Video Game Review - Super Mario Odyssey (2017)
Super Mario Odyssey is one of the Nintendo Switch's most popular games, taking Mario on a journey throughout many different kingdoms.
Playing Super Mario 3D All-Stars throughout the course of 2021 allowed me to gain an understanding as to why Super Mario games are beloved by so many gamers. Super Mario Sunshine, while having its flaws, was enjoyable as I finally beat a game I was unable to as a kid.
Super Mario Galaxy, on the other hand, blew me away with its incredible level design, awe-inspiring atmospheres and majestic soundtrack.
Naturally, it made sense to play its spiritual successor, Super Mario Odyssey, on the Nintendo Switch. I dove into Odyssey with high expectations after fans of the game sung its praises.
While I ended up enjoying the game overall, there was one major aspect of the game that made the journey feel unsatisfying.
Odyssey starts off with what you’d expect; Bowser kidnaps Princess Peach from the Mushroom Kingdom with the intent on “marrying” her. He throws Mario off his airship to where he eventually lands in Cap Kingdom. Mario teams up with Cappy, a Bonneter (cap-shaped creatures) who has the ability to turn into Mario’s cap and absorb the abilities and bodies of an enemy.
Together, the two rebuild a ship called “The Odyssey” to chase after Bowser throughout different kingdoms. There, he and his gang of Broodals steal important items for the wedding such as a cake, bouquet of flowers and a dress. Mario and Cappy must team up to save Peach and Cappy’s sister, Tiara, from Bowser’s clutches before the one-sided wedding takes place.
To understand why this game disappointed me, I must establish the main difference between Odyssey and Galaxy. The structure of Galaxy was linear as each level either had you fight a boss to obtain a power/grand star or acquire it by reaching the end of the level.
Odyssey has a more open-world design with the player needing to find a certain number of power moons in each kingdom before progressing to the next world. With some power moons not opening up until the boss of the level is defeated, the boss battles are simply another piece of the puzzle to get to the next world.
This lessens the urgency and impact of the battles, making explorations of the worlds feel dull at times despite the game’s strengths. The world becomes the protagonist instead of the characters in the story as exploring every corner to find power moons becomes more important than chasing after Bowser.
In Galaxy, power and grand stars were obtained immediately after defeating bosses, allowing the stakes to heighten as the observatory gained the necessary power to ride toward the center of the universe.
Odyssey’s open world idea was good, but it lacked the execution it needed to be effective. Instead, there should have been one power moon to collect and the rest should have been replaced with other, different collectibles such as keys. The keys could have unlocked the next part of the level upon acquiring them, keeping exploration while maintaining the impact of the boss battles with a final objective.
While the open-world aspect of the game let me down, the game as a whole was enjoyable with Cappy’s transforming ability, the stellar sequence in New Donk City and the pulse-pounding ending.
Cappy can absorb the bodies and abilities of enemies, creating some of the most creative platforming and gameplay designs I have ever experienced. There are countless examples of laugher and amazement I got transforming into these enemies.
After nearly two decades of my life fighting Goombas, you get to turn into them as you gain easier traction on slippery surfaces. There’s even several sequences where you turn into a tyrannosaurus rex and plow through the landscape. It is so random but ridiculously fun. To add to the craziness, there is one part where you must turn into a polar bear and participate in a bouncing race where all you do is bounce around an icy track for three laps.
I never knew what to expect next with each new kingdom I explored, making me always wanting to play more despite the tedious aforementioned level designs.
New Donk City is the game’s metropolitan kingdom ran by the mayor, Pauline. She first appeared in the original Donkey Kong game, so seeing her featured in this game was a treat as you gathered musicians for her festival due to her increased characterization from her original appearance.
To my delight, the festival turned out to be a long 8-bit platforming level across the city, amplified by a original song, “Jump Up Super Star.” For being the first vocal song in a Mario game, vocalist Kate Higgins and composer Naoto Kubo, did a fantastic job providing a euphoric atmosphere. Doing this was fun and exhilarating as I felt like a kid playing classic 8-bit Mario games.
The soundtrack, composed by Shiho Fujii and Koji Kondo, had a jazz and classical feel, much different than Sunshine or Galaxy. While it worked well with New Donk City and the more populated kingdoms, it fell flat in the more natural kingdoms like the random island and snow kingdoms as it felt out of place.
While I will not spoil the ending, it is the best part of the game besides the New Donk City sequence. My biggest issue with Galaxy was the lackluster final level with it being short, uncreative and easy compared to the final galaxies.
Odyssey does not have this issue. The final level threw so many unexpected and challenging concepts that not only heightened my enjoyment, but escalated the tension before the final confrontation with Bowser. It was a long and challenging final level, which is exactly what I was hoping for after feeling disappointed with Galaxy’s final level. To cap it off, the final transformations Cappy uses are absolute gold.
Overall, Super Mario Odyssey was a fun game that needed some gameplay and level adjustments to be an excellent game. Luckily, the finale, transformations and the New Donk City sequence made the game worth my time to play. I recommend the game if you enjoy open world and less linear storylines.
Super Mario Odyssey is available exclusively on the Nintendo Switch.
Rating: 8/10