave of Flames |
| The Ending Isle | Mario Party - Rainbow Castle |
| Little Japan | Super Mario Galaxy - Purple Comet |
| Wing/Vanish Cap(1.0 - 1.1)/Shell Theme | Super Mario 64 - Powerful Mario |
| Wing/Vanish Cap(1.2 later) | Super Mario 64 - Powerful Mario (Despacito Edit) |
| Metal Cap Theme | Super Mario 64 - Metallic Mario |
| Race with Koopa | Mario Kart 64 - Toad's Turnpike |
Background
"On An Saoire" is Irish for "On a Holiday"