The situation around Super Mario Galaxy and Switch is an odd and interesting one.

You’re not imagining it, we did already get Super Mario Galaxy on Switch just a few years back as part of the Super Mario 3D All-Stars Collection. And it was a pretty fantastic upgrade all told, especially when played side-by-side with Wii.

The difficulty is, Super Mario 3D All-Stars was a limited-run that’s now completely out of print and can only be picked up second hand and not digitally. This was also released in a time before Switch 2 was even known or a thing.

But with the announcement of the next Mario film – The Super Mario Galaxy Movie – and with it being the 40th Anniversary of Mario, Nintendo have re-released Super Mario Galaxy again, but this time in a double pack with Super Mario Galaxy 2, A game which was, bizarrely, left out of the Super Mario 3D All-Stars Collection.

For the purposes of the review though, as you can buy both games seperately, I’m going to review both seperately and for this version of Super Mario Galaxy – which, in many ways, is largely the same as the version you got in Super Mario 3D All-Stars – I’ll talk about it in a similar way to how I’ve talked about the All-Stars Version.

Super Mario Galaxy, for me, is the magnum opus of 3D Mario. I adore Odyssey, don’t get me wrong,  and Mario 64 holds a lot of fond childhood memories for me, but it’s Super Mario Galaxy that really showed off the plumber’s range, Nintendo’s creativity and all in, made for one of, if not THE finest platformer ever made.

Perhaps the most staggering thing of all to think about, in this, the year of Mario’s 40th anniversary. It’s been 18 years since Super Mario Galaxy released and how good it still looks. But perhaps more starkly, it’s 20 years between the PAL release of the original Super Mario Brothers and Super Mario Galaxy. Let that sink in for a moment.

The gulf in visual change in the 20 years between the original game and Galaxy is…mind-blowing. But for Super Mario Galaxy to still look as good as it does on Switch 2 today without a full remaster in nearly the same amount of time, perhaps tells us a lot about how good Nintendo were at their peak, maximising the Wii hardware the way they did, but also maybe, is a commentary on where the industry is today.

Regardless, Super Mario Galaxy remains a fantastic platformer all these years later. In fact, it looks, feels and plays better than a lot of other games that just launched in recent years. The creativity of jumping between planets, of orbiting them and landing Mario, of making careful use of gravity and clambering around the full 360 surface has just not really been bettered.

There’s even some quality of life updates in here, including an Assist Mode, where you get double the amount of health permanently rather than having to try and find an upgrade in the world. Just in case you’re finding the game a bit tricky – it’s certainly not an easy ride at times.

Though it remains, largely, a remaster, it’s the quality in textures and the upscale to 4K at 60FPS on Switch 2 that really push the boundaries and blur that line against a full-on remake. Looking back at Wii footage, I was actually quite startled at how rough, blurred and jagged it looked at times, so to see what Nintendo have done on grassy surfaces, with the use of lighting, and even the detail in Mario’s outline just truly help you to see the game in an entirely new light.

The draw distance is a significant upgrade too, and even details like shimmering water and animations. The way star bits fall onto the screen so seamlessly and how smooth everything feels all together. In some cases, though, there’s an argument the original textures might look and feel better, as this update has gone for a more smooth overall effect, whereas some ground and earthy textures, for instance, look more naturally patchy.

I will also say I had some weird turn issues with Mario at times when I was turning upside down and the game was reconfiguring the control configuration. It would sometimes cause Mario to turn around in a circle, a little bit confused about where he was. And as is always the case with older games, fighting against a fixed camera can be a bit aggravating at times. Though Super Mario Galaxy is one of the absolute best in the genre of the older guard to really strike a great balance.

As to whether this is worth picking up if you already own Super Mario Galaxy through 3D All-Stars, it’s tricky. The differences are not substantial, but this version of the game does offer more natural upscaling for Switch 2, there is Mouse Support and on the menu screen, you can access all of the game’s official soundtrack. Which is a nice touch.

I did also notice some improvements in the cut-scenes, with more visibility and legibility than what was offered in 3D All-Stars. Playing it on Switch 2 is also a significant improvement over Switch 1, though both versions of the game do run very smoothly.

It is a strange situation, though, as both this and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are Switch 1 games. So while there’s upscaling, there’s no true HDR support for the game – unless forced – and this is the rare occassion where I’d recomend you do turn it to ‘Always On’ so that as it makes SMG pop even more vibrantly on your 4K set.

Considering Switch 1 already got a native SMG port, I do wonder if Nintendo should have focused more on making, at least SMG, a Switch 2 game, but I also understand the need for parity and not trying to make one better than the other when they’re being presented as a collection. And let me be clear, this looks fantastic and better than ever on Switch 2. It’s absolutely the place to play this latest edition, particularly with the Mouse support added in.

To be honest to poor Super Mario Galaxy, though, in this case, the highlight of the package is absolutely the sequel we haven’t been able to play outside of the Wii before and hasn’t been seen for fifteen years. I’ll get to that one in another review.

What I’ll say is this. Super Mario Galaxy is an absolutely stellar, phenomenal platformer that, for the most part, has not aged – beyond some minor control and camera frustrations. The music and sound is chirpy, delightful and some of the most soothing and centilating you’ll ever hear. Even the gyro and motion control is as near a 1:1 match as possible to the Wii pointer. And the texture and visual upgrade, mostly, makes this somehow feel like a full-blown remake at times. It’s staggering.

If you haven’t played this one since the Wii days, I cannot recomend ths version of Super Mario Galaxy enough. And if you never got the chance, you’re in for an absolute, must-have Mario treat with this bundle, with two of the greatest platformers ever designed. As to whether you should buy this one again if you have 3D All-Stars, there’s some notable improvements and adjustments here and this is a more natural Switch 2 upgrade, with functionality to take advantage of the new system, but it is definitely a harder sell. Arguments will, no doubt, rage on why Nintendo have released the game in two seperate ways without some sort of connecting path.

Whatever position you find yourself in, Super Mario Galaxy is a must-own and it’s both impressive to see the quality of restoration Nintendo have done to make Switch 2 the definitive place to play the game, but also how much of the original game remains in-tact and carries itself all these years later. Proving, in fact, it’s almost timeless.

Verdict

Super Mario Galaxy on Switch 2 is at home. In full HD, upscaled to 4K, with, in most cases, much improved textures and as close to Wii Mote support as possible with Mouse and Gyro control, Super Mario Galaxy also carries itself all these years later with content just as good as you remember it. This was undeniably Nintendo at their creative best and despite how good Super Mario Odyssey is, remains the greatest 3D Mario game of all time. Whether you’re new to the game or are returning for nostalgia, this holds up as brilliantly as you hoped! 

Super Mario Galaxy is out now on Nintendo Switch

Played on Nintendo Switch 2

Code kindly provided by Nintendo for review purposes