As much as we love Mario, it still feels slightly odd when you remind yourself that one of gaming's most loved icons is a fat moustachioed plumber. We doubt many of us dream of fixing some old dear's leaky taps for a living.
Nevertheless, just about every Mario game is welcomed with the kind of enthusiasm as next week's winning lottery numbers. We've previously had Mario in solid 2D and a glorious run in true 3D in Mario 64. This time he gets to flaunt his wares throughout the cosmos.
But will good old run and jump gameplay head across to the Wii fully intact? Or will this be a dimension too far for the portly little chap?
They say:
1UP: "In short, Galaxy is one of the most impressive, engrossing games in recent memory."
IGN: "Super Mario Galaxy is one of the greatest platformers I have ever played, Wii's best game, and an absolute must own experience."
Gamespot: "If ever there were a must own Wii game, Super Mario Galaxy is it."
We say:
It may be over a decade old, but no platformer has topped Mario 64. Well, until now anyway. Super Mario Galaxy has ripped that crown off its dowdy old head and proudly sits at the top of the platform gaming tree.
If you've played Mario 64 you'll know what to expect. You start at a 'hub' and head off to a variety of planets to collect stars. There's 120 in total and the more you obtain, the more levels get unlocked. Though instead of opening boring old unlocked doors, you'll blast off into space towards new galaxies.
And yet again, you're not required to collect the whole lot to see the final credits roll. Nope, the final boss is unlocked around the 65 star mark, meaning those extra stars are purely for the completists among you. With that in mind, we expect every single one of you who buys this game to become completely obsessed with discovering all 120. It's the videogame equivalent of Pringles.
The controls make all this collecting all the more enjoyable too. You don't have to run through every collectible to pick it up, rather point the Wii Remote in the right direction and you'll bag them automatically.
The basics are the same as always. The analogue stick on the Nunchuk moves Mario around with the 'A' button used to jump. But like Mario Football, the Wii's innovative control method takes care of some of the more complex moves.
A quick shake of the Remote initiates a Mario spin to bash your nearest enemy, while various other manipulations of the Remote and Nunchuk initiate a whole stream of other moves, each of which are introduced to you during the course of the game.
It's safe to say that the story is the typical standard Mario fare. Princess Peach has been kidnapped by Bowser and it's up to Mario to safe the day once again. He might be a plumber, but it doesn't seem to be his wrench based skills that earn him his pennies.
Though the Wii might not be one of those new fangled HD ready consoles, it doesn't mean that Mario Galaxy is a visual slouch. Everything is gloriously colourful and dripping in the kind of cutesy detail that only Nintendo can seem to pull off.
The move to planets rather than simple levels can be a trifle off putting at first. The constant change of perspective by the well worked camera does take a little getting used to, as does the introduction of each planet's gravitational pull. But again, as Nintendo does so well, the difficulty curve has been judged to such perfection that you're never left frustrated.
So what if it's repetitive and not much different from all those Mario games before it? Mario Galaxy has simply taken an already winning formula and polished it to perfection.
When the Wii's history and we're on to the next set of consoles, this is the game Nintendo's baby will be remembered for.
Like this? Try these:
Mario Strikers Charged Football - Wii
Mario 64 - Wii, DS, N64
New Super Mario Bros - DS
FORMAT REVIEWED
Wii
OTHER FORMATS
None
POSTED...
Fri 23 Nov 2007 at 12:52pm
