Since the release of the Switch and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, competition has been stiff. Mario Odyssey however, has clearly taken the world by storm making the masses almost forget about Zelda. Each fan-base has their ties to what they like, but Mario is hard to beat with an equally long history.
By now, everyone knows that Peach is going to get kidnapped by the big bad Bowser and that’s exactly where we come in to Super Mario Odyssey. Bowser takes off with Peach to get married and in the process destroys Mario’s hat, therefore leading Mario to be introduced to Cappy. Luckily, Cappy is friends with the tiara that is to be used in the wedding and teams up with Mario to use the Odyssey ship to catch Bowser and stop the wedding. If you know nothing else about this game, you must have heard the catchy theme song that I couldn’t help but bop along too even when the game was still being advertised. Not only is the song catchy, but the visuals are amazing too. This game brings with it the Mario Galaxy type story and visuals and some of the same gameplay but there is so much more.
In the game, Mario gets to explore new kingdoms, look for moons, battle new characters and use his fashion sense with Cappy, his hat that does a lot of exploration and combat work. Since the game focuses on exploration, there is a clear callback to the Nintendo 64 days when Super Mario 64 started the 3D gameplay. In Super Mario, Mario 64 explored Peach’s castle and fought Bowser all while busting through new worlds, fighting enemies and even playing mini games. If you’re a fan of Mario 64, there is even a direct callback in Super Mario Odyssey. Some have even said that Odyssey might be considered Mario 64 Part 2. While Odyssey owes a lot to Super Mario 64, it also provides new material.
Mario can be customized by in game purchases to look like Dr. Mario and Mario with a hard hat (Super Mario Maker) but this is just one of the aesthetics. There are over 100 different ways to customize Mario and his outfits. Another baffling aesthetic that the game has that caught me off guard at first, is the 2D integration in certain levels. Some areas put Mario in to a 2D level in order to keep the game moving. This is a neat feature but an even cooler throwback to Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. At the top of the list, however, is a mechanic that lets Mario become other characters.
Cappy and Mario work together as a team to collect moons to make the Odyssey functional for new worlds. While working their way through, Mario can throw Cappy to break items, use Cappy to become a platform for hard to reach spaces, and the best part, Cappy can be thrown in order to take control of other characters. This is beneficial because each character that is taken over can be used by players to achieve their goals. Plus, every new character has their own set of skills that can be used. There are literally dozens of characters that Cappy can become throughout the course of the game. For the completionist in the world, Super Mario Odyssey offers a challenge to be had. Moons, much like stars, are hidden everywhere throughout the levels. Some can be found by beating bosses while others take much more skill and detective work, like ground pounding a pile of dirt randomly displayed in a level. So, players who choose to, will have a much harder time finding everything and extend the gameplay time, but will ultimately be rewarded for their search.
While this game celebrates Mario’s past, it cannot be overstated how much it means to Mario’s and Nintendo’s future. The release of the Switch brought about great doubt and fear in gamers. Since the release of the Wii U, there was a general feeling that the Switch may have been moving backwards in technology which raised the stakes even higher for the company to do well. Once the Switch was released however, the consensus was raised with players that there was potential to do even more. For example, Skyrim is now set to be on the Switch, one of the first mature games to be a part of the system next to The Binding of Isaac. These types of games were unheard of with other Nintendo systems and game selections and they are crucial choices to the longevity of the Nintendo Switch.
Super Mario Odyssey offers history to its players that have followed along with Nintendo and Mario. This is shown through the gameplay, visually pleasing backgrounds and through new players options such as customization. Although Super Mario Odyssey takes some old treasures and uses them, the game stands alone as being one of the best games to be released to date and there is not enough time or space to get in to every detail that the game has to offer.
Super Mario Odyssey is available now on the Nintendo Switch