There is something about fantasy that touches the core inside of us. Call it what you will — nostalgia, or a connection to our inner child, or a need for escapism. People continue to connect to these heroic stories in different worlds. And they connect with games even more so as the medium truly allows us to explore these meticulously created universes of wonder. With this in mind I think its no surprise that many of us can trace back our gaming heritage to a man in a puffy red cap and his exploits to save a princess. Now truth be told, Super Mario 64 ranks as one of my favorite games of all time, and I wasn’t entirely pleased with Super Mario Sunshine, or for that matter most early Wii support towards the hardcore; so my expectation level for Mario’s latest adventure was pretty high. I sat down to my little white box with my nerves racked. My fears were completely unfounded as every expectation has been surpassed with Miyamoto’s latest masterpiece, Super Mario Galaxy.
"... every expectation has been surpassed with Miyamoto’s latest masterpiece..."
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After yet another letter from Peach, Mario heads down to the castle in the midst of a festival celebrating the union between the heavens and the earth. Since Mario is essentially one of the unluckiest characters in the history of gaming however, trouble hits right after the castle comes into sight. An extremely badass iteration of Bowser charges in along with a fleet of his airships a la’ Super Mario Bros. 3. As if that wasn’t bad enough a UFO appears, seemingly in cahoots with King Koopa and between the two of them, they hoist the entire castle and Mario himself into the heavens. Mario soon gets separated and appropriately you find yourself chasing rabbits and soon after that, stars which (without spoiling too much) will allow you to chase the princess through the galaxy itself to where she’s being held hostage by Bowser.
Now what is it exactly that makes Mario Galaxy so super? It has to be the level design. Some levels are comprised of small planets, satellites, or space stations which are made up of every good idea anyone on the design team seems to have had connected by astral slingshots. There are stages which are essentially one giant level, larger in scope than that in Mario 64, and then there are ones which are everywhere in between. There are also unique takes on the dungeon levels from past Mario outings which will leave you breathless. You sometimes even drop into 2 & ½ D platforming straight out of New Super Mario Bros for part of a level. You can jump or soar between planets with a completely unique system of gravity taking full advantage of Mario’s jumping capabilities. Mario has new powers this time around as well. He can become a bee and fly short distances or stick to honeycomb, or he can become a Boo and float through walls, fighting off the amorous attentions of other Boo’s in the process. These are just a sampling of all the things to behold in Mario Galaxy as ruining them all would have to be a crime. Hell, Luigi even plays a role in the game, too!
"The graphics in Super Mario Galaxy put everything else on the Wii at this point to complete shame. "
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Now the gravity aspect is certainly one of the most curious parts of Super Mario Galaxy and for good reason. You have the world’s most recognized jumper in space and naturally you might be curious as to how that works out. Well in the stages with multiple tiny planets each planet has a sphere of gravitational pull surrounding it within a certain perimiter. On most of the planet surfaces Mario can jump around the same to what we are used to if not ever so slightly higher. Well then what happens when you try and take a long jump off to another nearby planet? Well if Mario’s jump lands in that planet’s gravitational pull, he will be pulled down to that planet’s surface and continue along his merry way but if you miscalculate, you will be pulled into a black hole which acts the same as a pit in a 2D world and well, you just lost a life. If you come across a star-shot (slingshot) you just rev your arm with the Wii-mote and you are launched into the stratosphere towards another grouping of planets. In other levels you will notice a constellation of stars directly above your head upon which you just point your Wii-mote at the nearest star and press A upon which a magic beam will come out and pull you towards the star, this leads to fun situations as you get put into a field filled with these stars and pointy objects you try not to run into. Finally some levels are a giant ecosystem of their own and life pretty much acts a’la Mario 64. Simply put, the game creates fun with every jump.
The graphics in Super Mario Galaxy put everything else on the Wii at this point to complete shame. Bright beautiful color and definition bring Mario into the next generation and even give a few early 360 and PS3 games a run for their money. There are no framerate skips whatsoever as Mario runs across the surface of each planet or as he leaps between them. Character models and levels are smooth as butter and everything a Mario platformer should be. By far this is the most beautiful game on any Nintendo system to date.
The audio is a celebration of all things Mario. There is some excellent, yet limited voice work on the main characters. Unlike other triple-A Nintendo titles, however, this doesn’t feel like a hindrance. The musical score is simply amazing and marries updated versions of some of the most memorable Mario themes from the past, and are covered by a complete symphony orchestra. They mix in with new ones that hold their own quite well. I think it’s a given that every hardcore Mario fanboy will mark out within ten minutes of turning the game on once a certain song hits.
Control is basically everything from Mario 64 with a few key differences. You jump, double jump, triple jump, backflip, reverse-stick-flip, wall jump, long jump, and punch using semi-familiar feeling ways on the Wii-mote with nunchuck. You can also shoot tiny stars at your enemies using the pointer and the trigger, but you can turn on a second Wii-mote and have a buddy do it if you’d like. It’s not quite co-op, but sometimes you don’t want to share anyway.
"The audio is a celebration of all things Mario."
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My only complaint is that Nintendo’s quest to control the camera has hit a few kinks. The camera can be is quirky and the manual control is only sometimes an option. Regardless, camera issues are ever so rare in this massive adventure. There are 60 stars to collect to beat the main game, and the camera doesn’t usually interfere with getting them. In the 120 to go on to completion, however, it may become a hinderance as you try to adjust the camera for your next long jump. It’s slight, but there is still work to be done and it can be tiresome.
Nintendo has made a mint on Wii, overloading its library with casual games (which has caused some third parties to double-overload with shovelware), but there have been few hardcore efforts. When there are hardcore efforts, especially this one, there needs to be a massive marketing push. Now is the time Nintendo: You have a game that will capture the hearts and minds of hardcore and casual alike. It will silence non-believers. It’s going to be a game of the year contender in the same year where Mass Effect, Bioshock, Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, and Orange Box were released. You proved you still have the old magic, let the world know it and continue to know it in years to come. The kid inside me thanks you.
