Glimpse Gobs of New Mario Galaxy 2 Gameplay Goodies

[BobisOnlyBob]

I notice the utterly irrelevant lives system remains. Ah, Nintendo, why? There's no point.

There's not much point, true. But there has to be a consequence for dying - on some levels it simply puts you back at a certain point, and that's when lives actually matter. If you run out you have to do the whole level again, which makes them valuable later in the game doing the harder challenges. Apart from that they don't get in the way, so why get upset about it?

*shrugs* It just seems irrelevant. I'm not upset by it, I just know there must be a better system. Lives can be earned through simple grinding, and an excess of them makes later levels survivable. That just forces players to grind when the game gets tough, which is boring. Why not just give you a fixed number of "lives" at the start of each level? Losing all lives throws you back to the beginning of the level, or the hub/map, while losing just one throws you back to the last checkpoint. That'd let you scale the number of "lives" per world, too, giving you more chances on harder worlds, or vice-versa if you choose to play on a "hard mode", if such existed.

Essentially, I'd replace lives with a simple system. At any point on the world map (ie. not actively playing a level), you can pause and change the difficulty...

Casual: No lives. Dying returns you to the last checkpoint.
Easy*: Generous number of lives per world. Losing all returns you to the start of the level/world map.
Normal*: Five to ten lives per world.
Hard*: Three lives per world.
Hardcore: No lives. Dying returns you to the start of the level/world map.

That wasn't hard at all, and it's easy to implement, too. So why isn't Nintendo doing this? Why hasn't ANY game done that, yet?

*Numbers given should change according to sensible playtesting and game mechanics.

 

[Brainst0rm]

I notice the utterly irrelevant lives system remains. Ah, Nintendo, why? There's no point.

There's not much point, true. But there has to be a consequence for dying - on some levels it simply puts you back at a certain point, and that's when lives actually matter. If you run out you have to do the whole level again, which makes them valuable later in the game doing the harder challenges. Apart from that they don't get in the way, so why get upset about it?

*shrugs* It just seems irrelevant. I'm not upset by it, I just know there must be a better system. Lives can be earned through simple grinding, and an excess of them makes later levels survivable. That just forces players to grind when the game gets tough, which is boring. Why not just give you a fixed number of "lives" at the start of each level? Losing all lives throws you back to the beginning of the level, or the hub/map, while losing just one throws you back to the last checkpoint. That'd let you scale the number of "lives" per world, too, giving you more chances on harder worlds, or vice-versa if you choose to play on a "hard mode", if such existed.

Essentially, I'd replace lives with a simple system. At any point on the world map (ie. not actively playing a level), you can pause and change the difficulty...

Casual: No lives. Dying returns you to the last checkpoint.
Easy*: Generous number of lives per world. Losing all returns you to the start of the level/world map.
Normal*: Five to ten lives per world.
Hard*: Three lives per world.
Hardcore: No lives. Dying returns you to the start of the level/world map.

That wasn't hard at all, and it's easy to implement, too. So why isn't Nintendo doing this? Why hasn't ANY game done that, yet?

*Numbers given should change according to sensible playtesting and game mechanics.

I think that adds unnecessary complexity to the game. If a challenge is wanted a player can simply choose not to accumulate lives - of course, this means avoiding star bits, which isn't entirely possible (or feasible if you want to finish the game). Also, I feel the comet challenges already offer the 'hardcore' mode you're looking for.

 

[Anticitizen_Two]

Okay... this looks completely amazing. Like, COMPLETELY ENTIRELY WHOLLY AMAZING. I am so excited for this.

 

[Soxafloppin]

Just the chance to play as Luigi improves this game 10 fold for me. Too bad he doesn't carry his trusty hoover though.

Luigi! Im suddenly vastly more interested in this game, though it does look pretty confussing in places.

Heh. I must be insane then. Either you've never played Super Mario Galaxy at all, or you gave up.

I got 121 stars...
And to do that, you have to play through the whole game. Twice.
Once as Mario, and then again as Luigi.

So, Luigi isn't new to Super Mario Galaxy 2.
Though I guess they made it less difficult for people to get to play as him. XD

Heh... Nothing quite as frustrating as playing through "Luigi's purple coins" In the toy-time galaxy... As Luigi...

I knew about the whole super luigi Galaxy.....I didn't know he would be in the sequel.

 

[BobisOnlyBob]

I think that adds unnecessary complexity to the game. If a challenge is wanted a player can simply choose not to accumulate lives - of course, this means avoiding star bits, which isn't entirely possible (or feasible if you want to finish the game). Also, I feel the comet challenges already offer the 'hardcore' mode you're looking for.

I don't feel that a single menu - offered once at startup and then never seen again unless requested - adds complexity.

You're right in that the comet challenges fit my difficulty niche just fine - and yeah, I burned through a lot of lives doing them in Galaxy - but I'm looking at this as a designer, as well as a potential player. What I want is more accessibility to endgame content for amateurs, and higher possible difficulty for experienced gamers at the same time. Is that so much to ask from a modern game? Understanding and flexibility across the capability curve?

When I lost a final life - on Luigi's Purple Coins, no doubt - I felt unnecessarily punished. I was warped back to the hub for no good reason. I'd initially had 30 or so lives. Those lives reset back to 5 from then every time, repeatedly kicking me out each time I lost the last one. Why? What is so special about lives that I had to not lose that last one? I could also stay in there indefinitely so long as I kept rushing to grab a life in the far corner of the terrain. Why not just have no lives whatsoever, or a checkpoint in the far corner or ANYTHING but the current, meaningless system?

I understand that lives are a staple of the Mario franchise, but in all seriousness, they're an example of fake difficulty and arbitrary restriction. There's a reason very few games use them now, and it's unlike Nintendo to sacrifice good game design for arbitrary historical reasons.

 

[Jared]

Hehe! Want to see more of this! Galaxy one was epic, so this can only get better!

 

[phoenixbeast]

Anyone else notice the classic music thrown in??? Yoshi's theme and the Ghost House theme from Super Mario World!!! Slider theme and the Bowser Road music (returning) from Super Mario 64!!! Here's to hoping the SMW castle music is in the game...

 

[Leroy Frederick]

One of the good few reason's ever to have a Wii (unless your really desperate to go that is )

 

[SomeBritishDude]

Yoshi gameplay looks like a lot of fun too. However the drawing around an object to eat mechanic looks like it could get very annoying very fast (if that is in fact what it is).

It feels like any game that actually tries to use the Wiis motion control looses a little bit of the fun in the process.

 

[rosac]

want.

Ilurved the first gmae, and really really want this game. good thing its released after my exams

rosac

 

[blankedboy]

It looks a fuckload better than SMG1 (heh, hl2 reference), I hope this won't only come out on Wii.
Unless I cna find a PC version torrent, or an emulator, or somethin.

 

[Sylocat]

Do you once again have to get all 120 stars before it lets you play through as Luigi?

Not that I'm complaining, though... it was an EPIC reward for getting all of them, the first time since the 120-star formula was introduced that I really felt it was worth it. Seriously, even that fucking daredevil-comet Lava Land star felt rewarding, and so did that one infuriating purple-coin challenge (you know which one I'm talking about).

And the reward for getting all 120 stars again as Luigi is nothing short of magical...