PixlBit

Well... This is something, yet here I am almost one week later. The initial wave of emotion has worn off and my will has been battle tested. And so I figured I'd give my two cents as to a justifiable review of Super Mario Odyssey. Odyssey is in fact a very fun game, but is it the masterpiece I initially thought is was as well as others? The answer to that is a no unfortunately, which isn't a knock on Odyssey.

First let's talk about the positives. The kingdoms are fantastic. They are pretty open as well. The locales you explore are vibrant and full of nooks and crannies to discover at yourr own pace. See a platform off in the distance? Chances are you can get there. But how? This is one moment Odyssey shines. You can experiment and try different things. For instance I saw a really difficult moon and said what if I warp to a really high up platform and long jump down to grab it other than the intended way of pushing a button and waiting for platforms to appear?

Odyssey has a method for every gamer. Young, Experienced, etc. You'll find throughout the worlds a colorful cast of characters ranging from Toads to Tostarena's Skeleton Mariachi Villagers. You'll also find power moons aplenty, purple coins throughout, and plenty of good ol' fashioned platforming goodness. Mario controls so well and cappy is a great extension of his playstyle. For instance you can throw cappy, run and jump on him, and then dive jump, throw cappy again, and dive jump one more time in succession. You've got wall jumping, back flips, the triple jump, etc. It's Mario and it's as fluid as ever.

Also added in the mix is the ability to control enemies. You can take control of almost anything. Goombas, Bullet Bills, etc. Each with a different attribute or ability. For instance, Goombas don't slip on ice and can be stacked in a towering goomba pillar while the bullet bills can be used to shoot yourself to a wall you may think needs blown up. There are even costumes you can outfit yourself with  to fit a theme or mess around with a wacky combination. My personal favorite was wearing a chef's hat in boxer shorts just to test if it worked in a 8-bit classic section. It does by the way. no matter what you might think of it'll probably show up. Even a mario hat with  a clown suit.

Odyssey has a lot of great details. It throws lots of stuff at you with each kingdom. Tostarena has the jaxi ride and New Donk City gives you a hodge podge of flicking yourself up skyscrapers, using a powerline, or driving around in a scooter. Each kingdom has a unique feel and feature. Each is fun, and you'll find yourself doing many different activities. An obvious favorite is controlling the T-Rex in Cascade kingdom early on.

The music is great too. The moment I heard Jump up Superstar! in game, I set my controller down and watched Mario dance around. It's one of the great main themes and honestly contends with the likes of Gusty Garden Galaxy as a theme that inspires you to keep on going. And the final song at the end which I don't want to spoil, is just great. It was so much fun! And the music got me pumped up.

Now for the negative. Yes I said Odyssey wasn't perfect and I feel that there are two issues. The first is balance. Now Mario has usually never been about a gradual curve. In fact, Odyssey in terms of the main game is almost too easy. Very rarely will you die and when you do the penalty is ten coins. Not a whole lot really, especially given the fact the game throws coins at you almost as much as it does moons. When I beat the main game I had 400 moons or so and almost 3000 coins. I didn't need that many either. I think overall I think maybe like 300 moons or so are actually needed to complete the main story.

However, if you're a completionist Odyssey can range from downright difficult to cryptic. In terms of difficulty I have one example. It involved a cappy-less platforming segment where cappy is taken away from you and you lose that safety net. Well in order to get this particular moon you have to long jump a series of platforms while being chased by a giant bullet bill. The camera can mess you up, jumping too short kills you, jumping too latemay cause you to die, and the platforms get blown up by the bullet bills so you can't stand still for a second. I lost 2000 coins to this alone. The cryptic end deals with a series of hint art portraits you'll find  across the kingdoms that give you moons. I'll be honest... How in the hell are you suppose to figure this our? I mean look at the following picture below. Could you ever in a million years have guessed what it is? Because I thought it was buildings or something! If you figured it out on your own kudos to you.

 

Another issue I have is how would I ever know where to search for a crack to go through to find a series of purples coins. Like if I have 97/100 I gotta hunt around the kingdom like an easter egg hunt...all because I don't want to fork out the money to buy the specific amiibo that highlights them on the map Thank god for video guides!

The second issue is pretty minor. There is a ton of padding in Odyssey for moons for 100% (999 to be exact). Various missions are similar or use a simlar mechanic with a twist. For instance you'll come across a female goomba in a hat and have to take control of a goomba and make up a stack to get a power moon. I don't have anything against this mission, but you do it so many times. Take the mission of getting a moon for finding Capatain Toad around the kingdoms which I'll admit I enjoyed simply for the fact that I wondered how he got to these places and he commented that he wasn't sure how he got there either, but he's happy adventurin' all the same! Here's a power moon Mario!

You can get moons an alternative way that requires grinding for coins, and this too is padding and grind inducing. In fact the most expensive costume in the game is 9999 coins and your max is 9999. So while the game does throw coins at you, you'll never get that many unless you find a way to get a bunch quickly and then wash, rinse, repeat said method. The best method I found involved a beanstalk and some flower running on a rampway. It takes only a minute and you consistently get 180 coins each time. Just throw your hat and jump. Still grinding for the amount of coins necessary for 100% is still fairly extreme. I'd say it's probably about 3-4 hours and that's just annoying. Especially since the later costumes are quite expensive.

Now despite my gripes, Odyssey is a fine game. A damn fine game. I think it's a bit like Breath of the Wild. Some things work really, really, really well. However there are minor aspects that keep it from being truly Super. Overall I really enjoyed Odyssey and I'll probably go back to play it again and again. I just can't get over having to grind for coins in a Mario game of all things. An rpg I can expect and even then I can't stand that. And the balance never feels well... balanced. It's too easy for the main story of the game, but there are moons and coins that just can't be found without a guide for 100%.

Score: 9/10

Grade: A-

Personal Opinion: It's freedom like you never knew. Buy it!