Super Mario Galaxy was a critical and commercial success, hailed as one of the best games in the series and one of the greatest video games of all time. The game was directed by Yoshiaki Koizumi and soundtrack was composed by Mahito Yokota and Koji Kondo, using a symphony orchestra for the first time in the series. Nintendo aimed to make the game appeal to players of all ages, and the team had more freedom in designing it compared to other Super Mario games because of the outer space setting. The concept of spherical platforms originated from Super Mario 128, a GameCube tech demo shown at Nintendo Space World in 2000. Nintendo EAD Tokyo began developing Super Mario Galaxy after the release of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat in late 2004, when Shigeru Miyamoto suggested that Nintendo commission a large-scale Mario game. Certain levels use the motion-based Wii Remote functions. The player character is controlled using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk and completes missions, fights bosses, and reaches certain areas to collect Power Stars. The levels consist of galaxies filled with minor planets and worlds, with different variations of gravity, the central element of gameplay. As Mario, the player embarks on a quest to rescue Princess Peach, save the universe from Bowser, and collect 120 Power Stars, after which the player can play the game as Luigi for a more difficult experience. It is the third 3D game in the Super Mario series. But, if I had to think of a single reason why Nintendo might have opted to exclude Galaxy 2 from 3D All-Stars, I think the culprit might actually be Yoshi.Super Mario Galaxy is a 2007 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. This legacy makes it all the more egregious that Nintendo chose to leave it off the table for the 3D All-Stars collection. You can even see the birth of Skyward Sword’s flying Loftwing concept with Galaxy 2’s gliding Fluzzard levels, which require you to tilt the Wii remote as you control a giant bird. In Galaxy 2, you can see Nintendo toying with concepts that would later inspire the level design found in Super Mario 3D Land and 3D World, as well as the massive boss battles you encounter in Super Mario Odyssey. Not only does it stand the test of time on its own, it planted the seeds for the future of the Mario franchise. Given all of the updates and changes made to Super Mario Galaxy 2, I think it’s important to consider the legacy of this game, and that it should be remembered as much more than just a sequel to one of the greatest 3D Mario games. ![]() The sequel also ditches the hub world mechanic found in previous 3D Mario games and implements a traditional map system like what you’d find in 2D Mario games such as Super Mario Bros. Instead, you pilot a mobile planetoid in the shape of Mario’s head as you journey across the cosmos to save Princess Peach. There is no Comet Observatory to traverse the stars and the mysterious Rosalina is nowhere to be found (though she is hinted at from time to time). The opening is told through the pages of a story book, rather than a bombastic cinematic opening. Furthermore, the game is not narratively connected to its predecessor. Instead of traversing a series of larger, planet-based levels that fans had become accustomed to in the first game, Galaxy 2 is chock-full of traditional 2D platforming – much more so than Galaxy. Though the title says 2, it’s less of a direct sequel and more of a reinvention. ![]() While Super Mario Galaxy 2 is visually and technically identical to its predecessor, in many ways it was a refocusing of the Galaxy formula. ![]() This cosmic game was so popular and beloved that Nintendo even re-released it as part of 2020’s Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection to celebrate the franchise’s 35th anniversary, but to the chagrin of fans, one 3D Mario game was notably missing from the collection – 2010’s Super Mario Galaxy 2. With its dazzling art direction, graphical fidelity, clever gravity-based platforming, and fully orchestrated music, Super Mario Galaxy launched the Mario franchise to new heights and proved that the Wii had more to offer than sports and party games. In that five year gap of time, many fans wondered what direction Nintendo would take their favorite mustachioed plumber, though I think it’s safe to say no one expected the masterpiece that was (and still is) Galaxy. It was Nintendo’s big holiday title for the Wii’s second anniversary, and the first mainline Mario game to hit shelves since Sunshine released on the GameCube in the Summer of 2002. Super Mario Galaxy first released on the Wii November 1st, 2007.
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