Super Mario Galaxy 2 review (Boston Herald, 5/24/10)
June 10, 2010
Everybody loves Mario, and why not? He looks like a mustachioed baby in overalls. Who could resist such an adorable guy? If Mario followed you home from school you’d beg your mom to keep him. But would you still beg if you knew Mario was a genocidal maniac?
Beyond the Bambi eyes and Brimley ‘stache hides a monster. Since 1985 Mario has waged a one (sometimes two) man war against the wildlife of the Mushroom Kingdom. He’s splattered countless Goombas into paste and crushed the skulls of every turtle in sight. He even mocks his victims by using their shells to kill their brethren. He gives no mercy and brooks no dissent.
Mario rode his path of destruction to the stars in 2007’s Super Mario Galaxy. He returns to finish the job in Super Mario Galaxy 2. Both superlative 3D platformers put a vertiginous spin on the traditional Mario formula. Spherical levels and gravitational fields offer platforming from all angles.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 largely preserves the original’s mechanics. You move Mario with the nunchuk’s analogue joystick. He jumps with a press of the Wii remote’s A-button, and performs spin attacks and various special moves with a shake of the remote. The goal remains collecting Power Stars until you have enough to rescue the Princess, while gathering coins and Starbits and destroying hapless creatures along the way.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 isn’t a lifeless rehash, though. Galaxy’s Super Mario 64-styled hub world is gone, replaced by a world map similar to Super Mario Brothers 3. It also introduces new power-ups that fit perfectly into the classic Mario framework. A Rock Mushroom turns Mario into a stone wrecking ball. The Cloud Flower lets Mario construct up to three temporary cloud platforms. The Bee and Boo Suits return from the first Galaxy, as do the traditional Fire Flowers and Invincibility Stars.
The biggest addition is the return of Mario’s long-suffering slave Yoshi. Yes, Mario once again extends his desecration of nature to the Mushroom Kingdom’s thriving dinosaur population. Mario subjugates this poor beast to his own will, occasionally forcing the adorable reptile to carry his bloated body from planet to planet. Even worse, he regularly makes the herbivorous Yoshi eat other animals. It’s sickening.
Despite Mario’s despicable behavior, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is as joyful as gaming gets. It’s not as fresh or revolutionary as the first Galaxy, but it’s every bit as excellent.
