At the start of the story, Princess Peach invites Mario to watch the Star Festival, a time when stars are showering over Mushroom Kingdom. When Mario comes to the castle, he sees Bowser, who has grown in size from harnessing the power of the stars, attacking and capturing Peach. As Bowser escapes, Mario launches into outer space in pursuit.
Gameplay will be similar to the first Super Mario Galaxy, with a focus on platforming based on and around 3D planets with varying sizes and landscapes. Power-ups such as the Bee Suit will be returning, along with the Launch Star for interplanetary navigation and the Airships operated by the villain Bowser and his son, Bowser Jr.
The protagonist Mario will be able to ride the bipedal dinosaur Yoshi, who can use his tongue to swing across gaps, as well as eat different fruits that give him different powers, such as the ability to inflate like a balloon, as well as speed boosts. While the player retains the ability to collect Star Bits with the blue Star Pointer from the first game, while riding Yoshi the Star Pointer is replaced by a red dot, which allows the player to also aim and control his tongue. This can be used for swinging off objects, pulling levers or, like previous games, swallowing enemies and spitting them out.
Some of the mechanics introduced in Super Mario Galaxy will return, such as blue Pull Stars, sections restricting movement to a 2D plane, balance ball levels, and gravity-reversing background arrows. Power-ups such as the Bee, Boo, and Spring Mushrooms will also be returning, along with the Launch Stars and Sling Stars for interplanetary navigation. Also, new items and gameplay mechanics have been showcased since the game's unveiling at E3 2009. These include a drill that allows the player to drill through planets; the Rock Mushroom, which allows the player to smash through barriers; and the Cloud Flower, which allows the player to create new platforms in midair. The game also allows a second player to control an orange Luma to assist Mario. As well as collecting Star Bits for the player, the orange Luma can attack enemies and collect items such as coins and bubbles, holding on to them until Mario needs them.
Instead of the hub world of the last game, Galaxy 2 will include a map system similar to those in Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii. This is navigated via a mobile planet called Starship Mario (so named because it's shaped like Mario's head), which can be visited anytime and is expanded upon when new abilities are unlocked. Completing levels unlocks new stages, but certain areas cannot be accessed until the player has collected a certain number of Power Stars. Players can also collect Comet Medals hidden in the stages to unlock harder levels with tougher challenges. Similar to New Super Mario Bros. Wii's 'Super Guide' feature, Galaxy 2 has a 'Cosmic Guide' feature that lets the computer play through a section of a level if players are having difficulty. However, if players use this, they will only receive a Bronze Star upon completion, requiring them to complete it themselves in order to earn a Power Star. There are also monitors that show hints to the player. As in Super Mario Galaxy, Luigi is also a playable character, unlocked whenever Mario can locate him at the start of a level. Clearing levels with Luigi unlocks a Ghost Luigi representing a developer speed run that players can race against for completion time.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 was revealed at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009. Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto stated that the team had originally planned just to do variations on the original game's planets, but over time thought of all-new ideas. The game is said to have 95–99% new features, with the rest being previous features such as the Bee Suit. In Miyamoto's private conference, it was stated that the game is very far along in development, but its release is being held back to May 23, 2010, due to New Super Mario Bros. Wii's release on November 15, 2009. Nintendo of America President and CEO Reggie Fils-Aimé stated in an interview that the game would be more challenging than the original. Miyamoto said in a Wired interview that the game would have less of a focus on plot than the original. As of November 2009, development for the game is being finalized. While he has remarked that the game will be really challenging, Miyamoto is still currently unsure as to whether he and the developers will incorporate the "Super Guide" feature, introduced in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, into the game. The game made its playable debut at the Nintendo Summit 2010 on February 24, 2010, where a second trailer for the game was released. Nintendo is currently recording the game's soundtrack, which, like the original game, is written for an orchestra.
February 24, 2010 - It was the worst-kept secret Nintendo had: Super Mario Galaxy 2 was playable at its Media Summit in San Francisco today. This limited demo was the first time we saw anything on the game since its trailer debut at last year's Electronic Entertainment Expo. But today, we didn't just watch. We experienced.
The version at the Summit is far from finished as it lacked any sort of front end interface. Instead, to play a level you simply cycled through a quickly programmed menu system to pick one of about a dozen different Star challenges that will be in the final game.
In this context, it really felt like Super Mario Galaxy 2 is just more of the same: more challenges in the same established Super Mario Galaxy engine. Apart from the new gameplay mechanics, if you were walking past the systems at the Media Summit you'd probably think that Nintendo was showing off the original 2007 release.
But you know what? That's not really a bad thing. Super Mario Galaxy is still the best damn game on the Nintendo Wii, so to get more of the best damn Wii game is still a wonderful thing indeed.
Many of the levels feature a lot of the mechanics that were revealed in the E3 trailer. You can now encounter Yoshi in a variety of platforming challenges. He can do all the same Yoshi things he's been doing in other Mario platformers: eat enemies, flutterjump to reach higher platforms, and take one for the team if an enemy gets too close for comfort. He can also consume "blimp berries" that'll inflate him like a balloon, letting him float up to higher areas as he exhales the extra air. You can have him hold his breath with the A button to let him float in place. Dash Peppers can be consumed to give him a boost in speed, which then lets him, in some levels, run up walls. As long as he doesn't bump into objects while on fire he'll stay on that surface.
One of the things I wished the original Super Mario Galaxy had was more forced perspective side-scrolling levels. And in this demo of the sequel, Nintendo does not disappoint. Not only did I play some really clever gravity focused challenges (the gravity shifts from down to up depending on the backdrop, the floor becoming the ceiling and vice versa), there were also some awesome "rolling log" levels with 2D platforms cut within the cylinder. In these levels, you can pretty much fall forever…or at least until you land on a safe platform.
There are also side-challenges to earn additional stars: I found a hard-to-reach pipe that whisked me off to a mini-game where I had to pick up a fire flower and smash all the crates on a specific platform within 30 seconds. This was not easy. It took me at least six tries to figure out the layout and the proper plan of attack to smash them all…and even then I barely had a single second to spare.
One of the hardest levels I played was one where you had to flip a network of platforms by flicking the Wii remote in order to collect 100 purple coins within 4 minutes. You have to land on a platform and jump towards a gap, flick the Wii remote to rotate the shared platform into the gap you're jumping to. The deeper into the level you got the harder the challenge. Rolling bombs would suddenly start following the platform network and you had to flip the platforms -- while you were still on them -- to detonate the bombs in order to move forward.
Many of the televisions demoing Super Mario Galaxy 2 had headphones attached so we could hear the audio for the sequel. While I didn't hear much in the way of orchestral pieces (though the trailer definitely spotlighted a remix of the Super Mario Galaxy theme) the game does have some great audio. There's lots of throwback pieces, including the early level themes ripped right out of Super Mario World.
The game utilizes the Super Mario Galaxy engine so there wasn't much in the way of new visual effects, but the strength of the engine still shows that the Wii is capable of a lot of cool graphic techniques and styles. So while the visual impact has already been played out in the original game, that's not to say I'm disappointed in the look of Super Mario Galaxy 2…it's easily one of the most beautiful Wii games to date. It's just not much of a stretch from the already beautiful Super Mario Galaxy.
I absolutely can't wait to sit down and play the full version of Super Mario Galaxy 2 when it ships later this year. More of the best game on Wii might not have the same first impression as a fresh Wii project (read Metroid Other M), but I'm still totally excited for this sequel.
Second Take from Matt Casamassina
I had the pleasure of playing through a nine-level demo of Super Mario Galaxy 2 at Nintendo's Media Summit event in San Francisco this morning and afternoon -- both of them, really, as I spent so much time on and off the game kiosk exploring stages and mechanics familiar and new alike. So what to write about the sequel that even now is my favorite Wii game and indeed one of the best titles in a decade? Well, to put it simply, Nintendo's Tokyo studio has once again created a wholly polished, engaging, beautiful platformer that pushes the hardware, utilizes the controller well and still looks better than just about anything on the console. But so far, the sequel is evolutionary, not revolutionary. As Craig Harris wrote in his own impressions, that's not necessarily a criticism.
The demo itself lacked any cinematic flair with regard to cut-scenes and interface. The front-end was altogether missing -- a simple level selection screen -- and as Nintendo explained, some of the presentational bells and whistles are still to come. For example, I noted that much of the music sounded MIDI-esque in my live-blog coverage of the Summit and company reps later informed me that there will be an orchestrated soundtrack, but it's not ready yet. Still, the game showed more sparkle and attention to detail than the bulk of retail releases.
The levels, from first to end: Sky Station Galaxy, Spin-Dig Galaxy, Hightail Falls Galaxy, Tall Trunk Galaxy, Upside Dizzy Galaxy, Bowser Jr's Fiery Flotilla, Supermassive Galaxy, Bowser Jr.'s Fearsome Fleet, and Flip-Swap Galaxy. Yes, I can take notes with the best of them, thank you very much.
The majority of the stages shown took place to earthy backdrops rather than some of the spacey locales in the first game. I was excited to see how Nintendo upped the ante with regard to gravity-based puzzles in the sequel, but sadly these types of stages were not demoed at the Summit. Oh well -- something to look forward to then. What I did see were some really fresh areas built around existing Galaxy gameplay fundamentals and a few new items and characters.
Obviously, the drill. I've seen it, you've seen it -- everybody's seen it. Now that I've played around with it, though, I feel it's definitely a worthy addition to the platforming environment. After Mario acquires the item, he can use it just about anywhere to drill from one side of a globe to another. In some cases, some clever puzzles encircle the concept. For instance, a huge pillar with a star might rest on the underbelly of a planet. There's no way for Mario to reach the stretching obstacle unless he travels to the opposite end of the world and then drills through and directly into the pillar, coming out right-side up on the other end. This technique is also used frequently against bosses, many of whom sport weak spots on their underside -- convenient, sure, but fun nevertheless.
Then, Yoshi. Eggs litter some levels and if you crack them open, your old friend appears. Mario can ride Yoshi as he's always done. Hold down A button when you jump and Yoshi will flutter through the air temporarily before falling back down. Much better, though, is the character's able tongue, which can snap out and grab onto all kinds of objects -- star bits, various enemies, hanging latches, and so forth. In one stage, Bullet Bills fly toward Mario and Yoshi, the latter of whom can swallow them whole with his tongue and then spit them back out again. This is all done quite brilliantly with the Wii remote. Point at the Bills, lock on, and then suck in with the tap of a button -- press it again to fire back. It's great and really fun. I'm looking forward to more challenges based around Yoshi's other abilities, too -- the demo offered glimpses at the speed-enhancing dash pepper and the blimp berries, allowing him to float.
The game's selection of worlds remains ever dazzling. In Supermassive Galaxy, everything is huge, be it Goombas or the actual platforms that Mario runs across. And I really do mean enormous. A typical baddie is about 20 times bigger than the plumber, for example. And in Flip-Swap Galaxy, a timed purple-coined challenge, the difficulty met my expectations. Nintendo's mascot had to run across a series of flippable platforms -- shake the Wii remote and they either turned over and disappeared or reappeared -- without falling through or off the ledges, all the while avoiding giant Bullet Bills and other obstacles. It was incredibly hard but equally fun. Nintendo's own Bill Trinen -- supposedly a seasoned gamer -- tried all afternoon to make it through the stage but failed miserably time and time again before he fled the premises crying like a wee girl. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, anyway.
You can probably already see from screens and the trailer that Galaxy 2's visuals do not offer a great leap over the original. That said, its predecessor still looks fabulous and the sequel delivers the same caliber of art and technology with brand new themes at every turn, not to mention a particle system that somehow looks even better. (I was particularly amazed by a sandstorm that blew through an area.) And of course the fluidity held strong without a single hiccup that I could perceive -- that's 60 frames, not 30, by the way.
I suppose some gamers will be disappointed that some grand new game-changing mechanic has not upended the Galaxy license with this sequel. It seems a valid complaint based on what I've seen so far. But as such a fan of everything the original accomplished, I'm thrilled to see more of the same, not disappointed. And the very fact that we're getting this game so soon has me really excited.
The version at the Summit is far from finished as it lacked any sort of front end interface. Instead, to play a level you simply cycled through a quickly programmed menu system to pick one of about a dozen different Star challenges that will be in the final game.
In this context, it really felt like Super Mario Galaxy 2 is just more of the same: more challenges in the same established Super Mario Galaxy engine. Apart from the new gameplay mechanics, if you were walking past the systems at the Media Summit you'd probably think that Nintendo was showing off the original 2007 release.
But you know what? That's not really a bad thing. Super Mario Galaxy is still the best damn game on the Nintendo Wii, so to get more of the best damn Wii game is still a wonderful thing indeed.
Many of the levels feature a lot of the mechanics that were revealed in the E3 trailer. You can now encounter Yoshi in a variety of platforming challenges. He can do all the same Yoshi things he's been doing in other Mario platformers: eat enemies, flutterjump to reach higher platforms, and take one for the team if an enemy gets too close for comfort. He can also consume "blimp berries" that'll inflate him like a balloon, letting him float up to higher areas as he exhales the extra air. You can have him hold his breath with the A button to let him float in place. Dash Peppers can be consumed to give him a boost in speed, which then lets him, in some levels, run up walls. As long as he doesn't bump into objects while on fire he'll stay on that surface.
One of the things I wished the original Super Mario Galaxy had was more forced perspective side-scrolling levels. And in this demo of the sequel, Nintendo does not disappoint. Not only did I play some really clever gravity focused challenges (the gravity shifts from down to up depending on the backdrop, the floor becoming the ceiling and vice versa), there were also some awesome "rolling log" levels with 2D platforms cut within the cylinder. In these levels, you can pretty much fall forever…or at least until you land on a safe platform.
There are also side-challenges to earn additional stars: I found a hard-to-reach pipe that whisked me off to a mini-game where I had to pick up a fire flower and smash all the crates on a specific platform within 30 seconds. This was not easy. It took me at least six tries to figure out the layout and the proper plan of attack to smash them all…and even then I barely had a single second to spare.
One of the hardest levels I played was one where you had to flip a network of platforms by flicking the Wii remote in order to collect 100 purple coins within 4 minutes. You have to land on a platform and jump towards a gap, flick the Wii remote to rotate the shared platform into the gap you're jumping to. The deeper into the level you got the harder the challenge. Rolling bombs would suddenly start following the platform network and you had to flip the platforms -- while you were still on them -- to detonate the bombs in order to move forward.
Many of the televisions demoing Super Mario Galaxy 2 had headphones attached so we could hear the audio for the sequel. While I didn't hear much in the way of orchestral pieces (though the trailer definitely spotlighted a remix of the Super Mario Galaxy theme) the game does have some great audio. There's lots of throwback pieces, including the early level themes ripped right out of Super Mario World.
The game utilizes the Super Mario Galaxy engine so there wasn't much in the way of new visual effects, but the strength of the engine still shows that the Wii is capable of a lot of cool graphic techniques and styles. So while the visual impact has already been played out in the original game, that's not to say I'm disappointed in the look of Super Mario Galaxy 2…it's easily one of the most beautiful Wii games to date. It's just not much of a stretch from the already beautiful Super Mario Galaxy.
I absolutely can't wait to sit down and play the full version of Super Mario Galaxy 2 when it ships later this year. More of the best game on Wii might not have the same first impression as a fresh Wii project (read Metroid Other M), but I'm still totally excited for this sequel.
Second Take from Matt Casamassina
I had the pleasure of playing through a nine-level demo of Super Mario Galaxy 2 at Nintendo's Media Summit event in San Francisco this morning and afternoon -- both of them, really, as I spent so much time on and off the game kiosk exploring stages and mechanics familiar and new alike. So what to write about the sequel that even now is my favorite Wii game and indeed one of the best titles in a decade? Well, to put it simply, Nintendo's Tokyo studio has once again created a wholly polished, engaging, beautiful platformer that pushes the hardware, utilizes the controller well and still looks better than just about anything on the console. But so far, the sequel is evolutionary, not revolutionary. As Craig Harris wrote in his own impressions, that's not necessarily a criticism.
The demo itself lacked any cinematic flair with regard to cut-scenes and interface. The front-end was altogether missing -- a simple level selection screen -- and as Nintendo explained, some of the presentational bells and whistles are still to come. For example, I noted that much of the music sounded MIDI-esque in my live-blog coverage of the Summit and company reps later informed me that there will be an orchestrated soundtrack, but it's not ready yet. Still, the game showed more sparkle and attention to detail than the bulk of retail releases.
The levels, from first to end: Sky Station Galaxy, Spin-Dig Galaxy, Hightail Falls Galaxy, Tall Trunk Galaxy, Upside Dizzy Galaxy, Bowser Jr's Fiery Flotilla, Supermassive Galaxy, Bowser Jr.'s Fearsome Fleet, and Flip-Swap Galaxy. Yes, I can take notes with the best of them, thank you very much.
The majority of the stages shown took place to earthy backdrops rather than some of the spacey locales in the first game. I was excited to see how Nintendo upped the ante with regard to gravity-based puzzles in the sequel, but sadly these types of stages were not demoed at the Summit. Oh well -- something to look forward to then. What I did see were some really fresh areas built around existing Galaxy gameplay fundamentals and a few new items and characters.
Obviously, the drill. I've seen it, you've seen it -- everybody's seen it. Now that I've played around with it, though, I feel it's definitely a worthy addition to the platforming environment. After Mario acquires the item, he can use it just about anywhere to drill from one side of a globe to another. In some cases, some clever puzzles encircle the concept. For instance, a huge pillar with a star might rest on the underbelly of a planet. There's no way for Mario to reach the stretching obstacle unless he travels to the opposite end of the world and then drills through and directly into the pillar, coming out right-side up on the other end. This technique is also used frequently against bosses, many of whom sport weak spots on their underside -- convenient, sure, but fun nevertheless.
Then, Yoshi. Eggs litter some levels and if you crack them open, your old friend appears. Mario can ride Yoshi as he's always done. Hold down A button when you jump and Yoshi will flutter through the air temporarily before falling back down. Much better, though, is the character's able tongue, which can snap out and grab onto all kinds of objects -- star bits, various enemies, hanging latches, and so forth. In one stage, Bullet Bills fly toward Mario and Yoshi, the latter of whom can swallow them whole with his tongue and then spit them back out again. This is all done quite brilliantly with the Wii remote. Point at the Bills, lock on, and then suck in with the tap of a button -- press it again to fire back. It's great and really fun. I'm looking forward to more challenges based around Yoshi's other abilities, too -- the demo offered glimpses at the speed-enhancing dash pepper and the blimp berries, allowing him to float.
The game's selection of worlds remains ever dazzling. In Supermassive Galaxy, everything is huge, be it Goombas or the actual platforms that Mario runs across. And I really do mean enormous. A typical baddie is about 20 times bigger than the plumber, for example. And in Flip-Swap Galaxy, a timed purple-coined challenge, the difficulty met my expectations. Nintendo's mascot had to run across a series of flippable platforms -- shake the Wii remote and they either turned over and disappeared or reappeared -- without falling through or off the ledges, all the while avoiding giant Bullet Bills and other obstacles. It was incredibly hard but equally fun. Nintendo's own Bill Trinen -- supposedly a seasoned gamer -- tried all afternoon to make it through the stage but failed miserably time and time again before he fled the premises crying like a wee girl. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, anyway.
You can probably already see from screens and the trailer that Galaxy 2's visuals do not offer a great leap over the original. That said, its predecessor still looks fabulous and the sequel delivers the same caliber of art and technology with brand new themes at every turn, not to mention a particle system that somehow looks even better. (I was particularly amazed by a sandstorm that blew through an area.) And of course the fluidity held strong without a single hiccup that I could perceive -- that's 60 frames, not 30, by the way.
I suppose some gamers will be disappointed that some grand new game-changing mechanic has not upended the Galaxy license with this sequel. It seems a valid complaint based on what I've seen so far. But as such a fan of everything the original accomplished, I'm thrilled to see more of the same, not disappointed. And the very fact that we're getting this game so soon has me really excited.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 has a lot to live up to: the original game holds the rightful spot as the best game on the Wii console. The idea of getting more of the same isn't necessarily a bad thing when it comes to the original Super Mario Galaxy -- more of the best Wii game ever? Who would dare complain about that? The question, however, is how Nintendo is going to make Super Mario Galaxy 2 stand on its own; how it's going to build the game to have it stand apart from being just a "me too, more levels of a 2007 game release" type of design.
We've been getting small tastes of the game over the past month or so, and earlier this week Nintendo had the gaming press over to its Bay Area office to take a deeper look at Super Mario Galaxy 2 in action. This was the first time we got a peek at the game progression; the last time we played with the game, levels were selectable only through a basic debug menu. And now that we can see how these levels are going to be presented and how players progress, it's now slowly making sense on how Super Mario Galaxy 2 will feel different from the first one.
Yes, Super Mario Galaxy 2 uses the same Galaxy/Planet system of levels from the first game, and each "galaxy" level has at least one star -- many times multiple starts -- to collect at the end of the platforming challenge. But instead of selecting the galaxy from the observatory overworld like in the original game, you're instead working through a very, very familiar world and level tree that feels much more at home in a Mario game. You know the type: the world map that's been in 2D Mario games since Super Mario Bros. 3? Well, that's how you work through the levels in Super Mario Galaxy 2. But there's a twist.
Nintendo showed off "Starship Mario," a large Mario Face planetoid (a version which is seen in past trailers and screenshots) that Mario can explore and chat with Toads and Lumas scattered all over Mario's enormous noggin. This is what will carry you from World to World, from Galaxy to Galaxy. You can visit Starship Mario at any time for power-ups and 1ups, and the galaxy you're in will be reflected in the themed background of Starship Mario. Nintendo didn't show off everything about this personal planet, so there will definitely be more to talk about on our next hands-on.
During our playthrough we could check out five levels we've never experienced before, two of which introduced brand new Mario mechanics. For example, Boulder Bowl Galaxy introduced a brand new Mario suit: Rock Mario. This stone-shaped mushroom will power-up the plumber with a granite suit and when you shake the Wii remote, you'll roll up Mario, a la Samus and the morph ball, into a sphere that'll bowl over anything and everything. You can steer Mario in this form but he doesn't have a very good turning radius, and unless he smashes into a hard enemy or a wall, he'll continue to roll…many times right off the edge of a level if you're not careful. The level designers clearly have fun right away with this ability, throwing bowling pins in Mario's way, egging the players on to score a strike by rolling up into a giant boulder. At the end of the level, you get to fight a giant armadillo named Rollodillo, who curls up into an even bigger boulder to squash Mario flat. Luckily his backside is unprotected.
Yoshi's received a new ability as well: we've already seen what happens when he eats a chili pepper and when he scarfs down a blimp fruit, but if he munches down on a bulb fruit he'll turn into Light Yoshi. In Light Yoshi levels like Haunty Halls Galaxy, he will glow after eating the fruit, illuminating platforms all around him. If you can see them you can jump on them, but if they're not visible, those platforms don't even exist…so don't think about jumping out into the middle of nowhere in hopes that the invisible floor will support you. It won't.
In previous trailers we've seen levels where sawblades will cut the levels apart while you wander around on them, and we finally got a chance to play one of these challenges in Puzzle Plank Galaxy. Sawblades are obviously harmful, but if you're too slow they can hack away at the platforms you're wandering around on. The blades are clearly triggered by your progress, as they won't move until you reach a specific point on the level. There are even points where the blades will cut portions of an area that will transform the level in such a way that it requires wall jumping to progress.
In the Cosmic Cove Galaxy we played around in the Twin Falls Hideaway challenge. This is an underwater swimming level where you can stomp on a koopa shell and use it to propel Mario through the depths just like in the first one. In this level you eventually make your way up to the surface to hit a switch, which will then blanket the water in ice. Out in the distance, you'll notice that the icy effect also froze two waterfalls that can now be wall-jumped upwards, where the star awaits.
And finally, in the Honeybloom Galaxy, the bee costume makes a return. This level, however, uses a fixed camera system and turns the level into an old-school Super Mario Bros. side-scrolling challenge. The bee costume still has the same effect: it can only fly for a set amount of time, and if Mario touches water, you lose the power.
There were several elements that we saw in our hands-on that we've been sworn to secrecy -- we can't talk about those elements until we get closer to the game's late May release in the US. But we're promised that before the game ships we'll have at least one more chance to take a look at some of the new elements that will be peppered in throughout this sequel. For now, though, enjoy the new screens and trailer.
We've been getting small tastes of the game over the past month or so, and earlier this week Nintendo had the gaming press over to its Bay Area office to take a deeper look at Super Mario Galaxy 2 in action. This was the first time we got a peek at the game progression; the last time we played with the game, levels were selectable only through a basic debug menu. And now that we can see how these levels are going to be presented and how players progress, it's now slowly making sense on how Super Mario Galaxy 2 will feel different from the first one.
Yes, Super Mario Galaxy 2 uses the same Galaxy/Planet system of levels from the first game, and each "galaxy" level has at least one star -- many times multiple starts -- to collect at the end of the platforming challenge. But instead of selecting the galaxy from the observatory overworld like in the original game, you're instead working through a very, very familiar world and level tree that feels much more at home in a Mario game. You know the type: the world map that's been in 2D Mario games since Super Mario Bros. 3? Well, that's how you work through the levels in Super Mario Galaxy 2. But there's a twist.
Nintendo showed off "Starship Mario," a large Mario Face planetoid (a version which is seen in past trailers and screenshots) that Mario can explore and chat with Toads and Lumas scattered all over Mario's enormous noggin. This is what will carry you from World to World, from Galaxy to Galaxy. You can visit Starship Mario at any time for power-ups and 1ups, and the galaxy you're in will be reflected in the themed background of Starship Mario. Nintendo didn't show off everything about this personal planet, so there will definitely be more to talk about on our next hands-on.
During our playthrough we could check out five levels we've never experienced before, two of which introduced brand new Mario mechanics. For example, Boulder Bowl Galaxy introduced a brand new Mario suit: Rock Mario. This stone-shaped mushroom will power-up the plumber with a granite suit and when you shake the Wii remote, you'll roll up Mario, a la Samus and the morph ball, into a sphere that'll bowl over anything and everything. You can steer Mario in this form but he doesn't have a very good turning radius, and unless he smashes into a hard enemy or a wall, he'll continue to roll…many times right off the edge of a level if you're not careful. The level designers clearly have fun right away with this ability, throwing bowling pins in Mario's way, egging the players on to score a strike by rolling up into a giant boulder. At the end of the level, you get to fight a giant armadillo named Rollodillo, who curls up into an even bigger boulder to squash Mario flat. Luckily his backside is unprotected.
Yoshi's received a new ability as well: we've already seen what happens when he eats a chili pepper and when he scarfs down a blimp fruit, but if he munches down on a bulb fruit he'll turn into Light Yoshi. In Light Yoshi levels like Haunty Halls Galaxy, he will glow after eating the fruit, illuminating platforms all around him. If you can see them you can jump on them, but if they're not visible, those platforms don't even exist…so don't think about jumping out into the middle of nowhere in hopes that the invisible floor will support you. It won't.
In previous trailers we've seen levels where sawblades will cut the levels apart while you wander around on them, and we finally got a chance to play one of these challenges in Puzzle Plank Galaxy. Sawblades are obviously harmful, but if you're too slow they can hack away at the platforms you're wandering around on. The blades are clearly triggered by your progress, as they won't move until you reach a specific point on the level. There are even points where the blades will cut portions of an area that will transform the level in such a way that it requires wall jumping to progress.
In the Cosmic Cove Galaxy we played around in the Twin Falls Hideaway challenge. This is an underwater swimming level where you can stomp on a koopa shell and use it to propel Mario through the depths just like in the first one. In this level you eventually make your way up to the surface to hit a switch, which will then blanket the water in ice. Out in the distance, you'll notice that the icy effect also froze two waterfalls that can now be wall-jumped upwards, where the star awaits.
And finally, in the Honeybloom Galaxy, the bee costume makes a return. This level, however, uses a fixed camera system and turns the level into an old-school Super Mario Bros. side-scrolling challenge. The bee costume still has the same effect: it can only fly for a set amount of time, and if Mario touches water, you lose the power.
There were several elements that we saw in our hands-on that we've been sworn to secrecy -- we can't talk about those elements until we get closer to the game's late May release in the US. But we're promised that before the game ships we'll have at least one more chance to take a look at some of the new elements that will be peppered in throughout this sequel. For now, though, enjoy the new screens and trailer.
May 5, 2010 - After about a month of controlled demos for Super Mario Galaxy 2, Nintendo has finally let loose the game into the hands of the enthusiast press. I'm one of the lucky ones to have the final build; Nintendo handed over the game yesterday where I've had the opportunity to plow through the first two "worlds" of this brand new adventure, and man, am I having a blast.
I've made no effort in past hands-on previews to hide the fact that I've been a little worried that Super Mario Galaxy 2 would feel like a "me too" experience, like this would end up being simply nothing more than the original Super Mario Galaxy with new levels. Now that I've been sitting down with the game at my pace, I can put those worries to rest. Finally. Yes, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is using many of the same assets of the original Super Mario Galaxy, but the level designs, the power-ups, and the camera system have been given a fresh coat of Nintendo paint. Bystanders might immediately walk past and mistake it for the original game, but the player itself will recognize right away that this is not just the first game with new challenges.
It's pretty obvious right from the start that Nintendo's targeting Super Mario Galaxy 2 to the "new" audience it's attracted with New Super Mario Bros. Wii. There's a good percentage of gamers who've jumped into last year's game as their first Super Mario adventure since the original old-school designs on the NES and Super NES, and judging by the way the game opens Nintendo wants to ensure that those gamers are weaned into the 3D experience. The tutorial level starts out with a strict side-scrolling camera, mimicking the New Super Mario Bros. Wii experience, training the player with the nunchuk and remote pairing while keeping the gameplay forced in a 2D perspective. When the player moves to the next part of the level, the camera stays side-scrolling but the strict 2D gameplay is freed up: Mario can now move towards and away from the camera.
When Mario stumbles upon Bowser's Mushroom Kingdom rampage (the guy is huge, as if he hasn't shrunk down since the boss battle from New Super Mario Bros. Wii), the gameplay is fully 3D with the camera now chasing Mario towards the princess's castle. After a brief story sequence Mario's off chasing his first star -- incidentally, players can't quit out of this sequence since they haven't yet earned the Starship Mario overworld yet. But once that star is obtained after a pretty sizable level -- a level that combines many of the 3D and 2D mechanics that will be explored more deeply in the later worlds -- Mario is whisked onto a ship shaped like his face. It's here where players will explore the universe of Super Mario Galaxy 2.
The story lacks a bit of the same "oomph" of the original Super Mario Galaxy -- beyond seeing Bowser tower over the castle the cutscenes are a bit subdued. They're told through storybook pages that flip as the player moves from one scene to the next. But considering that the only thing that's happened is that Mega Bowser's scooped up Princess Peach (before she can make the cake!) and launched himself off the planet, the story is not really the big driving force behind Super Mario Galaxy 2.
In fact, so far the game doesn't even really acknowledge the original Super Mario Galaxy adventure. Lumas now exist in the Mushroom Kingdom, but no one's talking about the previous turn of events.
We've already done plenty of hands-on with a few of the early levels in this game. In the first two worlds we've found Yoshi, earned the Cloud Mario, Rock Mario, and Bee suits, and stumbled upon the hot pepper that sends Yoshi climbing up vertical ramps.
One of the levels I hadn't yet playtested until today was one where you glide with a huge condor-like bird, floating through the level in an on-rails challenge with a fixed camera not unlike Star Fox -- this mechanic used the Wii remote exclusively, similar to the way players rolled Mario on the sphere in the first Super Mario Galaxy. Tip the Wii remote forward to dive and increase speed, pull it back to tip the nose up and slow down, with left and right tilts to lean in those directions in order to glide through hoops and arches, trying to pop balloons for the star bits inside…all the while finishing the level under the set time limit in order to score the Power Star for that level.
I also received a letter from a monkey character I bumped into earlier in World 1: he offered up a high score challenge in a previous level, and if I broke his record score I would get his star. The challenge: take out clusters of enemies for points. By stomping them in succession, you earn escalated points: 100 for the first one, 200 for the second one, and 300 points for each one after it…only if your feet don't touch the ground. Once you land, the multiplier resets. I'm sure that there will be plenty more of this style of level later in Super Mario Galaxy 2's progression.
Like the original Super Mario Galaxy, this game's soundtrack leaps around from orchestral to MIDI and back again, but so far there seems to be a stronger saturation for the former. And that's a good thing: a lot of the orchestral pieces of the original game were absolutely phenomenal and fit the game's epic "space opera" scope. The same can certainly be said for the sequel: so far the music's fantastic. Along with some classic Super Mario Galaxy pieces, there are some original compositions along with some throwbacks to Super Mario World on the Super NES, a game that at least I hold as the game with the best and most consistent Mario soundtrack.
Nintendo gave me the thumbs up to talk about Luigi in Super Mario Galaxy 2, but I haven't encountered him yet in the first couple of hours with the game. I'm guessing he'll show up midway through just as he did in the first game -- but then, that would be just a tad uncreative, no?
The jump in/jump out cooperative two player option is back: simply activate a synced Wii remote and a second player can control an optional reticle that can be used to target enemies and obstacles, and freeze them in place to help Mario along in tougher situations. Any escaping 1ups can be grabbed by the second player as well, halting their movement while Mario runs over and snags the pick-up.
There's plenty more to explore before the game's May 23rd release date, so let me get right back to playing and find some more awesome areas. Enjoy some new media in the meantime.
I've made no effort in past hands-on previews to hide the fact that I've been a little worried that Super Mario Galaxy 2 would feel like a "me too" experience, like this would end up being simply nothing more than the original Super Mario Galaxy with new levels. Now that I've been sitting down with the game at my pace, I can put those worries to rest. Finally. Yes, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is using many of the same assets of the original Super Mario Galaxy, but the level designs, the power-ups, and the camera system have been given a fresh coat of Nintendo paint. Bystanders might immediately walk past and mistake it for the original game, but the player itself will recognize right away that this is not just the first game with new challenges.
It's pretty obvious right from the start that Nintendo's targeting Super Mario Galaxy 2 to the "new" audience it's attracted with New Super Mario Bros. Wii. There's a good percentage of gamers who've jumped into last year's game as their first Super Mario adventure since the original old-school designs on the NES and Super NES, and judging by the way the game opens Nintendo wants to ensure that those gamers are weaned into the 3D experience. The tutorial level starts out with a strict side-scrolling camera, mimicking the New Super Mario Bros. Wii experience, training the player with the nunchuk and remote pairing while keeping the gameplay forced in a 2D perspective. When the player moves to the next part of the level, the camera stays side-scrolling but the strict 2D gameplay is freed up: Mario can now move towards and away from the camera.
When Mario stumbles upon Bowser's Mushroom Kingdom rampage (the guy is huge, as if he hasn't shrunk down since the boss battle from New Super Mario Bros. Wii), the gameplay is fully 3D with the camera now chasing Mario towards the princess's castle. After a brief story sequence Mario's off chasing his first star -- incidentally, players can't quit out of this sequence since they haven't yet earned the Starship Mario overworld yet. But once that star is obtained after a pretty sizable level -- a level that combines many of the 3D and 2D mechanics that will be explored more deeply in the later worlds -- Mario is whisked onto a ship shaped like his face. It's here where players will explore the universe of Super Mario Galaxy 2.
The story lacks a bit of the same "oomph" of the original Super Mario Galaxy -- beyond seeing Bowser tower over the castle the cutscenes are a bit subdued. They're told through storybook pages that flip as the player moves from one scene to the next. But considering that the only thing that's happened is that Mega Bowser's scooped up Princess Peach (before she can make the cake!) and launched himself off the planet, the story is not really the big driving force behind Super Mario Galaxy 2.
In fact, so far the game doesn't even really acknowledge the original Super Mario Galaxy adventure. Lumas now exist in the Mushroom Kingdom, but no one's talking about the previous turn of events.
We've already done plenty of hands-on with a few of the early levels in this game. In the first two worlds we've found Yoshi, earned the Cloud Mario, Rock Mario, and Bee suits, and stumbled upon the hot pepper that sends Yoshi climbing up vertical ramps.
One of the levels I hadn't yet playtested until today was one where you glide with a huge condor-like bird, floating through the level in an on-rails challenge with a fixed camera not unlike Star Fox -- this mechanic used the Wii remote exclusively, similar to the way players rolled Mario on the sphere in the first Super Mario Galaxy. Tip the Wii remote forward to dive and increase speed, pull it back to tip the nose up and slow down, with left and right tilts to lean in those directions in order to glide through hoops and arches, trying to pop balloons for the star bits inside…all the while finishing the level under the set time limit in order to score the Power Star for that level.
I also received a letter from a monkey character I bumped into earlier in World 1: he offered up a high score challenge in a previous level, and if I broke his record score I would get his star. The challenge: take out clusters of enemies for points. By stomping them in succession, you earn escalated points: 100 for the first one, 200 for the second one, and 300 points for each one after it…only if your feet don't touch the ground. Once you land, the multiplier resets. I'm sure that there will be plenty more of this style of level later in Super Mario Galaxy 2's progression.
Like the original Super Mario Galaxy, this game's soundtrack leaps around from orchestral to MIDI and back again, but so far there seems to be a stronger saturation for the former. And that's a good thing: a lot of the orchestral pieces of the original game were absolutely phenomenal and fit the game's epic "space opera" scope. The same can certainly be said for the sequel: so far the music's fantastic. Along with some classic Super Mario Galaxy pieces, there are some original compositions along with some throwbacks to Super Mario World on the Super NES, a game that at least I hold as the game with the best and most consistent Mario soundtrack.
Nintendo gave me the thumbs up to talk about Luigi in Super Mario Galaxy 2, but I haven't encountered him yet in the first couple of hours with the game. I'm guessing he'll show up midway through just as he did in the first game -- but then, that would be just a tad uncreative, no?
The jump in/jump out cooperative two player option is back: simply activate a synced Wii remote and a second player can control an optional reticle that can be used to target enemies and obstacles, and freeze them in place to help Mario along in tougher situations. Any escaping 1ups can be grabbed by the second player as well, halting their movement while Mario runs over and snags the pick-up.
There's plenty more to explore before the game's May 23rd release date, so let me get right back to playing and find some more awesome areas. Enjoy some new media in the meantime.
May 7, 2010 - Much of what's in the upcoming Mario sequel exists in the original 2007 title. But Super Mario Galaxy 2 has plenty of new elements to make this sequel feel as fresh and impactful as an original, standalone Nintendo product.
We've been talking about the new items from Super Mario Galaxy 2 ever since the game's May 23rd release date was revealed, but all that information has been spread out in multiple hands-on previews over the course of several weeks. Chances are, you might have missed a tidbit or two along the way.
So, while I sit here and play the game for review in time for its launch, I thought I'd also give you guys a bit of a refresher about some of the new gameplay mechanics that will appear in Super Mario Galaxy 2.
Keep in mind I'm actually only a quarter of the way through the game, and I may stumble upon a few new level designs in my quest for the stars across this universe. But I can confirm the following features because I've experienced them first-hand:
Luigi
Luigi is indeed playable like the first Super Mario Galaxy, but you don't have to plow through the entire adventure just to unlock this feature. Mario's brother makes his appearance early -- almost immediately after the completion of World 1. When he shows up, he'll randomly appear at the start of a level and beg you to let him play. If you say "yes," you'll be playing as him for the level.
He definitely plays a bit different than Mario, and similar to how he's handled in the original Super Mario Galaxy. He's a bit slippery so it's more difficult to have him come to a stop after a full-on run. He can also jump slightly higher and it at least feels like he has a faster run. When you complete a level with Luigi, it's a rather muted fanfare, and it seems as if you're not rewarded for your effort; You get the star and your profile never notes that the level's been completed with the green dude.
However! The levels you complete as Luigi have a seemingly hidden incentive. Return to that level and you'll see a "Ghost Luigi" ready for a run. Touch him and he'll hop off through the level leaving behind green arrows. These, my friends, are the incredibly skillful developer speed runs: If you can keep up with Luigi, you'll see the most efficient route to take in a level.
Ghost Luigi doesn't seem to display any power-ups, so if he's using, say, the Cloud ability, you won't see ghost clouds left behind. You'll just have to watch his animation to know when he's pulling off the controller-flicking spin maneuver.
Incidentally, each level records the fastest completed time, so it's worth your while to follow Luigi's lead if you want the best time possible.
Yoshi
All but ignored in Super Mario Galaxy, Mario's faithful and adorable dinosaur friend takes center stage in Super Mario Galaxy. And he's utilized in big, creative ways in Super Mario Galaxy 2.
On his own, he's a rideable companion that gives Mario special attacks and abilities to advance him through the levels. He's only in levels that use his capabilities, so don't expect to go bareback on this lizard in every one of the challenges. You'll know it's a Yoshi level when you see the familiar green-spotted eggs sitting in a nest: Simply smash him out of it and you've got a friend to help you out.
First, he can "flutterjump" to leap farther and higher than Mario can all by himself. Jump and hold the button to continue the jump and use every ounce of Yoshi's leg strength. Second, he has the ability to eat his foes, removing them and turning them into star gems. Not every creature can be scarfed, but he can certainly gulp down giant Bullet Bills and spit them out.
Oh, and you'll find floating flower pegs that Yoshi can "lick" to whip him around the level, but you'll need to have careful aim with the Wii remote pointer to nab them properly.
Then there are the awesome Yoshi specialties:
Fiery Yoshi: Eat a pepper and Yoshi will turn red hot. This ability turns him into a speed demon, rushing through the level at an insane pace. This additional speed also gives him the added ability of defying gravity, rushing up walls as long as the power-up continues -- as long as you don't accidentally run into an obstacle. If you take a hit or run out of power, then gravity takes over and it can be a long trip down.
Balloon Yoshi: Munch down on a tasty blimp berry and Yoshi will inflate all fat and round. Mario will grab onto Yoshi's backside and float upwards with him using the power of escaping air from Yoshi's mouth. He can only keep up this balloon shape for a limited time, and once the meter runs out he'll "pop" back into shape and you'll plummet back down to the ground. If you hold the A button you'll stop air from leaking, allowing you to float without ascending; but you're still constricted by the time limit.
Light Yoshi: This is easily one of the most creative Mario gameplay mechanics. Eat a bulb berry and Yoshi will light up brighter than the sun. His glow will illuminate previously invisible platforms and enable him to walk over them for as long as they're lit up. The problem: If these platforms aren't illuminated, they don't exist. You can't just jump where they would be if they're not visible; you'll just plummet into oblivion. Bulb berries are ridiculously short-lived. After you eat one, the glowing radius will slowly shrink until there's nothing left but darkness, so you'll oftentimes need to find the next bulb berry floating in mid-air in order to continue your progress.
In many levels, Mario can pick up a huge drill power-up and lug it around with him. When he spin-attacks, it'll activate the drill, and if the ground is soft enough he'll spin right through to the other side. In many cases, the drill will send him through an entire planet or even straight into its hollow core.
Mario can also pick up a couple of power-up suits along the way. Just a handful that we've experienced on our own:
Rock Mario: Grab this granite-textured mushroom and Mario will don a new suit that will make him the cousin to Fantastic Four's Thing. When in Rock Mario form, shaking the remote will put Mario in a giant boulder that'll roll forward at an impressive speed; his trajectory can be altered by pushing left and right on the analog stick, but he has a turning radius worse than a '79 Le Sabre. But while in the boulder Mario can topple over pretty much any enemy, with only a few exceptions. If he smacks into a wall, though, he'll break out of the ball.
Cloud Mario: A relatively fresh idea, this power-up literally makes Mario as light as a cloud. When in this suit, Mario can not only walk over cloud platforms (platforms that poof away if standard Mario walks on them), but he can make three of his own by spinning in mid-air. Tiny cloud beings follow Cloud Mario to let him know how many he can conjure up. If you're out of clouds following you, you'll need to find another Cloud Mario power-up to replenish what you've lost. These cloud platforms can not only give you a lift upwards, but you can also go higher and farther if the level has wind generators.
There may be other power-ups I haven't discovered yet: deep inside Starship Mario (your own personal planetoid shaped like Mario's head) is the power station with pedestals that display unlocked power-ups like trophies.
And then there are levels that aren't of the usual platform-jumping design. There are ball-rolling challenges like ones found in the original Super Mario Galaxy, but in our early playthrough we've found a level where you glide through the level latched to the talons of a giant condor. This is a variation of the manta ray levels of Super Mario Galaxy, but you're "gliding" and not "flying" the condor, so you have to take momentum into account if you want to reach the higher rings and comet coins.
I'll be playing the lion's share of Super Mario Galaxy 2 this weekend with a lot more to discover -- be sure to check back for more details on the game, and feel free to ready your iTunes to download the next Nintendo Voice Chat podcast where we'll dedicate much of our discussion to just how amazing, awesome (Or possibly disappointing?) this follow-up is.
We've been talking about the new items from Super Mario Galaxy 2 ever since the game's May 23rd release date was revealed, but all that information has been spread out in multiple hands-on previews over the course of several weeks. Chances are, you might have missed a tidbit or two along the way.
So, while I sit here and play the game for review in time for its launch, I thought I'd also give you guys a bit of a refresher about some of the new gameplay mechanics that will appear in Super Mario Galaxy 2.
Keep in mind I'm actually only a quarter of the way through the game, and I may stumble upon a few new level designs in my quest for the stars across this universe. But I can confirm the following features because I've experienced them first-hand:
Luigi
Luigi is indeed playable like the first Super Mario Galaxy, but you don't have to plow through the entire adventure just to unlock this feature. Mario's brother makes his appearance early -- almost immediately after the completion of World 1. When he shows up, he'll randomly appear at the start of a level and beg you to let him play. If you say "yes," you'll be playing as him for the level.
He definitely plays a bit different than Mario, and similar to how he's handled in the original Super Mario Galaxy. He's a bit slippery so it's more difficult to have him come to a stop after a full-on run. He can also jump slightly higher and it at least feels like he has a faster run. When you complete a level with Luigi, it's a rather muted fanfare, and it seems as if you're not rewarded for your effort; You get the star and your profile never notes that the level's been completed with the green dude.
However! The levels you complete as Luigi have a seemingly hidden incentive. Return to that level and you'll see a "Ghost Luigi" ready for a run. Touch him and he'll hop off through the level leaving behind green arrows. These, my friends, are the incredibly skillful developer speed runs: If you can keep up with Luigi, you'll see the most efficient route to take in a level.
Ghost Luigi doesn't seem to display any power-ups, so if he's using, say, the Cloud ability, you won't see ghost clouds left behind. You'll just have to watch his animation to know when he's pulling off the controller-flicking spin maneuver.
Incidentally, each level records the fastest completed time, so it's worth your while to follow Luigi's lead if you want the best time possible.
Yoshi
All but ignored in Super Mario Galaxy, Mario's faithful and adorable dinosaur friend takes center stage in Super Mario Galaxy. And he's utilized in big, creative ways in Super Mario Galaxy 2.
On his own, he's a rideable companion that gives Mario special attacks and abilities to advance him through the levels. He's only in levels that use his capabilities, so don't expect to go bareback on this lizard in every one of the challenges. You'll know it's a Yoshi level when you see the familiar green-spotted eggs sitting in a nest: Simply smash him out of it and you've got a friend to help you out.
First, he can "flutterjump" to leap farther and higher than Mario can all by himself. Jump and hold the button to continue the jump and use every ounce of Yoshi's leg strength. Second, he has the ability to eat his foes, removing them and turning them into star gems. Not every creature can be scarfed, but he can certainly gulp down giant Bullet Bills and spit them out.
Oh, and you'll find floating flower pegs that Yoshi can "lick" to whip him around the level, but you'll need to have careful aim with the Wii remote pointer to nab them properly.
Then there are the awesome Yoshi specialties:
Fiery Yoshi: Eat a pepper and Yoshi will turn red hot. This ability turns him into a speed demon, rushing through the level at an insane pace. This additional speed also gives him the added ability of defying gravity, rushing up walls as long as the power-up continues -- as long as you don't accidentally run into an obstacle. If you take a hit or run out of power, then gravity takes over and it can be a long trip down.
Balloon Yoshi: Munch down on a tasty blimp berry and Yoshi will inflate all fat and round. Mario will grab onto Yoshi's backside and float upwards with him using the power of escaping air from Yoshi's mouth. He can only keep up this balloon shape for a limited time, and once the meter runs out he'll "pop" back into shape and you'll plummet back down to the ground. If you hold the A button you'll stop air from leaking, allowing you to float without ascending; but you're still constricted by the time limit.
Light Yoshi: This is easily one of the most creative Mario gameplay mechanics. Eat a bulb berry and Yoshi will light up brighter than the sun. His glow will illuminate previously invisible platforms and enable him to walk over them for as long as they're lit up. The problem: If these platforms aren't illuminated, they don't exist. You can't just jump where they would be if they're not visible; you'll just plummet into oblivion. Bulb berries are ridiculously short-lived. After you eat one, the glowing radius will slowly shrink until there's nothing left but darkness, so you'll oftentimes need to find the next bulb berry floating in mid-air in order to continue your progress.
In many levels, Mario can pick up a huge drill power-up and lug it around with him. When he spin-attacks, it'll activate the drill, and if the ground is soft enough he'll spin right through to the other side. In many cases, the drill will send him through an entire planet or even straight into its hollow core.
Mario can also pick up a couple of power-up suits along the way. Just a handful that we've experienced on our own:
Rock Mario: Grab this granite-textured mushroom and Mario will don a new suit that will make him the cousin to Fantastic Four's Thing. When in Rock Mario form, shaking the remote will put Mario in a giant boulder that'll roll forward at an impressive speed; his trajectory can be altered by pushing left and right on the analog stick, but he has a turning radius worse than a '79 Le Sabre. But while in the boulder Mario can topple over pretty much any enemy, with only a few exceptions. If he smacks into a wall, though, he'll break out of the ball.
Cloud Mario: A relatively fresh idea, this power-up literally makes Mario as light as a cloud. When in this suit, Mario can not only walk over cloud platforms (platforms that poof away if standard Mario walks on them), but he can make three of his own by spinning in mid-air. Tiny cloud beings follow Cloud Mario to let him know how many he can conjure up. If you're out of clouds following you, you'll need to find another Cloud Mario power-up to replenish what you've lost. These cloud platforms can not only give you a lift upwards, but you can also go higher and farther if the level has wind generators.
There may be other power-ups I haven't discovered yet: deep inside Starship Mario (your own personal planetoid shaped like Mario's head) is the power station with pedestals that display unlocked power-ups like trophies.
And then there are levels that aren't of the usual platform-jumping design. There are ball-rolling challenges like ones found in the original Super Mario Galaxy, but in our early playthrough we've found a level where you glide through the level latched to the talons of a giant condor. This is a variation of the manta ray levels of Super Mario Galaxy, but you're "gliding" and not "flying" the condor, so you have to take momentum into account if you want to reach the higher rings and comet coins.
I'll be playing the lion's share of Super Mario Galaxy 2 this weekend with a lot more to discover -- be sure to check back for more details on the game, and feel free to ready your iTunes to download the next Nintendo Voice Chat podcast where we'll dedicate much of our discussion to just how amazing, awesome (Or possibly disappointing?) this follow-up is.
/watch?v=iO10_IbDUBU
The game doesn't come out for a while. Ill update here and there when new info comes out. However, what looks good and bad? What do you want to see? Talk anything Super Mario Galaxy here. :D
