Super Mario Galaxy Review
I was wondering what I was gonna to review this week for class and I was playing a game cause I had to test things on my switch and I was using Super Mario Galaxy from the Super Mario 3D All Stars Collection to do that. I had nothing else I really wanted to play this week, so I kinda just decided to continue playing this game for the review.
Super Mario Galaxy for those that don’t know is a 3D Mario game that takes place in space going from Galaxy to Galaxy collecting stars in order to get from dome to dome in order to save Peach, who has, of course, been kidnapped by Bowser. As this was originally made for the Wii, it has a lot of motion controls involved. Shaking the remote allows Mario to spin, which can attack enemies and give a higher jump when in the air, point the remote at the TV, you get a cursor on the screen that can collect star bits, which you can collect to unlock certain galaxies and shoot at enemies, and if you are on an object or riding something, you can tilt the remote to steer it.
Before I get into any pros and cons, I just want to say that I’m played this game as a kid and I figured that their would have been some sort of nostalgia goggles. I think I should start with the cons first, which might come off as harsh, so I apologize in advance. The first thing is that I personally have never been a fan of motion controls. I like using buttons a bit better, so this would have been a bad experience on the Wii for me, like when I played Skyward Sword, which, to be fair, does it worse than this. Another thing was that the controls can be wonky at times when you are trying to move from one side of a very flat planet to the other as you can’t really move properly and could stay in one place. This isn’t the only place, however as swimming can be a pain without having a shell underwater when that was completely fine in Super Mario Sunshine, it’s predecessor, but that could be because of the wiimote and it’s interesting design. Also, you collect star bits, which mean a lot as they can help unlock planets and help with secret stars, but you also have coins, which help with health, but don’t do anything else. This is fixed in it’s sequel, Super Mario Galaxy 2, which helps with secret stars and other things there.
One big issue I have with the game though will sort of have to be explained by talking about other games, so I’m sorry if this goes against what the review is suppose to be. With Super Mario Odyssey, you go from kingdom to kingdom to collect Moons to unlock the next one to well save Peach from Bowser. The kingdoms all have a theme to them, which makes it feel more structured, which is what I feel this game lacks. In the domes, the galaxies feel very randomly put together. I understand that galaxies could have different looking planets, like we do in our galaxy, but normally in Mario, the levels sort of seem to fit the world that they are in. I guess it’s just a nitpick, but to me it just seems like a big issue.
This does seem like a rant and that I hate the game, however I see it as a critique because I do actually like the game and what it does. I think that even though, yes, it is a very wonky game to play sometimes, it was very innovative. It’s the first and as of right now, only 3D Mario game to have a sequel and even made the Sonic franchise, since they don’t know where they want Sonic to go even 8 years after this game was made, have a game just like it called Sonic Lost World, which is a bad game, I don’t recommend. The motion controls were changed with the help of the gyro controls in the switch version as you can move the cursor using that and control things, which feels a bit smoother than the wiimote, not by that much, but being able to press x and y to spin is a blessing. The observatory as a hub is such a great idea, being able to talk to lumas, toads, Rosalina, and Luigi in it while having the domes in different areas to make it look good. The comets are a cool concept to bring replayability to each level that they have them in. But the biggest thing is that most Mario games are just fun to play. They have their own charm that make you not want to put down the controller, even if they have flaws of their own.
Overall, this game brought back fun memories but reminded me that even childhood shouldn’t be the end all be all of a rating to a game. I think that at the $20 to $35ish dollars it goes for on it’s own, you could get it, but I think that while it is on the Switch with Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine for $60, it is a steal and a superior way to play. This will only be $60 dollars till April, so make sure to get it. Super Mario Galaxy gets a 3.5 out of 5, flawed, but very fun.
