I purchased my own copy of Super Paper Mario last week and finished the last two challenges on Saturday. I completed the Flopside Pit of 100 Trials for the second time and also beat the 100 Rounds in Chapter 6. After stockpiling over 20 Ultra Shroom Shakes both were relatively easy.

At the same time I picked up Super Paper Mario I also bought a used copy of Super Mario Sunshine for the Gamecube (the Wii also plays original Gamecube game discs) and so far I’ve earned about 35 Shine Sprits (earning Shine Sprites is similar to winning them in the Nintendo 64 game Super Mario 64). I used to own a Gamecube. I had also owned Super Mario Sunshine at one time and while I had beaten the game I did not collect all of the Shine Sprites. I’m thinking of making another attempt.

I find it somewhat amusing that someone my age is still enjoying these simpler games (not the run, jump, and shoot 3-D games that I tended to play during my late high-school and early college days). I have several friends close to my age (with established careers and some with families) who own a Wii and play regularly. It does feel a bit strange at times to hold a conversation with another adult that include “Oh, to do that you’ve first got to get such and such item”, etc…

But it’s still fun.

This week’s new Virtual Console releases still are lacking a majority of games that I think of as truly defining the age of the original NES and Super NES. Legend of Zelda 2 was included, but it wasn’t a game I cared much for the first time it was released. Nintendo seems to only release one classic game per week that I actually heard of or played.