An exceptional platformer that that has you sailing through space
The Good
Super Mario Galaxy is Nintendo's big Mario game for the Wii and it's definitely a massive game. It practically leaks with sheer brilliance and quality. Wii owners, this is the must get game.
The game starts off with a sort of storybook opening that's fairly happy and slow. A few minutes later, Bowser's attacking the castle once again and kidnapping Peach. This time though, he takes the whole castle with him, similar to what he did in Paper Mario 64, only he takes everything to space, along with Mario as well. Mario finds himself trying to rescue Peach as usual and bounds through several galaxies and planets in search for power stars. This whole scene is so well done and just incredibly cinematic that you can't help but just stare in amazement at it.
When Mario wakes up, an odd bunny creature is watching him. This bunny tells Mario that if he can catch him and his friends, then he will tell him where he is. Here you have to catch this rabbit and his two other friends on a spherical planetoid that introduces you to what you will later see in the game. Super Mario Galaxy takes you upside down and all around from the beginning. Once you find and catch these rabbits, you find out you're on a passing ship of sorts where several luma's (star creatures that you find out that the rabbits actually are) live along with their "mother" Princess Rosalina. She tells you that Bowser has stolen the power stars that powered her ship and that she is stuck. As Mario, it's pretty much your duty to help her.
The first few levels introduce you to the game and the controls. It's all very easy to learn and such because the controls really aren't that hard to learn. By shaking the Wii-mote, you can make Mario spin (you can also do this with the Nunchuk but it might feel a bit uncomfortable compared to the Wii-mote). As for the camera, you're able to control it the D-pad to a decent amount of settings. Some areas limit your camera controlling abilities because the situation you're in might be made worse if you were to control the camera manually. Most of the time though, the game works the camera for you and you don't need to worry about it. The only annoying instances of both the camera and controls are with swimming underwater. You can get used to it after a while but it still feels a bit odd trying to reach an object when the camera messes with your depth perception.
The platforming itself is pure brilliance. It takes the original Mario platforming and puts a radical twist on it with the factor of gravity and space. Some areas of the game have distorted gravity and arrows point to which way the gravity goes. Running and jumping are what Mario platformers are known for…but upside down? It's crazy but it works so well.
The graphics are easily the best seen on the Wii. It's definitely technically proficient and show what the Wii can do. It's not entirely the technical aspect of it, but the artstyle of it. The rich colours and backgrounds are gorgeous and are great eye candy. Mario hasn't looked so good. Mario Galaxy isn't afraid to use such bright colours. It makes the game feel alive.
The audio aspect is also on par with the rest of the game's quality. Orchestrated masterpieces inhabit the game's levels so that each tune fits with the level's environments. There are some remixes as well that will definitely spark a part of your memory. Overall though, the songs aren't the most memorable but they sound great and fit in properly. Sound effects are reminiscent of some past Mario games (such as the famous mushroom sound and such) but the majority of them are new.
Overall, Super Mario Galaxy is a stunning game that revives the platforming genre and makes itself known as the first definitive Wii game. This is the quality that should be seen in other Wii games. The care and detail that went into making the game is clearly shown. The only reason you shouldn't get this game is because you don't like to have fun and play games or that you don't own a Wii, in which you should try and find one.
- Genius platforming and puzzles
- Astounding graphics and artstyle
- Good controls
- Great new powerups
- Fairly lengthy
- "Storybook" is kind of nice
The Bad
- Some awkward underwater moments with camera and controls
- Some tedious "Purple Coin" missions
The Review
Super Mario Galaxy is Nintendo's big Mario game for the Wii and it's definitely a massive game. It practically leaks with sheer brilliance and quality. Wii owners, this is the must get game.
The game starts off with a sort of storybook opening that's fairly happy and slow. A few minutes later, Bowser's attacking the castle once again and kidnapping Peach. This time though, he takes the whole castle with him, similar to what he did in Paper Mario 64, only he takes everything to space, along with Mario as well. Mario finds himself trying to rescue Peach as usual and bounds through several galaxies and planets in search for power stars. This whole scene is so well done and just incredibly cinematic that you can't help but just stare in amazement at it.
When Mario wakes up, an odd bunny creature is watching him. This bunny tells Mario that if he can catch him and his friends, then he will tell him where he is. Here you have to catch this rabbit and his two other friends on a spherical planetoid that introduces you to what you will later see in the game. Super Mario Galaxy takes you upside down and all around from the beginning. Once you find and catch these rabbits, you find out you're on a passing ship of sorts where several luma's (star creatures that you find out that the rabbits actually are) live along with their "mother" Princess Rosalina. She tells you that Bowser has stolen the power stars that powered her ship and that she is stuck. As Mario, it's pretty much your duty to help her.
The first few levels introduce you to the game and the controls. It's all very easy to learn and such because the controls really aren't that hard to learn. By shaking the Wii-mote, you can make Mario spin (you can also do this with the Nunchuk but it might feel a bit uncomfortable compared to the Wii-mote). As for the camera, you're able to control it the D-pad to a decent amount of settings. Some areas limit your camera controlling abilities because the situation you're in might be made worse if you were to control the camera manually. Most of the time though, the game works the camera for you and you don't need to worry about it. The only annoying instances of both the camera and controls are with swimming underwater. You can get used to it after a while but it still feels a bit odd trying to reach an object when the camera messes with your depth perception.
The platforming itself is pure brilliance. It takes the original Mario platforming and puts a radical twist on it with the factor of gravity and space. Some areas of the game have distorted gravity and arrows point to which way the gravity goes. Running and jumping are what Mario platformers are known for…but upside down? It's crazy but it works so well.
The graphics are easily the best seen on the Wii. It's definitely technically proficient and show what the Wii can do. It's not entirely the technical aspect of it, but the artstyle of it. The rich colours and backgrounds are gorgeous and are great eye candy. Mario hasn't looked so good. Mario Galaxy isn't afraid to use such bright colours. It makes the game feel alive.
The audio aspect is also on par with the rest of the game's quality. Orchestrated masterpieces inhabit the game's levels so that each tune fits with the level's environments. There are some remixes as well that will definitely spark a part of your memory. Overall though, the songs aren't the most memorable but they sound great and fit in properly. Sound effects are reminiscent of some past Mario games (such as the famous mushroom sound and such) but the majority of them are new.
Overall, Super Mario Galaxy is a stunning game that revives the platforming genre and makes itself known as the first definitive Wii game. This is the quality that should be seen in other Wii games. The care and detail that went into making the game is clearly shown. The only reason you shouldn't get this game is because you don't like to have fun and play games or that you don't own a Wii, in which you should try and find one.
