Super Mario Galaxy
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is a 2007
platform game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charac ...
developed and published by
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produce ...
for the
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other Regional lockout, regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major ho ...
. It is the third 3D game in the '' Super Mario'' series. As
Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...
, the player embarks on a quest to rescue
Princess Peach is a fictional character in Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, created by Shigeru Miyamoto and introduced in the 1985 original ''Super Mario Bros.'' installment. She is the princess regnant and ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, where she resides in ...
, save the universe from
Bowser , or King Koopa, is a fictional character, the primary antagonist in Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, and the arch-nemesis of Mario. In Japan, the character bears the title of . Bowser is the leader of the turtle-like Koopa race. Despite the ...
, and collect 120 Power Stars, after which the player can play the game as
Luigi is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's masc ...
for a harder experience. The levels consist of galaxies filled with
minor planet According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''minor ...
s and worlds, with different variations of
gravity In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...
, the central element of gameplay. The
player character A player character (also known as a playable character or PC) is a fictional character in a video game or tabletop role-playing game whose actions are controlled by a player rather than the rules of the game. The characters that are not control ...
is controlled using the
Wii Remote The Wii Remote, also known colloquially as the Wiimote, is the primary game controller for Nintendo's Wii home video game console. An essential capability of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with ...
and
Nunchuk is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks (traditionally made of wood), connected to each other at their ends by a short metal chain or a rope. It is approximately 30 cm (sticks) and 1 inch (rope). A person w ...
and completes missions, fights bosses, and reaches certain areas to collect Power Stars. Certain levels use the motion-based Wii Remote functions.
Nintendo EAD Tokyo commonly abbreviated as Nintendo EAD and formerly known as Nintendo Research & Development No.4 Department (abbreviated as Nintendo R&D4), was the largest software development division within the Japanese video game company Nintendo. It was pr ...
began developing ''Super Mario Galaxy'' after the release of ''
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is a 2004 platform and score-attack game developed and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. It follows the gorilla Donkey Kong as he sets out to defeat a series of evil kings and conquer the jungle. ''Jungle Beat'' is designed for use with ...
'' in late 2004, when
Shigeru Miyamoto is a Japanese video game designer, producer and game director at Nintendo, where he serves as one of its representative directors. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished and influential designers in the history of video games, he is ...
suggested that Nintendo commission a large-scale ''Mario'' game. The concept of spherical platforms originated from ''
Super Mario 128 ''Super Mario 128'' was a codename for two different development projects at Nintendo. The name was first used in 1997 for a sequel to '' Super Mario 64'' for the 64DD, which was canceled. The name was reused for a GameCube tech demo at the N ...
'', a
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tech demo A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or an otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of s ...
shown at
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in 2000. Nintendo aimed to make the game appeal to players of all ages, and the team had more freedom in designing it compared to other ''Super Mario'' games because of the
outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...
setting. The game was directed by
Yoshiaki Koizumi is a Japanese video game designer, director, and producer, and business executive. He is a senior executive officer at Nintendo, where he is known for his work within their ''Mario'' and ''The Legend of Zelda'' series. Since 2013, Koizumi is a ...
and soundtrack was composed by
Mahito Yokota is a Japanese music composer and orchestrator who works for the video game development company Nintendo. He is most known for his collaborations with Koji Kondo in the ''Super Mario Galaxy'' series, along with ''Super Mario 3D World is a p ...
and
Koji Kondo is a Japanese music composer, pianist, and music director who works for the video game company Nintendo. He is best known for his numerous contributions to the '' Super Mario'' and ''The Legend of Zelda'' series of video games, among others pr ...
, using a
symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ce ...
for the first time in the series. ''Super Mario Galaxy'' was a critical and commercial success, hailed as one of the best games in the series and one of the
greatest video games of all time This is a list of video games that multiple reputable video game journalists or magazines have considered to be among the best of all time. The games listed here are included on at least six separate "best/greatest of all time" lists from differ ...
. At the time of its closure in 2019, ''Super Mario Galaxy'' was the highest-rated game of all time on review-aggregating site
GameRankings GameRankings was a video gaming review aggregator that was founded in 1999 and owned by CBS Interactive. It indexed over 315,000 articles relating to more than 14,500 video games. GameRankings was discontinued in December 2019, with its staff bei ...
. It received outstanding critical acclaim, citing the game's graphics, gravity
mechanics Mechanics (from Ancient Greek: μηχανική, ''mēkhanikḗ'', "of machines") is the area of mathematics and physics concerned with the relationships between force, matter, and motion among physical objects. Forces applied to objects r ...
and level design, soundtrack, setting, and story. It won several awards from top gaming publications, including multiple "Game of the Year" titles, and became the first Nintendo title to win the BAFTA Award for Best Game. The game is the ninth
best-selling Wii game This is a list of video games for the Wii video game console that have sold or shipped at least one million copies. The best-selling game on the Wii is ''Wii Sports''. First released in North America on November 19, 2006, it was a launch title ...
worldwide with sales of 12.80 million. The game was released as a
Nintendo Selects ''Nintendo Selects'' (formerly ''Player's Choice'') was a marketing label used by Nintendo to promote video games on current Nintendo game consoles that have sold well. ''Nintendo Selects'' titles were sold at a lower price point (usually $19.99 ...
title in 2011, as a download via the
Wii U The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4. The W ...
's
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in 2015, on the
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in China in 2018, and as part of the ''
Super Mario 3D All-Stars ''Super Mario 3D All-Stars'' is a 2020 product bundling, compilation of platform games for the Nintendo Switch. It commemorates the Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary, 35th anniversary of Nintendo's ''Super Mario'' franchise, with High-definitio ...
'' collection for the
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in 2020. A sequel, ''
Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a 2010 platform video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It was first announced at E3 2009 and is the sequel to 2007's ''Super Mario Galaxy''. It was released worldwide in 2010. Much like the first game, the story follow ...
'', was released for the Wii in 2010.


Gameplay


Premise and setting

''Super Mario Galaxy'' is set in
outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...
, where
Mario is a character created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the title character of the ''Mario'' franchise and the mascot of Japanese video game company Nintendo. Mario has appeared in over 200 video games since his creat ...
travels through different galaxies to collect Power Stars, earned by completing missions, defeating a
boss Boss may refer to: Occupations * Supervisor, often referred to as boss * Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier * Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization * Fire boss, a ...
, or reaching a particular area. Each galaxy contains
planetoids According to the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a minor planet is an astronomical object in direct orbit around the Sun that is exclusively classified as neither a planet nor a comet. Before 2006, the IAU officially used the term ''mino ...
and orbiting structures for the player to explore. Each
astronomical object An astronomical object, celestial object, stellar object or heavenly body is a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists in the observable universe. In astronomy, the terms ''object'' and ''body'' are often us ...
has its own
gravitational force In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the strong ...
, allowing the player to completely circumnavigate the planetoids, walking sideways or upside down. The player can usually jump from one independent object and fall towards another one nearby. Although the main gameplay is in 3D, there are several areas in the game in which the player's movements are restricted to a two-dimensional plane. The game's main hub is the Comet Observatory, a spaceship which contains six domes that provide access to most of the game's 42 available galaxies, with each dome except one holding five. Five domes end with a
boss level ''Boss Level'' is a 2020 American science fiction action film directed by Joe Carnahan and written by Carnahan and Chris and Eddie Borey, from a story by the Boreys. It stars Frank Grillo as a retired special forces soldier who tries to escape a ...
in which the objective is to defeat
Bowser , or King Koopa, is a fictional character, the primary antagonist in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise, and the arch-nemesis of Mario. In Japan, the character bears the title of . Bowser is the leader of the turtle-like Koopa ...
or
Bowser Jr. in Japan) is a fictional character who appears in Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise as an antagonist. He is the son of the series' main antagonist, Bowser. Since his debut in ''Super Mario Sunshine'' in 2002, Bowser Jr. has been a recurring chara ...
and earn a special Power Star, known as a Grand Star, that gives the player access to the next dome. The player only has access to one galaxy when they begin the game; as more Power Stars are collected, more galaxies and Stars become available. The player is awarded the ability to play as
Luigi is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's masc ...
after collecting 120 Power Stars as Mario. Once 120 Power Stars are collected with both characters, the player is rewarded one further challenge which, upon completion, awards the player with the final two stars, and two commemorative pictures of the characters that can be sent to the
Wii Message Board The Wii Menu is the graphical shell of the Wii and Wii U game console, as part of the Wii system software. It has four pages, each with a 4:3 grid, and each displaying the current time and date. Available applications, known as "channels", are ...
.


Controls

The player-character is controlled via the
Wii Remote The Wii Remote, also known colloquially as the Wiimote, is the primary game controller for Nintendo's Wii home video game console. An essential capability of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with ...
and
Nunchuk is a traditional Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks (traditionally made of wood), connected to each other at their ends by a short metal chain or a rope. It is approximately 30 cm (sticks) and 1 inch (rope). A person w ...
. While most of Mario's abilities are taken directly from ''
Super Mario 64 is a platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was released in Japan and North America in 1996 and PAL regions in 1997. It is the first ''Super Mario'' game to feature 3D gameplay, combining traditional ''Su ...
'', such as the
long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...
,
wall jump This list includes terms used in video games and the video game industry, as well as slang used by players. 0–9 A ...
s, and a variety of
somersault A somersault (also ''flip'', ''heli'', and in gymnastics ''salto'') is an acrobatic exercise in which a person's body rotates 360° around a horizontal axis with the feet passing over the head. A somersault can be performed forwards, backwards ...
s, a new feature called the Star Pointer that uses the Wii Remote's
motion sensor A motion detector is an electrical device that utilizes a sensor to detect nearby motion. Such a device is often integrated as a component of a system that automatically performs a task or alerts a user of motion in an area. They form a vital co ...
is included. It is a small blue cursor that appears when the Wii Remote pointer is pointed at the screen. The Star Pointer is used to pick up special konpeito-shaped objects called "Star Bits", which can then be shot to stun enemies, manipulate obstacles, or feed Hungry Lumas (star-shaped sentient beings). The pointer can also latch onto small blue objects called "Pull Stars", which can pull Mario through space. In certain levels that encase the player in a floating bubble, the Star Pointer is used to blow wind and maneuver the bubble. Early in the game, the player learns a new ability known as the "Spin" technique, which has appeared in varying forms throughout the '' Super Mario'' franchise. In ''Super Mario Galaxy'', the "spin" is primarily used for
melee A melee ( or , French: mêlée ) or pell-mell is disorganized hand-to-hand combat in battles fought at abnormally close range with little central control once it starts. In military aviation, a melee has been defined as " air battle in which ...
attacks to stun enemies and shatter objects, as well as triggering special propellers called "Sling Stars" or "Launch Stars" that launch Mario across large distances through space. The "spin" utility is also used for climbing vines,
ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...
, flipping switches, unscrewing bolts, and for activating several
power-up In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that can be used at any time chosen ...
s. Other Wii Remote functions are available for smaller quests, such as
surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...
aboard a
manta ray Manta rays are large rays belonging to the genus ''Mobula'' (formerly its own genus ''Manta''). The larger species, '' M. birostris'', reaches in width, while the smaller, '' M. alfredi'', reaches . Both have triangular Pectoral fin#AnchPect ...
or balancing atop a large ball and rolling it through an
obstacle course An obstacle course is a series of challenging physical obstacles an individual, team or animal must navigate, usually while being timed. Obstacle courses can include running, climbing, jumping, crawling, swimming, and balancing elements with th ...
.


Power-ups and lives

Nine
power-up In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a game mechanic. This is in contrast to an item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that can be used at any time chosen ...
s grant Mario temporary abilities. For example, special
mushrooms A mushroom or toadstool is the fleshy, spore-bearing Sporocarp (fungi), fruiting body of a fungus, typically produced above ground, on soil, or on its food source. ''Toadstool'' generally denotes one poisonous to humans. The standard for the na ...
bestow the player with a Bee, Boo, or Spring Mushroom. The Bee Mushroom allows Mario to hover through the air, climb on honeycombs, and walk on clouds and flowers; the Boo Mushroom allows him to float through the air, become transparent, and move through certain obstacles; and the Spring Mushroom allows him to jump to high areas that would be otherwise inaccessible. The
Fire Flower (also known as and ) is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. At least one ''Super Mario'' game has been released for every m ...
allows Mario to throw fireballs at enemies, and the Ice Flower grants flame attack immunity and allows Mario to create
hexagon In geometry, a hexagon (from Ancient Greek, Greek , , meaning "six", and , , meaning "corner, angle") is a six-sided polygon. The total of the internal angles of any simple polygon, simple (non-self-intersecting) hexagon is 720°. Regular hexa ...
al ice tiles to cover any liquid surface he walks on. The Rainbow Star grants Mario
invincibility {{Short pages monitor