Super Mario Galaxy

Super Mario Galaxy is the newest sequel to the series of Mario's 3-D platformers, after Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. It uses parts of the cancelled Mario game for the GameCube, Super Mario 128. With 700,000 copies preordered in Japan, and 400,000 in the U.S., it is the most preordered Wii game to date.

Super Mario Galaxy, unlike other Mario games, takes place in outer space. The game's levels consist of many planets, some big and some small, some flat and some round. The game has 121 stars to collect.

Story
From the Nintendo Power Magazine: "Every hundred years a comet passes over the Mushroom Kingdom and rains down magical stars and stardust, Princess Peach and the citizens of the kingdom are celebrating the centennial event. Peach invites Mario to this event. When Mario is approaching the castle things go wrong when Bowser attacks the Toads and freezing them.". He then "invites" Peach to his new galaxy. But that isn't Bowser big plan, no, he's taking Princess Peach's Castle up into space. When Mario tries to save her, Kamek shoots Mario into outer space. He later wakes up on a small grassy planet and meets Tyke, who escaped the castle at the last minute. He transforms into a Space Rabbit and Mario chases him and two other rabbits, who tells him he is in space. They take him to meet Princess Rosalina. Rosetta tells Mario that the Universe is in great danger, because Bowser attacked Rosetta's ship and stole the Power Stars and the seven Grand Stars. Without these the Comet Observatory is lost. Rosetta asks him to rescue the Grand Stars in order to defeat Bowser, who took Peach to the Center of the Universe. Mario then starts his journey across the Galaxies, freeing Grand Stars. After finally defeating Bowser in his central galaxy and grabbing a falling Peach, Mario sees Bowser's sun break apart. The sun of Bowser's near-complete galaxy explodes and creates a giant black hole that begins to suck in everything in the universe. Tyke is sucked in, Mario extremely saddened. The black hole becomes a huge tornado which soon explodes and absorbs everything in existence. Mario appears in front of Rosalina who speaks to him of what has happened. Mario floats away from Rosetta. He then awakens in the Mushroom Kingdom near Peach's castle. He sees everyone he's met throughout his adventure holding hands in peace and celebrating. Bowser and Peach sit next to him. The world is at peace and back to normal once more. "Welcome to the new galaxy!" Mario exclaims, and the game ends. After the credits, Rosetta and a group of Luma fly off from the planet Mario started out on in the game, Rosetta saying "I'll be watching you from the stars". It is also revealed that Tyke is still alive, now living on the small planet.

Unique Features
Super Mario Galaxy has many brand-new features that no Mario game has ever had, one of which is the Star Cursor. The player can shake the Wii Remote and make Mario perform a Star Spin. The Star Cursor is also used to perform a variety of tasks, from climbing vines, to manipulating Wobble Launchers, to collecting Star Shards.

Unlike the last two titles, a Co-Op Mode is available, in which the second player controls a second Star Cursor. The extra Star Cursor, unlike the main one, can be used to freeze enemies in their tracks with a press of the B Button, so that Mario can defeat them easily. The game features new items like the Star Ring, which allows Mario to launch off of a planet and go flying to the next. There is no warning that a boss might be located on the next planet, no indication that Mario may be facing something terrible or something peaceful on where he's headed next, and no loading screens or mission select screens for levels.

It has also been announced that Manta Rays will take the place of Bloopers from Super Mario Sunshine, in that Mario will ride them during a mini race stage.

New enemies have come into the game like the Cosmic Bloopers, and the Cosmic Bullet Bills. However, Mario meets new friends too, like Cosmic Toads and Space Rabbits. Stars make a comeback, leaving Shine Sprites in the dust with their new orange-golden shine. The game will have the traditional "collect the 120 stars" goal that was first introduced in Super Mario 64 though this time it's 121 stars.

Additionally, Mario will retain his ability to gain different abilities, via special mushrooms. Similar to Super Mario 64, in which he could obtain the Wing Cap and Metal Cap, Mario will be able to collect suits, such as the Bee Suit and the Boo Suit, which allow him to transform into Bee Mario and Boo Mario, respectively, with more suits as well. Also, the Fire Flower and the Super Mushroom have been confirmed as items. The Super Mushroom will replenish any lost health and add a second health meter. A strange Ice Flower has recently been revealed, along with a spring power up that wraps a bouncy sping around Mario, strongly increasing his jumps but limiting his control and other moves. Also, the Cannon from Super Mario 64 will return.

The game also has a level intro for every star, as with Super Mario Sunshine. Similar to Princess Peach's castle in Super Mario 64, the Comet Observatory acts as the game's central area.

The game will also have side-scrolling levels with classic enemies such as Thwomps, Piranha Plants, and others. They will have classic items like the Fire Flower in these levels.

Like in Super Mario Sunshine, Mario can jump on NPCs to gain extra height or annoy them.

It will also feature items and enemies that went absent in Super Mario Sunshine. Some include Goombas, Swoopers, the long jump, Koopa shells, and others.

Once the Player beats the game and has 120 stars as Mario, they can go back to Rosetta and tell her that they want to fight Bowser again. Then, once they beat Bowser, the Player can play as Luigi in game. He is faster and jumps higher than Mario, but he has trouble stopping, making the game slightly harder. Once the Player beats the game and has 120 stars as Luigi, he is able to retrieve the last star, the 121st star.

Also, red, green, and shooting stars appear in the game. The green stars appears to be secret stars and the red stars appear when Mario uses a Red Star.

Bosses
Fourteen bosses are in the game.


 * King Kaliente
 * Megaleg
 * Tarantox
 * Dino Piranha
 * Bugaboom
 * Bowser Jr.
 * Kamella
 * Bowser
 * Bouldergeist
 * Baron Brrr
 * Topmaniac
 * Major Burrow
 * Kingfin
 * Bubble Cannon

Items
In Mario's new adventure, he uses many new items that give him moves he's never had before.
 * Sling Pod
 * Star Ring
 * Beam Star
 * Star Shard
 * Boo Suit
 * Star Chip
 * Rainbow Notes
 * Bee Suit
 * Item Crystal
 * Super Mushroom
 * Fire Flower
 * Power Star
 * Ice Flower
 * Rainbow Star
 * Spring Star
 * Silver Star
 * ? Block
 * Koopa Shell
 * Spring Mushroom
 * Grand Star
 * Purple Coin
 * Red Star
 * Green Power Star

Characters
Many characters Mario and Luigi encounter in the galaxy.


 * Mario
 * Princess Peach
 * Bowser
 * Bowser Jr.
 * Space Rabbits (New)
 * Bees (New)
 * Princess Rosalina (New)
 * Queen Bee (New)
 * Penguins
 * Tyke and other Luma (New)
 * Manta Ray
 * Luigi
 * Cosmic Mario/Luigi (New)
 * Guppy (New)
 * Gil Board (New)

New Enemies

 * Cosmic Bloopers
 * Cosmic Tox Boxes
 * Chomp Heads
 * Boulders
 * Swoopin' Poinks
 * Mandibugs
 * Gringills
 * Cosmic Scuttle Bugs
 * Pumpkin Heads
 * Topman
 * Bomb Boos
 * A giant jellyfish-like creature.
 * Red F.L.U.D.D. head
 * Blue F.L.U.D.D. head

Returning Enemies

 * Whomps, Thwomps, Thwimps, Pokeys, Bob-ombs, Swoopers, Boos, Goombas, Koopas, Grand Goombas, Wigglers, Mad Pokeys, and Cataquacks have been revealed, but it is unknown whether they too are 'Cosmic' species. A Mega Goomba has also been seen.
 * Both Magikoopas and Dry Bones make their debut in a 3-D platformer.
 * Mecha-Koopas
 * Bloopers
 * Banzai Bills
 * Preying Mantases
 * Piranha Plants. There is also a kind of Piranha Plant that is purple in color, and harder to defeat.
 * Cheep-Cheeps
 * Urchins
 * Pushy Walls
 * Tweesters
 * Firebars
 * Bullet Bills
 * Torpedo Teds
 * Rocky Wrenches
 * Cataquacks

Galaxies
Some galaxies can be accesed from domes, like the Terrace which leads to certain galaxies. These domes are found in the Comet Observatory, where new areas become accessable as Mario gains Grand Stars.



The Gateway

 * Gateway Galaxy
 * Boo's Boneyard Galaxy

The Terrace

 * Good Egg Galaxy
 * Honeyhive Galaxy
 * Loopdeeloop Galaxy
 * Flipswitch Galaxy
 * Sweet Sweet Galaxy
 * Bowser Jr.'s Robot Reactor

The Fountain

 * Space Junk Galaxy
 * Battlerock Galaxy
 * Rolling Green Galaxy
 * Hurry-Scurry Galaxy
 * Sling Pod Galaxy
 * Bowser's Star Reactor

The Kitchen

 * Beach Bowl Galaxy
 * Ghostly Galaxy
 * Drip Drop Galaxy
 * Buoy Base Galaxy
 * Bubble Breeze Galaxy
 * Bowser Jr.'s Airship Armada

The Bedroom

 * Gusty Garden Galaxy
 * FreezeFlame Galaxy
 * Dusty Dune Galaxy
 * Honeyclimb Galaxy
 * Big Mouth Galaxy
 * Bowser's Dark Matter Plant

The Engine Room

 * Gold Leaf Galaxy
 * Sea Slide Galaxy
 * Toy Time Galaxy
 * Bonefin Galaxy
 * Sand Spiral Galaxy
 * Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor

The Garden

 * Deep Dark Galaxy
 * Dreadnought Galaxy
 * Melty Molten Galaxy
 * Matter Splatter Galaxy
 * Snow Cap Galaxy

Bowser's Reactor

 * Bowser's Galaxy Reactor

Hidden Galaxies

 * Loopdeeswoop Galaxy
 * Bubble Blast Galaxy
 * Rolling Gizmo Galaxy

The Grand Finale

 * Grand Finale Galaxy

Planets
Although some planets such as the Beach Bowl Galaxy don't have any other planets, others such as the Good Egg Galaxy have many planets.


 * Airship
 * Apple Planets
 * Asteroid Planet
 * Boulder Planet
 * Castle Planet
 * Crystal Planet
 * Geo Planet
 * Lava Planet
 * Magma Planet
 * Mix Planet
 * Obstacle Planet
 * Origin Planet
 * Pill Planet
 * Pokeball Planet
 * Pokey Planet
 * Rock Planet
 * Space Boat
 * Space Cube
 * Space Ship
 * Star World
 * Sticky Planet
 * Tech Planet
 * Tropic Planet
 * Wood Planet
 * Yoshi Egg Planet
 * Yoshi Planet

Prankster Comets
There are five types of comets that randomly appear and cause special occurences in the galaxies. These special missions yeild many additional power stars.


 * Speedy Comet: Mario must complete the level within a certain time limit.
 * Daredevil Comet: Mario must complete the level with only one health.
 * Cosmic Comet: Mario must race Cosmic Mario to a star.
 * Fast Foe Comet: All enemies in the level are sped up.
 * Purple Comet: Only available after the game is beaten, Mario must collect 100 purple coins to get a star.

Mini-Games

 * Bubble Blowing
 * Cannon Ball
 * Sling Shot
 * Manta Ray Surfing
 * Vine Climber
 * Star Roll

Reception
Famitsu Magazine has given Super Mario Galaxy a score of 38/40. (This means two reviewers gave it a nine, and two gave it a perfect ten.) To put that in perspective, Super Mario Sunshine was given 37/40 and Super Mario 64 39/40. The Official Nintendo Magazine UK gave the game 97%, making it the highest scoring game in the magazine's history, along with The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess and Resident Evil 4. It was called the best game of the decade and praised for having excellent graphics, sound and gameplay as well as a mixture of new features and classic features.

Trivia

 * Bowser uprooted Peach's castle once before, in Paper Mario, but only lifted it into the sky, and it's unknown if it was Outer Space in that game, it was dark.


 * This is one of the only two Mario games where Bowser displays the power to create electricity. The other is Hotel Mario. However, the Bowser suit in Luigi's Mansion also had the ability to create electricity.


 * Bowser's plan, to collapse the universe and then recreate it with himself as its all-powerful ruler, was possibly inspired by a Marvel Comics storyline known as Cosmos In Collision, which ran in Quasar #19-25. In that story, the supervillain Maelstrom had the exact same plan before being defeated by Quasar.