Gamer Blast

Super Mario Galaxy 2 Released to Wide Acclaim

Posted by Connor On May - 23 - 2010

Today, Super Mario Galaxy 2 (sequel to the insanely popular 2007 Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii) hit American shelves today, and has since been met with wide critical acclaim, garnering perfect scores nearly across the board. It currently holds a 97/100 on Metacritic. (Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews for movies, music, TV shows, and, of course, games, and gives an average score based on a quantity of reviews.) This is the highest scored Wii game on Metacritic, actually tied with the first Super Mario Galaxy. However, Super Mario Galaxy 2 currently has a higher user score on Metacritic than the first game did, holding a 9.6 to the original’s 9.0.

Personally, I never got incredibly into the first one. I only had a short opportunity to play it, and have yet to actually pick it up. However, I’ve read and watched some reviews as well as gauged user reactions for the sequel to try and figure out what all the fuss is about. The game has a perfect score (be it a 10/10, 5/5, A+, or what have you) on 1Up, IGN, Gamestop, The Escapist, and Gamespot, just to name a few. It is very rare that a game scores absolutely perfectly across the board, so whether you’re incredibly interested in the title or not, it’s something to acknowledge.

Craig Harris at IGN says

Super Mario Galaxy 2 takes everything that made the original great, and manages to astonish us all over again … Does that mean it’s the best Wii game yet? You bet it does.

The title of “Best Wii Game” has been tossed around from Super Mario Galaxy to Super Smash Bros. Brawl and back again more times than I can count. However, this seems to be a bit of a tie-breaker, as review scores as well as user reactions make evident.

After seeing some gameplay videos, I can say that the animation is fantastic. The graphics themselves look just about the same as the first iteration, but the animations seem to have taken a step up with the polish and look good as can be.

This is a game that hides behind the masquerade of being a casual gamer’s best friend, but actually packs quite a punch in the difficulty department. Puzzles look to be quite… Well, puzzling, as well as challenging in a very satisfying way. There are some mechanics that I’ve witnessed that look like a ton of fun to work around and figure out. This may be frustrating for some, as you could find yourself dying more than you’d like (possibly even on a trial-and-error basis at times), but the puzzles look fun nonetheless, and shouldn’t be incredibly hard after getting used to the game’s mechanics.

To help you along the way are several brilliantly implemented guide-like levels (that look like tutorials masked as regular levels in a really nice way) that allow beginners to familiarize themselves with the universe before plunging into the challenging adventure.
I’ve also seen some pretty awesome looking classic 2D sidescrolling levels that make me want to get the game by themselves.

You’re still just running around, collecting stars and whatnot, but what’s changed is the ways in which you do this. The amazing level design forces a thought process into the situation, especially with gravity occasionally switching up on you, allowing you to find creative ways to meet your goal. Never has jumping on stuff looked like so much fun.

While I enjoyed what I played of the first Super Mario Galaxy, I couldn’t really say it revolutionized much. It was a lot of fun, and definitely a completely original idea, but it didn’t feel earth-shattering to me. Super Mario Galaxy 2, however, looks like it could be the Super Mario Bros. or Zelda of the current generation. Sure to be a classic and to live on in the heart of gaming for a long time. (I can’t wait until this stuff is “retro.”)

There are countless amazing mechanics in this game that make it look like a blast to play through from start to finish. If you’re a hardcore gamer with a free day or two, you may find yourself completing this in one session. (Note that that’s not because it’s a particularly short game; it just looks very hard to put down.) However, there is apparently a good bit of replay value in this, as you likely won’t see the whole entire universe on your first playthrough, so there is more content to unlock and more stuff to see.

If you’re a Wii gamer, especially if you’re a fan of the original game, this looks like a game that you have to go pick up as soon as you humanly can. It’s currently fighting for my attention over even my preferred genre of games for my next purchase. It’s gotten perfect scores just about across the board, with a few somewhat below perfect, but nothing short of amazing.
Regardless of who’s saying it to you, everybody will tell you — this is a game that you need to own.