(Image courtesy of IGDB. “‘Super Mario Odyssey’ sees the titular plumber go on an all-new globetrotting 3D adventure.)
Jake Messer
Connector Editor
The Nintendo Switch is home to many outstanding games like “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild,” “Super Smash Bros Ultimate” and even “Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.” However, one game has stood above the rest for over eight years and has proven itself as the best the console has to offer… “Super Mario Odyssey.”
In 2017, the Nintendo Switch launched to much acclaim among fans and critics alike. The hybrid model proved to be a massive success, with 150 million consoles sold worldwide. A huge part of this success can be attributed to the games that launched with the system, games like “Super Mario Odyssey.”
Playing as the heroic Mario, the player embarks on yet another new quest to defeat the evil Bowser. Once again, he has kidnapped Princess Peach. Except this time, things are very different.
The game opens with a fight between Mario and Bowser, a fight which sees Bowser come out victorious, leaving Mario in the dust and without his iconic red hat. Luckily for Mario, he lands safely, albeit in a mysterious land that is new to the player. Here, the player is introduced to Cappy.
After meeting Mario in the Cap Kingdom, Cappy, who replaces his hat for this adventure, decides to join him and help save Peach from the clutches of Bowser.
Cappy isn’t just another gimmick, he is the driving force behind the entire adventure, and he can be used in an absurd number of ways and situations. The biggest of which is the ability to transform into certain animals or machines, which can help the player progress in the story.
An example of which can be seen right at the start of the game. When the player arrives at the Cascade Kingdom, they are presented with their first problem of crossing a river.
After a brief moment of trying to defeat a chain chomp, the player throws Cappy at it. This is where Mario becomes the chain chomp, using its strength to knock over the stone tower and allowing him to get across the river, while collecting a Power Moon in the process.
Power Moons are collectibles that Mario finds to power the Odyssey. The Odyssey is a ship that Mario uses in order to travel to different kingdoms, in hopes of catching up to the dreaded Bowser.
Each kingdom is unique in its environment and its layout, making each one feel like its own world, rather than a kingdom. However, rather than having the basic Mario worlds of desert, water, ice, etc., they mix up the formula ever so slightly to freshen things up.
In the desert world, rather than everything being covered in fire and quicksand, it’s cold and a lot of things are frozen in ice. This allows for each world to feel unique and different from what the player has seen in previous Mario titles, giving the franchise a new feeling.
Mario’s movement, which features classic moves like the triple-jump, long-jump and wall-jump, are present, but are enhanced thanks to Cappy. Now, a cap throw can correct a poorly timed jump, as well as gain extra distance on a far jump.
This isn’t hard to learn, even casual players can learn these basic cap jumps, which are gratifying and rewarding to master. There are levels to it as well, as the more hardcore players can learn to combo different jumps and moves to gain even more height and even more distance. Mario’s move set has never been this deep and never this easy to pick up and learn.
What the game lacks in story, it makes up for it in gameplay. Often, in 3D platformers, gameplay gets stale due to repetition and lack of creativity. Odyssey breaks the mold and is constantly evolving as the player master’s the controls.
The key to Odyssey’s success is the game’s structure. The goal of collecting items is not new to Mario, as seen in previous games. What makes this title/entry different is the scale of how many collectibles there are to find.
In Odyssey, there are 836 unique moons the player can collect. This sounds like too many, but the vast number of moons encourages the player to seek out these moons. Check around corners, explore and think outside of the box. Every “secret” moon the player finds feels like an achievement, a feeling that is hard to capture without significant time investment.
Overall, “Super Mario Odyssey” is a classic and will be remembered as the very best of the Switch, a standout in a phenomenal collection of games. Its ability to cater to casual fans, while still having extensive gameplay to satisfy the hardcore fans, is a truly remarkable feat. A must have game for all Switch owners.
Grade: A+
