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Super Mario Galaxy
Official cover art
Developer(s)Nintendo EAD Tokyo
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)
Producer(s)
Designer(s)Yoshiaki Koizumi
Shigeru Miyamoto
Artist(s)Kenta Motokura
Writer(s)Takayuki Ikkaku
Composer(s)
SeriesSuper Mario
Platform(s)Wii
Wii U
ReleaseWii
  • JP: 1 November 2007
  • NA: 12 November 2007
  • EU: 16 November 2007
  • AU: 29 November 2007
Wii U
  • JP: 31 May 2015
  • NA: 24 December 2015
  • EU: 4 February 2016
Genre(s)Platforming
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Super Mario Galaxy (Japanese: スーパーマリオギャラクシー, Hepburn: Sūpā Mario Gyarakushī) is a platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It was first released on 1 November 2007 in Japan, 12 November 2007 in North America, 16 November 2007 in Europe and on 29 November 2007 in Australia. It is the third 3D original game in the Super Mario series and the eighth main instalment overall. The game was re-released as a Nintendo Selects title in 2011, and as a download via the Wii U's eShop on 31 May 2015 in Japan, 24 December 2015 in North America, and on 4 February 2016 in Europe.

The story revolves around the protagonist, Mario, on a quest to rescue Princess Peach and save the universe from Bowser. The levels in the game consist of galaxies filled with minor planets and worlds, with different variations of gravity being the central element of gameplay. The concept for the game's use of spherical platforms were first conceptualised from ideas used in Super Mario 128, a technology demonstration shown at Nintendo Space World in 2000. Development of Super Mario Galaxy began after the release of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat in late 2004, after Shigeru Miyamoto suggested that Nintendo should commission a large-scale Mario game.

The game was a critical and commercial success, having been hailed by critics as one of the greatest and most revolutionary video games of all time. Critics praised the game's graphics, gravity mechanics and setting. It has since won several awards from gaming publications, including multiple "Game of the Year" awards and a BAFTA. It is listed among the top-rated games on various aggregate sites, and is the highest-ranked title on review aggregator GameRankings. The game is the eighth best-selling Wii game worldwide with sales of 12.69 million, as well as the best-selling 3D entry in the Super Mario series. A direct sequel, Super Mario Galaxy 2, was released for the Wii in 2010.

Gameplay

Premise and setting

Mario running across a planetoid. The game's gravity mechanics allow Mario to fully circumnavigate round or irregular objects.

Super Mario Galaxy is set in outer space,[1][2] where Mario travels from galaxy to galaxy to collect Power Stars, which are earned by completing levels in galaxies or defeating enemies.[3][1] Each galaxy contains a number of planetoids and other space matter for the player to explore.[1] The game uses a new physics engine that allows for a unique feature; each astronomical object has its own gravitational force, allowing the player to completely circumnavigate rounded or irregular planetoids, walking sideways or upside down.[4][5] The player can usually jump from one independent object and fall towards another one nearby. Although the main gameplay is in 3D, there are several areas in the game in which the player's movements are restricted to a 2-dimensional plane, an element reminiscent of early 2D Super Mario games.[6]

The game's main hub is the Comet Observatory, a spaceship which contains six themed domes that provide access to the 42 galaxies available in the game.[3] Five of the domes end with a boss level in which the object is to defeat Bowser or Bowser Jr., which then allows the player collect a Grand Star in order to access the next dome.[3] When the player first begins the game, access is available to only a few galaxies. However, as more Power Stars are collected, more galaxies become available to the player. When 120 Power Stars are collected, the player gains the ability to play through the game again as Mario's brother Luigi.[7] Once 120 Power Stars are collected with both characters, the player is rewarded one additional challenge for Mario and Luigi to complete, as well as two commemorative pictures that can be sent to the Wii Message Board upon each brother completing the challenge.[7][8]

Controls

The player-character is controlled via the Wii Remote and Nunchuk.[9] While most of Mario's abilities are taken directly from Super Mario 64, such as the long jump, wall jumps, and a variety of somersaults, Mario is given new moves that take advantage of the Wii Remote's pointer and motion sensing. The most basic feature is the Star Pointer, which appears on-screen (as long as the remote is pointed at the screen) for the entire game.[10] Firstly, the Star Pointer is used to pick up special konpeito-shaped objects called "Star Bits", which are then shot to stun enemies, manipulate obstacles, or feed Hungry Lumas.[1][11] Secondly, the pointer can latch onto small blue objects called "Pull Stars", which can be utilised to pull Mario through space.[12] Thirdly, if the player becomes encased in a floating bubble, the Star Pointer is used to blow air at it to influence the direction and speed it moves.[13]

The player gains a new ability early in the game, known as the "Spin" technique, which has previously appeared in varying forms since Super Mario World.[14] In Super Mario Galaxy, the "spin" is primarily used for melee attacks, as it can stun enemies and shatter objects,[11] and is used to trigger special propellers called "Sling Stars" or "Launch Stars" that launch Mario across large distances through space.[11][15] The "spin" utility is also used for climbing vines, ice skating, unscrewing bolts, and for activating several power-ups. Other Wii Remote functions are available for smaller quests, such as surfing aboard a manta ray or balancing atop a large ball and rolling it through an obstacle course.[16][17]

Power-ups and lives

From left to right clockwise; the interface displays number of Power Stars, life meter, number of coins and Star Bits, and number of lives.

Nine power-ups supply Mario with a special costume that grants him new abilities. For example, special mushrooms bestow the player with a Bee, Boo, or Spring Suit.[18] The Bee Suit allows Mario to temporarily hover through the air, climb special walls, and walk on clouds and flowers; the Boo Suit allows him to float through the air, as well as become transparent and move through certain obstacles;[19] and the Spring Suit allows him to jump to high areas that would otherwise be inaccessible.[20] The recurring Fire Flower allows Mario to throw fireballs at enemies, and the newly introduced Ice Flower allows Mario to create hexagonal tiles of ice to cover any liquid surface he walks on.[20] The Super Star grants Mario invincibility, allowing him to destroy any enemies that he touches, as well as jumping higher and running faster.[16]

Mario's health consists of a three-piece health meter,[21] which is depleted by contact with enemies and hazards.[11] When swimming underwater, Mario has an air supply meter, which quickly depletes his main power meter if it runs out.[1] Mario's health can be restored by collecting coins and his air supply by touching bubbles or coins.[17] When the power meter becomes empty, the player loses a life and must go back to a predetermined checkpoint.[16] The power meter can be temporarily expanded to six units through the use of a Life Mushroom, with the maximum health returning to three units if the overall health falls to three units from enemy or hazard contact or if Mario suffers instant death.[15] Instant death can occur by being swallowed by quicksand or dark matter; falling into bottomless pits, which either consist of black holes or leaving a planet's gravitational pull and falling into space; getting crushed between objects; losing a race against a non-player character; or other special challenges.[1] The player can obtain extra lives by collecting 1-Up Mushrooms, 50 coins without losing a life, or 50 Star Bits.[10]

Multiplayer

Super Mario Galaxy has a co-operative two-player option called "Co-Star" mode, in which one player controls Mario while the other uses only the Wii Remote to control a second Star Pointer on-screen to gather Star Bits and shoot them at enemies.[22][23] Additionally, the second player can make Mario jump, or the height of Mario's jump can be increased if the first and second player press the A button at the same time. The second player can also prevent some enemies from moving by aiming the pointer star at them and holding the A button.[24]

Plot

Shortly after Mario is invited to the centennial Star Festival by Princess Peach to celebrate the comet that passes overhead, Bowser invades the Mushroom Kingdom with a surprise attack in a fleet of airships. Summoning a gigantic flying saucer, Peach's entire castle is removed from its foundations and is lifted into outer space. Mario is still at the castle's base until Kamek, one of Bowser's minions, launches Mario onto a small planet with his magic. On the planet, he meets an enchantress named Rosalina and her companions, the Lumas. Rosalina is a watcher of the stars, who uses the Comet Observatory to travel across the universe. However, Bowser has stolen all of the Power Stars that act as the Observatory's power source, rendering it immobile. Bestowed with the power to travel through space through one of the Lumas, Mario sets off on a journey across the universe to reclaim the Power Stars and restore power to Rosalina's observatory. Along the way, he finds friends from the Mushroom Kingdom such as Luigi and the Toads.

Upon collecting enough Power Stars, the Comet Observatory regains the power to transform into a comet, and flies to the centre of the universe, where Bowser is holding Peach captive. Confronting Bowser, Mario learns that his plan is to rule the entire universe with Peach at his side, using a newly constructed sun of his own via the power of the Grand Stars. Mario manages to defeat Bowser and free Peach; however, in doing so, Bowser's sun collapses into itself, becoming a supermassive black hole that begins consuming everything nearby. All of Rosalina's Lumas jump into the black hole to destroy it, but sacrifice themselves in the process. The black hole collapses into a singularity and explodes in a supernova. Rosalina appears to Mario as a giantess, revealing that dying stars are later reborn as new stars. Mario awakens in the restored Mushroom Kingdom, full with all of the creatures he had met in the galaxies, alongside Peach and Bowser, celebrating the new galaxy that has emerged in the skies.

Development

Yoshiaki Koizumi, director and designer of Super Mario Galaxy, had the idea to incorporate abilities shown in a technology demonstration for the Nintendo Space World in 2000.

The concept for Super Mario Galaxy's gameplay originated from ideas taken from Super Mario 128, a technology demonstration shown at Nintendo Space World in 2000 to exemplify the processing power of the GameCube.[25] The demonstration's director (and future director of Super Mario Galaxy), Yoshiaki Koizumi, desired that one its distinguishing features, spherical-based platforms, should be used in a future game, but was held back in belief that such a feature would be impossible for technical reasons.[26] Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto suggested to work on the next large-scale Mario game after Nintendo EAD Tokyo finished development on Donkey Kong Jungle Beat in late 2004,[26][27] pushing for the spherical platform concept to be realised.[26] A prototype of the game's physics system took three months to build, where it was decided that the game's use of spherical platforms would best be suited to planetoids in an outer space environment, with the concept of gravity as a major feature.[26] During development, the designers would often exchange ideas with Miyamoto from his office in Kyoto, where he would make suggestions to the game design.[26] The game's script was written by Takayuki Ikkaku.[28]

The idea for Mario to have a "spin" attack came during the early stages of development, when it was decided that jumping on enemies on a spherical map would be difficult for some players – at one point, Koizumi remarked that making characters jump in a 3D environment was "absurd".[14] Takeo Shimizu, the game's producer and programmer, noted that the most basic action in a 3D action game was to simply run, and concluded that the easiest way to attack was to "spin", not jump. The "spin" was initially activated via rotation of the Nunchuk's control stick, but after motion sensing was confirmed to be implemented in the Wii Remote, the "spin" was changed to be activated through shaking the latter. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata wanted to prioritise the game's "fun factor" by giving the player a sense of achievement after they have completed a difficult task; Iwata noted an increasing number of consumers to give up during a video game and thus wanted Super Mario Galaxy to appeal to that audience. In response, the development team created a co-operative mode which allowed one player to control Mario whilst the other controlled the pointer with the Wii Remote, therefore enabling lesser experienced players to enjoy themselves in the game.[14]

The development team wanted the game to be enjoyed from the ages of "5 to 95", so during early stages of development they took steps to ensure that the player would adjust to the game without difficulty. However, Miyamoto thought that it was too easy and lacked insensitivity, asserting that a game loses its excitement when it is made unchallenging.[21] In order to balance out the difficulty, Koizumi suggested that Mario's life meter should have a maximum capacity of three instead of eight, but at the same time more 1-Up Mushrooms and checkpoints would be placed in the game. Regarding this decision, Koizumi said that he wanted to alter the game's "intensity factor" by limiting the number of hits the player could take to three, as opposed to Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine, which featured eight. Furthermore, Iwata added that decreasing the life meter to 3 from 8 is "representative of the things that players do not notice that actually changes the gameplay dramatically".[21]

The idea of including series of "spherical platforms" in space is a main element of the game.

With the concept of gravity and spherical platforms being the central elements of gameplay, the development team drafted several ideas on how to implement them into the game.[5] Koichi Hayashida, a co-designer of the game, initially expressed scepticism of incorporating a spherical playing field into a jump-based platform game, stating that it would be "a bad match". Shimizu also had a negative reaction to the idea, with his main concern being that the implementation of spherical platforms would be impossible to achieve due to technical reasons, and "felt a sense of danger" when the plan was eventually approved. However, once Shimizu started debugging the game he realised that the experience felt "totally fresh" and thought that he was "playing a game like nothing that's come before it".[5] Futoshi Shirai, the game's level designer, stated that unlike Hayashida and Shimizu, he had a positive impression of the new gameplay elements. Shirai liked the idea of being able to run on different types of planetoids, and came up with designs such as planets in the shape of ice cream and apples.[5] Due to the game being set in outer space, the team could devise a lot of ideas that would have otherwise been hard to implement in other Super Mario games. Shirai said that the benefit of working with a spherical-shaped world was that they could design and discover "new things", with Kenta Motokura, the game's artist, similarly stating that the player would be continuously enjoying their adventure by travelling to new planets.[5]

Throughout development, staff members enjoyed the level of freedom the game offered, in particular the transforming abilities of Mario.[29] Iwata noted that Mario's Bee Suit was popular with women, and also stated that the titular character's other suits were designed to add variations to the gameplay. According to Hayashida, the idea to include transformations in the game came from Koizumi. One of the female members of staff who worked on Super Mario Galaxy wrote a note saying "I want a Bee Mario" when asked by Koizumi what they wanted to transform Mario into. Shirai stated that the development team always discussed their ideas together, and devised ways on how they should incorporate an idea into the game and how to make it "the most fun". Iwata concluded that having the game take place in space was advantageous, as it was "flexible enough to accommodate a wide range of ideas".[29]

After development was finished, the team reflected that the fundamental part of a Super Mario game was to make the player think about how "fun" it was to play the game itself, rather than simply finishing it.[21] To accomplish this, Koizumi made sure that there were certain areas of the game which could be enjoyed by all types of people, including children. Shimizu added that Super Mario Galaxy's ulterior motive was to have everybody "gather around the TV", as he felt that a Mario game was not necessarily something which could be enjoyed by playing alone. The game was made to support six different save files – Shimizu liked the idea of one player looking at the progress of another player and seeing how they compared against their own.[21] Iwata stated that when the first Super Mario game was released, there used to be "many more" people gathering around the television who would enjoy watching the gameplay experience. Iwata asserted that well-made video games were more enjoyable to spectate, and hoped that the Super Mario Galaxy's co-operative mode would tempt someone who does not usually play video games to join.[21]

Music

Untitled

During development, Mahito Yokota, who was in charge of the musical direction, originally wanted Super Mario Galaxy to have a Latin American style of music; and even had composed 28 tracks in that style.[30] Latin American percussion instruments had already been featured in previous Super Mario instalments, such as steelpans, bongo drums, and congas.[31] For Super Mario Galaxy's theme, Yokota used Latin American instruments and a synthesiser to replicate the sounds featured in old science fiction films. The composition was approved by Yoshiaki Koizumi, the game's director and designer, but when Yokota presented it to Koji Kondo, he stated that it was "no good".[31] When asked why his music was rejected, Kondo responded: "if somewhere in your mind you have an image that Mario is cute, please get rid of it". Incensed by the rejection, Yokota almost resigned from his job, however Kondo implied that Mario's character was "cool" and instructed him to try again.[31]

According to Yokota, he was under the impression that Mario was suited for children, causing him to create "cute" music that would appeal to the targeted audience.[31] Three months later, Yokota presented three different styles of music to Miyamoto: one piece had an orchestral sound, the other had pop music, and the last featured a mix of both orchestral and pop music.[32] Miyamoto chose the orchestral piece, as it sounded the most "space-like". Yotaka stated that Miyamoto chose the piece without knowing that Kondo actually wrote it.[32] In a retrospective interview, Satoru Iwata said that Miyamoto chose the music that sounded "space-like" because he was looking for a sound that would express the game, in contrast to the tropical sounds of Super Mario Bros.. Yotaka revealed that he initially struggled to create music that sounded like Mario, but as time progressed he declared that the songs he made for the game had "become natural".[32]

In order to create a sense of variety with the soundtrack, Yokota and Kondo wrote pieces individually; Kondo composed four pieces for the game whereas Yokota composed the rest. Kondo composed the pieces that Yokata specifically requested, as he thought that the game's soundtrack would "end up all sounding the same" if it were composed by one person.[32] The task of creating the game's sound effects were given to Masafumi Kawamura, who was insisted by Yokota that the sound effects should be given a high priority. Kawamura made use of the Wii Remote's speaker; he initially sought out to produce "all sorts of sounds" for it, however he narrowed it once he realised that the sound effects were similar to the ones coming from the television. As a result, Kawamura restricted the sounds coming from the Wii Remote to be triggered from Mario's actions, such as hitting an enemy, in order to make to the player feel like they were having that experience.[33]

The game's soundtrack was composed entirely from a 50-person symphony orchestra.[34] Yokota initially had concerns whether or not hiring an orchestra would fit in with the rhythm of a Mario game, however he thought that the use of an orchestra would make the scale of the game "seem more epic". Kondo, on the other hand, stated that Nintendo decided to use an orchestra as he thought that the player would be "obligated to play the game in time to the music".[30] In order to synchronise the soundtrack to gameplay, Kawamura utilised similar techniques he used to synchronise sound effects in The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat — in which the game synchronises MIDI data with streaming data, resulting in sound effects playing at the same time as background music. To make synchronisation possible, the audio team requested the orchestra to perform at different tempos set with a metronome. A total of 28 tracks were recorded for the game's orchestrated soundtrack.[30]

The official soundtrack was released on 24 January 2008. It was initially an exclusive to Club Nintendo subscribers in Japan,[35] although the soundtrack became available to European Club Nintendo members in November 2008.[36] The soundtrack was released in two versions: the Original Soundtrack, which only contains 28 tracks from the game, and the Platinum Edition, which contains an additional 53 tracks on a second disc for a total of 81 tracks.[36]

Reception

The game received critical acclaim and was a commercial success upon release. It is the second best ranking game with at least ten reviews on the review aggregator website GameRankings,[58] and the best ranking game of all time with at least 20 reviews,[59] having a score of 97% based on 78 reviews.[37] The game is also the sixth highest rated game of all-time on Metacritic,[60] with a score of 97/100 based on 73 reviews.[38] As of 31 March 2016, Nintendo had sold 12.69 million copies of the game worldwide, making it the third best-selling non-bundled Wii game and the ninth best-selling Nintendo-published game for the Wii.[61]

The visuals and presentation were the most praised aspects of the game. Chris Scullion of the Official Nintendo Magazine asserted that the graphics pushes the Wii to its full potential, and stated that its visual effects and large playing areas would constantly amaze the player.[62] Jeremy Parish of 1UP noted that despite the Wii's limitations, the visuals were "absolutely impressive", especially when modified at a higher resolution.[39] Andy Robinson of Computer and Video Games opined that Nintendo favoured gameplay over graphics, however he thought that Super Mario Galaxy "got both perfect".[40] Margaret Robertson of Eurogamer called the visuals an "explosion of inventiveness", stating that the game's detail is only matched by its mission design ingenuity.[16] Andrew Reiner of Game Informer approved of the game's portrayal of water and particle effects, however he noted that the visuals were in similar detail to Super Mario Sunshine.[43] Patrick Shaw of GamePro opined that the game takes "full advantage" of the Wii's capabilities, both in terms of presentation and control schemes.[44]

Regarding the presentation, Chris Hudak of Game Revolution thought that Super Mario Galaxy was a "next-gen reincarnation" of Super Mario 64, stating that the game was polished, engaging and evocative.[45] Alex Navarro of GameSpot commended the colourful and vibrant level details, animations and character designs, stating that "there simply isn't a better-looking Wii game available". Furthermore, Navarro praised the game engine's ability of keeping frame rate drops to "infrequent bouts".[46] Bryn Williams of GameSpy asserted that the game had the best visuals on the Wii, saying that the graphics "are out of this world" and that its wide range of colours produces "better-than-expected" texturing.[47] A reviewer from GamesRadar stated that "words simply can't describe" the game's visual concepts.[48] Louis Bedigan from GameZone thought that the visualisations from Super Mario Galaxy contrast from the "blocky" characters of previous Super Mario games, praising the planet designs as "beautiful" and everything else as "pure eye candy".[49] Matt Casamassina of IGN thought that Super Mairo Galaxy was the only game that pushed the Wii console, stating that "great art combines with great tech for stunning results".[1] David Halverson of Play opined that the game was "supremely" polished and featured "gorgeous nex-gen" graphics.[51]

The gameplay, in particular the gravity mechanics and use of the Wii Remote, were also praised. A reviewer from Famitsu commented that the game's tempo was "abnormally good" and that the different variations in level design and difficulty gradually "builds things up".[42] A reviewer from Edge praised the game's use of the Wii Remote, stating that the control schemes were more subtle and persuasive as opposed to the "vigorous literalism" of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.[41] Scullion was initially sceptical about using the Wii Remote as a pointer, however he admitted that "within mere minutes it felt like we'd been doing this since the days of Mario 64". In addition, Scullion thought that the game's strongest aspect was the "incomparable" gameplay.[50] Parish praised the fluctuating gravity that was featured in the game, stating that it "makes even the wildest challenge feel almost second nature".[39] Robinson similarly commended the gravity, saying that the different uses of the game's gravitational pulls allows the scale of to grow to "genuinely draw-dropping proportions".[40] Robertson regarded the use of gravity as an "explosion of inventiveness".[16] Reiner thought that the game reinvented the platform genre for the seventh generation of video game consoles, stating that Super Mario Galaxy was both nostalgic and new by breaking the laws of physics.[43]

Shaw asserted that the new gameplay mechanics reinvigorated the Super Mario franchise, and summarised that the game was the best title since Super Mario 64.[44] Similarly, Hudak thought that the game was a "next-gen reincarnation" of Super Mario 64, whilst stating that the variety of gameplay had a "signature Miyamoto style".[45] Navarro said that the level designs were "top flight in every regard" and also praised the game's introduction of suits, adding that they brought a "great dimension" to gameplay.[46] Williams opined that the game's "shallow" two-player mode did not add anything to the overall experience. However, Williams praised the various gameplay components and the use of both the Wii Remote and Nunchuck, stating that the setup was "pinpoint accurate".[47] A reviewer from GamesRadar thought that the control scheme had a fluid response that improved over the controls of its predecessor, Super Mario Sunshine.[48] Regarding the controls and world designs, Bedigan stated that both aspects are "close to perfection as a game can get".[49] Casamassina found the gameplay mechanics, in particular varying physics, as "ridiculously entertaining". Additionally, Casamassina regarded the motion control well implemented, stating that the player would appreciate the change of pace that the levels offer.[1] Halverson particularly commended the innovative controls, saying the Wii Remote and Nunchuck was "at its finest" and that it was difficult to imagine playing it in another fashion.[51]

The soundtrack was well received by critics. Scullion believed it to be the best out of any Super Mario game, opining that each track matches the environments featured throughout the game.[63] Parish considered the orchestrated music superior to the visuals, stating that the dynamic sounds were "quintessentially Mario" yet uncharacteristically sophisticated.[39] Reiner stated that the orchestrated soundtrack was "beautiful" as well as nostalgic,[43] with Robinson similarly citing it as "amazing".[40] However, Hudak criticised the "traditional Mario-esque" lack of voice acting, admitting that if the game did feature voice acting it would "probably seem lame and wrong".[45] Navarro praised the modernised orchestrated soundtrack, stating that it was both excellent and "top-notch".[46] Williams opined that the game featured the best sound on the Wii, stating that original soundtrack would "go down in history" as Nintendo's best first-party effort.[47] A reviewer from GamesRadar stated that Super Mario Galaxy featured the finest "orchestral bombast" ever heard in a game.[48] Bedigan asserted that the soundtrack was "another step forward" in video game music, praising the music as "truly moving" and breathtaking.[49] Casamassina judged the game's music "so exceptional" and "absolutely superb", summarising that it had the best music out of any Nintendo game to date.[1]

Awards

Super Mario Galaxy received Game of the Year 2007 awards from IGN,[52] GameSpot,[53] Nintendo Power,[54] GameRankings,[55] Kotaku,[56] and Yahoo! Games.[57]

On 7 February 2008, the game received the "Adventure Game of the Year" award from the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences at the Interactive Achievement Awards.[64] Super Mario Galaxy placed third in the Official Nintendo Magazine's "100 greatest Nintendo games of all time" list.[65] In 2009, the game won the "Game of the Year" BAFTA at the 5th British Academy Games Awards, surpassing Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.[66][67] In 2009, Super Mario Galaxy was named the number one Wii game by IGN.[68] It was also named by Eurogamer and IGN as the "Game of the Generation".[69][70] In 2015, the game placed 11th on USgamer's "15 Best Games Since 2000" list.[71] Guinness World Records ranked Super Mario Galaxy 29th in their list of top 50 console games of all time based on initial impact and lasting legacy.[72] The soundtrack also won the "Best Design in Audio" award from Edge.[73]

Sequel

Main article: Super Mario Galaxy 2

In the 1,000th issue of the Famitsu, Miyamoto expressed his interest in making a sequel to Super Mario Galaxy.[74] The game originally called "Super Mario Galaxy More" during development, and was initially going to feature variations of planets featured in Super Mario Galaxy. Over time, new elements and ideas were brought into the game, and it was decided that the game would be a full sequel.[75]

Super Mario Galaxy 2 was announced during the Nintendo conference at E3 2009 held in Los Angeles.[76][77] It was released on 23 May 2010 in North America, 27 May 2010 in Japan and on 11 June 2010 in Europe.[78][79] The sequel has been met with as much critical acclaim as its predecessor,[80][81][82] and has sold 6.36 million copies worldwide as of April 2011.[83]

References

Citations

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Bibliography

Awards and achievements
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BioShock 		BAVGA Award for Best Game
2008 		Succeeded by
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