Luigi's Mansion always stood as that oddball game in the Mario franchise to me. Of course it only just recently got some sequels but ever since I had heard of the game, I wanted to give it a shot. Overall, this is a really fun experience. The setting is confined which makes the game feel claustrophobic and scary but expansive at the same time giving a sense of mystery and exploration. However, some mechanics could use tweaking and a good portion of this game feels like it's padding out and already short experience. Collecting Boos would be fine if there was more than a vague clue as to where they are and they couldn't escape from the rooms you were in because backtracking through half the mansion to get one collectible is not that fun. The Boo collecting doesn't even amount to anything as you can complete the game without them. Some of the puzzles get confusing as you are given few clues as to what to do, which helps feed into exploration in some places and just annoys in others. The good in this game is strong, though. Addicting gameplay loop that has you coming back for more, creative character and gameplay designs and a simple story helps keep the mystery. For a short, quick Halloween title, this is so much fun, but as an extensive game or even a collectathon, it could use some expanding.

Reviewed on Oct 13, 2020


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