Now, let me tell you a story that ALSO begins with stardust...

If I had a nickel for every time a Nintendo developed game that originally was planned as a mere expansion or remix of a past game but ended up becoming a complete sequel, I'd had two nickels... which it isn't a lot, but this joke is tired and I lack originality and humor.

The discussion around Super Mario Galaxy 2 has always centered around one simple and obvious question: How does it compare to its predecessor? And I mean, it’s pretty clear why that is; never mind the fact that it’s a constant in any given series, including 3D Mario as a whole, but this is the only game to be a direct follow-up to a past game and setting, one of Super Mario Galaxy at that! Tho it’s worth saying that, even back then, a lot of people saw the more simplistic level design of Galaxy as a huge drawback for it, and the more in depth level-design of Galaxy 2 is seen as a blessing, and is the favorite of many out of the two on that reason alone. Still, there’s a great amount of people that keep seeing the first one as the superior game, and the main reason most we will give when explaining why tends to be the same, that being that Galaxy 2 lacks… THE SOUL.

The important thing I wanted to get out of this clusterfuck of ideas is that, personally, rather than asking the aforementioned question regarding Galaxy 2, I have my own question: … what even is this game? That is the query I had stuck in the back on my mind while playing, and to be honest, I don’t think I have a very fulfilling answer. You probably are thinking ‘’Deemon, you absolute mindless ameba, what are you even on about this time, this is a sequel to Galaxy, it has a two on the fucking box and it shares the same gameplay basis, you brain-dead donkey’’ and you’d be technically correct (tho it would be a really mean way to say it :( ), but… is it tho? Galaxy 2 was conceived more as an expansion than anything more, just a bunch of new levels using the pre-existing foundation established by Mario’s first space adventure, and it just so happened that it ended up getting so big that it justified turning into a full-blown game. And yes, Galaxy 2 does very much expect you to have played the previous game, a clear example is how the first boss of the game is both a call back to the first boss in Galaxy 1 and has a ton of parallel to the Bowser fights in those games, and the challenge is considerably higher in certain levels and bosses (even if the overall game is still pretty easy), but at the same time, this game very much seems like a different take on this same idea rather than a continuation. I think the story is a perfect reflection of what I mean by this: it acts as if the first voyage never really happened, the opening is leagues more light-hearted and even a little goofy, and until the very ending, the whole adventure lacks a sense of continuity, and in fact I’m pretty confident saying that this game references directly Super Mario 64 almost as much as it does for the previous game. This might seem unimportant or even petty to complain about, but I really think that is this contradiction what makes this game fail where Galaxy 1 went above and beyond; by wanting to craft an experience that any new player can pick up and enjoy without having even touched the previous adventure, but also wanting to make an experience that expands upon what said game proposed mechanically and making it more focused on gameplay for the older players, you get a pretty confused game that never seems to ever reach the same levels of wonder that it once did.

I mentioned before that some players argue that it lacks THE SOUL, but I don’t really agree with that notion. This game still has a ton of THE SOUL, it has an almost palpable personality, and each of the environments still feels distinct and full of life; the same passion on crafting a beautifully grandiose and silent and fun experience was put into this game, but it seems muffled: the soundtrack, while still fantastic, is a bit weaker and, dare I say it, more repetitive than the original, and I would have preferred it if it had more calm and quiet pieces; the main hub just doesn’t work for me, it’s interesting and pretty goofy, but you don’t get the same feeling of progression you got with the Comet Observatory, things and characters pop up without affecting the ship itself that much, and makes it so that I feel less invested on a space-ship that has the face of the main character plastered onto it; I also found hard to get really invested in some levels, especially when beginning the game, I just felt as if I was going by the motions, and the galaxies just felt like obstacle courses with random sky backgrounds rather than real places, like galaxies like Honeyhive Galaxy felt…

This things that made the original so special just aren’t like they once were anymore, there are attempts to re-capture that same magic, but most fall pretty flat; it’s clear that the game had its priorities and that plus the predicament it put itself in stopped it from re-capturing that magic this world once evoked. So… I’ve been actually surprisingly negative so far, so much in fact I have yet to say one single fully positive thing about Galaxy 2. Nothing of this of course destroys the game or anything like that, but it does move it into the realm of the more average platformer, kinda like the New series or 3D Land do… So like, what thing I have to say about this game that’s completely and utterly positive, if there even is?...







ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING FUCKING ELSE!

When I said that Galaxy 2 tumbled on what Galaxy did the best, I kinda forgot to say that sequel just kinda puts to shame its past iteration where this one kind of didn’t hit the mark; as I said, Galaxy 2 does not hit the same levels of wonder, but it does surpass every sense of fun and excitement in the moment to moment gameplay in a way Galaxy just couldn’t consistently do. Every galaxy, every star, every side challenge it’s just so well designed, so fun to play and go through, the more limited move-set of Mario (at least compared to previous 3D games) thrives in these levels and it’s just so fun to beat them both by normal methods or discovering its secrets and thing outside the box. The power-ups, OH DON’T GET ME STARTED IN THE POWER-UPS. Some, like the Fire Flower and the Bee Mushroom, return from the first game, but the new ones like the Drill, the Rock Mushroom and specially the Cloud Flower are probably the best additions Mario has ever seen to its arsenal; they all used to their fullest potential and every chance you get at using them is a treat; the drill complements the sphere shape of the planets like butter, the rock power-up adds a ton of fun destructive chaos that is highly appreciated, and cloud flower opens up the space of possibilities like never before; even if this may be the most linear out of the full-blown 3D Marios, it sure doesn’t feel like it while you play it. There’s also the side secret moons and the speedy comets, and while they are nothing that will blow your mind, the former are always a fun little distraction to discover while you discover the seemingly never ending waves of creative level-design, and the latter have seen a huge upgrade compared to their last appearance; they are now much more stream-lined and faster to complete, and I actually really wanted to beat as many of them as I could, and plus, the Comet Medals, while mostly easy to get, are a nice thing to grab and a fantastic way to incentivize 100% competition. The bosses are all just bangers; they defy the simplistic nature of the bosses from Galaxy, where they never really strayed off the simple routine of shaking the wii-mote at the right time or pointing at the right stuff, and here begin to introduce power-ups, more complex patterns and really aggressive movement; all of the Bowser Jr. fights are pure gold and a ton of fun, every time the little guy was involved in something, you can be certain a fantastic fight is coming up. Oh, I forgot, we also see Yoshi coming back to 3D and OH MY GOD I LOVE HIM. The funny dino is super fun to play around with, mastering its movement and the brand-new power-ups he can use it’s the most fun I’ve ever had controlling him, and it kinda makes me wish for a fully focused Yoshi 3D platformer, because if it were to be good as this, HOLLY FUCKING HELL.

Every single addition to the gameplay, every single new mechanic, every new idea, it all feels like it could be divided in at least another 2 sequels, but no, it’s all here, and it’s so, so fun. This is still Galaxy, and while I don’t still necessarily consider Galaxy 2 better than its pre-quel, it is a fantastic game on its own merits, ‘cause yes, this game it’s its own thing as much as it is a sequel. It’s impossible to only look it through only one of those lenses, and even tho it’s important to now where thos one faults where Galaxy shined so brightly, is equally as essential to know and remember that what this game has an objective: to be a joy to play, to be surprising, to be constantly a treat.

This is the first 3D platformer I ever played, even before the first game of the series, and even if I never finished, I had an indescribable amount of fun with it, and now, coming back to it so many years later and having experienced almost all of Mario’s 3D catalogue, the fact I felt the same fun and enthusiasm speaks volumes. It’s a tale that also begins with stardust, but the journey it’s so wonderfully different…

I'd say this was likely the first RPG I ever sat through the entirety of and managed to completion, and it's still one of my all-time favourites. I still hold this game in very high regard and have quite fond memories of numerous sections of the game, especially getting stuck on some of the surprisingly difficult bosses, that's if you're not prepared for them and spending hours trying to fight my way out of difficult situations.

Paper Mario's core mechanics feature an intuitive turn-based combat system which can offer a very engaging and enjoyable experience if you're willing to give the game a chance, one it certainly does deserve.

Paper Mario in a graphical sense can almost certainly hold its own even now, especially when considering it released on the Nintendo 64. However, with the fun and colourful art style this game displays, and in a similar vain to Animal Crossing, it takes full advantage of the given hardware and delivers a wonderfully creative world full of vibrance and life; its 'paper crafted' art style was unique at the time of its release and it manages to take advantage of this idea with charming and clever implementations of the 'paper' element of the game.

I wouldn't say it's a must play game, but if you ever feel the urge to play an RPG or just something relaxing to enjoy your time with, don't leave this out.

This game holds a special place in my heart, Undertale is literally the reason I met some of my best friends. I played Undertale in 2015 while I was trapped in bed after surgery and the unique and charming humour and wackiness totally won me over. The charming characters have practically gone past the point of memorability and have cemented themselves in meme and internet culture. The gameplay is fun and simple but each battle was like a mini puzzle which I found very enjoyable. The different endings and meta jokes meant this game had a lot of replayability and you could never predict what the game would do or know next.