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Chuy Zapatista's Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
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| [February 21, 2008 01:50:18 AM]
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GAMEPLAY
It might just be because I am not used to the controls, but I find the dislocation of the thumb stick and the Wii-mote to be a bit frustrating at times. With ordinary controls, the thumb stick that controls motion is usually controlled by the left hand. One would say that it’s no big deal and that the right hand can easily control the Wii-mote but herein lays the problem: I’m left handed! This makes it difficult to control Mario’s movement because I must hold the Wii-mote with the left hand for comfort and the nun chuck with my right. A minor problem but it seems like a minor flaw with the control and game design that makes a player like me have to feel awkward with controls to such a fun game.
On a lighter note, I did find my second hour of play enjoyable regardless of discomfort. The game environment made me feel very comfortable and happy. Everything from the way the characters are drawn to the music in the game is meant make the player feel happy. I was easily entertained the way Mario interacted with the environment.
One last thing about the gameplay is that it doesn’t seem to get old. I have only been playing this game for two hours but I have not gotten tired of anything so far. Every level that I have played so far seems to be just as fun as well as slightly more challenging than the last but at the same time it doesn’t get too hard too fast. I have been entertained so far.
DESIGN
The first thing to take notice of in the game is the level design. I can easily compare this game to Psychonaughts. In both games the main character navigates different levels that have their own physics or feel to them. In Super Mario Galaxy each level consists of the player going from planet to planet navigating obstacles on each planet that has its own gravity. Sometimes the physics of the game can really make someone sick. The physics engine is amazing in itself.
One thing that kind of bugs me about the game is that even though Super Mario Galaxy has lots of room for good cut scenes, it still resorts to out of date text boxes. The funny part of the whole thing is that there is still some voice acting in the game even though its takes the form of phrases, grunts, and roars. That part of the game really bugs me. I don’t think that anyone can use the Link card on this one. We already know how Mario sounds like every character has a familiar voice that people recognize. So why not just have good voice acting instead of obsolete text boxes? I think its Nintendo being cheap.
So that would be what I would change about the game: the voice acting, or lack thereof. I really feel that Nintendo has no excuse for this and that they should get with the times. But of course this is my own personal grudge and has nothing to do with how awesome Super Mario Galaxy is.
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| [February 20, 2008 10:08:31 PM]
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SUMMARY
Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii is a platform game that puts the player in control of Mario, the lovable plumber in red. Mario must cross the galaxy visiting numerous planets in search of power stars and rescue the princess from the evil Bowser.
GAMEPLAY
Like most Nintendo games, the story for Super Mario Galaxy is very similar to its predecessors, or at least astonishingly similar to Super Mario 64. Mario gets invited to the castle, Bowser as kidnapped the princess, and Mario has to save her. The game story hasn’t changed much from the original Super Mario Bros. for the NES. If there is one complaint that I have about Nintendo is its lack of imagination when it comes to basic story. While there is an independent story in the game that is unique to this game, the basic formula hasn’t changed much. While the basic formula for each Nintendo game hasn’t changed, I wonder how long they can keep using the same formula before players start wanting more out of each game.
The camera angle in the game was a bit disorienting at times. I found myself struggling with the camera and trying to see where I was going or what was ahead of me. Although there is a button to adjust the camera angle, it sometimes flips the camera backward making it even more difficult to see what is ahead of you. This is most evident when the player is trying to navigate a planet. The even though the camera can get annoying at times, the gameplay more than makes up for it.
Even though Super Mario Galaxy is meant to be a one player game, it has a feature that allows a second player to collect star bits for Mario. Collecting star bits may not sound like much fun but it can be much more fun than one may think. The designers made these star bits made it so that they come from everywhere at anytime. This makes player 2 keep an eye out for star bits. Along with collecting these star bits, player 2 can also shoot them at enemies.
To be continued…
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Chuy Zapatista's Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Wednesday 20 February, 2008
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