Super Mario Galaxy

"Mario Galaxy" redirects here. For the stage in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, see Mario Galaxy (stage).

Not to be confused with Super Galaxy.

Super Mario Galaxy is a 3D action-adventure platformer game for the Wii console, first released in 2007. It is the third Mario 3D platformer, and the follow-up to Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. However, unlike the previous two 3D adventure installments for the Mario franchise, this game takes place in deep space. Most of the game's levels consist of many small planets and planetoids, while others have bigger planets. Upon release, Super Mario Galaxy received some of the highest review scores and appraisals of any Wii game to date, and of any game overall. Since its release, the game has sold over 12 million copies, making it the eighth best-selling Wii game, and earning a Nintendo Selects re-release.

Story

Castle Gardens, the beginning area.

Every hundred years, on the eve of the Star Festival, a comet passes over the Mushroom Kingdom and causes magical stars and stardust to fall to the planet below. Peach invites Mario to her castle to join in the festivities and receive a special gift. As Mario arrives in the Castle Gardens, Bowser suddenly attacks the Toads with his airships and freezes them in crystals. He "invites" Peach to the creation of his brand new galaxy and cuts the castle off the ground with a UFO to carry it to the center of the universe. Before Mario can reach Peach, Kamek casts a spell at him, sending him into space. A Luma, whom Peach was carrying before her abduction, flees to look for Mario before Kamek warps the castle away with another spell.

File:Unknownfloatingobject.png

Peach's castle being lifted into space.

When Mario later wakes up on a small grassy planet he meets Lumas and eventually Rosalina, a mysterious woman who acts as the protector of the galaxies and the mother of the Lumas. She tells Mario that her ship, the Comet Observatory, had its Power Stars and Grand Stars stolen by Bowser. Without these, the Comet Observatory is unable to move through space. Rosalina asks him to rescue the Grand Stars in order to defeat Bowser. Mario also receives help from Luma, who grants him spinning powers. Mario and Luma complete missions from galaxies in opened domes in order to receive Power Stars. Once a mission is completed, Mario collects a Power Star and unlocks the next mission. There are normally five galaxies per dome, and once Mario has collected enough Power Stars, the next galaxy in the current dome would be an enemy base where either Bowser or Bowser Jr. would be using the power of one of the Grand Stars. His next mission would be to defeat Bowser or Bowser Jr. and rescue the next Grand Star. Rescuing the Grand Star unlocks the next dome. When enough Power Stars and Grand Stars are collected, the Comet Observatory takes Mario to the center of the universe.

Mario flying with Peach after rescuing her.

Here, Mario defeats Bowser in his brand new galaxy, retrieves the last Grand Star, and rescues Peach. Just then, one of the planets of Bowser's near-complete galaxy undergoes a supernova and becomes a supermassive Black Hole which begins pulling in everything. The Lumas from the Comet Observatory, including the Luma who had accompanied Mario throughout his adventure, throw themselves into the Black Hole in order to neutralize it, and it soon disintegrates in a massive explosion. Mario appears in front of Rosalina, who saves him from the cataclysm and tells him that this is not the end, but a new beginning for the universe, which repeats its cycle, albeit imperfectly.

File:Endingscene.PNG

Various characters celebrating after the universe's recreation.

Mario later awakens in the Mushroom Kingdom near Peach's Castle. He sees everyone he's met throughout his adventure celebrating, while Bowser and Peach lie next to him with no recollection of the past events. When he looks in the air, he notices the reconstructed galaxy, and exclaims "Welcome! Welcome new galaxies!" as the camera zooms out into space, revealing the reconstituted universe. If 120 Power Stars are collected, a special cut scene plays after the credits. There, Rosalina thanks the player and says "I will watch over you from beyond the stars." before flying off with the Comet Observatory. The Luma that accompanied Mario is shown to be alive, inside a derelict Starshroom on a small planet.

Gameplay

Basic gameplay

Gameplay is somewhat different from previous Mario titles, as rather than being played strictly in 2D or 3D, the game occasionally shifts from 3D to 2D and vice versa (although the core gameplay is largely in 3D); the game also utilizes sphere walking. Even with these changes, however, the gameplay heavily resembles Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine, with a similar camera system and similar gameplay mechanics.

Basic controls

File:SMG SJ Pullstars.png

Pull Stars are used by pointing the Star Cursor at them and pressing .

The game has several innovations and additions to the basic 3D Mario game concept. Mario is controlled with the analog stick and can jump with the . The works just as the trigger did in Super Mario 64. The player uses it to make Mario crouch, do Somersaults and do Long Jumps. Mario can also triple jump by jumping with precise timing three times, each time jumping higher than before. The centers the camera behind Mario, while the can adjust the camera angle manually. By pressing , the player can enter a first person perspective.

The game also uses the motion-sensors of the Wii Remote. The pointer of the Remote appears as the Star Cursor on the screen. The Star Cursor is used to perform a variety of actions, such as using Pull Stars, manipulating Sling Pods, and collecting Star Bits. Shaking the Wii Remote or Nunchuk makes Mario perform a Spin.

Mario's Spin move can defeat enemies or activate machines.

By pressing , players can fire a Star Bit. When enemies are hit by a Star Bit, they are stunned and can be defeated with a touch, releasing Star Bits. Mario can also defeat most enemies by jumping on them, which creates a healing coin. Using the Spin to defeat enemies is also possible. Spinning may also stop an enemy from attacking; if Bowser and Mario both Star Spin at the same time, both moves get canceled. Also, if Mario or Luigi Long Jumps then lands on the ground and quickly does a Spin, they will do a small pirouette. The player can use any of these tactics or only one of them during the entire game, as a specific tactic is never required to defeat a regular enemy. Only special enemies such as the Giant Goomba in the Gateway Galaxy might require a Spin. Several enemies are, however, much easier to defeat by shooting them than by jumping on them. As in Super Mario Sunshine, Mario can jump on NPCs to gain extra height or annoy them.

Swimming is fairly simple. Mario can change his direction by using the analog stick and can dive by pressing Z. Breastsrokes are possible by pressing A repeatedly while swimming forward. Mario must return to the surface or collect air bubbles periodically in order to refill his air supply. Failure to do so could result in losing a life.

Skating is a technique used when on ice. Mario merely needs to spin while walking, and he starts to skate.

There is also a move that is not explained in the instruction booklet. If the player, while airborne, both shakes the controller and presses (to spin and ground pound at the same time), they perform a special ground pound that homes in on nearby enemies (much like Sonic the Hedgehog's Homing Attack). If there is no enemy nearby, Mario does a fancier Ground Pound. This move returns in the game's sequel, also unexplained in the packaged materials.

Co-Star Mode

Featured in Super Mario Galaxy is a multiplayer mode named Co-Star Mode. By simply connecting a second Wii Remote, another player can join in and assist the first player by controlling a second Star Cursor, and in doing so can accomplish a variety of different things, some of which the first player can do, but many of which the first player cannot do. When Co-Star Mode is active, "1P" appears below Player 1's Star Cursor, and "2P" appears below Player 2's Star Cursor to help differentiate between them. When Co-Star Mode is not in use, these indicators no longer appear beneath either player's Star Cursors, until such time as Co-Star Mode becomes active again. The second player can collect Star Bits and fire them at enemies to briefly stun them. When the second Star Cursor is pointed at Mario and is pressed, the second player can make Mario perform a Co-Star Super Jump. Combining both jump techniques can make Mario jump higher than when only controlled with one controller.

Mario's Life Meter

Mario's life meter has been decreased to three total. Originally, Mario had a life meter with 8 units, similar to Super Mario 64, but it was reduced to 3 in the final game, with the ability to extend it to a maximum of 6. There is no longer a separate health bar for underwater levels which decreases slowly. Instead, Mario has an air meter which decreases and hurts Mario's health when it hits zero. The Life Mushroom replenishes any lost health and adds a second health meter, making Mario's max health six. When Mario's health drops down to three again, the second health meter smashes and the effect of the Life Mushroom is lost.

New elements

Mario explores a 3D world with planets which have their own gravity. Several levels have arrows which Mario can turn around with a Spin, changing the direction of the gravity. The Launch Star allows Mario to launch off of a planet and go flying to the next. There is little or no warning that a boss might be located on the next planet, and there is also little indication that Mario may be facing something terrible or something peaceful on where he's headed next, and there are also no loading times and screens. The game also contains side-scrolling levels reminiscent of New Super Mario Bros. with classic enemies such as Goombas and Piranha Plants. These side-scrolling levels may also contain directional gravity, allowing Mario to walk on the walls and ceiling.

"Super Luigi Galaxy"

File:Cosmic Luigi.png

Luigi about to race against Cosmic Luigi in the Freezeflame Galaxy in "Super Luigi Galaxy" mode.

Collecting all 120 Power Stars and defeating Bowser once more unlocks "Super Luigi Galaxy" mode, which replaces Mario with a playable version of Luigi and presents a few gameplay differences to reflect this change. Like in a number of previous Mario games, Luigi boasts higher jumps, but lower traction compared to Mario. Luigi is also faster than Mario, but loses air faster while underwater. Cosmic Luigi is more challenging than Cosmic Mario, and Luigi receives 20 1-Up Mushrooms from Peach's letter (although if Luigi's 1-Up counter grows too high, he only receives five). Outside of these changes, the storyline is almost completely unchanged, and even includes the original NPC Luigi. When the player has defeated Bowser again and continues with "Super Luigi Galaxy", Rosalina again says if Luigi collects all 120 stars, the player can travel to a new world. When the player collects 120 Power Stars, they can travel to Grand Finale Galaxy, which shows the celebration of the Star Festival and is where the 121st Power Star is found.

Galaxies

File:Egg planet.PNG

The Egg Planet in the Good Egg Galaxy.

Power Stars make a comeback, last being seen in Super Mario 64. The main goal of the game is to collect a minimum of 60 stars and defeat Bowser. Similar to Princess Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64 and Delfino Plaza in Super Mario Sunshine, the Comet Observatory acts as the game's hub area. There, Mario can access the galaxies from domes. New areas in the Comet Observatory become accessible as Mario gains Power Stars and Grand Stars. A minimum number of Power Stars is required to have enough power to go to each multi-star galaxy, single non-Grand Star galaxies with a ? Block icon when locked are bonuses for finishing certain star missions. The game has a level intro for each star, as in Super Mario Sunshine.

File:GreenPowerStar.jpg

Mario getting a Green Star in the Buoy Base Galaxy.

Mario encounters Luigi in four levels (located in the Good Egg Galaxy, the Honeyhive Galaxy, the Battlerock Galaxy, and the Ghostly Galaxy). In Ghostly Galaxy, Luigi is at the end of Luigi and the Haunted Mansion holding a star. After Luigi is rescued, he can be seen in the observatory and helps Mario reach secret stars that he could not get alone. When Luigi is in other galaxies, Mario receives a letter from Luigi every time Luigi has found a Power Star, including a picture which helps Mario find Luigi. After the main game is finished, Mario can return and collect up to 120 stars. Super Mario Galaxy contains a few different types of stars, including red, green, and comet stars. The Green Stars are secret stars which are used to unlock the Trial Galaxies and one Red Power Star appears when Mario returns to the gate, which allows usage of the Red Star in the Comet Observatory.

After finishing a level, Mario's highest score of coins for the galaxy is recorded and the collected Star Bits are transferred to the Comet Observatory, where Mario can later use them to feed Hungry Lumas. The requirements for opening up each galaxy is listed below, with Star Bits if the galaxy is created by a Hungry Luma. Note, however, that some galaxies are not unlocked by simply obtaining a number of stars but by completing a specific star. This is true for all Hungry Lumas except the first, and all bonus galaxies from Buoy Base Galaxy onward.

There are a total of forty-two galaxies in the game.

The amount of Power Stars and Star Bits listed after a galaxy is the amount of the corresponding collectibles that is required to unlock the galaxy.

Galaxies marked with an asterisk (*) are unlocked by feeding Hungry Lumas. Missions marked in green are Green Star missions, orange are Grand Star missions, and #FF4433 is the single Red Power Star mission.

Dome	Galaxy	Missions
Gate File:SMG-CometObservatory9.png	Gateway Galaxy	Grand Star Rescue
		Gateway's Purple Coins
	Boo's Boneyard Galaxy*	Racing the Spooky Speedster
Terrace File:SMG-Terrace Dome Model.png	Good Egg Galaxy	Dino Piranha	A Snack of Cosmic Proportions	King Kaliente's Battle Fleet
		Dino Piranha Speed Run	Purple Coin Omelet	Luigi on the Roof
	Honeyhive Galaxy File:Honeyhive Galaxy.PNG	Bee Mario Takes Flight	Trouble on the Tower	Big Bad Bugaboom
		Honeyhive Cosmic Mario Race	The Honeyhive's Purple Coins	Luigi in the Honeyhive Kingdom
	Loopdeeloop Galaxy	Surfing 101
	Flipswitch Galaxy	Painting the Planet Yellow
	Sweet Sweet Galaxy* File:Galaxy3SSG.jpg	Rocky Road
	Bowser Jr.'s Robot Reactor File:Bowser Jr.'s Robot Reactor.PNG	Megaleg's Moon
Fountain File:SMG-Fountain Dome Model.png	Space Junk Galaxy File:Space Junk Galaxy.PNG	Pull Star Path	Kamella's Airship Attack	Tarantox's Tangled Web
		Pull Star Path Speed Run	Purple Coin Spacewalk	Yoshi's Unexpected Appearance
	Battlerock Galaxy	Battlerock Barrage	Breaking into the Battlerock	Topmaniac and the Topman Tribe
		Topmaniac's Daredevil Run	Purple Coins on the Battlerock	Battlerock's Garbage Dump
		Luigi under the Saucer
	Rolling Green Galaxy	Rolling in the Clouds
	Hurry-Scurry Galaxy File:SmgHurry-Scurry Galaxy.PNG	Shrinking Satellite
	Sling Pod Galaxy* File:Slingpodg.PNG	A Very Sticky Situation
	Bowser's Star Reactor	The Fiery Stronghold
Kitchen File:SMG-Kitchen Dome Model.png	Beach Bowl Galaxy File:Beach Bowl Galaxy.PNG	Sunken Treasure	Passing the Swim Test	The Secret Undersea Cavern
		Fast Foes on the Cyclone Stone	Beachcombing for Purple Coins	Wall Jumping up Waterfalls
	Ghostly Galaxy File:Ghostly Galaxy.PNG	Luigi and the Haunted Mansion	A Very Spooky Sprint	Beware of Bouldergeist
		Bouldergeist's Daredevil Run	Purple Coins in the Bone Pen	Matter Splatter Mansion
	Bubble Breeze Galaxy File:Bubble Breeze Galaxy.PNG	Through the Poison Swamp
	Buoy Base Galaxy File:Buoy Base Galaxy.PNG	The Floating Fortress
		The Secret of Buoy Base
	Drip Drop Galaxy*	Giant Eel Outbreak
	Bowser Jr.'s Airship Armada	Sinking the Airships
Bedroom File:SMG-Bedroom Dome Model.png	Gusty Garden Galaxy File:Gusty Garden Galaxy.PNG	Bunnies in the Wind	The Dirty Tricks of Major Burrows	Gusty Garden's Gravity Scramble
		Major Burrows's Daredevil Run	Purple Coins on the Puzzle Cube	The Golden Chomp
	Freezeflame Galaxy	The Frozen Peak of Baron Brrr	Freezeflame's Blistering Core	Hot and Cold Collide
		Frosty Cosmic Mario Race	Purple Coins on the Summit	Conquering the Summit
	Dusty Dune Galaxy File:Dusty Dune Galaxy.PNG	Soaring on the Desert Winds	Blasting through the Sand	Sunbaked Sand Castle
		Sandblast Speed Run	Purple Coins in the Desert	Bullet Bill on Your Back
		Treasure of the Pyramid
	Honeyclimb Galaxy File:Honeyclimb Galaxy.PNG	Scaling the Sticky Wall
	Bigmouth Galaxy*	Bigmouth's Gold Bait
	Bowser's Dark Matter Plant	Darkness on the Horizon
Engine Room File:SMG-Engine Room Dome Model.png	Gold Leaf Galaxy File:Gold Leaf Galaxy.PNG	Star Bunnies on the Hunt	Cataquack to the Skies	When It Rains, It Pours
		Cosmic Mario Forest Race	Purple Coins in the Woods	The Bell on the Big Tree
	Sea Slide Galaxy File:Sea Slide Galaxy.PNG	Going after Guppy	Faster Than a Speeding Penguin	The Silver Stars of Sea Slide
		Underwater Cosmic Mario Race	Purple Coins by the Seaside	Hurry, He's Hungry
	Toy Time Galaxy File:Toy Time Galaxy.PNG	Heavy Metal Mecha-Bowser	Mario Meets Mario	Bouncing Down Cake Lane
		Fast Foes of Toy Time	Luigi's Purple Coins	The Flipswitch Chain
	Bonefin Galaxy File:Bonefin Galaxy.PNG	Kingfin's Fearsome Waters
	Sand Spiral Galaxy*	Choosing a Favorite Snack
	Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor	King Kaliente's Spicy Return
Garden File:SMG-Garden Dome Model.png	Deep Dark Galaxy File:Deep Dark Galaxy.PNG	The Underground Ghost Ship	Bubble Blastoff	Guppy and the Underground Lake
		Ghost Ship Daredevil Run	Plunder the Purple Coins	Boo in a Box
	Dreadnought Galaxy File:Dreadnought Galaxy.PNG	Infiltrating the Dreadnought	Dreadnought's Colossal Cannons	Revenge of the Topman Tribe
		Topman Tribe Speed Run	Battlestation's Purple Coins	Dreadnought's Garbage Dump
	Melty Molten Galaxy File:Melty Molten Galaxy.PNG	The Sinking Lava Spire	Through the Meteor Storm	Fiery Dino Piranha
		Lava Spire Daredevil Run	Red-Hot Purple Coins	Burning Tide
	Matter Splatter Galaxy File:Matter Splatter Galaxy.PNG	Watch Your Step
	Snow Cap Galaxy*	Star Bunnies in the Snow
Planet of Trials	Rolling Gizmo Galaxy File:Rolling Gizmo Galaxy.PNG	Gizmos, Gears, and Gadgets
	Bubble Blast Galaxy File:Bubble Blast Galaxy.PNG	The Electric Labyrinth
	Loopdeeswoop Galaxy File:Loopdeeswoop Galaxy.PNG	The Galaxy's Greatest Wave
	Grand Finale Galaxy	The Star Festival
Center of the Universe	Bowser's Galaxy Reactor File:Bowser's Galaxy Reactor.PNG	The Fate of the Universe

Prankster Comets

Main article: Prankster Comet

Prankster Comets are objects which interfere with a Galaxy, giving it an extra attribute. The 30 comet stars are obtained by completing special challenges in the major galaxies, such as speed runs of certain missions, "daredevil" runs (in which Mario is defeated if he takes a single hit), racing cosmic clones of Mario or Luigi, and doubling the speed of enemies and obstacles. They only appear after the corresponding regular level (e.g. Ghostly Galaxy's Bouldergeist battle) is completed, sometimes immediately, and at other times, only after another galaxy's level is completed. In some cases (like the Space Junk Galaxy), the entire galaxy has to be beaten first. There are two Prankster Comets in each of the 15 major galaxies: one of the comet types just described, plus one purple prankster comet that appears after beating Bowser's Galaxy Reactor for the first time, forcing missions where the player must collect 100 Purple Coins.

Characters

File:Princessrosettamag.jpg

Mario looking at Rosalina.

Mario encounters many new and old characters in his adventure through the galaxies. Most of these are met in one or more galaxies, though Rosalina, the Toad Brigade and the Lumas are found on the Comet Observatory.

Mario Luigi Princess Peach Rosalina Polari Luma Lumas Toad Brigade Bowser Bowser Jr. Spooky Speedster Star Bunnies

Honeybees Queen Bee Gearmo Cosmic Mario Cosmic Luigi Penguins Coach Penguru Ray Guppy Boards

Enemies

The game has old enemies such as Goombas from Super Mario Bros. and Piranha Plants, enemies which make their 3D platformer debut such as Magikoopas and Dry Bones, as well as new enemies, which include the Octoombas and Mandibugs.

New enemies

File:BombBooswing.PNG

Mario swinging some Bomb Boos.

Bats Big Thorny Flowers Bomb Boos Cluckbooms Crabbers Fire Cannons Flipbugs Galactic Tornadoes Golden Chomp Goombeetles Gringills Ice Bats

Jack O'Goombas Jammyfish Blue Lava Bubbles Lava Geysers Li'l Brrs Li'l Cinders Mandibugs Mini Wanwan Montys Octoguys Octoombas Octopuses

Petari Prickly Piranha Plants Sentry Beam‎s Slurples Spiky Topman Spoings Spranglers Springs Spring Topman Thorny Flowers Topminis Undergrunts Water Shooters

Returning enemies

File:DryBones.png

Dry Bones chasing Mario in Dusty Dune Galaxy.

Amps Banzai Bills Big Amps Big Goombas Bloopers Bob-ombs Bomps Boos Boulders Bullet Bills

Burners Cannonballs Cataquacks Cheep Cheeps Chomps Clams Dry Bones Fire Bars Fish Bones Floating Mines

Goombas Jellyfish Koopa Troopas Lava Bubbles Magikoopas Mechakoopas Micro Goombas Piranha Plants Pokeys Pokey Heads

Spiny Cheep Cheeps Thwomps Torpedo Teds Tox Boxes Tweesters Urchins Wigglers

Bosses

The boss characters.

Sixteen bosses are in the game. Some of them are fought more than once. The numbers below include Prankster Comet encounters.

Image	Boss	Times Fought	Image	Boss	Times Fought
	Dino Piranha	2		King Kaliente	2
File:Nocoverart.png	Stink Bug Parent	1	File:Bugaboom.png	Bugaboom	1
File:SMg7.png	Megaleg	1		Kamella	3
	Tarantox	1		Topmaniac	4
	Bouldergeist	2	File:MajorBurrows.png	Major Burrows	2
	Baron Brrr	1		Undergrunt Gunner	3
File:Kingfin.png	Kingfin	1		Fiery Dino Piranha	1
	Bowser Jr.	1		Bowser	3

Items

Throughout the game, Mario can use many new and returning items, many of which have unique propertries.

Item	Function
File:1upSMG.png 1-Up Mushroom	Gives Mario an extra life.
File:LifeshroomSMG.png Life Mushroom	A mushroom that gives Mario's Health Meter an additional three sections, bringing the total to six.
File:DISPENSER.png Bob-omb Dispenser	A machine that consistently dispenses Bob-ombs for use by the player.
File:CoinSMG.jpg Coin	Restore lost wedges of Mario's Health Meter. If 50 coins are collected, Mario gains an extra life.
Crate	Often found in many different galaxies, these can be broken to release items.
Gold Shell	A special, rare shell that is either given to the Coach (in the Beach Bowl Galaxy) or used to open a chest (in the Bigmouth Galaxy). It gives a large speed boost when used underwater.
Green Shell	A green Koopa Shell that Mario can grab by touching it or spinning near it. The player can then throw it at enemies by shaking the Wii Remote. It gives a small speed boost underwater.
File:Item Crystal!.png Crystal	A glassy crystal that can contain Star Bits, power-ups, or rarely, enemies and Toads.
Launch Star	A powerful item that quickly launches Mario to another planet when the player shakes the Wii Remote near it.
File:Pull Star.png Pull Star	An item that pulls Mario towards it when the player positions the Star Cursor over it and presses the button.
Purple Coin	A special variety of coin that only appears in galaxies when a Purple Comet is in orbit around a galaxy.
File:Questioningcoin.jpg ? Coin	A large coin that can make a multitude of things appear, including coins, Star Bits, Rainbow Notes, a power-up, or even another ? Coin.
Rainbow Note	Colorful musical notes that only appear after Mario has touched a ? Coin, after which a short trail of them appears in the immediate vicinity. When they are collected quickly, a short tune plays in the background. Collecting all of them causes either a power-up, a 1-Up Mushroom or a Power Star to appear.
Red Shell	A red Koopa Shell that Mario can grab by touching it or spinning near it. When Mario launches it, it homes in on any nearby enemies. It gives a larger boost than the Green Shell when used underwater.
Sling Star	A smaller version of a Launch Star that flings Mario to another planet or area when the player shakes the Wii Remote near it.
Star Chip	Small fragments of a Launch Star, Sling Star, or Pull Star. When all five have been found, they reform into their respective star and allow the player to advance. Yellow Star Chips are much more common than blue ones.
Star Bit	One of the most common items in the game, Star Bits can be found almost everywhere and can be collected with the Star Cursor. Sometimes, Mario has to feed Star Bits to Hungry Lumas to advance. If 50 Star Bits are collected, Mario earns an extra life.

Power-Ups

Mario regains his ability to attain different abilities via special mushrooms, flowers, and stars, similar to Super Mario 64, in which he could obtain the Wing Cap, the Vanish Cap, and the Metal Cap to gain new powers. In this game, Mario uses seven Power-Ups to gain new ablities.

Power-Up	Transformation	Function
Bee Mushroom	Bee Mario	Allows Mario to fly for a short time when the button is held. Also allows Mario to stick to Honeycomb Walls, and gives him the ability to walk on flowers and clouds.
File:SMG BooSuit.png Boo Mushroom	Boo Mario	A mushroom that gives Mario the power of intangibility, and also allows him to float in the air with button taps. The Wii Remote can be shaken to go through certain objects.
Fire Flower	Fire Mario	A power-up that allows Mario to throw fireballs at his enemies by shaking the Wii Remote.
Ice Flower	Ice Mario	A power-up that allows Mario to freeze water or lava in small hexagonal ice platforms and skate across them freely.
Rainbow Star	Rainbow Mario	A power-up that turns Mario into Rainbow Mario, thereby making him completely invincible for a short time. After running for a while with this power-up active, Mario's top speed increases.
Red Star	File:Flying Mario Artwork.jpg Flying Mario	A power-up that holds the power of the Red Luma. It allows Mario to fly for a limited time by spinning while in the air. The player can also hold to stop and change the direction while flying. It resembles the Wing Cap from Super Mario 64.
Spring Mushroom	Spring Mario	A power-up that transforms Mario into Spring Mario, allowing him to bounce extremely high by pressing with good timing.

Locations

Galaxy	Star	Bee Mushroom	Boo Mushroom	Ice Flower	Fire Flower	Spring Mushroom	Rainbow Star	Red Star
Comet Observatory	1
Gateway Galaxy	Star 2
Good Egg Galaxy	Star 3
Honeyhive Galaxy	Star 1,Star 2, Star 3	2
Battlerock Galaxy	Star 2
Beach Bowl Galaxy	Secret Star, Purple Coin Mission			6		7
Ghostly Galaxy	Star 1, Star 2, Star 3		3
Gusty Garden Galaxy	Star 2, Star 3, Secret Star
Freezeflame Galaxy	Star 1, Star 2, Star 3, Secret Star			2	5
Dusty Dune Galaxy	Star 1, Star 2				3		4
Honeyclimb Galaxy	Star 1
Gold Leaf Galaxy	Star 1, Star 2, Star 3
Sea Slide Galaxy	Star 3, Purple Coin Mission
Toy Time Galaxy	Star 1, Star 3
Sand Spiral Galaxy	Star 1
Boo's Boneyard Galaxy	Star 1
Deep Dark Galaxy	Star 1, Star 2			4
Matter Splatter Galaxy	Star 1
Snow Cap Galaxy	Star 1

¹ - Unlocked after completing Gateway's Purple Coins
² - Stars 1 and 3 only
³ - Star 1 only
⁴ - Star 2 only
⁵ - Stars 2, 3, and Secret only
⁶ - Star 3 only
⁷ - Secret Star only

Power Stars

Item	Function
Grand Star	A special type of Power Star that is needed to power the Comet Observatory.
Green Power Star	A very rare Power Star that can only be found in three galaxies in the game. They are used to unlock the Trial Galaxies.
Power Star	A regular star that Mario must collect to power up the various parts of the Comet Observatory and ultimately reach Bowser at the center of the universe.
Red Power Star	An extremely rare Power Star that is guarded by the Red Luma. There is only one found in the entire game.
Silver Star	A special star always found in sets of five in some galaxies. When Mario collects all five of them, they merge into a Power Star.

Minigames

File:SMG Manta.jpg

The first surfing level, Surfing 101 in the Loopdeeloop Galaxy.

• Ray surfing
• Bob-omb Blasting

These minigames appear during multiple missions, with the goal of these missions being to complete them.

Unlockable secrets

File:LuigiInGalaxy.PNG

Luigi encountering Bowser.

Once the player beats the game and gains 120 stars as Mario, they can fight Bowser again by talking to Rosalina. If Bowser is defeated once more, the player gets to do the whole story all over again, this time as Luigi. He is slightly faster and jumps a bit higher than Mario, but he has less traction, and the Cosmic Luigi stars are more difficult to obtain, due to Cosmic Luigi using shortcuts and techniques not used by Cosmic Mario. Luigi's Spin also takes slightly longer to recharge, and he has less air capacity than his brother. Luigi also loses air for every time he uses the Spin underwater, although he swims faster in general, and his underwater Spin gives him a larger speed boost than that of Mario. Once the player beats the game and collects 120 stars as Luigi, the 121st star becomes available.

If the player collects 9,999 Star Bits, all the coconuts in the game turn into watermelons. Both fruits have the same use.

Letters

At various points in the game, the Mailtoad gives the player a letter, which is sent to the Wii Message Board.

Whenever Luigi needs to be rescued after initially saving him from the Ghostly Galaxy, the letter says the following:

Dear Mario,
Oh, no! It's horrible!
Luigi has gone missing!
What will we do?!

Mailtoad

After rescuing Luigi each of these times, the letter says the following:

Dear Mario,

Thank you for saving Luigi! Keep trying to rescue those Power Stars, and we'll do our best to help! ♪

Mailtoad

After getting the 121st and final Power Star from the Grand Finale Galaxy, the letter will say the following:

Dear (Mii's name),

Congratulations! We would like to send you a galaxy sized thanks for saving all the Power Stars and playing to the very end.

Until next time;

The Super Mario Galaxy staff

Super Mario Galaxy: Original Soundtrack

Main article: Super Mario Galaxy: Original Soundtrack

A soundtrack for the game was released, called Super Mario Galaxy: Original Soundtrack. It was exclusive to Club Nintendo members in Japan and Europe. There is a one-disc edition and a two-disc Platinum edition.

Development

Super Mario Galaxy finds its roots in the Super Mario 128 demo. Yoshiaki Koizumi, the director of the demo, wanted the part where Mario moves freely around a saucer-shaped platform to be included in an actual game, but found that implementing the concept would be technically demanding. Shigeru Miyamoto remained interested in the concept, and after Donkey Kong Jungle Beat's completion, asked the newly formed EAD Tokyo if they wanted to make a high-profile game starring established Nintendo characters, which led to one of the staff member suggesting that they had the skillset to make a Mario game. Yoshiaki Koizumi felt that the Jungle Beat team had the ability to make spherical platforms work and said he wanted to make the game for the Wii.

Koizumi then gathered several other members in order to create a prototype. The outer space theme was chosen due to him finding that most players would interpret spherical shapes as planets, and gravity was added. The prototype was shown to Nintendo after three months of development, which approved it.

Although Miyamoto was not working full time at EAD Tokyo, he frequently visited the studio to share ideas and oversee development. One of his suggestions was to include a delay between spinning instead of having Mario spin continuously by shaking the Wii Remote, so that the game would be more challenging and interesting to play. A setup was eventually created so that both the Kyoto and Tokyo offices could playtest the game.

The development team made heavy use of play-testers due to the studio's experience while developing Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. One of Koizumi's main concern were the camera angles and the motion sickness they caused. He thought camera-induced motion sickness was a problem with 3D action games, and found neither Super Mario Sunshine nor Donkey Kong Jungle Beat's solutions satisfying.

EAD Tokyo was pressured to finish the game close to the Wii's launch, as several executives were disappointed by Super Mario Sunshine not being a Nintendo GameCube launch title and thought that an earlier release could have helped the GameCube's commercial performance. However, EAD Tokyo decided that making a polished Mario game was more important.

Reception

Super Mario Galaxy has been met with universal acclaim, receiving a GameRankings score of 97.64% from 78 reviews, making it the highest rated game on the website, while scoring a 97/100 on Metacritic, the third-highest score on the website.

Famitsu Magazine has given Super Mario Galaxy a score of 38/40. The Official Nintendo Magazine UK gave the game 97%. It was called the best game of the decade and praised for having excellent graphics, sound and gameplay as well as a mixture of new features and classic features. Australia's longest-running unofficial multi-format gaming magazine, Hyper, scored the game 97 out of 100, tied for the highest score ever given in the history of the magazine, running since 1993. Also, it was voted by readers as the Game of the Year for 2007. The game placed 51st in the 200th Issue of GameInformer's "Top 200 Games of All Time". Nintendo Power ranked it as best Mario mainstream title in their May 2012 issue.

Super Mario Galaxy is the 8th best-selling game for the Wii, selling 12.72 million copies worldwide as of September 2016.

Media

For a complete list of media for this subject, see List of Super Mario Galaxy media.

Help:Media • Having trouble playing?

Gallery

For this subject's image gallery, see Gallery:Super Mario Galaxy.

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  Mario soaring
• Rollstar.jpg

  Mario balancing on a Star Ball
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  Penguru
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  Purple Coin
• SMG BooSuit.jpg

  Boo Mushroom
• Airship.png

  Airship

Quotes

Main article: List of Super Mario Galaxy quotes

Bowser

• "Princess Peach! You are formally invited... to the creation of my new galaxy! Gwahahaha! This festival's over!"
• "BWAHAHAHA! You finally made it! Just in time for me to stomp you into space bits!"
• "WHAA--?! IT'S YOU! That's it, Mario! I'm gonna stomp you into space bits!"
• "Finally! You got here just in time to see the creation of my galaxy in the center of the universe! WATCH AND WEEP! From this galaxy, I'll rule a great galactic empire with Peach by my side. It will last forever! I will rule every pitiful corner of the universe. So, Mario, as you can see, I got big plans. And stomping you is at the top of my list!"
• "NOOOOO! My Galaxy! My empire! This can't be happening..."

Queen Bee

• "And who might you be? A physician, we presume? No matter. We are in the most vexing predicament and require assistance. The most furious itchiness plagues our entire being! It must be stopped! Please find the source at once!"
• "Yes that's the ticket!"
• "Ah...that feels goooood!"
• "Ahoo hoo! That tickles!"
• "My thanks! You have shown much bravery, New Bee. We trust that we may rely on you in the future!"
• "The neighbors are causing trouble again. We would be most grateful for your assistance!"

Pre-release and unused content

Main article: List of Super Mario Galaxy pre-release and unused content

Rosalina was intended to be related to Princess Peach, and Rosalina had a very similar appearance reflecting this. Bonefin Galaxy was intended to be much darker, as was Deep Dark Galaxy. These were changed in the interest of playability. Guppy was originally a dolphin, and a friendly character. Some art of the Sea Slide and Beach Bowl Galaxies suggests that they were conceived as a single galaxy, with beach bowl's main planet in the center of Sea Slide's ring. A piece of concept art labeled only "fortress" is captioned as a piece that is very memorable to the SMG development team, since it was one of the earliest drawings of Galaxy. Ironically, the planet shown in the art is nowhere in the final game.

Controversy

Super Mario Galaxy was the first Mario game to be officially localized to French for Quebec; that market had previously received Mario titles in English rather than French. This followed a deal between the Office québécois de la langue française and the video game industry to have every game available for that region in French by 2009. In the Quebec localization, NPCs (particularly the Lumas and the Toad Brigade) make heavy use of Joual accents and slang. This localization choice sparked a minor controversy, with representatives of the OQLF and the Union des artistes criticizing it for promoting poor literacy to children. A Nintendo representative responded that the localization was made with "localizing for the market" in mind, as the Quebec market made up 25% of sales for Nintendo of Canada at the time.

Following the negative reception to the localizations of Super Mario Galaxy and The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (which featured a similarly Joual-heavy localization), later Canadian French localizations would be written in Standard French (with the exception of the similarly-localized Paper Mario: Sticker Star, as well as the Pokémon series which would simply retain its European French localizations and corresponding slang).

Glitches

Main article: List of Super Mario Galaxy glitches

Staff

Main article: List of Super Mario Galaxy staff

A team of 100 individuals were involved in the development and publishing of Super Mario Galaxy, not counting those who merely localized the game for American and European audiences. The game's diverse staff ranged from Mario franchise veterans to complete newcomers.

Shigeru Miyamoto conceived the game and was its co-producer with Takao Shimizu. Yoshiaki Koizumi was the director and chief designer. The level design was directed by Koichi Hayashida, the programming by Naoki Koga, and the sound by Masafumi Kawamura. Characters original to the game were designed by a team of six people — Atsushi Mishima, Daisuke Watanabe, Rikuto Yoshida, Masanori Esaki, Kazuhiro Saito, and Takumi Ishii. Koji Kondo co-wrote the game's soundtrack with Mahito Yokota.

Trading Cards

Main article: Super Mario Galaxy Trading Cards

Super Mario Galaxy Trading Cards are trading cards that were released to celebrate the release of Super Mario Galaxy. These helped amplify the publicity of the game. Each booster pack would have two regular cards, one trivia card, one standee, and one FunTat.

References to other games

• Super Mario Bros. - Several sprites from this game appear here, including a planet in the Toy Time Galaxy, Mario sprites being in the background of a particular Bowser galaxy, and the background of the Flipswitch Galaxy which has scenery of the overworld and underground levels. Also, Toy Time Galaxy's music is a rearrangement of the overworld theme from this game. Several galaxies use a remix of a small portion of the underground theme from this game. Also, an arrangement of the underground theme is used for several galaxies, starting with Flipswitch Galaxy. Some of the musical notes are music from the game such as the underground theme and the underwater theme.
• Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels - Luigi's higher jumping and lower traction returns.
• Super Mario Bros. 3 - Several music tracks from this game are rearranged here. Airships also return.
• Dr. Mario - A planet shaped like a giant Megavitamin cameos.
• Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island - Rainbow Mario's theme is an orchestral remix of Superstar Mario's theme from this game.
• Super Mario 64 - Tox Boxes and Sliding Stones from this game return. The music of some Bowser galaxies are rearranged from Super Mario 64. In both games, after the credits and an ending screen is displayed, Mario would say "Thank you so much for playing my game!".
• Paper Mario - Both games begin with a letter being sent from Peach to Mario. Also, Bowser's way of kidnapping Peach (by lifting the entire castle into the sky) is reused here. They also have stories of baby stars.
• Luigi's Mansion - When the player first sees Luigi, he is trapped in a Ghost House. Mario freeing him is a direct spoof of Luigi's Mansion, as in Luigi's Mansion it was the direct opposite. Also, the music that is being played when a boss tower is unlocked sounds suspiciously like the Luigi's Mansion "Dark Room" theme.
• Super Mario Sunshine - Fire Cannons and Water Shooters, which appear in various galaxies, have a strong resemblance to F.L.U.D.D.'s nozzle. The goal in the Loopdeeloop Galaxy and the Loopdeeswoop Galaxy is also shaped in a Shine Sprite. Blue Cataquacks are present in two galaxies.
• Donkey Kong Jungle Beat - The flowers that Donkey Kong flings off of were reused in Super Mario Galaxy.
• Mario Party 8 - If a Dry Bones falls into quicksand in Dusty Dune Galaxy, the cry Dry Bones makes when it is "blown away" in this game can be heard.

References in later games

• Mario Kart Wii - Rosalina can be unlocked by having save data from Super Mario Galaxy; the Rainbow Road course is set in space and is full of Star Bits; a portion of its music is based on the Good Egg Galaxy's theme. Spiky Topmen were bosses in multiple online tournaments, and finally, the countdown sequence for starting a minigame returns as the official sequence for starting races and battles in this game.
• Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story - The Spike Ball move used by Bowser in the last boss fight returns in this game.
• Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games - The Dream Ski Jumping Event takes place in Good Egg Galaxy. A few music tracks from Super Mario Galaxy can be bought. Also, Purple Coins can be collected in some Dream Events.
• New Super Mario Bros. Wii - During the credits, Peach can be heard reading the letter she sends to Mario at the beginning of Super Mario Galaxy. In Airship levels, a rearrangement of the music in the intro where Bowser attacks is played.
• Super Mario Galaxy 2 - This is the sequel to Super Mario Galaxy, with many elements returning such as the reused voices, while others are new.
• Super Mario 3D Land - The haunted house theme returns. Several other music tracks from Super Mario Galaxy were reused for this game. The graphics resemble to the ones from this game. Cosmic Mario returns and the airship theme returns. Also, voices from Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are reused.
• Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games: Dino Piranha appears as the enemy faced during the Dream Spacewalk event. Also, the Dino Piranha boss music is used and remixed. Despite taking place in the Sky Station Galaxy from Super Mario Galaxy 2, several planets from the Good Egg Galaxy and Gateway Galaxy are shown. Sounds from this game are used in Dream Space Walk. There is also the bee suit. A track called "Into the Sea of Stars" is also used for the Dream Space Walk event. The Battlerock Galaxy is also used as a Dream Event location. Also, Mario's spin move is used as his super dash, as well as an attack in the Dream Space Walk event.
• Mario Kart 7 - On the Rosalina's Ice World course, the Comet Observatory is visible in the background.
• Mario Party 9 - The Ground-Pound Switch icon appears on Wiggler's body segments and on Whomp's back. Also, the music of some Bowser Jr. minigames is a rearrangement of Bowser Jr.'s theme of this game.
• Mario Tennis Open - The Comet Observatory appears as an unlockable court. The music played is an arrangement of the original theme and the music for the special game Galaxy Rally is an arrangement of the Good Egg Galaxy theme. Also, in the title screen, the player can see the Comet Observatory in the background.
• Mario Party: Island Tour - Rocket Road is based on the Comet Observatory. Also, Rosalina and the Lumas appear on this board. The minigame Gyro for the Gold plays very similarly to the Star Ball.
• Super Mario 3D World - There are secret underground rooms where the player can collect sequences of coins for a limited time and receive a prize if all coins are collected. In the promotional spread, a silhouette which appears to be the Comet Observatory can be seen in the stars behind Bowser's Highway. The Light Boxes' light can defeat ghosts like in this game. Rosalina's special ability is the spinning ability Mario uses. Super Galaxy, a stage based off of the Super Mario Galaxy games appears, and so do Octoombas, and the Comet Observatory. The Comet Observatory theme (3rd version) plays in the World Crown map area, while a remix of Gusty Garden Galaxy's theme can be heard in Honeycomb Starway, Honeycomb Skyway and Champion's Road. The overworld map of World Star has Star Bits in the background. Also, the Toad Brigade theme is reused on the Captain Toad levels. Also, sound effects from Super Mario Galaxy are reused.
• Mario Kart 8/Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - An image of a Luma can be seen from an airplane (from Galaxy Air airlines) at the Sunshine Airport course, as well as on the Star Cup trophy. Also, part of Cloudtop Cruise's music is an arrangement of Gusty Garden Galaxy's music.
• Super Smash Bros. for Wii U - There is a stage based on this game and Super Mario Galaxy 2, with the Starship Mario and Airship appearing in the background of the main stage. Rosalina is playable in this game, and her moves use objects from Super Mario Galaxy, such as Star Bits and Launch Stars.
• Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition - Mario's Bee and Boo forms appear in this game as Helpers for the player's team. Gusty Garden Galaxy's music is used for this game's credits.
• Super Mario Maker - The victory and death themes from Super Mario Galaxy are used when the Rosalina costume completes a level or loses a life, respectively.
• Mario Party: Star Rush: Gusty Garden Galaxy's theme appears as one of the songs in the Rhythm Recital mode for this game.
• Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle - Bee Mushrooms can be found on tubes of honey. Peach shouting for Mario from this game can be heard whenever she's defeated in battle.
• Super Mario Odyssey - A sprite of Rosalina can be found in walls in the kingdoms. The jingle that plays when the Odyssey is restored is a remix of the jingle that plays when Mario collects a new power-up in this game. Peach's call to Mario from this game is heard during the opening sequence after Mario is knocked off of Bowser's Airship. The regional coins in the Moon Kingdom are based on the shape of Star Bits.

Names in other languages

Language	Name	Meaning	Notes
Japanese	スーパーマリオギャラクシー[?] Sūpā Mario Gyarakushī	Super Mario Galaxy
Chinese	超级瑪利歐银河[?] Chāojí Mǎlìōu Yínhé	Super Mario Galaxy
Korean	슈퍼 마리오 Wii 갤럭시 어드벤처[?] Syupeo Mario Wii Gaelleoksi Eodeubencheo	Super Mario Wii: Galaxy Adventure

Trivia

• By coincidence, the title "Super Mario Galaxy" was first mentioned in a fan letter written to Nintendo Power by Jimmy Peterford of Glen Cove, New York. The letter in question, which was printed in the December 1991 issue, detailed a fantasy game system called the "Raw Power System," which would come bundled with a game titled "Super Mario Galaxy," but in Peterford's words, would be "better known as Super Mario Bros. 24!"
• Due to a mixup involving GameStop, the automated phone message sent to those who preordered the game stated Super Mario Galaxy to be an M-rated game.
• The Australian Classification Board classified Super Mario Galaxy as G (General) upon its initial Wii release, but the game was later classified PG (Parental guidance) upon its re-release via Wii U Virtual Console.
• With the screen zoomed in, Mario/Luigi's left arm is glitched; it seems to be oddly jagged at the top. Also for Mario, his arm goes slightly upward and almost out of place.

External links

• Official Japanese Site
• Official American Site
• Official European Site
• Official Korean Site
• Prologue Video (IGN)
• Super Mario Galaxy Reviews, Guide, Videos, Screenshots and more! (IGN)
• Super Mario Galaxy (Gamewise)