Great level design, and some fun extra power ups like the bee one. I did not like Spring Mario. Half the time I pressed jump he didn't jump, and the timing always felt off. Moving him around always felt more cumbersome than fun. But onto the rest of the game--I really dig the space theme, and I even like the hub even though there's little to interact with. The way the orchestra fills out in the hub area the more you collect stars is a nice touch. I also liked how getting those same stars allowed you to hear more of Rosaline's story, which was a point of curiosity for me while playing. I'm not a huge fan of a lot of Mario level structures, where you have to roam around to the level and star you want--it feels a bit old-fashioned at this point to go through several menus to start playing a level--and this has some of that issue for me. I appreciate the more open approach to Odyssey where levels are almost map-wide, but at the same time that can prove awkward, too. That's part of my current issue with Sunshine. But ultimately that stuff doesn't get in the way too much. In the end, there's a lot of fun and varying kinds of levels to enjoy, even if you have to use a WiiMote to fully interact (which I'm not a fan of). Perhaps my favorite Mario theme, and one of my favorite Mario games, but not THE favorite.

Reviewed on Mar 08, 2022


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