Tag: mario

Super Mario Galaxy – The Best Mario Game Come at Me:

As someone with a girlfriend, if my girlfriend was constantly carried off by a giant turtle and she did not get a restraining order taken out on that dude, then our relationship would be over faster than a Tik Tok. (Side note cannot believe I just wrote that sentence, I feel so old). So, I feel like Mario really needs to either find a new relationship or invest in some private security because come on dude, some of these kidnappings could have been easily prevented.

As baffling as the plot of the Mario games are (if it can even be called a plot), he is a beloved franchise and is 99% of the world’s first guess when asked about video games mascots. As much as I enjoy platformers, personally I never really got into the Mario games as a kid. I think my main bulk of play time in the plumber’s world was in the multiplayer minigames in the Mario Bros game for the DS, mostly because it was the one game that myself, my cousins and my sister all knew how to play.

Who knew I needed to race penguins?

We have talked about Mario Odyssey on the site before but other than that, I have not seen the need to talk about the many other instalments in the seemingly endless franchise. I do not need typing lessons or to have pills prescribed to me by someone who did not go to medical school. However, there is one set of Mario games that I have a soft spot for – the Mario Galaxy games. Released for the Nintendo Wii, these games formed a large part of my childhood and were the first games that my sister would play with me.

As much as I adore my sister, video games are not her forte. Case in point, I let her have a go playing some Spiderman a few months back and her main achievement was to jump up and down the street like a weirdly dressed frog. It was mostly to piss me off but still, the point stands. So, the multiplayer aspects of the Mario Galaxy game (although limited) were perfect for us to play together, without resorting to murdering one another.

So…. you like jazz?

Taking any series and sending it into space, can make or break the franchise. Just look at the Friday the 13th series! Why on earth would you send Jason into space? If humanity had mastered inter-space travel, you think they would be able to put down one dude with a murder fetish. Thankfully, Mario in space was worth the pocket money that I spent on it. Though if my wrists start cracking by the time, I turn 30, then maybe I played too much of it. The introduction of motion controls into modern gaming must have really boosted physiotherapists businesses.

After playing Odyssey, it really feels like Galaxy was the blueprint that they based their most successful game off. Exploring different worlds with unique themes, collecting stars/moons for completing odd tasks, trying out new powers (be that through possession or consumption of odd mushrooms), even improving your ship as your adventure progresses. Even the concept of a world changing after you beat it for the first time was seen in the various comet types in Galaxy, only to become entirely new sections in Odyssey. Thankfully, the cosmic clones have stayed in the TRASH WHERE THEY BELONG.

THESE FREAKING CLONES. I SWEAR TO GOD.

More than anything, the Galaxy games were a kind of escape. I got to explore new places, try new things, and just revel in the excitement that those goofy minigames brought me. The age that I played those games, were when my battles with self-esteem and anxiety began. To have something that I could escape into and that my big sister could enjoy with me, was a support system that I did not know that I needed.

Anyways, I will go back to writing my dissertation project now.

CaitlinRC

Super Mario Odyssey – Over The Moon For Moons:

When we think of video games and their well-known mascots, 99% of people’s minds will go to the infamous plumber, Mario. Whether he’s flying through space or adventuring through Bowser’s internal organs, this moustachioed man can be found everywhere. I didn’t really have much experience with the Mario games personally. My main experience with them was Super Mario Bros for the Nintendo DS and even then, I mostly used it to play the awesome minigames with my cousins and my sister whenever we were together (just saying, I normally won). Mario games always felt a little bit lacking in the story department and repetitive with its mechanics. So, apart from the Mario & Luigi games which took a leaf out of Mario RPG’s book, and Mario Galaxy (because space is cool), my focus wasn’t on the red plumber.

When I got my Switch, I realised that I could get it cheaper if I got Mario Odyssey as well. So, I decided to go for it, thinking if anything, I’d have a fun time playing it even if I never came back to it. Plus, I was curious what it would be like to possess the minds of living creatures and make them dance to my will like puppets on strings. Plus, each possessed creature gets a version of Mario’s moustache, which is far too funny an opportunity to pass up. So, I booted up the game for the first time and was greeted by Mario’s goofy face, though thankfully in a slightly more appealing way than Super Mario 64 because that loading screen was bloody terrifying.

First things first, Mario Odyssey basically every commendation it receives and if you get the chance, it is a Mario game worth playing. It works as a good entry point into the series and really shows off the capabilities of the console, making use of the motion controls of the Joy-Cons which are a major upgrade from the controls of the Nintendo Wii. It’s charming, with an awesome soundtrack and a series of stunning levels that rewards players for thinking outside the box. Plus, with so many Moons to collect, there’s a strong urge to search every single nook and cranny of each level to ensure you haven’t missed anything. Especially when that level is so stuffed full of collectables that I guarantee it’ll burst if you put anything else in there.

Not sure anyone wanted to see this but… thanks Nintendo?

What a slightly smaller subset of people will have noticed, is the strong parallels between Nintendo’s Mario Odyssey and that of another famous Odyssey – written by Homer, the legendary author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. These two epics follow the story of the Greek hero, Odysseus, through his actions in the Trojan war and his journey home after the war ended, with victory going to the Greek’s, after the infamous Trojan horse incident. However, like any good story, the journey home was not smooth sailing and it took him ten long years to return to his wife and son, who he had left behind on the island of Ithaca. If you’ve never read these two great epics and have even a slight interest in mythology, go read it because you gain a deeper understanding about the word “odyssey” and it’s meaning in modern life.

It’s clear that Nintendo’s creation takes a few pages out of Homer’s writings, with some tweaks of their own. The entire main story of Mario Odyssey has you travelling around the world, chasing after Bowser and Peach, who always seems just one step away from you. Much like Odysseus, you travel from land to land, having to resolve the resident’s various issues and killing the occasional monstrosity as you go. Every time you think you’ve reached the end of your journey; another minor inconvenience occurs like a cyclops, being shot out of the sky by a giant cannon or a furious god of the sea drowning most of your crew members. Both Odysseus and Mario continue their journey, not for fame or glory, but to see their loved ones again, even if it means travelling to the underworld, fighting a giant dragon or disguising themselves as a hunk of meat? (What even Nintendo, what even.)

One thing that I truly love about both Homer’s Odyssey and Nintendo’s game, is that it allows you to envision travelling the world in someone else’s shoes, without ever having to leave your home. A lot of people will be saying, why don’t you go travel the world then if you love it so much? The answer to that, like the answer to many of my issues, is that of mental health. I can’t think of a single mental health condition that wouldn’t hinder you in some way from enjoying your travels. Be it having an anxiety attack in an airport, not having your support network with you when you have a depressive episode, facing your phobias by yourself or not being able to eat because to you and your mind, it is inedible. We don’t think about these things until they are suddenly blocking our path but it’s something every person with a mental health condition or a physical ailment must consider, every time they go outside.

Friendly reminder, Cappy can render you unable to control your body as you are forced to watch it be controlled by a maniac plumber.

A good explanation of this is my thought process when I go to a coffee shop to study. My anxiety demands I take the same, safe route that I have committed to memory. As I walk, I wear my noise-cancelling headphones to block out the overwhelming stimuli around me, be that passing conversation, traffic or just some very angry seagulls. Once I get there, I order, retrieve my coffee and go sit upstairs in a corner, where I can see everyone who is going up or down the stairs. I am, what you would call, naturally paranoid. Tiny changes in the environment, be it a chair moving or a conversation suddenly falling silent, can set off my anxiety. That anxiety leads to self-loathing which leads to depression which leads to flashbacks and nightmares, which sets off my PTS. It’s a cycle of damage that if I don’t take precautions with, could ruin my afternoon or even the rest of the month for me. Now, imagine that level of thought, having to be applied to travelling abroad. It’s a terrifying overload of information, is it not?

Games that incorporate travel and exploration as a big part of their narrative can be a major boon to those of us who might never be able to experience that for ourselves. In Mario’s case, the simplistic nature of the game also makes it more accessible. There’s a two-player mode for those with young children or those who struggle to use the Joy Con’s tiny controllers due to physical ailments  (trust me they can be a nightmare), though the game does punish you slightly for using the two-player mode, since it refuses to let you take part in various minigames, blocking off a lot of the game’s content which is a bummer.

This whole sequence was traumatic if I’m honest.

Anyways, I’ve rambled on long enough about this and if we’re not careful, I’ll be talking about mythology for the next 10,000 articles on this blog. Considering talking about card games or the Drawn To Life series from the Nintendo DS (yes I did just finish both games over the course of a four day weekend, no you should get a life). Let me know any suggestions down below and remember to comment, like and follow the site to keep up to date on all my posts!

Till next week,

CaitlinRC.