As I recently played (and for the first time) Mario Galaxy 1, it's hard for me to consider it anything other than a kind of 'obese DLC' to a game that particularly amazed me. I can understand that the player of 2010 might have been disappointed to only have 'a sequel'. Its status in 2024 is a bit strange: while we can play the 1st on Switch, the 2nd is 'locked' on Wii. It's important to keep in mind that this game was probably designed around the use of Wii remotes and cannot be 'directly' ported to another console. The Mario Galaxy games are thus victims of the 'motion control' trend of their time. However, I found that the controls in these Mario games were truly exceptional, and going back to more limited controls (I'm currently playing 3D World) was experienced as a regression and simplification.

Mario Galaxy 2 therefore lacks the charm of the first time and is a game that relies on the achievements of the first while adding interesting mechanics. I would rather consider Galaxy 1 and 2 as a single, absolutely beautiful long game. The level design is incredible, the music is incredible, the graphics are incredible.

However, some levels in the 2nd are relatively tough in terms of difficulty. Having recently completed Mario Wonder almost in one go without real hitches, I appreciate that a Mario game offers a certain challenge even in its main missions. I find it unfortunate that a game places difficult levels as a kind of additional content that exists alongside the game. Obviously, this is justified on Nintendo's part, which aims to appeal to a very young and inexperienced audience. We'll never have access to this kind of statistic, but I'm willing to bet that a significant percentage of players at the time never finished Galaxy 2, unlike 3D World or Wonder.

There's no reason to miss out on this platformer. Personally, I bought the Wii (€15) + Galaxy 1 and 2 (€20) + an HDMI converter cable (€25, the most expensive investment) for a total of €60. No need to wait for a disappointing HD reissue.

I've decided that from now on, I'm going to hook the reader with a clickbait title. Here's my title:

if you enjoyed Celeste, you might loveTrackmania Nations Forever.

Disclaimers: I'm not a fan of cars in real life. 2. I'm not a fan (at first glance) of simulation games. Luckily, Trackmania Nations Forever isn't a game for car enthusiasts or simulation fans. I'd go even further: it's not really a traditional racing game. You don't navigate the 65 tracks to beat opponents but to beat a time. The whole appeal of the game lies in this singular goal: a certain idea of perfectionism.

Everything surrounding this goal is far from perfect: TMNF's graphics are generally quite generic despite some nice lighting effects. The music is a kind of dull lounge house. There's no damage physics, all cars have the same characteristics. All tracks seem to have been made with the same level editor.

What makes TMNF a great game is the driving mechanics. The simplistic controls (accelerate, turn left, right, and sometimes brake) demand great precision. It's all about perfect timing. Revelation for me: I realize that racing games are mostly 3D games but with 2D game controls. Like a platformer, inputs could be articulated on a simple X-axis (left and right) and Y-axis (accelerate, brake). I'd struggle to say why this particular game has such exceptional control, but it's a feeling I've never had in any racing game before. It's both immediately easy to grasp but exponentially difficult to master.

You do need a certain mindset to get into this game: having the 'grind' culture. Being a bit obstinate to restart the same course dozens or even hundreds of times to get the medal you want (for me, I stopped at the gold medal). A bit like Celeste, we work on micro-segments (the average duration of a race is about 45 sec.) that we must master. Another totally unique element of this game is the ability to 'brake in the air' and decide on your trajectory (like a 2D platformer). It's physically totally improbable but very interesting in terms of gameplay.

There's obviously a highly competitive aspect and a ranking system on two scales: a local one (a bronze to Nadeo medal system (higher than Gold)) and a quite laughable global leaderboard system. It's always fun to be proud of one of these courses before realizing that you're just entering the top 100,000 worldwide. The somewhat comical patriotic or regional aspect, I'm quite proud to be in the top 100 of a part of Switzerland (which is not already a big country).

Anyway, play it, it's free

Similar to Fantavision (a fireworks game released on the day of the PS2 launch), Chuchurocket is somewhat of an oddity: a puzzle game with very simple graphics that doesn't fully utilize the power of the new console.

Although I'm usually a fan of this genre of puzzle games, I find that Chuchu Rocket lacks depth in its gameplay, which seems to be identical from level 1 to 100. Regardless of the level, the mice move in straight lines, turning right when they hit a wall. There are two types of dangers: cats and voids. It's a bit lacking in terms of variety.

The difficulty is also strangely managed: sometimes too easy, sometimes challenging, but too often completely random; the levels progress with boredom. Nevertheless, I persisted in finishing this game because there's something fundamentally oddly satisfying about seeing these lines of little mice narrowly avoiding enemies

Hard to really recommend it