Preview
Platform:
WiiDeveloper:
Nintendo Co., Ltd.Publisher:
Nintendo of America, Inc.Previewed by
Justin Fassino on 2007-07-17
He is the most iconic face in gaming. He is an Italian plumber. His head-to-body size ratio is inhuman. But that doesn't stop him from saving the girl (or in this case, the universe) every time. Besides, you don't have any weight in space.
Super Mario Galaxy was playable at this year's E3 in its most complete form to date. There were four different game scenarios to choose, and I got to try two of them: a quest to capture some bunnies and save some stars, and the by-now infamous adventure of Bee Mario.
The first stage tasked me with playing hide-and-seek with some rabbits, who were hiding on a small rock floating through space. Craters, warp pipes, and some grassy land made looking for them a bit tougher than expected. But once they were found, it was off to the next world via gravity bubbles. By pointing the Wiimote at the bubbles and holding the B button, Mario floated from one to the other.
The next planet was an electrical world full of charged hazards. Not only did I have to free a trapped star sprite, but I had to do so while dodging plugs and fighting goombas (who I then got to boot into outer space). Once that was completed, I went inside another planet (after using a star-shaped launcher to blast me through the galaxy), running around the inner surface of the sphere. To recapture the star, I had to activate a series of floor panels that would turn off the electrical generators powering its prison.
The amazing thing about
Mario Galaxy is just how huge it actually is; from the screenshots and videos, it's tough to get a sense of scope when all the floating worlds seem so tiny in relation to Mario. It isn't until you actually run about a planet's axis that you realize just how much surface area there is to explore. And that's just on the outside.
In addition to the space levels, there are also levels that are more expansive and take place across vast environments. In the next part of the demo, I found myself controlling Mario through a field of enormous flowers - a space-borne garden, if you will. Piranha plants also made their home amongst the towering stems and grasslands, so Mario had to watch his step. It also became apparent that Mario wasn't going very far without some help; stepping on the large flower petals scattered throughout the level would make them fall apart, and Mario would plunge back to the ground. Luckily, a colony of helpful bees give Mario a handy gift: a bee suit. Once decked out in his striped gear, Mario can walk across the flowers with ease, and even fly for short distances.
After making his way through this biological paradise, Mario finally encounters the queen bee herself, who has apparently misplaced some star cannon pieces in the black and yellow hair on her body (it sounds more gross than it actually is). Like a good colony drone, Mario must climb over the body of the queen and grab the cannon pieces so he can blast himself to the next locale. It's in that next locale where I learned that Bee Mario can, in fact, scale walls that have honeycombs on them. This allowed me to climb up a very tall tower to get to the next area.
I could go on and on about this game, but in short, the platforming and stage design in
Mario Galaxy is both intelligent and beautiful to look at. It shares more in common with
Mario 64 than it does with
Sunshine, and the promise of more game that plays like the demo makes me salivate. The magic that Mario first brought to 3D on the N64 has returned.
You can say what you will about
Smash Bros. Brawl and
Metroid Prime 3, but
Galaxy will have it all: expansive environments, deep and polished gameplay, and a design appeal for everyone. Were it not for the impeccable showing of
Fallout 3,
Super Mario Galaxy would have been Game of the Show. Still, there's no shame in a very strong second place.
Mario Galaxy should be on every Wii owner's must-buy list.
