All the way back in 2010, me and my brother were gifted a Wii during our first week of school that Fall. I had just started the 5th grade and a week or two prior I had rented and played a chunk of Super Mario Galaxy 2 on my dad's friend's Wii during a beach trip. I absolutely loved what I played of it but after the trip was over, I had to return the game back to the rental store and of course the Wii was not mine, so I craved more. Like I said, my dad gifted us a Wii and with it was Super Mario Galaxy. My brother got the Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs game so it's pretty clear only one of us got a quality title. I was infactuated with this game. I can still remember running home from school, going right to my Wii as I couldn't wait to play it any longer. I'd wake up super early on weekends too just to play more. This and Galaxy 2 were basically the first non-licensed game's I truly loved and I'm very thankful for that as it made me want to play more Nintendo titles afterwards. As you can see I adore this game, let's talk about why!

I think the defining factor as to why people love this game so much (besides the story) is its atmosphere and portrayal of space. Sure, you have more goofy or lighthearted galaxies like Honeyhive or Beach Bowl that wouldn't feel out of place in another game. But a good chunk of the galaxies in this game, as well as the Comet Observatory, just have this really unique emptyness or marvel that really makes you feel like you're in space. Take Space Junk Galaxy for example. It's a very serene and solemn galaxy where most of the setting is literal space with some junk spread throughout just like the name implies and it's very relaxing to go through. A lot of the time I would just go into first person and marvel at the scope of all the planets or just look at the different skyboxes each galaxy has. Even on this playthrough, when I've played this game countless times, I still did this..it just never gets old to me.

As I said, the story is probably the other aspect people love about this game the most. It's still a Mario game so don't expect something mind-blowing but the cutscenes that are here are all great. Be it the beginning cutscene where Mario gets shot at by a magikoopa and gets flung to the starting planet while Peach screams his name, to the ending cutscene where all the Luma's save the entire universe by sacrificing themselves. It's just all so well done. Granted, these cutscenes only really happen at the beginning and end of the game, but it's what's contained in them that matters and it's the single best story in any mainline Mario game hands down. That's not even getting into the optional Rosalina's storybook which is in itself the single best part of the story. It just adds that extra depth to her character and let's you see who she is and how she got there. And even replaying it now, I still teared up...it's that good.

The OST I also think is the single best soundtrack in any Mario game. It has it all, it has catchy songs, it has majestic songs, it has atmospheric songs, it has emotional songs. I love Galaxy 2's OST too but it doesn't top 1 in my opinion and I think that's specifically because 2 doesn't have those emotional/sad songs which I value a bunch nowadays. Those would be A Wish, Sad Girl, and Family. Those last two especially, goddamn dude, I always can't help but get emotional when I hear them. Some other more lighthearted songs I love are Gusty Garden obviously, Melty Molten Galaxy, Buoy Base Galaxy and The Comet Observatory. All in all, an absolutely fantastic soundtrack.

As for the galaxies themselves...they're good! There may be some I'm not the biggest fan of, mostly the beach/bee galaxies and that's mostly because they reuse that theme twice which kinda stinks. But in general the galaxies are quite good even if they're aren't a ton of main one's. In that regard, 2 still does it better because there's way more fun and varied galaxies in that one, but 1 still has some really great levels to play around in. My favorites were Gusty Garden, Buoy Base, Freezeflame, Melty Molten and Space Junk. Special mention to Toy Time too for being so wacky and fun. Though, honestly another small critique I have with the game is the prankster comets. I'm fine with the purple coin ones but for the ones you playthrough your first time through before Bowser, there only being 4 types is kinda lame. 2 fixed this somewhat by adding more types and making it less obvious what it's gonna be but I felt it was worth pointing out. I will also say, people saying the movement in this game sucks I will never get. Is it better than Odyssey's? Definitely not but I still think it's a ton of fun to play around with the gravity. That's just me at least.

So yeah, I know I gave a criticism or two but I still absolutely adore this game and 2 fixes those issues I have and I sort of group them together as one game so it balances each others faults out. It and Galaxy 2 are basically my favorite games ever and I go back and forth on which one I prefer regularly for different reasons so I usually group them together even if both give pretty different gaming experiences. Either way, this game means everything to me and it's a must play for every gamer I think. I love it so much. Anyways, figured I'd go and replay 2 while I'm at it so look for that review soon!

Also forgot to say, I played as Luigi this time around. He's fun to play as even if he is slippery cuz his jumps are much larger. The reward you get for 100%ing both Mario and Luigi is lame as hell though and definitely was improved in 2.

Thanks Nintendo for implementing two separate auto lock features that you can't disable. Very smart and educated
addition to your already boring game that abandoned all charm in favor of shameless marketability and toy creation.

I understand that Pikmin is a quirky game with unique characters, but half of the game is useless tutorial / reminders and the other half is constant banter between the new, unforgettable cast that isn’t even entertaining in the slightest. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the Koppaites from Pikmin 3 for this exact reason, but atleast they knew when to shut the fuck up and let the game do the talking. Beyond that, I had such high hopes for the night levels. I love tower defense games! Granted I haven’t played a lot of them, but from the ones I have played, I loved the concept! This is the most barebones, mundane shit fest that anyone could have asked for. I dreaded doing these expeditions because they were so lacking in difficulty and depth. Thankfully, the challenge caves or whatever they were called, the things akin to the mission mode in Pikmin 3, those were fun and probably the only good part of this laughable game. I loved micro managing and stressing myself out to the point of my veins bursting while making sure every single Pikmin was doing what it was supposed to be doing without wasting a second. The bingo battle look-alike Dandori was also fun to play, though my mom pointed out how the lock on system was archaic and strange. After a few rounds, she asked if we could go back to playing Pikmin 3’s bingo battle instead. Usually she doesn’t discriminate against game complexity or design, I just found this to be telling. It also doesn’t help that you can only choose 3 types of Pikmin to be out with you at any given time, and while it arguably makes the game less “grindy”, it’s because the game is designed around this mundane decision making each level require 3 different types of Pikmin at any given time (not including caves). Speaking of the Pikmin themselves, I don’t know how I feel about progressively gaining the ability to access a bigger number of Pikmin.

On the topic of charm, or rather the lack thereof, the almost corporate UI that they added to this entry has lost any and all resemblance of the unique bubble-like aesthetic that the previous games were known to have. I know it sounds like an extreme nitpick that losers would have, and it is, but from someone who has loved Pikmin for years and has awaited the 4th entry for a long time, it’s very sad to see them go down the route of uninspired graphic design. Beyond that, the levels levels are uninspired for the most part. I get that it’s a flawed argument because Pikmin has always tried to have a realistic art style, but since the first two games were on the GameCube they weren’t able to reach that sense of reality and unintentionally developed a unique graphic style that feels very lonely and… i hate using this word… liminal.. and thanks to that a lot of the assets and places in those first two games feel much more enigmatic and inspired rather than the realistic jargon they finally achieved, but that beach is just a fucking beach. That forest is just a forest. I can’t even remember the names of these locations. Another big factor is that Pikmin, for me atleast, is supposed to be set on a post nuclear war, apocalyptic earth where you never know what you’re going to see next. Of course I highly doubt that’s ever been the intention, but it’s been my interpretation and without that facade the game loses a lot of what made the series special to me.

Something I’ve noticed while journaling my thoughts about this game is that this is Nintendo’s attempt at making Pikmin much more widely accessible, even though it already was with Pikmin 3. Writing this also made me remember why I hate modern gaming. We’re achieving accessibility, but at what cost? Make some of this shit optional. Now that I’ve deconstructed my thoughts regarding my favorite children’s game, I’m going to play some real shit such as Call of Duty or Fortnite.

Ok class I'm going to need you guys to open your laptops to Schoology.
WE'RE STUCK ON A DIFFERENT PLANET A LOT MORE THAN WE CAN M- (Slams laptop closed)
Get the fuck out of my class.
That's why you've been late?
Yep.
Get out of my class.
Ok.
Get out of my class.
I understand.
Contact the principle to take your laptop and you will be in school detention for 3 weeks.
Get out of my class.