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'Super Mario 3D All-Stars' goes away forever on March 31st
As Super Mario's 35th anniversary comes to end, some titles will be leaving the Nintendo eShop and retailers forever.
‘Super Mario 3D All-Stars’ comes to Nintendo Switch on September 18th
Nintendo just announced Super Mario 3D All-Stars, a Switch collection of three of Mario’s most notable adventures. The package includes Super Mario 64 (the first 3D Mario game, originally released for the Nintendo 64), Super Mario Sunshine (for the Game Cube) and Super Mario Galaxy (for the Wii).
Nintendo is reportedly planning to remaster classic Mario games this year
This year marks the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. and Nintendo could be set to mark the legacy of its flagship franchise in a major way. The company is reportedly working on several Mario games for this year, including remastered versions of some classic titles.
The 8-bit Time Machine takes game music back to 1985
Modern game soundtracks are nice thanks to their full orchestras and high-definition sound, and chiptune music can be a fun trip down Nostalgia Lane. While it may seem like you'd have to choose one or the other, you can have your audio-flavored cake and eat it too thanks to "The 8-bit Time Machine," a 10-track album from Italian film composer Giovanni Rotondo that seeks to give listeners 8-bit versions of modern game soundtracks, albeit with a few modern tweaks. Featuring 8-bit interpretations of themes from the likes of Destiny, Super Mario Galaxy, Battlefield 1942, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Watch Dogs as well as two original tracks, the album is currently gathering backers on crowdfunding site indiegogo. As of writing, the campaign has $1,033 raised of its $1,000 goal, with a $1,500 stretch goal to add four tracks. Rotondo is planning to release the album via iTunes, Google Play, Amazon mp3, Pandora and Spotify in January 2015. [Image: Giovanni Rotondo]
Super Smash Bros. Wii U gets Super Mario Galaxy-inspired stage
A new screenshot on the Super Smash Bros. website has revealed that a stage inspired by Super Mario Galaxy will appear in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. game for Wii U. The stage will feature gravity-based gameplay according to a post from Game Director Masahiro Sakurai on the game's Miiverse. "The pull of gravity emanates from the center of the planet, so this will require using brand-new tactics," Sakurai wrote. Since the 3DS and Wii U versions of the game have different stages - and thus, no cross-platform play - it's unclear if the upcoming Super Smash Bros. for 3DS will also get the Galaxy treatment in any way.
Super Mario 3D World doesn't herald end of Super Mario Galaxy, assures Miyamoto
Super Mario 3D World may be the "present culmination of 3D Super Mario," but that doesn't mean Nintendo's EAD team is done with Super Mario Galaxy games. Speaking in a recent Iwata Asks interview, EAD General Manager Shigeru Miyamoto assured fans there could be another entry in the series that appeared twice on the Wii to high acclaim. "The same team can't make both [Super Mario 3D World and another Super Mario Galaxy game] at the same time," Miyamoto said. "And we can't bring in a second party and slap the name Super Mario Galaxy on it. I suppose we could idealistically make both in Tokyo, but we want to do something new too, so there was that dilemma." The same interview revealed a few interesting tidbits about Super Mario 3D World, including that fifth playable character Rosalina is unlocked by beating the main game i.e. getting the ending, and her unique ability is a "special spin attack" (see above.) Also, the cloning power-up that lets you control multiple heroes was inspired by a mistake, after an EAD developer accidentally used a placement tool to put in two Marios. Not that it's very surprising, but 3D World Director Koichi Hayashida also noted Nintendo had the Wii U game in mind ever since it began development on 3DS entry Super Mario 3D Land. As for future Mario adventures, Miyamoto said, "Personally, I would like to take on a variety of new challenges with Super Mario Galaxy and design 2D Super Mario games in an easy-to-understand way within certain restraints." Super Mario 3D World is out next week on November 22 for the Wii U.
Nintendo Selects budget line adds Super Mario Galaxy, Punch-Out!!, and more
Faced with drooping sales and waning retail interest in its platforms, Nintendo's been exercising its price-cutting muscle with some regularity. Before the unexpected 3DS price cut, there was the $50 Wii price cut that also included a bundled copy of Mario Kart Wii and the Wii Wheel accessory. At the same time, Nintendo introduced the budget-priced Nintendo Selects game lineup and, on August 28, it's dropping four more games to the $19.99 price point. Super Paper Mario, Mario Strikers Charged, Punch-Out!!, and Super Mario Galaxy join The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Mario Super Sluggers, and Wii Sports in the bargain aisle. While it's hard to argue with the new, lower price, our secret, inner box-art snob wonders, "Is a measly $30 savings worth the shame of having that on the game shelf?" A look at the art for the latest Nintendo Selects selections is after the break.
Breakfast Topic: What features from other games would be fun in WoW?
This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to our pages. Let's face it: We all need an occasional break from WoW in our gaming rotation. My most recent slump sent me from the computer chair to the couch to play a little something called Super Mario Galaxy 2. Now, obviously World of Warcraft is not -- and will never be -- anything close to a platformer. Sure, there are some similarities, but if history is any guide, too much platforming in the land of Azeroth only leads to frustration. Having one of your party members miss "the jump" in Wailing Caverns is always a toe-tapping exercise in patience. Hell, if you need proof that your average MMO player isn't well versed in the art of platforming, just look at Naxxramas. If I had a nickel for every time I'd seen players eat slime during Frogger, fall off the Gluth pipe or trip over their two left feet in Heigan's dance studio ... Well, let's just say I'd have a pretty nice nickel collection. But if I were to pretend for just a moment that World of Warcraft were designed solely for my own personal entertainment, I think I'd include a lot of odd mechanics in raids to greatly shake things up. Messed-up gravity. Interesting jumping puzzles over bottomless pits. Water levels! Just imagine how much the feel of a dungeon would change if only you had the right zone-wide buffs to include. Buff up the monsters, give all the players a 100 percent haste and run speed buff, and just watch things get chaotic. Oh, yeah -- and the floor behind you is slowly falling away ... Obviously, if these things were implemented in the game, it would be the beginning of the end for Blizzard. These are simply terrible ideas; I'm aware of that. That's the point, though -- we've all had that one idea that we think would be ridiculously fun to try, even though it's incredibly impractical. If you had your way, what bits and pieces would you steal from other genres for your own personal version of WoW? Do you have some brilliant way to turn everyone's favorite MMO into an awesome FPS or RTS?
Super Mario Galaxy 2 passes 1 million sold in US
Super Mario Galaxy 2 was the best-selling non-cowboy game in the United States last month. The 548,000 copies sold during June put the spacefaring platformer above the one-million mark in US sales, as proclaimed by Nintendo in a triumphant announcement. In kind of a bummer of a month in terms of general software sales, Super Mario Galaxy 2 was one of the few success stories for June. While one million copies in two months (41 days of NPD reporting time) is impressive, it doesn't approach the level of success enjoyed by the first Super Mario Galaxy, which broke a million in its first month on the market, only 12 days of which counted for NPD. (The fact that its first month was November may have had something to do with that strong start.) Nintendo also announced that DS hardware sales have reached "nearly 42 million," with Wii sales "closing in on a cumulative milestone of 30 million units sold in the United States alone." Both systems enjoyed sales spikes last month.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 on sale for $35 through Dell
Dell has marked down Super Mario Galaxy 2 to $35. For a high-profile game just released weeks ago, that's a pittance -- less than a pittance. If you gave Dell a pittance, you'd get a trifle back as change. It's a good deal, is what we're saying, for a game that is "the best Mario game ever." In fact, at this point, the only valid excuse for not trying out Galaxy 2 is, well, motion sickness. If you're prone to that particular ailment, the game's less magical and more the worst experience of your life. [Via GoNintendo]
See the Super Mario Galaxy 2 orchestra live (on video)
For Super Mario Galaxy 2's soundtrack, Nintendo went all-out, recording the main theme with a 70-person orchestra. Footage of the assembled musicians playing the sweeping opening music has been released via the Japanese Nintendo Channel (watch it after the break), allowing us to see just how much more epic a piece of music is when you see it played by a room full of people. If you're wondering why Shigeru Miyamoto looks so bored, it's because there was no room in the orchestra for his banjo. Fans of Galaxy 2's music will be crushed to learn that Japan's Club Nintendo is offering a two-disc soundtrack for just 300 points with the registration of a copy of the game. It's possible for this bonus to make its way to other regions' Club Nintendos, as the first Galaxy soundtrack did in Europe, but we'd rather take such anomalies as delightful surprises, rather than disappoint ourselves by expecting them. [Via ONM]
Entire Super Mario Galaxy 2 soundtrack now on YouTube
Super Mario Galaxy had one of the most delightful, transportive soundtracks of any game in the current console generation, with themes both new and familiar set to a sweeping orchestral score. To show off the sequel's equally impressive accompaniment, a YouTube channel purportedly belonging to composer Mahito Yokota has uploaded every single track from Super Mario Galaxy 2 onto a single playlist. You can listen to it here, though the tracks' names might include a few minor, minor spoilers. If you can suffer those, you're in for a full afternoon of happiness-inducing music. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Metareview: Super Mario Galaxy 2
Everyone expects a Mario game to be good -- and it's even easier to expect quality when the new game is a direct follow-up to a game as universally adored as Super Mario Galaxy. However, even given the high expectations, the reception Super Mario Galaxy 2's getting is startling. There are, as of right now, eight scores equivalent to 100 percent on the game's Metacritic page, a range befitting the title our own Randy Nelson called "the best Mario game ever." We've only quoted one of the 100-percenters below, in the interest of variety. Edge (10): "This is a game that refuses to bore you, that can take you to the 60-star mark before asking you to do the same thing twice. It reuses assets, but almost never recycles ideas; you'll never see another title so thrifty, or so gratuitous." Game Informer (93/100): "Sure, it's not the total reinvention of the genre we've come to expect from a new Mario title, but as a platformer fan I'm happy to get more Mario to tide me over. This game is a testament to the enduring appeal of the genre, as well as Nintendo's ability to create fresh new gameplay out of a decades-old formula." Game|Life (9/10): "Super Mario Galaxy 2 is thus simultaneously more and less than its predecessor. It expands and elaborates on the gameplay in unpredictable ways, but the last one felt like a bigger, more complete adventure. That said, better core gameplay with less window dressing is infinitely preferable to the reverse." %Gallery-64834%
Review: Super Mario Galaxy 2
Super Mario Galaxy 2 is the best Mario game ever. There, I said it. What Nintendo's EAD Tokyo team has managed to pull off in this game is astounding, especially when you consider just how good the original Super Mario Galaxy was. Like expert craftsmen, they've improved upon an already excellent product and delivered a seemingly endless volley of fresh ideas -- be they in level design or game mechanics -- that are every bit as polished as those in the first game and, most importantly, just pure fun. Since the sequel was first announced and up until, well, now, there's been a lingering question: Is it just Super Mario Galaxy 1.5? Despite what the original plans for the sequel may have entailed, one thing is clear: SMG2 is its own game. It shares the basic mechanics of its predecessor yet brings so many new experiences to the playing field that it stands alone. Even more, it features enough challenges to keep the most hardcore Mario player engaged for weeks. %Gallery-64834%
Video: Mario Galaxy 2 travels to planet Mario 64
Upon watching the Super Mario Galaxy 2 video after the break, there's a very real chance you will be smitten, smacked or otherwise clobbered by an overwhelming feeling of nostalgia. Nintendo, you see, decided to slip at least one Super Mario 64 level, Whomp's Fortress, into Super Mario Galaxy 2. The spirally mountain, the Whomp, the delightful music -- it's all there. Seriously, pour the Kool-Aid, heat up some pizza rolls and it'll be childhood all over again.
This Week on the Nintendo Channel: Super Mario Galaxy 2 TV spots
Look -- the above TV spots for Super Mario Galaxy 2 are really slick and all, but now we've got one thing on our mind: pancakes. Now that we know there's a stack of flapjacks out there with its own gravitational pull, we just can't wait to dig in. Thankfully, we won't have to wait too long to satiate our need for edible planetary bodies. For the rest of this week's Nintendo Channel content, head past the break.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 trailer floats in
The latest video excursion into Super Mario Galaxy 2 (after the break) features some very fancy aerial maneuvers by a gas-filled Yoshi. The side-scrolling segment of the game shown here requires Yoshi to float from Blimp Fruit to Blimp Fruit to stay aloft, and even relies on Yoshi's flutter jump to navigate between platforms around the stage. We can't help but notice that the stage itself is shaped like a cylinder. In fact, you might describe the level as "tubular."
Super Mario Galaxy 2 trailer features bird racing
Nintendo's viral-esque series of Super Mario Galaxy 2 promotional videos continues with a brief look at an odd flying minigame. In this racing segment, Mario woo-hoos through a course as he holds onto the legs of a "Fluzzard." The challenge, of course, is to win the race against a bunch of birds who aren't weighted down by husky plumbers. Perhaps this particular Fluzzard flies faster, though, boosted by the assurance that its talents are useful to Mario. There are really only two fates for animals in the Mario universe, after all. If you can't be used as a vehicle in some way (like Yoshi, who is born wearing a saddle), you are doomed to being stomped to death. See the trailer after the break.
Iwata explains Super Mario Galaxy 2 tutorial DVD
In his presentation to investors, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata confirmed that Super Mario Galaxy 2 would include a bonus tutorial DVD, and that said DVD would be exclusive to Europe and Japan. Iwata called the "Super Mario Galaxy 2 For Beginners" video "a visual manual for first-timers for 3D Mario." It includes basic information about how to play Super Mario Galaxy 2, as well as "Super Play" footage showing advanced techniques for more seasoned Mario fans. He also addressed the obvious complaint about the DVD: "Some may feel this is unusual because Wii does not have a DVD playback capability, but given the wide penetration of DVD players at home, we have concluded that it is most useful for the players if they can confirm the contents even while they are playing with Wii and decided to provide the footage in DVD format." You can see a snippet of footage from the Japanese version of the DVD in the presentation. And you can see the latest trailer from Nintendo of America, featuring Bee Mario, after the break.
New Super Mario Galaxy 2 media is all about Luigi
In the run up to Super Mario Galaxy 2's big launch later this month, Nintendo has been releasing a steady stream of nostalgia-caked media on the game. And while we don't tell you about each and every one (there's a handful of trailers right here, for instance), we do try and point out the ones that are particularly enticing. For instance, today's trailer features the once-again-playable Luigi as he gets in on some Power Star collecting action himself. It's not clear whether the other Mr. Mario is playable from the get-go -- in the first Super Mario Galaxy, Luigi only became playable after collecting all 120 stars -- but he will clearly be a character that players can control. See Mario's partner in time don an adorable bee suit in the gallery below and check out the new trailer just above. %Gallery-92369%
