Super mario Galaxy 2 review

Two decades ago, Nintendo released Super Mario brothers; which was in itself a genre-defining classic. Then Mario 2 came along, which was brought in from another developer so lets omit this. Three years along, and we got Super Mario 3, a game that was in the same elements of the previous; but a whole more superior beast.

With this prestigious history of sequels in mind, Nintendo has its hands pretty full with Mario galaxy 2.

What you’re getting, on the face of it, is the same Galactic experience: same stunning presentation, gravitational gameplay, even the same story. Denying that the previous adventure even existed is a pretty large shark to jump; even for a company that makes you save a princess over and over again. But every game has a focus, and this isn’t it.

The game has been upgraded in several other areas; lets start with the levels themselves. Something has happened since the previous iteration; no doubt the first title was a masterpiece in polished level design. However, as many an artist/author/band do, there is an element of the game returning to its roots. 2D side-scrolling levels are incorporated, along with gravitational gameplay to boot. It’s certainly an interesting twist on the type of game we’ve known and loved for twenty years. This along with the genre defining 3D level design of the previous game makes this a really unbeatable game in terms of creativity and complexity.

New additions to the gameplay recipe is a new world map view which harkens back to the Mario games of yesteryear, making it much more simple to find and have a crack at everything that’s on offer. Yoshi also makes an introduction, with a limited success; but hey! There’s always a part of a sequel that feels tagged on, and this one doesn’t destroy the game at all. Plus its fun to pull the fly trap enemies out the ground with your tongue!

Another sequel impact that you’ll feel is the difficulty; we’ve been given a real tough cookie of a game to tackle. Your playing time will be filled with many trial and error sections, split up by the occasional character asking you to turn the console off because “you’ve been playing too long.” This, of course, has the opposite effect of the calming purpose Nintendo were intending. But, for what the game has, this kind of gruelling experience definitely feels like much more of an accessible commitment rather than a throwaway title.

The visuals have the same polish and sheen of the previous game, and it hasn’t lost any of its beauty in the years inbetween. This is still a pinnacle example of the point that it’s not about high polygon counts, trilinear shaders, and other graphic jargon that people pretend to understand when they read about it in magazines; but what you do creatively with it that counts. The audio has been significantly upgraded from the somewhat held back nature of the previous iteration into a fully utilised orchestral score, including some odd remixes of some classic Mario tracks. Presentation wise, it’s an experience with a much larger scale and grandeur.

 Well, we’ve come to an end here. We can banter on and on about certain sections of the game; but to ruin such sections would be a criminal act! Since what we look for is an unforgettable experience that absorbs us. Adding this whole thing up, I found this to be one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences this year.

The golden question though is does the sequel introduce a whole new game? The simple answer is no, the gameplay is the same, and you feel a vague similarity with playing this game. But even this doesn’t stop it from setting a new bar in platformers that many developers can only dream of!

Put simply; this is the Mario brothers 3 of our generation, and I can’t see any other game coming close to this by years end.