2017
Playin through the new DLC tracks and I hate to be that guy but like... do we even need a new mario kart when this game still looks and plays THIS GOOD? i'll admit that some of the DLC tracks do not reach the same level of quality as the original tracks (the tour tracks are unintelligible fuckfests) but i've been playing this game since it came out and it's been proven to me time and time again that this game is fucking infinitely playable. between mastering the grand prixs, the time trials, the online... endless entertainment.
1996
what the fuck is the point of this. WHAT IS HAPPENING
1988
doesn't quite have the timeless quality of outrun. which i also played today.
it's annoyingly difficult to suss out the exact depth and direction of the enemies and their attacks, which I think is ultimately the downfall of these (2.5?)D shoot-em-ups.
it's annoyingly difficult to suss out the exact depth and direction of the enemies and their attacks, which I think is ultimately the downfall of these (2.5?)D shoot-em-ups.
1986
a perfect video game. it's got everything. The high stakes combined with the ultra precise controls make for a game that is easy to pick up and insanely fun to try to master. The other drivers add an element of randomness that keeps you on your toes and creates all these possibilities for emergent scenarios where the player is forced to make all these snap decisions, like when a driver starts to veer towards your path during a turn or when three trucks team up to block the road and completely fuck you over.
This is also possibly the single best vibe in a video game. cruisin down a beach highway with your ladyfriend... listening to some 80's synth bops (every track in this game is sublime)... the mesmerizing vistas whizzing past as you scream past them goin 280...
and I don't think i've ever looked for to a game over screen more. SUBLIME.
This is also possibly the single best vibe in a video game. cruisin down a beach highway with your ladyfriend... listening to some 80's synth bops (every track in this game is sublime)... the mesmerizing vistas whizzing past as you scream past them goin 280...
and I don't think i've ever looked for to a game over screen more. SUBLIME.
2014
cruel and unusual
2012
for some reason this game reminded me of how sad it is that you can't apologize to animals. fragility of nature and all that.
2007
A very good game with some pretty significant flaws and a few minor annoyances. There's plenty of great stuff in this game but that just makes the stupid stuff stick out even more so i'm going to talk about that.
-The low health alert and the fire/ice flower music are both extremely annoying and grating
-the amount of cutscenes and menus in between levels doesn't ruin the games pacing, but it really doesn't help. this game came out a decade after 64 and yet it actually takes LONGER to start the next level. do we really need to see mario float back down to the observatory, see exactly how many star bits and coins we got, go back into the galaxy menu, select the level, and then watch the opening cutscene again? every single time?
-for how crucial the spin attack is in a lot of sections, it kind of sucks ass. It's weirdly unresponsive and the range is just pathetic. not to mention the unnecessarily long delay between attacks.
-they were definitely aiming for a more restrained mario in this game to force the player to interact with the level more, which i can get behind, but mario just doesn't feel as good to control in this game as he does in any other 3d mario. 64, sunshine, and odyssey nailed that fluidity and expressiveness that makes them so damn fun, and i think 3d world, which i would say is the same style of movement as galaxy, is much smoother to control. galaxy has a lot of weird shit with momentum, specifically how you'll often lose all of your momentum after jumps, among other things.
--compounding the movement issue is the camera. most of the time it's pretty unobtrusive but it can get really wonky in certain sections. donut- and saucer-shaped planets are especially problematic; going around the edge is consistently disorienting and difficult to control. it also really fucks with your movement when the camera switches positions; you're still trying to control mario in relation to the last camera position, which usually ends up sending you in weird directions. sometimes this happens midair, causing you to veer off unexpectedly and potentially lose a life.
-the rewards for exploration are pretty measly. in 64 or odyssey, going off the beaten path and completing one of those little mini challenges will be all but guaranteed to reward you with a star/moon. in galaxy, you mostly just get fucking coins and star bits. maybe a 1-up. man i don't give a rat's fucking ass about star bits i have a million of those give me a fucking star. but in the rare occasion that you do find a hidden star you get booted out of the level, which means you not only have to watch all the cutscenes and go through all the menus again but you have to start the level all over. annoying.
-the (60 stars) ending cutscene does not make ANY sense hahaha what the FUCK HAPPENED???? WHERE DID PEACH GO???? DID THOSE LUMAS FUCKING DIE??????
what i like about this game is that it's good
-The low health alert and the fire/ice flower music are both extremely annoying and grating
-the amount of cutscenes and menus in between levels doesn't ruin the games pacing, but it really doesn't help. this game came out a decade after 64 and yet it actually takes LONGER to start the next level. do we really need to see mario float back down to the observatory, see exactly how many star bits and coins we got, go back into the galaxy menu, select the level, and then watch the opening cutscene again? every single time?
-for how crucial the spin attack is in a lot of sections, it kind of sucks ass. It's weirdly unresponsive and the range is just pathetic. not to mention the unnecessarily long delay between attacks.
-they were definitely aiming for a more restrained mario in this game to force the player to interact with the level more, which i can get behind, but mario just doesn't feel as good to control in this game as he does in any other 3d mario. 64, sunshine, and odyssey nailed that fluidity and expressiveness that makes them so damn fun, and i think 3d world, which i would say is the same style of movement as galaxy, is much smoother to control. galaxy has a lot of weird shit with momentum, specifically how you'll often lose all of your momentum after jumps, among other things.
--compounding the movement issue is the camera. most of the time it's pretty unobtrusive but it can get really wonky in certain sections. donut- and saucer-shaped planets are especially problematic; going around the edge is consistently disorienting and difficult to control. it also really fucks with your movement when the camera switches positions; you're still trying to control mario in relation to the last camera position, which usually ends up sending you in weird directions. sometimes this happens midair, causing you to veer off unexpectedly and potentially lose a life.
-the rewards for exploration are pretty measly. in 64 or odyssey, going off the beaten path and completing one of those little mini challenges will be all but guaranteed to reward you with a star/moon. in galaxy, you mostly just get fucking coins and star bits. maybe a 1-up. man i don't give a rat's fucking ass about star bits i have a million of those give me a fucking star. but in the rare occasion that you do find a hidden star you get booted out of the level, which means you not only have to watch all the cutscenes and go through all the menus again but you have to start the level all over. annoying.
-the (60 stars) ending cutscene does not make ANY sense hahaha what the FUCK HAPPENED???? WHERE DID PEACH GO???? DID THOSE LUMAS FUCKING DIE??????
what i like about this game is that it's good