Note: This page will be updated throughout E3 as further editor impressions are gathered.
Shawn White, The Wiire Senior Editor
Mario's finally back and he decides to run off into space. What nerve.
Super Mario Galaxy, the first Mario platformer to grace Nintendo's new console, is zany, eyebrow-raising, intuitive and downright fun to play. Alongside Sonic Wild Fire, it wins the award for most polished Wii game at Nintendo's booth.
A few seconds is all the time that will elapse between players picking up the controller and feeling entirely comfortable with the setup. Miyamoto and Nintendo's Tokyo studio has spent a great deal of time and effort tweaking the motion sensitivity and control scheme to get it just right, and they succeeded. Players need only use the analog stick on the Nunchuk to make Mario walk or run in a desired direction, with the "A" button causing the plumber to jump and the Wii Remote's motion sensors controlling a star seperate from Mario.
The star is an interesting addition, for using it in tandem with the Wii Remote's trigger button, players can ring bells high above Mario's head, collect miniature stars and swing through space, among other things. I'm really intrigued to see the puzzle possibilities with this new 'character'.
In addition, Miyamoto has succeeded in creating what seems to be an all-encompassing, seamless HUB world, which is simply the universe. Within said universe are a multitude of planets Mario can explore. Each planet maintains its own gravity and design, which really helps show the more back-end power of the Wii hardware. Moving from planet to planet is quick, as well; simply approach an orange star disk placed on each planet, jump into it, spin the Wii Remote and Mario's off to the next planetoid with a snazzy transition animation.
The demo did not provide a look at Mario's complete move set in this new title, but did make the basics known. Some old moves are now performed differently, as well. For instance, to spin Mario, players must spin the Wii Remote. It's quick, it's simple and it feels great.
Aside from planet exploration, boss battles for power stars (I'm surprised those returned, and then again, I'm not) were present. One was a giant mechanical spider creature. Players would need to avoid being squashed, run around the planet, run up the leg of this monstrosity, allow a Bullet Bill to shoot from one of the cannons on the creature's back, and let them follow you to the creature's head, which is the weak spot. After enough consecutive wins, the star is yours. The boss battle overall felt similiar to the past 3D Mario platformers, but the functionality of the Wii Remote and console's other abilities provide fresh appeal.
The game is eerily reminiscent of Super Mario 64 in terms of core mechanics, but the scope is far grander. In all honesty, this truly feels like Super Mario 128, a real sequel to Mario 64, taking the core of that masterpiece and making it bigger, better and even more fun with the Wii controller's functionality.
I should mention how beautiful this title is; really, Mario never looked so good. The bosses are massive, probably the biggest in any Mario platformer to date; lava, tar and particle effects are superb; excellent animation and a trippy color scheme complete the package.
I really hope Super Mario Galaxy arrives for Wii's launch. Although we'll all get our hands on the game soon enough regardless, this is certainly a title I'm eagerly looking forward to. The notion of Mario in space sounds absolutely crazy, but this game oozes style and classic Mario fun.
Houston, we are cleared for plumber action.
Jesse Rifkin, The Wiire Chief Video Producer
There's really no question when it comes to how Super Mario Galaxy stacks up against the other big titles at the Nintendo Wii booth at this year's E3. Mario Galaxy pwns - pwns to the maxzorz.
Mario has always been the essense of Nintendo, although as I've stated before, we haven't seen a true Mario sequel in about a decade. Super Mario Sunshine, the GameCube's Mario title, was a really good game. Unfortunately, most Mario fans tend to disagree with me on this point, and I can understand where they are coming from. Mario 64 was revolutionary in showing off the aspects of the 64 controller, but Sunshine really only showed of the analog L/R buttons, which nobody liked anyway.
I can assure all of you sitting at your computers, twiddling your thumbs until the Wii launches, that Super Mario Galaxy is a true Mario sequel. It's both fun and gratifying, and shows off the revolutionary Wiimote, as well as going back to Mario 64 styles. (Sunshine was sorely lacking a "long jump")
There was so much to do in this five minute demo that I almost frothed at the mouth. The pointer in this game does a ton, and you can totally multi-task to save time (for my fellow speed-runners out there). You have all the basic Mario movement: The control stick to move, the "A" to jump, and the Z functionality was there too. However the real eye-popping new mechanics of this game was the Wiimote moves. Mario's basic attack was an arm-spinning move - The Up-B move from Melee - and this move will take out all your basic enemies as well as some objects in the environment like boxes, etc.
While half of your brain is concerned with running, jumping, spinning and manuevering Mario through the level, the other half is fixed on the pointer. While making your way through the level with Mario your pointer can be doing all sorts of other things. For example, when flying through space, you point at all the star pieces you see flying past you and click B to collect them, this adds a really fun Arcade/Shooter aspect to the already impressive platformer.
Like other Mario titles this game didn't fail in its puzzle aspect. How do I get to that star? Although I only played a five minute demo, the game controls and concepts were so intuitive that I was able to get a star just before time ran out. I'm still reeling from the experience of the new Mario and I don't think I'll be able to make it until The Fall (or worse 2007, arg!) to play this game again. If I could only get one game for the Wii, it would be Super Mario Galaxy, no question about it.
Rob Galbreath, The Wiire Managing Editor
The greatest fear people had over the Wii controller is that it was nothing more than a gimmick used in seemingly repetitive gameplay. Super Mario Galaxy not only crushes that thought, but it reinvents how games are meant to be played.
Let's face it: Nintendo had a lot to live up to when it came to Mario. Super Mario 64, in my opinion, was the last real Mario game in the series minus all of the extra gadgets and vacation games over the past several years. Even then, I didn't feel that the game deserved the high ratings it received at its launch. People expect a lot out of Super Mario Galaxy, and Nintendo does not disappoint in any way. I am not a hardcore Mario fan, so I'm quite serious when I say that this game is worth the wait.
The controls take a little time to handle, but that was most likely due to my experience with Super Mario 64. The game feels a lot like its predecessor in regards to Mario's movements, so there aren't any real surprises there. Players unaware of the analog motions may have some difficulty getting into the game, particularly when learning how to use the Wii remote as well. Both the analog and the Wii remote are very important in moving Mario in this game, so players may want to practice with their existing game before trying it out.
Though my colleagues have noted how the game plays, I really don't want to confuse players into thinking that the controls are horribly difficult. I'll avoid too much explanation because after jumping a few planets, the controls became very second nature to me. The analog stick moves Mario, and the Wii remote controls the on-screen star. Though there are unique moves Mario can pull off again, two buttons pretty much controls everything: A button jumps, and the B button "shoots" the on-screen star's ability.
For those experienced in the previous games, the learning curve will be remarkably easy. Mario's new abilities really add a great deal to the overall feel. All you really need to learn is that the Wii remote pointer is visible on the screen at all times in the form of a star, capable of knocking enemies out unconscious and moving Mario from planet to planet with various teleporting and ultra-jumping techniques. I really didn't even need to use the star shooting ability, as I jumped on enemy heads in the traditional style.
Graphically, I would say the game is by far the most visually appealing game I've seen at E3 2006. Sure there may be a lot of really great games like Metroid Prime: Corruption, but there's always been something about Mario's colorful appearance that makes a player feel good about playing the series. Playing this game definitely had me saying "wow" aloud, perhaps the first time I've ever really felt passionate enough to express that feeling.
Super Mario 64's graphics are nothing compared to Super Mario Galaxy. The lighting effects are very nice in this game, the stages are vibrant and colorful, the space travel is breathtaking, the enemies are memorable and the boss fights provide a nice range of challenges. If there was a game to really anticipate, it would have to be this one. Just as I was losing hope in the Mario franchise, all of my hopes in the series have been fully renewed thanks to Super Mario Galaxy. I haven't seen any videos on the Internet that give this game the full justice it deserves.
My favorite part of the controller was moving from one planet to the next. A sort of star outline floating in the air allows Mario to spin around and fly to the next planet. You can either do two things in order to use this feature: spinning the Wii remote around, or shaking the Nunchuk around. Either way, the movement is really fun and adds to the experience of Mario spinning and bursting from one area to the next.
Another cool tool to use are sticky trees found on some of the planets. As Mario jumps on one of these trees, have your Wii remote star point to the tree, hold the star button in, pull the controller back, let go of the button and fling Mario into the air like a slingshot. The precision feels even better and more satisfying than the Mario 64 Bowser final spike battle.
There are a lot of planets in each stage. I think players will really be surprised with the amount of exploration in each area, and the final product sounds like it will have a lot more to explore. The gravity effects in each of the stages add a lot to Mario's movements, really emphasizing the free-range movement of the controller.
If Nintendo needs to delay this game, welcome it with open arms. The demonstration felt very much complete and ready for something really amazing, and I'd love to see what else the developers can pull off before its release. I'm very confident in this game.
