#1 Super Mario Odyssey / Switch
Super Mario is my favorite series, it has been with me since I was a kid and I keep growing alongside this ex plumber that could be or not a human. Odyssey since its reveal, I have been just impressed left and right, by its weird yet totally at home bizarre settings, the second trailer that gave me my favorite song of all time and the last one in a direct that brought me to tears by how far my beloved childhood hero came along.
Then Odyssey finally came out on October 27th and my god, it delivered on everything I expected and surpassed all my expectations throughout the game, from beginning to end and to the post-game, it was the most magical, charming, epic, endearing and fun time I could ever had, cementing once again why I love this series so much and why I love gaming.
First its perfect controls, moving Mario around is so satisfying and fun in its own, bringing an arsenal of movement options that makes hunting for collectibles so good, its camera too, just the whole flow is great, then there is Cappy, which works as an insane extra movement option, a good weapon and an opportunity for the most creative adventure ever with its capture mechanic, probably the best power up of Mario to date, which gives him so many more gameplay possibilities across various objects and enemies, that never feel tacked on but rather an extension of Mario’s abilities. Collecting power moons through the overworlds or the more linear challenges across the game, all is great fun thanks to how satisfying the controls are, despite how repetitive the objectives can be at times, it never really bothers me due to the amount of fun I have just jumping around.
From the places you go to, to the people you meet, it rightfully deserves the Odyssey in the title, all the different kingdoms filled with their own things to capture, the diversity of ambience and atmosphere that every place has, from Bonneton to New Donk City, brought to life by its soundtrack, which is pure bliss and its beautiful art direction.
And the story, the best retelling of the usual Bowser kidnaps Peach, now with a wedding theme, which every kingdom ties in, everything you do in the main story is in pursuit of Bowser and the man has an actual plan and he is smart and always a step ahead of you, the cut scenes are well done as well, pretty short but sweet, with tons of surprising moments and some that completely floored me. New Donk City features one of the most uplifting and charming moments in videogame history. And the whole ending, from its final world, to the final battle to everything after, is simply a statement of all the love and passion that went into this game and how much Mario has come along as a franchise. And that fucking post-game, if my inner child wasn’t already floored by the main adventure, that extra just made me cry out of happiness.
Overall Super Mario Odyssey is a love letter to the series while being an entirely new thing and just like Breath of the Wild, is a game which its mechanics barely scratch the surface of what is capable of and unlike Galaxy, I think this game totally needs a follow up. Odyssey takes it as my #1 game.
