SMO Review Draft

If you had told me a few years ago that we'd be getting a traditional Mario game, I'd tell you to...get out. Safe to say now, I'd be eating my own shoes now. It's been so long since we've seen a traditional exploration-focused sandbox Mario game, seven years since the likes of Super Mario Galaxy 2, fifteen years since Super Mario Sunshine and even over two decades since Super Mario 64, which set the gold standard for what 3D platforming games are.

I remember being so confused with the reveal trailer way back in January, at first having no idea what the hell Odyssey was, only to freak out when I saw Mario jumping out of the manhole. I'll keep spoilers to a minimum here so footage will only be from the first few kingdoms, with the exception of New Donk City since it's so central to the game and it's scenery.

This game is so gosh darn fun. It's such a joy to play and I really underestimated how much playtime I'd actually put into the game especially post-game. This game is so addictive that instead of chores or programming work, I'd rather undock the Switch and play more Odyssey. However, this game doesn't go much beyond or above my expectations, even if it is a great game and you can't really blame that, especially with the hype built up over the few months before the game's release.

A disclaimer here, no, I'm not knocking on the game. The game is, yes, weird and unusual but it doesn't really do anything to majorly surprise me or make me open my mouth in awe. I'm sure Nintendo might do something to the contrary with the likelihood that this game gets a sequel or even DLC.

One of the only things I disliked about Odyssey is its insistence on motion controls for Cappy. I would have liked buttons assigned to be able to do things like the homing or circle-spin throw and you kind of look daft shaking the Switch in public.

The bosses feel majorly underwhelming, sure they're simple but they don't feel too overly challenging or grandiose. There's so many fricking moons, it's not even funny. A moon there, a moon here, moons everywhere. Even moons that are 'seriously is this is even a moon'.

I want to give a congratulatory clap to Nintendo for this game, not just because it's so wonderful and fun but...even with the Switch's somewhat low technical specs, it's incredibly impressive how they managed to maintain a near silky-smooth 60 FPS even in portable mode. I thought that stuff was freaking voodoo magic at first in portable mode.

We see a return to the Super Mario 64 days with the amount of maneuverability Mario has being unbelievably varied and makes Mario feel so fun and natural to control. It's a design choice I don't see often in games, either that moveset variety can adapt with player skill and it shows that how Nintendo designed Mario's movement abilities as a tool...by proving you have a mastery of his abilities, you can be rewarded both with goodies and level shortcuts and tricks.

I've seen people pull off really insane tech jumps, despite me being unable to master those moves not quite yet. I'm getting there, though. I'm hoping it becomes a mainstay for the series, even if Cappy does not return.

The main ability provided with Cappy with one of the most interesting and fun mechanics I've seen in a game by far in a long time. The same can be said about game's variety of challenges and tasks you can choose from, varying from self-contained platforming challenges to puzzles using enemy abilities.

You wouldn't be wrong to think that some of these challenges or self-contained areas make the game feel like its an entirely different game. This was a feeling I couldn't put my finger on with the game initially but it boils down partially both to Nintendo's charm with the game, the unusual amount of variety with challenges and certain areas or mechanics feel so out of place yet complimentary to the game's design. This game at the same time both feels like and doesn't feel like a Mario game. My final verdict to bookend things here? 9 Mario caps out of 10 caps.