Why the Sunshine feat applies to base Mario

This feat applies to Mario's base, as unlike Power Stars, which are shown to increase the user's power, Shine Sprites, the collectable of the game, show no proof of possessing such a trait. In fact, quite the opposite. For example, Mario first faces off against Gooper Blooper with a hand-full of Shine Sprites returned to the Shine Gate, with Gooper Blooper being in possession of a Shine Sprite himself. Meanwhile, by the time Mario reaches Noki Bay, he has returned a fair share of the Shine Sprites to the Shine Gate, yet can fight against Gooper Blooper with just as much ease/difficulty as before, even though Gooper Blooper has no Shine Sprite himself (his defeat instead just breaks open a barrier). In case there was any doubt Shine Sprites are not Power Stars due to a quote vaguely implying Power Stars and Power Moons are one and the same, Shine Sprites are seen as distinctly different from Power Stars according to Toadsworth, and Princess Peach, who's castle holds a large number of Power Stars (and thus she should be able to easily recognise a Power Star or its variants), was confused as to what the Shine Sprites were. If there is still doubt as to if Shine Sprites truly do not amp their collector, consider the following: In Super Mario 64, Peach's Castle would be able to grant power to Mario when he collects Power Stars. If, in Super Mario Sunshine, the Shine Gate could grant power to those who collected Shine Sprites, would it truly trust Mario? In this game, Mario is seen as a criminal and the very reason the Shine Sprites fled in the first place by the islanders. There would be no reason for the Shine Gate to provide Mario with an amp if it had the ability to do so, and the evidence more so points to the idea that it cannot do so anyway.