Super Mario Galaxy

When did Super Mario Galaxy come out? The following Christmas I received the game as a gift, and so begins one of my greatest shames: I didn't put the disc into my system until most recently, i.e. two weeks ago. Now realize, that's not normal behaviour for anyone except those who lost faith in the Wii, and generally, Nintendo games.

I tried Twilight Princess on the Wii without much luck. I hated swinging the damn remote every time I wanted to attack. So, after a few hours I put the game away, hence ending my love for the series. It was hearbreaking. Mario was a series that I had already skipped once: Mario 64. I've played it dozens of times but never to completion; definitely not to the same vigor I played any Mario game preceding it. So, with a new Wii console under my credit card, it was time: I casually walked over to my library of games and could hear a squeek of a voice coming from the bottom of the shelf. I looked down. A cloud of dust erupted as I passed my hand over the line of white cases; I could hear the voice again. It was in my head.

Super Mario Galaxy was, all of a sudden, in the system. I was playing it. It felt...natural. It was....fun. What happened in the previous three years that prevented me from playing this? I've certainly had fun playing other games but a high caliber Mario game is something else to behold. Don't forget, this guy changed the way we played video games numerous times through his career.

I was so happy that motion controls did not take centre stage in this outing: you can point the remote at the screen the whole time to pick up gems, or not. Gems certainly help you throughout the game but you won't have a tired arm getting them. There are some "bonus" galaxies that utilize the remote in nifty ways, such as controlling Mario on a giant golf ball, or twist it about as you control Mario on a giant stingray. They are fun, as they break up the rest of the game. There are little throwbacks to coin rooms inside pipes; classic music and enemies roam about as you take on different suits such as the bee and boo.

The 3D aspect is taken to another level. I feel as though they've added another dimension to this game: you can be on one side of an object, run around and you are on the other side. You can be playing on a giant sphere with no boundaries. You get twisted around and play with gravity, and all the while the control just works. Some "planets" are big and just act like levels in previous Mario games. In other levels, you fly from planet to planet and when you step back to think about the amount of design consideration that has gone into them, you are amazed. Mario games have always had very excellent level design and that's what makes them really shine as platformers. This just amps it up a bit.

I realize that I was scared to play this game: it looked different and I wasn't sure how to play it. Perhaps that's what getting older is all about. If I was in my late twenties when Mario 64 came out, would I be too scared to play? Galaxy has reinvigorated my interest in the Wii; I play more casually, without worrying about points, achievements or how long I've been playing. I simply enjoy it.