Review by timson622222

"A good game, but not what I exactly expected."

Well, what can I say? I anxiously awaited this game, and it was flying off the shelves. I finally got my copy on one through a Target store with little traffic.

Story - BAD

The whole idea and concept of the Koopalings capturing Princess Peach using a cake as a trap and the overuse of airships make the story bad. This is the anchor that drops this game down the most, as I was expecting much more of a story.

Gameplay - 7/10

I like the difficulty of this game. It's challenging (to the point where it starts to tick me off due to the lack of Propeller Mushrooms in the levels I visit), and fun. The new power-ups are pretty amazing, too.

First off, there's the cheap-as-hell Propeller Cap. It's basically a Spindrift in a cap. Once you shake your Wii Remote, Mario flies up in the air. At first, this doesn't seem like a cheap-as-hell item in World 1-1. But you'll understand the LACK of these as you move on in the game - it is HORRIBLY CHEAP. The Propeller Cap is GODSEND in overworld stages. The only way that a Propeller Cap is useless is if you're holding those annoying Toads. Oh, the agony.

Next, there's the Ice Flower, which I personally find too commonly. It is not very good in overworld stages but it is very good in underwater stages and (to a certain extent) castles. I love freezing the enemies and breaking the ice for violent scenes of fatalities in an E-rated game. In castles, it's basically Mortal Kombat once you kill a Dry Bones with this item, which I love about this. However, it is useless in boss battles and only good for novelty uses. Why? Well, it can't damage bosses like the Fire Flower can. It also doesn't instantly KO enemies (although when it does, it's awesome.) Additionally, the ice breaks on contact with everything HARD - walls, ? Blocks, etc. So no matter how much Nintendo tells you that you can pick up ice blocks with ease and KO multiple enemies at a time, it DOESN'T WORK OUT SO WELL. I've once gotten K.O.ed by a Goomba just because I've taken time to set up a number of them in a row, and the ice collided with a brick block and broke. I had to face a multitude of Goombas, and they overwhelmed me because I was in multiplayer and my sister died oh so many times.

The Penguin Suit is worthless. It is a mix of the Blue Shell from the DS New Super Mario Bros. and Ice Flower. Every time you find it, I guarantee you that the belly slide will send Mario slip-n-sliding to his demise. The Penguin is so GOD-AWFULLY HARD TO CONTROL THAT IT'S RIDICULOUS. The first time you find this suit, you'll be colliding with other Penguins trying to imitate Mario (or is it the other way around? I dunno.)

Oh, Nintendo. Why did you bring back the MINI MUSHROOM and not the MEGA MUSHROOM?! The Mega Mario stomps on enemies mercilessly, defeats all bosses in one hit, and could probably crush an Airship if it was in this game. It can also crush everything. The Mini Mario gets stomped on by enemies mercilessly, gets defeated by all bosses in one hit, and could probably get flattened by an Airship by touch. It can also break... NOTHING.

As for Yoshi... I like his controls in this game. He is also very cute because of the stunning graphics - well guess what? YOSHI ONLY APPEARS A FEW TIMES. You don't get to keep Yoshi like you did in Super Mario World. The levels where you DO find Yoshi are cluttered with enemies that only the Propeller Cap could get through.

Multiplayer - 3/10

Nintendo decided to be a total jerk and let players go into bubbles anytime they wanted. Guess what. Bubble-spamming (which my sister does very often) is annoying. Also, other players get in the way. You also can't focus on yourself while you're playing multiplayer, as the camera zooms out to the point where you can't see a thing. Multiplayer is only good if you have COOPERATIVE friends, not some jerks like my 4-year old sister.

Also, the players for multiplayer are horribly bad. Mario, Luigi, and the two WORST Toads from the Toad Brigade (remember Super Mario Galaxy?) The Blue Toad (a.k.a. the NERD Toad) and the Yellow Toad (a.k.a. the COUCH *cough**cough* FLOWER POTATO Toad, seriously, he sleeps on a flower bed for the eternity of the game in Galaxy.) Like other people, I'm going to complain about why didn't they bring in Peach as a playable character and make Daisy or somebody else the damsel-in-distress. Anyone but Peach AGAIN.

Graphics - 10/10

Love 'em. I'm not talking about the ripoff backgrounds that this game stole from the DS version, but the overworld items, enemies, the Mario Bros., and even the worthless Toads. The graphics are great compared to other 2D Mario platformers (because it's on the Wii) and the animation is amazing (even the animation of you falling into a pit.)

Music - 7/10

Just like some other people, I'm going to complain about the "BAH BAH" in this game on EVERY level. It is so annoying to see the Koopas dancing while you fall into a bottomless pit. Or the fish dancing when you get poked by a sea urchin. Or the Pokeys dancing while you and Yoshi sink into the quicksand.

Despite that, I like the music. If they got rid of the "BAH BAH" part, I'd give this a 10.

Originality - 8/10

Despite its title art being copied directly from the DS version, and that there are too many similar backgrounds and enemies, I'd say this is pretty original in terms of level design. The only annoying part is how these level designs don't really SUPPORT multiplayer. Although it's fun to stomp on the first Koopaling four times with your friends over and over, by the time you reach World 3, I'd say DROP OUT YOUR FRIENDS. The castles never have enough room to fit all four of you. Every time I play Multiplayer, my sister keeps getting in the way and bubble-spamming during a BOSS FIGHT. And that's exactly what your friends will do unless they are cooperative, so I advise you drop them out before a boss fight.

Star Coin Usage - OK

Unlike in the DS version where you used Star Coins to unlock letter-coded stages (eg: World 1-A) you use them to unlock "Hint Movies". Some of these are movies that tell you secret exits (warning: spoiler alert in the movie.) Some of these movies tell you how to get multiple 1-ups. And the worst of the bunch is the movies that are "Super Skill" movies. It shows a Small Mario devastating a course, obviously played by a Nintendo expert. The Super Skill movies shove in your face about how the Nintendo staff can do so much better than you can, showing advanced techniques like Wall-Jumping and collecting every Star Coin in World 1-Tower and leaving without a scratch. These movies are only good if you're an expert yourself, and you like to laugh at how much better you can do than THEM, or if you're an expert looking for even more advanced techniques than your own. Either way, it's a waste of Star Coin Usage, so unless you're going for spending every Star Coin, stay away from these movies.

Overall: 6.5/10

I always round down in reviewing, so it's no surprise. Mario Wii could have done a lot better than this, but it's still a solid game and a very good platforming title at that. Although it drops below Super Mario Bros. 3, and it's not true to the Mario titles (1-player), it's a very good game. I would recommend you rent this for a week and see how you like it. Buy if you're interested, which you probably will.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10 | Originally Posted: 01/04/10


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