9.5/10 for Super Mario Galaxy from 1UP

1UP writes:
"In short, Galaxy is one of the most impressive, engrossing games in recent memory -- and quite the contrast to the rest of this year's triple-A gaming crop, which tends toward the dark, the M-rated, and the first-person perspective. Gaming may be growing up (per se), but gamers will always appreciate beautifully polished gameplay and inventive design...even if it's sugarcoated with squeaky baby stars and a goofy cartoon of a hero. Galaxy proves that Mario matters just as much today as he did 25 years ago, and that makes him one of a kind in this medium. But don't play Galaxy simply because Mario is the timeless godfather of gaming. No, play Galaxy because it's fantastic."

[MK_Red]

Wow, I was expecting a 10/10 from 1UP. BioShock FTW (They gave it 10/10).

[Bigmac573]

So basically Virtua Fighter 5 > Super Mario Galaxy?

Puh-lease =)

[MK_Red]

Well, even the Wii loving GamePro gave all aspects of the game 4.75. The overall was 5/5 but they gave 4.75 to graphics and control.

As for Virtua Fighter 5, everyone said that it's the best fighting engine ever and with full online, why should it get any lower than 10?

[IdontTakeSides]

WELL this is some of the best graphics we've seen on the Wii...idk bout the control..part...but to knock the game on graphics is crappy..knowing that the system isn't pushing specs this gen..!!

EDIT : @ MK_Red

I agree but hence I said "some of the best graphics we've seen on the Wii'.

[MK_Red]

While I do love Mario Galaxy's graphics, I've got to disagree with you here.

I personally believe Zack & Wiki has better graphics because not only that game looks stunning, that has superb lighting, great frame-rate and almost no loading and better animation IMO.

I also think it's varied locations have more visual variety and it's art direction is perfect and new. Mario Galaxy looks like a cross between Psychonauts, Ratchet & Clank and Mario 64.

EDIT : @ IdontTakeSides

Oh, I see. In that case I totally agree. Mario Galaxy has some of the best graphics on Wii.

[IdontTakeSides]

lol...well they're probably gonna say it has no online...??..what did you expect it's not on the 360..so it's no 10/10...

[MK_Red]

True but still not one expects from biggest game from Nintendo that many consider sequel to the uber great Mario 64.

Personally I think Super Mario Galaxy is a superb game but not as great or classic as Mario 64. Mario Galaxy along with Metroid Prime 3, Zack & Wiki are the best games on Wii and 3 of the best games of 2007.

[PS3 Limps on and on]

...

[okcomputer]

A great game is a great game. I'll gladly take mario galaxy over some of the bloated "next gen" busts like liar and two worlds.

[RudeSole Devil]

Bad graphics and same dumb game. Sorry Nintendo but you suck, best thing about the Wii is the Virtual Console.

[cooke15]

its a shame you feel a generation is about graphical upgrades.

[john_doe]

@Lightning....yeah.. last gen like when you where born

[jackdoe]

Didn't 1up make a whole article about what makes SMG a perfect game? What gives?

[MK_Red]

Good call. They prepared everyone for a perfect 10/10.

But with this 9.5 as well as Famitsu's 38/40, it's almost proven that this Mario is not as classic as Mario 64 and by no means a 10/10 game.

[cooke15]

Lol you do realize that 1up only scores in .5 increments. so this could very well been a 9.74 that they rounded down :P and Mario 64 was the first good 3d platformer, thats why it scored so high. SMG has a lot to live up to. 9.5 is an amazing score. and so far has 96% at Gamerankings.

[Brainiac 8]

In your opinion, based on no HD resolution, it's last Gen.

The physics and control are something you just coulnd't do last generation, or at least not on the scale that SMG does things. Let's see what the rest of the reviews are like, but it's a serious contender for GOTY, in my opinion.

I can't wait for this game! :up:

[Mallow]

I need to know if this is better then Sunshine, the worst mario game ever, yes, even all the crappy sports games are better.

[Brainiac 8]

It wasn't necessarily my favorite either, but I still enjoyed every minute of it.

[Ri0tSquad]

This game looks fantastic but I don't feel like going back 2 years ago to play this game if you know what I mean.

[cooke15]

Um.. what?

[john_doe]

mmm no i dont know what you mean...

[GIJeff]

i lost interest in mario when it went 3d...but whatever. Umm, glad the kids like it.

[cooke15]

and the 24 year old kids like myself?

[Apocwhen]

same here cooke.
Personally I love cartoon looking graphics. Nice colorful cheery graphics. I guess the 12 year old kids don't want to be seen as kids playing something like this, would look bad for their "macho" image. Gimme SMG or games like Zack and Wiki any day.

[otherZinc]

Bioshock scored higher than Mario because it's a friggin mile better than MARIO GALAXY.

I played Galaxy today at GameStop.

I think they gave MG a 9.5 because its Mario, but this is the 1st Mario game I have ever not liked & I've been playing Mario games since Donkey Kong in 1982.

[MK_Red]

Well, I haven't played Mario Galaxy but IMO, BioShock is the best game of 2007 so far and the only games I think could end up better than BioShock are Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect and UT3.

[IdontTakeSides]

okay now it's my time to disagree with you..

"BioShock is the best game of the year so far and the only games I think may end up better than BioShock are Assassin's Creed, Mass Effect and UT3."..???

Assasins Creed will be better than Bioshock...you forgot one other game..Uncharted..!!!

[MK_Red]

By any means, I'd love Assassins to be better than BioShock. Assassin's Creed and Burnout Paradise have been my most anticipated games of 2007 and with Burnout delayed till 2008, Assassins became my number one. BioShock has been my 2nd most anticipated and bacame my 2nd after Burnout delay.

As for Uncharted, I haven't followed all the news but it's a Naughty Dog game and everything they touch turns to gold so Uncharted should also be great.
Also, Uncharted was directed by Amy Hanings who made excellent Soul Reaver 2.

[Marceles]

You like Mario Sunshine over this? You have to be kidding. Sunshine wasn't particularly a bad game, but you could tell it was kinda thrown together and sloppy. I understand saying Zelda got a certain score because it's Zelda, because that's been the same game ever since a Link to the Past. You gather 3 things...you get your sword and think you're done but you get drawn into a dark world and have to grab some other stuff around the world...Zelda is definitely the same game just a different story, but I think the difference between Mario 64, to Mario Sunshine, to Mario Galaxy will be pretty big.

[Marceles]

This is THE game I've been waiting for since I got my Wii. Super Paper Mario, a cool new adventure but waaaay too much talking...Twilight Princess and Resident Evil, really good games but I beat both of those on the Gamecube before I got the Wii versions...Metroid was very good as well, but I really can't wait to play this. After the first and third person shooter overload that have come out this half of the year, it's nice to finally start getting that balance of good adventure platform games like Ratchet and Mario Galaxy.

[solar]

ive been waiting sooo freakin impatiently for this game....MP3 was a treat, very fun. SPM did have so much freakin talking. kinda took away from the fun factor for me. RE:4....didnt play it on GC but with the Wiimote for aiming, it was a giant leap for the series imo. wish RE:5 had a setup like that. didnt play much TP....and R&C is pure awesomeness. ive really been enjoying it. agree for you :D

[Marceles]

Yeah that's true about the shooting in RE4, it was ALOT easier to aim and shoot compared to the Gamecube version. Basically I'm saying I love these games because we've all been buried in first person and third person AAA shooters all this time, and these are good games away from that. If you hate these cutesy and fun-for-everyone games and want to be cool and only play first and third person shooters then that's cool, but anyone looking to get out of that element at least for a quick second will enjoy this game. This is only for the REAL gamers...being fixated on one genre (or one console) is boring and can make anyone quickly turn into a fanboy

[solar]

totally agree with you again. hell ive been a huge FPS monkey for a long time now. i took a break for a while with some City of Heroes and WoW, but went back to FPS's. then i bought myself a Wii and PS3 and have been enjoying being away from the FPS's for a while. well, at least til UT3 comes out :D

[gamesblow]

I can't help but feel any 9 or 10 it is given will be on principal and not deserved... I mean, really, a 10 on graphics?? Please... maybe to last gen standards. To Ps3 and xbox 360 standards it's about a 6, folks. Sad but true. Mario and Nintendo are givens. They're always gonna score 9's and 10's no matter how bad they suck or how good they are.

[Brainiac 8]

You need to remove your fanboy shades for a moment and think about what you said.

With all the positive talk about the controls and the physics behind the game, why can't it score as high as so called "Next Gen" games. The physics of SMG could not be done in this scale last gen, and I think that it deserves the title of a next gen gaming experience.

Plus, there have been many reports that it looks phenominal in the graphics dept.

[Apocwhen]

It's reason's like that people like you don't review games. The graphics are based on what the console is capable of. If people were to use your logic NDS and PSP games would be scoring 1 or 2 for graphics.

[TheSadTruth]

http://www.1up.com/do/revie...

[Rooftrellen]

What games do you think look better?

Only a few games even compare!

[MK_Red]

Wonder what scores GameSpot and IGN have in store for Mario Galaxy...

[Marceles]

Depends if they have Aaron Thomas reviewing...because this game has way too much variety for him.

Aaron Thomas: "I have to use a joystick AND a remote? Too much variety...7/10, oh yeah but the game is too easy 5/10, and he uses a bee costume 4/10."

[MK_Red]

Good one. Bubbles for you.

Hope GameSpot gives it to a good reviewer and they don't give it a below 9 score like Zelda Twilight Princess.

[IdontTakeSides]

haha nice one Marceles

[gamesblow]

The simple fact their isn't a viable, substantial story should be reason enough to not give it a 10... Yet people over look that in mario games. God of war has a 10 plus story. Mario games do not... Simple as that.

[Brainiac 8]

Not every game has to have a huge epic sweeping story. Mario has lived off of the classic premise of an underdog fights overwhelming odds to save a princess. These types of classic stories have survived for generations. Why does it have to be more?

Check out some classic literature, and you'll see what I mean.

Oh....and btw....God of War, as great as it was, had a very cliched revenge story that you can find in many classic mythology stories. It wasn't as original as you think it was.

[gamesblow]

You're righ... Bowser in a UFO kindapping the princess is a hell of a story. Oscar worthy, actually.

[Marceles]

Bubble for Brainiac btw...

Mario is right to the point and it's classic, so why change it that much? No one complains about Halo's story or the minimal gameplay changes. The Halo levels are more huge and add some new weapons, Forge and gameplay saves...don't fix something that isn't broken. Gamers these days are so one-sided.

"This game is for newborn babies, therefore it sucks."

"Yeaaaahhh shoot everyone in the head! AAA status!"

Everyone has preferences, but don't knock it if you don't like it.

[solar]

"You're righ... Bowser in a UFO kindapping the princess is a hell of a story."

Will Smith would be stoked...

[Brainiac 8]

And I agree with everything you said. All of it.

You enjoy the games with the sweeping epic stories for what they are, and you can enjoy games with more classic simple stories also.

Take for example not all movies have to have huge epic stories to enjoy.

"The Princess Bride" for example, is still one of the greatest stories ever told, yet all it is is a story about a man fighting innumerable odd to save his love from an evil prince. It's not original, but it's fun, witty, and a plain awesome movie.

[ItsDubC]

I've agreed with and been enlightened by everything you've said in this comment section thusfar. I'm doing my part to get you your 9th bubble.

[Maestro]

The reviewer basically praise all the aspects of the game. This is seriously the game of the year.

[otherZinc]

Bioshock is my runner-up game of the year, Halo 3 is my game of the year. Single player is to great, Heroic, then Legendary, then co-op, then co-op Legendary and the game turns into Ghost Recon:AW because you must proceed with caution every move you make.

Then you have the skulls, activate 1 of 13 skulls (pull the pin) and you have a new game, Its the game of the year in my book. All of this is done & I only played enough multiplayer to get 15 achievement points.

& to me Mario Galaxy has no chance at game of any year.

[john_doe]

it seems as you mean FPS of the year and not game of the year.

[Ares84]

This game deserves no more than 8.5!! This has nothing new, nothing revolutionery. I've seen 20 other platformers just like it!
This is all hype...just because it has Mario in it!

You could sell a pile of dirt if it had Mario written on it!

[Brainiac 8]

Name at least one game that does what SMG does in terms of physics and originality.

[Ares84]

....Ratchet & Clanck Future Tools of Destruction does everything better! For example!

[Marceles]

OK, I understand you hate Nintendo *looks at your avatar lol*, but I've also been arguing about how Wii Sports isn't necessarily new because there's been Plug n' Play sports games for years, but since it's licensed by Nintendo and comes packages with a very appealing system it's a hit. People are paying $250 bucks just for Wii Sports by itself and don't plan to buy anything else...so this proves Nintendo and Mario can sell anything, and I'm sold lol. Also, this is something new for the Mario franchise. I hate when people try to label "next gen, revolutionary, etc."...most people who use those words don't know what they're talking about

[Brainiac 8]

I won't blast R&C: TOD since I am halfway through it myself and love it completely. I will however say that as much as I like it, it doesn't change up any of the formula of the previous games, it just looks better.

It's like the others, only more weapons, different badguy, some different mechanics, different planets. But all together, its the same R&C I have been playing for years, but much better looking graphically.

SMG completly chages the way we play Mario, different physics behind the game all together and it's better looking. It's not just SM64 only better looking, which is essentially what Super Mario Sunshine was, but it's a completely different experience.

[OOG FunK]

i love me some mario and I do look at this as the first true mario since 64

[gamesblow]

But, Braniac... the thing here is this. It's not that original. I mean, I was doing this planet thing back in 2003 with R&C going commando, man. I did it again in 2004 with R&C UYA... So, it's not new. Now these controls, they might be "somewhat new" but are they worth it? To me, no. I've seen most people standing to play this game and I can't do that. I have to be relaxed to game and with the wii I can't do that. Mario Galaxy doesn't do anything "game wise" something else didn't do 5 to 10 years before it.

[Brainiac 8]

R&C didn't invent that either though, since the planetoid thing was done first in SMW2: Yoshi's Adventure and then later in Sonic Adventure 2.

What I am saying though, is that it hasn't been done on such a grand scale before. It's a unique take on a platformer, breathing new life into a molding genre. I welcome the change myself.

I know not everyone here is liking the Wii, but you should give some credit where credit is due. Oh and for clarification, I don't play any games other than Wii Sports standing up. I sit down for all the games I play. They just show them standing in the adds for the effect.

Sitting down, you can still do the motions they need, even without flailing your arms around like in the commercials. Heck, half the time I don't even need to hald my arms in the air to make it work.

[OOG FunK]

How can people hate Mario like I dont play those type of games anymore ive been playn fps games since 1993 but still its MARIO! lol

[Sevir04]

the Wii controls for this arent revolutionary. it's still a platformer whcih makes me wonder all n intendo did was change the way you control with a wand. all game play schematics is still the same versus the wand. whats more is i cant believe they rated this higher than Ratchet. this and i'd of given ratchet ratchet a 9.5 and this a 9 it's better than sunshine but not by huge leaps . and it's nothing radical. simply because ratchet has some what grown up, and has more humor. and a much more engrosing story. still it's good to see that mario hasn't moved away from what made it fun. and i'm going to be getting this for my Wii

[otherZinc]

Please tell me your kidding? Please? Did you say Super Mario Galaxy & physics.

You could not have played HALO 3, theres no way.

Also, going from planet to planet isnt original because SONIC on the Dreamcast did the same thing except it wasn't small planets it was little stages in the air, and Sonic Dreamcast is better than this Mario game.

[Maestro]

Seriously PStards, don't even bother trying to compare Ratchet & Clank future with this game. Even you guys know that Super Mario Galaxy puts in shame the Imsomniac game in almost every possible way. So, better be quiet.
==================

Game of the year here, folks.

[Imalwaysright]

Is this game different from Mario64 in terms of gameplay??

[sajj316]

Will not change, specifically a 3D platformer. One can argue that Mario 64 set the standard on the N64. How much deviation have been done since the inception of the platform formula? Not much. Naughty Dog and Insomniac can thank Nintendo for that.

Reworked gameplay mechanics and the inclusion of motion control is commendable. What I wish Nintendo would have done is freshen up the story. For this reason and this reason only, do I believe that SMG is not perfect. It doesn't have to be God of War intricate, just fresh.

Please, bring some closure to the Mario + Princess story. Give them kids or something. Have Luigi interested in the Princess and make it a conflict between brothers. I think its time for Mario to grow up and face some real world issues outside the Mushroom Kingdom. Man, I would give anything to have Mario warped into the real world! If the platforming formula isn't going to change, then work on the story.

[Snipes20]

SMG takes the cake. Think about it -platformer- what does this genre mean? Well Mario 64 defined it. It is all about jumping from platform to platform and exploring levels that are creatively designed to test your ability to jump. Granted, you can do more than jump up in the air, (kick, slide, wall jump, ground pound, etc.) but if you take it too far you end up with Mario Sunshine- a platforming tool (FLOOD) taken too far. FLOOD was a big reason that SMS was less popular because it was a sort of cheat to make platforming easier. (Oops, I fell... oh wait. I can press this button and float back to where I was). The developers tried their best to make FLOOD work with Mario, but they didn't do it justice.

Enter SMG. Hello major physics engine. Hello outstanding graphics. Hello new atmosphere (space). Goodbye FLOOD. Goodbye beaches and piantas and paint.

Don't give me that "last gen" crap. What is next gen? Improving on the current gen. Does the Wii do this? Yes. It isn't a huge improvement, but it is better than the GC. If you don't like the graphics, go play Cooking Mama and Tamagotchi first. Then play SMG and take notes.

As for originality this is what I have to say: sooner or later everything is going to be tried and somewhere along the way, games are going to overlap in ideas. Get over it and ENJOY the game for what it is.

If you hate Nintendo, stop whining and go play the games you like on the system you like. Stop trying to ruin it for those of us who have different interests.

[KnowitAll]

People who grow up playing Mario bros 3(nes) Super Mario World(snes) or
Mario64(n64) know that those are some of the greatest games ever. (So great people still play them today)

Mario has probably the greatest ability ever!! Jumping!! Like wtf!! why is jumping so much fun. Just thing about a small hero who can jump really high and jump even higher. Reason I played mario sunshine was cause he could sure jump.

[TheSadTruth]

http://www.1up.com/do/revie...

Super Mario Sunshine got a 9.5...

[n4iru]

They sure manage to make some great graphical wonders on the Wii considering that it's not the most graphically proficient console.

Although I prefer the ps3 I can't deny that this is one of those games that makes you wanna buy a console just to play one single game.

A next-gen Super Mario game in all it's glory.

Simply gorgeous.

-n4