PixlBit

Super Mario Galaxy 2 falls flat in every way.

When I got my special, pre-pre-pre-release copy of Super Mario Galaxy 2, I was initially excited. Then I realized it wouldn't play in my PS3, and things went downhill from there.

Really, the only reason you'd want Super Mario Galaxy 2 is if you've been forced to own a Wii, and told you may never purchase a PS3. It's not worth your time nor your money. Spend it elsewhere.

Super Mario Galaxy 2, to begin with, has absolutely no story! That's right, no story. No ancient archaeological secrets, nothing rooted in a cross between history and fact, no real cutscenes, no dialogue in the middle of gameplay, like say, Uncharted 2, and the game makes no attempt to even apologize for it! I prefer my games to be complete, even if they are on the Wii.

Then, of course, there's control. The game has absolutely no control innovation. You'd be better off sticking to something like Sony's Move, rather than going with Super Mario Galaxy and the less-accurate Wii-Remote. Tilt the joystick, Mario runs. Point on the screen and hit "B," you fire a Star Bit. Not very intuitive, but even worse, sometimes the pointer just goes nuts! If the game were on the PS3 and used Move, there'd be absolutely no problem. It's really an unfortunate matter.

Of course, there is "new" content in Super Mario Galaxy. Yoshi has been brought into the game, but really, even having a Yoshi is nothing compared to being able to stealthily sneak up on, and attack enemies, like in Uncharted 2. There's a few other power-ups, but really, Mario might be better off with a gun, like Nathan Drake.

Then, of course, there's a few boss battles against Bowser and Bowser Jr. Some people might find them epic, but let's be honest... You haven't played a boss fight until you've played God of War 3. So, yes, in a vacuum, there might be some fun to be had with bosses in Super Mario Galaxy 2, but really, you'd be best off buying a PS3 and picking up God of War 3 if you're really interested in combat.

Overall, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a game I'm embarrassed to own, even if it is a pre-pre-pre-release copy. I'm going to head to GameStop tomorrow and see if they'll let me trade it in early. I could use the extra cash for more Move controllers later.