Super Mario Odessey

This is going to be a hard review. Not only do I rarely do video game reviews, but Mario games have never really been known for their story and this game is really no different. However, I feel like I do have to praise this game because it is actually a work of art. I've played a lot of Mario games but some how, Nintendo has just been able to absolutely crush it on the Switch, along with a lot of other games that I may or may not end up doing review for when I get around to finishing them (looking at you Breath of the Wild).

I imagine this might be a pretty short review but there are a good amount of things I can say about this game, especially considering that I have beaten the main story but am continuing to play it.

The story is a pretty standard Mario story. Bowser has kidnapped Princess Peach (again) This time he has the plan to marry her which is actually pretty comical considering that has been a joke in modern discussions on Mario, but they actually actualize on that and kind of poke fun at themselves.

At the beginning of the game, Mario is defeated by Bowser and finds himself stranded in a strange world populated by ghost-like creatures in what is called The Cap Kingdom. Mario is accompanied by a ghost-cap-like creature named Cappy who agrees to help Mario since Bowser has also captured his sister Tiara. Cappy takes the form of Mario's iconic hat and gives him the ability to "capture"/ essentially possess a vast variety of creatures and entities.

The rest of the game follows the typical Mario format of platforming puzzles with the addition of capturing creatures to gather moons. The moons in this game power a balloon ship that carries Mario and Cappy from Kingdom to Kingdom called The Odyssey.

And honestly, that's really all you need to know about the story. Bowser has some rabbits that try to get in Mario's Way, but the whole game is Mario going from kingdom to kingdom, gathering moons, chasing Bowser as he gathers decorations, food, and other things for their wedding.

Platforms and puzzles are what really drives the game and oh boy is this game amazing when it comes to the imagination and creativity of these puzzles and game play.

Seriously, puzzle platforms aren't my go to game. I like them and I've always really enjoyed Mario games, but I'm not crazy about them all the time. Mario Odyssey is a game that not only makes me love puzzles and platformers more, but it makes me love the Mario franchise more than I already did.

This was another thing that was really good about Mario Odyssey, it took up a wide swath of game genres and homages to previous Mario games of the past.

The game almost feels like an anniversary special because it jumps from world to world, format and style to format and style. There are so many call backs and it felt like Nintendo was almost putting everything on the table. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo said tomorrow that they were done with Mario games because I don't see anything topping this one, that's how unique but familiar the game feels.

But while there are a lot of call backs and trails down memory lane with Mario Odyssey, the game also takes some odd turns with the world jumping that there are a lot of parts that almost don't feel like a Mario game at all.

Mario running around in a metropolis with taller, more realistic looking humans walking around, giving the player the opportunity to capture a dinosaur in a caveman like kingdom, it all feels very out of place but for some reason it works really, really well.

It's really hard to point out a lot of criticism of this game because its just really well made. Like I said, I finished the game a couple days ago and I'm still playing it because even once the story is finished there are still a bunch of power moons that are left to be collected, worlds to discover, and game still left to play.

The game just kind of exists in its own little Mario Universe. The true to form baseline story of a plumber rescuing a princess is really just the vehicle to get you from world to world. It serves more as intriguing flavoring to a really creative puzzle adventure game.

But so much care and thought was put into this game that it's hard not to gush on it. It's not exactly deep but it's a Mario game.

If you have a Nintendo Switch, or you're thinking you want one, this game is a must have. It's an easy game to just get lost in and kind of sit back in awe at how much detail and care was put into the game.

It's not particularly hard, but it's challenging in the way brain teasers or puzzles are. If you figure it out on your own, you get a sense of accomplishment that is really satisfying.

Have you played Mario Odyssey? What do you think? Can you think of much wrong with it? Comment and Discuss below! You can also send me your thoughts on Twitter @MovieSymposium as well as send me your requests for movies, TV shows, or video games you think I should check out and review. If you follow me on Twitter, you can get updates on future movie news and reviews coming out of this blog.

Thanks for reading!