Super Mario Galaxy hands-on

This game makes me smile. This game makes me smile unlike any other game. I can’t remember the last time I had this feeling of true gaming bliss. It hearkens back to to the days of the NES, or even better yet, early Christmas morning when I knew I was getting a game. I will give you the perfect example of how I feel when I play this game. Imagine if you will, my reaction being the same, if not more excited than the N64 kid on Christmas morning. I want to scream out in joy when I am playing this game. That’s why I hated playing it today. Getting more demo time with Galaxy is absolute torture when the final game is still a few weeks away. This game is fully deserving of the ultimate fanboy hype. I don’t care if you love or hate Nintendo…this is a must have…this is a system seller.

In the past I got to try out the Honey Bee kingdom, but that didn’t stop me from jumping into it again. This is a great level to show off portions of the game that are more akin to Super Mario 64. You can just tell that every little section is perfectly crafted for ultimate enjoyment. It is tons of fun just wandering around a level to explore it. Every corner you turn brings something new. While you could spend hours just doing that, the actual objectives are just as great. I did the first star mission, which is visiting the Queen Bee. This takes you through the main path on the level, and gives you a good opportunity to try out all the gameplay mechanics.

How many games do we play that are just fun to control? The way Mario moves is so natural, which is a weird thing to say for a cartoon character. His animations are so smooth, and his responsiveness is absolutely perfect. Mario has his full move set, plus new attacks like the spin punch and automatic enemy kick. All you have to do is stun an enemy and walk up to it…Mario will punt it from there. That little move alone is a blast. I am smiling right now as I write about it. As I said, you have to stun enemies in order to do that move. You can stun them by picking up star bits and shooting them via the Wiimote. You would think that playing a game like RE:UC would make you feel like a badass. When I was playing Galaxy, shooting the star bits and jumping on enemies made me feel like the coolest kid on the block.

I also took this opportunity to try out the manta ray portion of the game. I knew how to access it from watching the videos that popped up last week, so I went right for it after my Honey Bee romp. This looked like it would be one of the harder aspects of the game. I was really psyched to jump in and take control. Once again the controls were spot on. This damn manta ray minigame could be a full game in and of itself. Steering the manta ray via Wiimote twists down a suspended path of water is absolutely surreal. This is another one of those giddy moments that only Mario can provide.

I don’t know if it was the fact that I got to play Galaxy again coupled with my pure excitement, but the game looked even better than it did the last time I played it. Everything in the game, from characters to landscapes…they all have a very soft look. It’s almost as if you could reach out and touch them. I truly believe that the added power in the Wii has given Mario his ultimate look. I can’t think of how things could improve from here. Sure, more polygon power could give a more detailed world…but this visual approach is fantastic. I would take this style over Gears of War anyday.

My hands-on is probably pointless. You already know you are going to buy this game. If you have a Wii you need this game. If you are thinking about getting a Wii, make sure this is a purchase as well. If you like smiling from ear to ear, there is no better way to get that feeling that Galaxy. While I loved Sunshine, Galaxy truly is the next great Mario game. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to change my shorts.