Super Mario 64: Every Level Ranked From Worst To Best
7. Shifting Sand Land
Likely one of the first levels the player comes to after beating Bowser’s initial form, Shifting Sands Land poses an ideal ramp up in difficulty after the easing in of worlds one through five. While things don’t look to have changed too much on the surface, this is a level full of peril, with crushing blocks, a bird that steals your hat, and instant death quicksand abounding.
It’s another of the bigger levels, but this one all hangs together nicely, a well laid out and varied level complete with a winged cap and Koopa shell to allow for easier navigation. Some of the stars can be a little frustrating and unintuitive - standing atop the four pillars, for example, or using the cap to collect airborne coins - but there’s a lot of variety.
The pyramid is where things get real for the player.
A stern platforming challenge (unfortunately displaying the camera issues at their very worst), a cool, distinct boss fight against a pair of disembodied hands, and a star based on finding secret coins that are just on the right side of being too obtuse. Testing, but never unfair.