Super Mario 64 is a 3D platformer in which the player controls Mario through various courses. Mario's abilities are far more diverse than in previous games.[10][11] He can walk, run, jump, crouch, crawl, climb, swim, kick, grab objects, and punch using the game controller's analog stick and buttons. He can execute special jumps by combining a regular jump with other actions, including the double and triple jumps, long jump, backflip, and wall jump. The player can adjust the camera—operated by a Lakitu broadcasting Mario—and toggle between first-person and third-person view.[12]
Unlike many of its predecessors, Super Mario 64 uses a health point system, represented by a pie shape consisting of eight segments.[13] If Mario has taken damage, he can replenish his health either by collecting three types of coins—yellow, which replenishes one segment; red, equal to two yellow coins; and blue, equal to five yellow coins—or by walking through a spinning heart.[14] Underwater, Mario's health instead represents how long he can hold his breath, slowly diminishing while underwater and replenishing when he surfaces.[15] As in previous Super Mario games, he starts with a number of extra lives, lost when his health is depleted or he falls into a bottomless pit. The game ends if Mario loses all his lives. When Mario finishes a course, he gains a life for every fifty yellow coins collected,[13] and extra life mushrooms are hidden in various places such as trees and may chase Mario or fall to the ground and disappear shortly if not collected.[16]
In the absence of traditional power-ups like the Super Mushroom and Fire Flower, three colors of translucent blocks—red, green, and blue—appear throughout many stages. Three switches of the same colors can be found in secret areas that turn their corresponding blocks solid, allowing Mario to obtain three types of special cap power-ups. The Wing Cap lets Mario fly after a triple jump or being shot from a cannon;[17] the Metal Cap makes him immune to enemies, fire, noxious gases, withstand wind and water currents, perform on-land moves underwater, and have unlimited air capacity underwater; and the Vanish Cap renders him partially immaterial and invulnerable, allowing him to walk through some obstacles.[15][18] A shell remains after stomping a Koopa Troopa, which Mario can use to surf on water, lava, and quicksand.[19]
The hub world takes place in Princess Peach's Castle, consisting of three floors, a tower, and a basement, plus a moat and a courtyard outside the castle.[20] The player's main objective is to find paintings that, when jumped into, bring them into courses containing Power Stars, which upon collection unlock more of the castle hub world.[21] Each of the fifteen courses has seven Power Stars, and an additional fifteen are hidden as secrets and bonuses, for a total of 120 Power Stars in the game.[22]
The courses are filled with enemies and friendly creatures that provide assistance or ask favors, such as Bob-omb Buddies, who will allow Mario to access cannons on request.[23] Some Power Stars only appear after completing certain tasks, often hinted at by the course name. Challenges include collecting one hundred yellow coins or eight red coins on a stage, defeating a boss, racing an opponent, and solving puzzles.[24] The final level is blocked by "endless stairs" resembling the Penrose stairs concept, but Mario can bypass them by collecting seventy Power Stars.[25] The music in the endless stairs area resembles a Shepard scale. Many hidden mini-courses and other secrets within the castle may contain extra Power Stars required for full completion.[26] After collecting all 120 Power Stars, Yoshi appears on the roof of Princess Peach's Castle, offering the player a message from the developers, one hundred extra lives, and an improved triple jump.[22][27]