E for All 2007 Preview
Upon entering the finished (but
timed, grr!) build of Super Mario Galaxy, my eyes gravitated to one thing:
armor-covered Goombas. You just know they’re going to be easy to defeat. Goombas
always are. But before your hands even touch the controller, you step back and
think, “That’s cool.”
Building on that, Mario Galaxy is
20% cool, classic, and pure mushroom Heaven. The other 80% is dedicated to
bringing Mario into the next generation. They’re doing so with the best level
designs seen in an action/adventure since Mario 64.
But you’ve heard that before. You’ve
heard about the spherical platforms and how amazingly well the camera system
works. Now it’s time to dig deeper into the game and explore more of those
incredible worlds.
Wave Race
Nintendo has yet to announce the
return of N64’s most innovative racer. But they’re given us a taste of what the
future could be like in the form of a short water stage in Mario Galaxy.
You control Mario, who has found
himself an eel to ride on. He needs the eel to climb a lengthy water path that
is literally suspended in the middle of the sky. The controls are excellent –
this is the first time we’ve seen Mario Galaxy take serious advantage of the
Wii’s motion capabilities. The nunchuck is not used, and you don’t have to worry
about pointing the remote at the screen to collect gems (the gem collecting
aspect is cool, but it’s nice to have variety). The only thing you do is tilt
the remote left or right to steer, and hold the A button to speed up.
Mario’s steering mechanics are very
intuitive, bringing back memories of Wave Race. The water-based visuals are
really impressive, featuring large waves that push Mario into the air and, if
you’re not careful, will send him flying off the edge.
The stage is wonderfully designed is
more of a challenge than some of the other levels we’ve taken a look at in
previous builds. Those levels – including the Bee Mario suit – are in the final
game and contain additional objectives to complete. Each task leads to a star.
Like Mario 64, stars open up new worlds. Or in this case, new galaxies. And each
galaxy may contain several worlds within it. The transition from galaxy to
galaxy is seamless. Enter the appropriate, mushroom-shaped area (and other
domes), touch the launch pad, and Mario is shot into the air.
Bullet Bill
The “cool and classic” part of Mario
Galaxy comes in the form of returning favorites. You’ll get new enemies, like a
giant insect boss. But those don’t gain smiles. Bullet Bill, however, always
gets a smile.
In one stage you’ll be bombarded by
Bills. They don’t seem to have a purpose at first. The trick is to get them to
chase you (which is done by standing in front of the cannon before launch). The
fun begins as soon as they start to follow. A star is hidden within a caged
area, and the doors keep replenishing themselves as they’re destroyed. One Bill
won’t do it – you’ve got to use several of them to penetrate the two
barriers that stand in between you and the star.
After nabbing the star, the camera
pans back for a cool view of the stage. You’re once again on a large spherical
world. But it turns out that there’s a giant robot on top. He’s destroyed in the
aftermath, leaving behind nothing but the most gorgeous explosion effects. It’s
not violent, but it’s definitely more intense than what you’d expect after
Sunshine’s too-friendly-for-words gameplay.
Ready for more? So are we. But the
demo kept booting us, and it’s not like we can hog the controller now that North
America has finally received a consumer-based game event. If you can get to Los
Angeles this weekend, do so immediately. Ten minutes isn’t nearly enough time to
absorb all that Mario Galaxy has to offer, but you won’t care – the time spent
getting here and waiting in line is worth every second.
