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Scrawnto's Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
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| [February 21, 2008 02:07:23 AM]
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GAMEPLAY
The gameplay continued to be fun into the second hour. The game keeps things fresh by introducing mini games such as manta surfing. It also brings back the concept of giving Mario multiple costumes, similar to those that were in Super Mario Bros. 3. These make for a nice change in pace.
Controls in the game are well tuned. It is easy enough to execute any of Mario’s jumps. Actions controlled by the accelerometer are responsive, and make the game standout a bit more from the competition.
One thing that did disappoint me slightly in Super Mario Galaxy, is that there are fewer methods of attacking enemies than in Super Mario 64 or Super Mario Sunshine. No longer does Mario have a three hit combo or a sliding kick. He now only has a spinning attack triggered by a shake of the controller. This isn’t a big deal as combat isn’t the focus of the game, but it did add some variety.
DESIGN
Super Mario Galaxy does a great job of utilizing the Wii’s relatively limited horsepower. The levels are very vibrant, with lots of primary colors. The level designs are clever in many cases. One of the nicest things in the game is that few objects look blocky as levels in Mario 64 might. I haven’t come across any problems regarding my color blindness either. The games enemies are mostly recycled from previous Mario games, but they are nicely animated, and in several cases are given updated looks reflecting the space setting of the game.
The game’s music is also a strong point of the game. It sets a strong lighthearted tone for the game. It was also nice to hear many of my favorite tunes from the series reinterpreted in higher quality. The original compositions are of similar quality. Some of the sound effects utilized by the game are really nice as well. I remember in particular the sound effects during a boss battle with a giant robot were cool.
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| [February 21, 2008 12:05:54 AM]
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SUMMARY
Super Mario Galaxy is the latest in Nintendo’s popular series of platformers. In the game you collect Power Stars while traversing levels composed of miniature planetoids which each have their own gravity fields.
GAMEPLAY
There is a lot to like about Super Mario Galaxy. The most striking aspect of it is the way the developers play on the variable gravity in the game. Most surfaces in the game have their own gravitational attraction. This serves a few different purposes in the game. It gives a sense of novelty, in that the player has to learn how to navigate a world upside down. It allows much more freeform level design. However, one of the more interesting changes this allows, that is not immediately obvious is that it makes the game much more forgiving than older Mario titles. If a player jumps off the edge of a platform, often he will curve around the planet and land on the bottom rather than plunging into the depths of space to his doom. This makes the game much more accessible to newcomers to the genre.
The game also allows a second player to influence the game, another first for the series. The second player can stun enemies for the first, collect star bits which net the player extra lives, or even make Mario jump. The last can be used to either help out the first player when he is caught unaware of a danger or can even be used to sabotage him, which is often just as entertaining.
The story in this game is more complex than the story of , say, Super Mario 64, but that isn’t saying much. It certainly isn’t on the level of the Mario RPGs, but it serves it’s purpose. There is more interaction with non-player characters than in previous Mario platformers in the form of Toads scattered throughout the levels who occasionally have useful advice.
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Scrawnto's Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Thursday 21 February, 2008
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