Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

A must have for Wii owners. The pace is faster than Mario 64 or Sunshine, and the planetary physics allow for inventive and trippy gameplay design. The game frequently pretzel bends your mind and you constantly need to reset your bearings. Graphics, music, and controls are top notch.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

If that first grader were good at videogames, yes. But it does require a high level of coordination and spatial processing. For instance, I grabbed 20+ stars in about 4 hours of play. In that time, my wife got 4. Her biggest issue was working out spatial relationships between objects.

The more I play, the more impressed I am with the game. It's actually not like Super Mario 64 -- it's much more linear and platform oriented, and it moves at a very brisk pace.

Just to add: unlike SM64, there is a lot of falling and dying in SMG. Not for the easily frustrated.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

Only 10 times? You must be good. I think I died 20-30 times. It's hard to tell because there's a 1up loop if you can get to the midpoint, and I kind of lost track. So much dying.

I've got 38 stars and opened up all the observatories, and I have to say that this game is still getting better and better. SMG has that hallmark of superior game design where a you're faced with a seemingly insourmountable obstacle or foe, but through repetition you figure out the proper technique and finally defeat the enemy.

My only complaint is that some of the levels are too short/easy. Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show)

Also, while the swiming mechanics are better here than in Zelda:TP or SM64, I still hate the swimming levels.

While I got queasy on occasion during SM64 and Metroid Prime 3 made me nauseous a few times, SMG has been absolutely motion sickness free, with is surprising considering the constant shifts in perspective and being upside down and whatnot. I think it's because it was designed to not have the camera whipping around so much.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

Just wanted to update for anyone sitting on the fence (and to tempt anyone who has the game under the tree and not in their Wii):

After you open up your fourth observatory, the game just becomes AMAZING. I mean, the first 20-30 stars are fun, but starting with the Warning: Spoiler! (Click to show) the levels become long, complex, and require both problem solving skills and good to great reflexes. I loved Mario 64, but SMG is a whole 'nutha level -- this is easily the greatest 3D platformer ever made, if for no other reason it feels more like a 2D platformer with 3D elements rather than the usual exploration and collect-a-thon that almost all 3D platformers are nowadays. The level design is absolute genius -- I am constantly muttering, "that is *bleeping* amazing" all the time when I play because the cleverness just gushes off of the screen. The ingenuity is endless, and there are some levels that have 3 or 4 moments where your admiration almost distracts you from the task at hand.

SMG is not meant to simply be beaten. You owe it to yourself to at least try every level, because it's a despicable waste to get just enough stars to beat the game and then leave all that untapped genius untouched, especially when the better levels open up after you have the minimum amount needed to reach the ending. Don't worry that this game is too short. It will only be short if you cheat yourself out of the privilege of trying every single level.

SMG is one of those games where the hype is totally justified. And it should be believed.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

At this point, SMG is easily the best Wii game, ranking ahead of Zelda:Twilght Princess and Metroid Prime 3. I have heard great things about Zak & Wiki and RE4 is also very cool.

Still, SMG is ahead of the pack for graphics, sound, and gameplay. By god, the gameplay is ludicrously good.

The nice thing about SMG is that it appeals to 3 levels of gamers -- for the less coordinated, a second player can assist with star collection, freezing enemies, and higher jumps. For medium skilled gamers, 40-50 stars is doable. But you have some skillz, the game is mind-blowingly awesome. Some of the levels are very challenging.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

I am at 108 stars, and it's getting more frustrating than fun. I'm not sure if I will be able to get all 120 and get the last unlockable.

However, stars 40-100 were fantastically fun. SMG is not only the best game on the Wii, it's better than anything I've played on the Gamecube and as a matter of personal preference, I enjoy this slightly more than Super Mario 64, only because it's so much faster paced and less exploratory than SM64.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

SPM and SMG are two different games. SPM is much slower and the switching between 2D and 3D game mechanic doesn't have a counterpart in SMG. Actually, I didn'treally like SPM. It felt slow and I ended up wandering around not knowing what to do next. I'd get into fights just to do something.

If the game frustrated your daughter because she didn't know what to do next, then SMG will not disappoint you -- your objectives are clearly defined. If it's more a coordination thing, then SMG may be frustrating as well.

Re: Super Mario Galaxy RULEZ!

I didn't go after Bowser until I had 99 stars. The path to get to Bowser is harder than any other start except for the Daredevil Comet in Molten Spire. Basically, I got all the stars I could, and then went after Bowser.

I had to finally return the game to Blockbuster, so I ended up stopping at 109 stars. On the table were the Molten Spire one and most of the unlocked ones. Most of the unlocked galaxies had me saying, "Oh Hell NO!" I am not enough of a hardcore gamer to get through those.

One day, when SMG is on the used racks for $19.99, I may pick it up and try to complete the game.