I’ve been waiting for a true follow-up to Super Mario 64 ever since it was released in 1996. Nintendo decided to experiment too much with gimmicks with Sunshine. After this they went in a different direction and steered away from the exploration by focusing on tight platforming. This direction continued with the 3D Land and World titles. I had just about given up hope, but then the company did something out of character. When they announced the Nintendo Switch they showed off a new Mario title. This one boasted a similar concept to that of Super Mario 64. I expected to be disappointed. At release I picked it up and played it over the course of years. It took so long not because I was bored, rather, I didn’t want it to end. Super Mario Odyssey is the game I’ve been waiting for.
In terms of story Super Mario Odyssey is more bizarre than your typical hip hopping, coin collecting fare. Yes, it’s even more odd than Sunshine in this regard. Bowser is looking to get himself hitched, and he has chosen none other than Princess Peach to be his bride. Mario tries to stop this, but he is defeated and his iconic hat destroyed in the process. Fortunately he lands in the Cap Kingdom, and makes friends with a living hat whose sister has been kidnapped by Bowser. The two team up and set out across a number of kingdoms to defeat Bowser and stop this crazy wedding. Yes, it’s weird and I’m not particularly fond of the story (it’s a Mario game so who cares am I right?) but at least it’s different. The new villains, the broodals, are memorable at least.
I mentioned this while introducing the game, but Super Mario Odyssey is a 3D platformer based on exploration. The game is divided into kingdoms which are basically levels or worlds (whatever you want to call it). You have no hub world this time around as it’s more of a level select (there’s a hat shaped airship you travel on). The left joystick moves Mario around these stages while the right stick moves the camera. The latter doesn’t really have a life of its own which is fine by me.. It fits the gameplay well. The portly plumber has his typical moveset including the standard jump, double/triple jump, etc. What has changed is Mario’s main means of attack. He can still land on top of most enemies to destroy them, but now he can throw his hat a short distance. It boomerangs back to him.
This is the main mechanic of Super Mario Odyssey. You see, when you hit specific enemies with your hat you take control of them. This opens the game up to a new world of possibilities. You start out by taking control of basic goombas. You can only leap, but you can stack goombas to reach new coins and even moons in some cases. As the game goes on you’ll be able to take control of hammer bros, bullet bills, cheep cheeps, etc. It really hits home the nostalgia factor. Even new enemies introduced here let you harness new abilities. This mechanic is by far the most interesting in the franchise since Mario was first able to jump. It’s inspired, and allows for some amazing puzzles.
Your goal in Super Mario Odyssey is to collect moons. They replace stars as we saw in Mario 64 and the Galaxy series. These are how you move on to new kingdoms. At the start of any level you’re shown how many you need in order to progress. It’s neat that Odyssey gives you verbal clues as to what you need to do next with the start of each kingdom because you can completely ignore these should you so choose. Super moons are hidden everywhere. You’re encouraged to and rewarded by traveling off the beaten path to find them. There’s always a way you’re pushed forward, but Odyssey encourages you to search every nook and cranny. That is what makes this game so amazing. The developers put some real creativity into each and every one of them.
The developers also listened to previous complaints. When you collect a moon you aren’t whisked away to the beginning of the stage to return and find another. Instead you continue just from where you left off. That is an amazing quality of life feature that I could never have expected in this game. It’s Nintendo after all. It takes a lot of the repetition out of the franchise and makes moon hunting an absolute joy. These are hidden in very creative locations. Usually if you see something suspicious in the environment you’re rewarded by checking it out and experimenting with possible interactions. It makes Super Mario Odyssey a lot of fun to play start to finish.
Due to the open world nature of Super Mario Odyssey’s stages every area feels like a giant sandbox. You can explore almost everywhere that you can see, and there are so many paths in each level it’s ridiculous. The vast number of abilities makes the options of experimentation vast. I got joy simply out of just exploring and finding new enemies to possess with cappy. You’ll need to use many (but not nearly all of them) in order to find the number of power moons you’ll need to progress through the game. I also really enjoyed the boss encounters. These typically have a lot of moving parts that you’ll have to whittle away at in order to win. These are the only moments in the game that offer any real challenge (besides the post-game of course) and I really liked them.
In terms of graphics Mario and crew have never looked better. The resolution is a bit low compared to other platformers of this era, and things such as grass even look a generation behind. Everything else is very solid. You have fantastic draw distances, a silky smooth framerate, and vibrant environments full of detail and color. The only complaint I have is that the art style is very weird by series standards. I’ve wanted something different for a while, and while Odyssey is that, it can be a bit off-putting. Regardless it’s a very pretty game. The soundtrack is fantastic. It’s orchestrated and sounds very different from that of other titles in the franchise. My favorite part however are the vocal tracks which is a first for the franchise. Jump Up Superstar is seriously catchy, and Break Free is incredibly memorable and gets you pumped up.
