Super Princess Peach
Nintendo gets PMS
Tags: Super Princess Peach Categories: GBA Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Jake McNeill on Mar 2nd, 2006
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Super Princess Peach (title page) | 1 | ||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Platformer | No | ||
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I’ll get the big question out of the way right now. You want to know if this is going to be an awesome Mario spin-off like Yoshi’s Island, or a crappy Mario spin-off like… er, Yoshi’s Story. The answer is that this is one of the good ones, and although it’s only a light appetizer compared to the hearty feast New Super Mario Bros. is shaping up to be, it’s still very satisfying, especially for those of you who have been itching for another Nintendo platformer.
At first glance, Super Princess Peach appears to be a clever satire on the old Mario formula. This time, Bowser has captured poor, defenseless Mario, and it’s up to the Princess to save him! Haw haw haw! But for those that thought that Peach would earn a spot next to Samus in the history of female videogame characters that champion equality and defy stereotypes, I have news for you: the joke is on you. This game highlights more archaic gender stereotypes in this innocent-looking cartoony game than any other videogame I can think of, from the abundance of pastel colors to the princess’s use of a dainty parasol as a weapon, and most of all the game’s overall theme of PMS.
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No, seriously, this game is about PMS. Nintendo plays it off as cutesy and innocent. “Everyone’s over-emotional!” and “They’re not moodswings, they’re ‘vibes’!”, but when you see dainty Princess Toadstool go from floating on air to firey rage to crying a river all in a matter of seconds (and all quite literally, too), there’s really no doubt that she’s on the rag. These moodswings extend to the enemies too, and you’ll find that a happy koopa troopa and an angry koopa troopa both act very differently.
For those who aren’t offended by all this and can take the joke, it actually is rather amusing, and it’s one of the best things the game has going for it. It makes for many unique game mechanics that spice things up and really make this a fun title, and help it live up to Nintendo’s knack for inventive games.
It also helps that this game is one of those “love letters to Nintendo fans”, featuring a mish-mash of enemies and game mechanics from throughout the series. The level layouts and style are extremely reminiscent of Yoshi’s Island, and Peach’s parasol works almost exactly like Yoshi’s tongue from that game. The game’s idiot-proof “you don’t really die, you just start over” qualities might remind one of the Wario Land games. And the game features enemies from throughout the Mario series, including many that haven’t been seen since the 8-bit days.
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The DS’s features are really just an afterthought, using the touchscreen to send Peach into one of her moodswings, or for one of a small assortment of minigames, and it’s quite possible that the game could have been done on the GBA with the only omissions being the extra collectible stuff. However, this collectible stuff includes some nice distractions that add more content to a somewhat short game, so perhaps it’s just as well.
The game’s graphics, as stated before, are like Yoshi’s Island done in pastels, although there’s a healthy amount of animation everywhere to keep things looking lively and interesting, so even though the graphics don’t impress, they’re not too shabby either. The sound is par for the course for a Nintendo platformer, although this time around the music isn’t all that great. At the very least Peach’s voice in the game somehow never gets as annoying as Mario’s does in some of his titles.
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Really, the game’s two biggest failings are that it’s too short and too easy. Even with the hidden stuff, unlockable content and minigames, this title is still extremely short, a problem that even the plethora of extra levels doesn’t solve. It all just flies by so fast, largely because the game is a breeze to play. Peach has a lot of health (and can use coins collected to buy even more), and the fact that the game structure is so forgiving takes the “error” out of the trial and error process. If you hit an obstacle or fall off a cliff, odds are you’ll be able to give it another try within seconds. As a result, you’ll be blasting through the game at a surprisingly fast rate.
Still, make no mistake – this game has the Nintendo magic. The level designs are superb, the bosses are brilliant, and the entire game is exploding with the kind of creativity only Nintendo can deliver. Sure, it won’t present any great challenge for players who have been following Mario’s exploits since the 8-bit days, and some may even find the title to be a sugar-coated insult to the fairer sex. But in the end, this is a solid game that any fan of platformers should try, assuming they’re not too embarrassed to ask for it at the game store counter.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Outstanding game design. Very inventive, lots of variety, and a lot of fun to play + Plenty of extra content |
8.2 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
- The game is still too short - And it's a bit too easy, too - Graphics and sound are decent, but don't impress - Guys might be embarassed to ask for this game... - ... and girls might find it insulting. |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| This isn't quite "the next big Mario game (sans Mario)", but it's still a great platformer that should please fans of the genre, at least until New Super Mario Bros. comes along. | |
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Tags: Super Princess Peach
Posted by Jake McNeill on Mar 2nd, 2006 and is filed under GBA Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
