cheat-master30
21st November 2007, 09:18 PM
Fully with 121 stars for each character, and here are my current thoughts:
For a start, it is far better in the course design that Super Mario 64 ever was. That game, while it had 15 decent levels also had some pretty boring bonus ones (secret aquarium anyone?) and they were also a little small. Well, the levels here are massive in size, as can easily be seen from the Honeyhive, Beach Bowl or Sea Slide galaxies where vast swathes of the course can be seen from one spot. To add to this, almost all the bonuses are better designed. Drip Drop Galaxy is so big it doesn't seem like a bonus level for one thing.
For difficulty, this is pretty damn difficult in many places. Super Mario 64 had the volcano in Lethal Lava Land and some of the Bowser levels, but this has more hair pullingly annoying sections. The Trial Galaxies seem insane. Loop De Swoop galaxy (or something) is like a massive sea based rollercoaster, Rolling Gizmo Galaxy is a star in a ball rolling game with all kinds of mechanical obstacles. And Bubble Blast Galaxy is suicide at first, a five part electrical labyrinth in a bubble over a black hole then a long maze navigated while avoiding heat seeking Bullet Bills. Ouch. One hit, you're dead.
To add to that, the Dare Devil Comets and Purple Coin ones make that ten times harder. Dare Devil ones mean you have to beat a boss or a very, very difficult level with one health. Yep, one hit and you die. And the annoying part? One of the levels is a planet made of magma with really, really difficult sections involving precise jumps. Oh, and Bouldergeist in this is probably even worse in terms of difficulty.
Graphics and sound wise, no way you can complain. The music is excellent. Seriously, if you thought Mario 64 DS was the pinnacle of Mario music, this kills it. Fully orchestrated as well. Plus, in terms of graphics, you can see for miles into space. Heck, you can see the other planets in a galaxy from each other.
Heh, and for those that were scared of Super Mario 64... some things here will give you worse nightmares. Bouldergeist could probably make you jump out the seat if you are easily frightened. Kingfin is truly the most freaky and sinister boss in the whole game; a 50 foot long skeletal shark in a planet of water surrounded by a sort of skeleton. Doesn't help that you see the jaws from behind in it's intro cut scene with some pretty creepy music. Oh, and Deep Dark Galaxy. That music will probably keep you on edge constantly. It almost seems like something will come out of nowhere and attack; it's just that feel.
In terms of bosses... well, there are enough of those. You have about 17 different bosses, and around 25 separate battles with them (combined). If you expected only about 5 like the last two games, you were way off. Also, add that the game puts in bosses nearly anywhere it's possible. Two Dino Piranha battles, two Magikoopa battles, three Bowser battles, two octopus type battles, three battles with a mole in a cannon... Oh, and in terms of size of the bosses and scale, you are probably going to be like 'I have to beat THAT?' when you fight Megaleg or Kingfin.
However, it is NOT perfect. Too many water levels for one (about 9 at last count) and also a few too much star piece collecting (both starbits and star shards). Overall, it's a fantastic game though.
For a start, it is far better in the course design that Super Mario 64 ever was. That game, while it had 15 decent levels also had some pretty boring bonus ones (secret aquarium anyone?) and they were also a little small. Well, the levels here are massive in size, as can easily be seen from the Honeyhive, Beach Bowl or Sea Slide galaxies where vast swathes of the course can be seen from one spot. To add to this, almost all the bonuses are better designed. Drip Drop Galaxy is so big it doesn't seem like a bonus level for one thing.
For difficulty, this is pretty damn difficult in many places. Super Mario 64 had the volcano in Lethal Lava Land and some of the Bowser levels, but this has more hair pullingly annoying sections. The Trial Galaxies seem insane. Loop De Swoop galaxy (or something) is like a massive sea based rollercoaster, Rolling Gizmo Galaxy is a star in a ball rolling game with all kinds of mechanical obstacles. And Bubble Blast Galaxy is suicide at first, a five part electrical labyrinth in a bubble over a black hole then a long maze navigated while avoiding heat seeking Bullet Bills. Ouch. One hit, you're dead.
To add to that, the Dare Devil Comets and Purple Coin ones make that ten times harder. Dare Devil ones mean you have to beat a boss or a very, very difficult level with one health. Yep, one hit and you die. And the annoying part? One of the levels is a planet made of magma with really, really difficult sections involving precise jumps. Oh, and Bouldergeist in this is probably even worse in terms of difficulty.
Graphics and sound wise, no way you can complain. The music is excellent. Seriously, if you thought Mario 64 DS was the pinnacle of Mario music, this kills it. Fully orchestrated as well. Plus, in terms of graphics, you can see for miles into space. Heck, you can see the other planets in a galaxy from each other.
Heh, and for those that were scared of Super Mario 64... some things here will give you worse nightmares. Bouldergeist could probably make you jump out the seat if you are easily frightened. Kingfin is truly the most freaky and sinister boss in the whole game; a 50 foot long skeletal shark in a planet of water surrounded by a sort of skeleton. Doesn't help that you see the jaws from behind in it's intro cut scene with some pretty creepy music. Oh, and Deep Dark Galaxy. That music will probably keep you on edge constantly. It almost seems like something will come out of nowhere and attack; it's just that feel.
In terms of bosses... well, there are enough of those. You have about 17 different bosses, and around 25 separate battles with them (combined). If you expected only about 5 like the last two games, you were way off. Also, add that the game puts in bosses nearly anywhere it's possible. Two Dino Piranha battles, two Magikoopa battles, three Bowser battles, two octopus type battles, three battles with a mole in a cannon... Oh, and in terms of size of the bosses and scale, you are probably going to be like 'I have to beat THAT?' when you fight Megaleg or Kingfin.
However, it is NOT perfect. Too many water levels for one (about 9 at last count) and also a few too much star piece collecting (both starbits and star shards). Overall, it's a fantastic game though.