Super Mario 64 is the game that brought Mario into the third dimension. That’s not a small feat on its own, but it was also one of the first games to create three-dimensional platforming that was enjoyable as well as functional. It’s rightfully considered to be a masterpiece of level design, providing a path forward for just about every other mascot-style character as games moved away from flat sprites.
The video above gives some idea of what the game would look like after someone removes that third dimension, and I imagine it took a significant amount of time to re-create these levels in a way that still made sense in 2D.
You can download the five levels yourself using the links below if you’d like to try them in Super Mario Maker.
1) Super Mario 64 2D - Ground Floor
2) Super Mario 64 2D - Lower Stairs
3) Super Mario 64 2D - Basement
You can also watch a video of a Super Mario 64 HD remake below, if you’d like to see how the game might look with updated visuals.