Zero Punctuation: Super Mario Galaxy 2
- Thread starter Yahtzee Croshaw
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Yes, yes, I know, at some point everybody has a sacred calf slaughtered by Yahtzee and that's half the fun, but honestly? If you're going to take a game that's got the 3rd highest rating on GameRankings of any game *ever* and try to convince me that it isn't at least very good, you've bitten off more than you can chew no matter how big your mouth is.
SMG2 one of the most joyful examples of pure platforming gameplay ever made. It's challenging in just the right ways, especially if you intend to complete it 100%, and for him to say that the game "forgets that it's a sequel" or expects us to is flat-out nonsense. It picks up with almost no tutorial at all, and gets challenging much faster than its predecessor. It very clearly expects its audience to have played the first game and want more of the same with variations, and that's exactly what it delivers with almost no filler.
I don't mind Yahtzee being a whiny complainer, that's his shtick and it's frequently pretty funny stuff. But I'm surprised and disappointed when he says things that don't hold up to even casual scrutiny. Go ahead and say there's no gameplay innovation in the Zelda series, you'll be 100% right. But to call SMG or SMG2 "stagnant" is laughable.
SMG2 one of the most joyful examples of pure platforming gameplay ever made. It's challenging in just the right ways, especially if you intend to complete it 100%, and for him to say that the game "forgets that it's a sequel" or expects us to is flat-out nonsense. It picks up with almost no tutorial at all, and gets challenging much faster than its predecessor. It very clearly expects its audience to have played the first game and want more of the same with variations, and that's exactly what it delivers with almost no filler.
I don't mind Yahtzee being a whiny complainer, that's his shtick and it's frequently pretty funny stuff. But I'm surprised and disappointed when he says things that don't hold up to even casual scrutiny. Go ahead and say there's no gameplay innovation in the Zelda series, you'll be 100% right. But to call SMG or SMG2 "stagnant" is laughable.
"I guess the fanbase will get the franchise it deserves, but is this really all you want?"
No it is not actually! About a week before watching this review, I rented Super Mario Galaxy 2 from gamefly and found it enjoyable. It was more fun than the first Galaxy game, but I will be honest and say that as a Mario fan I felt a little insulted by the opening of the game. It made absolutely no attempt at trying anything in the least bit different, quickly shot through the stock plot opener of Bowser kidnapping the Princess, and seemed to disavow the existence of the first Galaxy game completely! I was so surprised when it came out and said the star festival happens every 100 years and thought to myself "so it's been 100 years since the events of Super Mario Galaxy 1 ?!?! That's when the last star festival (or whatever it was called) happened!" As a fan of these old franchises (Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Metriod, etc.) I expect certain conventions to be the same over the years, but I would at least appreciate it if Nintendo would at least acknowledge us gamers who have been with the company since the NES and would like to see some games targeted at us. That's why I agree with Yahtzee when it comes to the Mario RPG games. They're the only Mario games that seem to treat the player with some respect and make ironic self-deprecating jokes about the franchise and story.
But anyway, I digress. Good review as always. Every time Nintendo takes a direction I like, it always comes with a weird catch. But whatever. They're still usually "fun" I guess.
EDIT1: But in defense of the way the story was handled, that is one thing that I found appealing about this game vs its predecesor was that it got going almost immediately with very little exposition. Within a few moments of creating a new game I was already playing, and for a modern game that is a feat in and of itself.
No it is not actually! About a week before watching this review, I rented Super Mario Galaxy 2 from gamefly and found it enjoyable. It was more fun than the first Galaxy game, but I will be honest and say that as a Mario fan I felt a little insulted by the opening of the game. It made absolutely no attempt at trying anything in the least bit different, quickly shot through the stock plot opener of Bowser kidnapping the Princess, and seemed to disavow the existence of the first Galaxy game completely! I was so surprised when it came out and said the star festival happens every 100 years and thought to myself "so it's been 100 years since the events of Super Mario Galaxy 1 ?!?! That's when the last star festival (or whatever it was called) happened!" As a fan of these old franchises (Mario, Zelda, Donkey Kong, Metriod, etc.) I expect certain conventions to be the same over the years, but I would at least appreciate it if Nintendo would at least acknowledge us gamers who have been with the company since the NES and would like to see some games targeted at us. That's why I agree with Yahtzee when it comes to the Mario RPG games. They're the only Mario games that seem to treat the player with some respect and make ironic self-deprecating jokes about the franchise and story.
But anyway, I digress. Good review as always. Every time Nintendo takes a direction I like, it always comes with a weird catch. But whatever. They're still usually "fun" I guess.
EDIT1: But in defense of the way the story was handled, that is one thing that I found appealing about this game vs its predecesor was that it got going almost immediately with very little exposition. Within a few moments of creating a new game I was already playing, and for a modern game that is a feat in and of itself.
Well it's always ideal to have variety over time, but when a developer consistently manages to screw up each and every sequel to an original brilliant game, it gets to the point where you just wish they WOULD re-release the original on a current system, so we can all just play it again and be content that it's the only game in the series ever.
Anyone else wonder if he actually slapped himself, or just smacked like his hands together or something?
Welp, looks like I'm gonna have to go out this weekend and do something new. But I appreciate your grudging acknowledgment of its fun-ness in spite of how much you loathe Mario games. 
PS: I LOVED the text adventure screen, that was hilarious.
PS: I LOVED the text adventure screen, that was hilarious.
Appreciated the David Bowie references in the credits. My response to Nintendo is found in David Bowie's aptly titled song "It's No Game (part 2)": "being insulted by these fascists is so degrading."
Remember what happened when Modern Warfare 2 tried to include a story?Zing said:
That's right: it became a ramrod linear experience that could be completed in a single sitting, and the game had to try (bold and underline the word 'try') to add varying levels, but couldn't do much without going against the flow of the story.
The lack of story in games like Mario is what allows them to excuse such absurd level designs, as well as why there's so many of them. All adding a story does is limit creativity, as well as bog down the experience. Nobody's going to want to play any story-based game if it tries to cram in the number of levels you see in a game like Mario (about 120 of them).
That said: if you've ever considered becoming a game designer, don't. You clearly don't have any grip on making a fun game if your immediate thought is 'story = better'.
I was actually quite shocked that ZP wasn't building up to that punchline in his review..flosy said:
Maybe it was too easy..
Was the reason the screen blacked out because the sound of you "slapping yourself" was actually you using some... "cake"?
I agree totally. The fact that Nintendo keeps shoveling out the same game over and over truly shows that the Wii can't compete with the other platforms. Incidentally, has anybody else played Modern Warfare 2 lately? Isn't that awesome and not at all a complete knock-off of the first one? And I just can't wait for Half-Life 2 Episode 3, which, too, is totally original.
What? Remember when Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare tried to include a story? It was one of the best games ever made. That is the biggest copout of an excuse if I've ever seen one. What does absurdity of story level design have to do with story? It's still a game set in a mythical world about a plumber, they can easily add a ton of story.Kenkaku said: