Super Mario Galaxy Costar Mode Detailed

I’m intrigued by Super Mario Galaxy’s 2-player “costar” mode.  The idea is that one person plays Mario while someone else can manipulate objects to help Mario with a Wiimote.  You can also point out things directly on the screen.  Miyamoto-san recently gave an interview in which he spoke about the challenge of creating an interesting and fun multiplayer experience for a platformer. 

Friendly two-player play is something that’s easier said than done. It’s not a problem in competitive play where the two players are equal, but in scrolling games where one player is the main player, the question of whether the other player could really enjoy the game was just one long-term challenge. With those games, it always seems like the second player is being forced to play, and at times it’s not much fun.

That’s why I wanted to make it so that the second player could enjoy the experience as well…I wanted the second player to also be able to enjoy action games for what they were. So, by making good use of the Wii Remote’s pointer, I think we were able to have the second player play the game with a very strong sense of participation.

During the initial stages of development, we’d made it so that the person assisting the main player was able to do things like shake the Wii Remote to make Mario spin or make him jump by pressing A, but we ended up taking those features out because it lent itself to negative play and made play difficult. Getting in the other players’ way can be a fun part of gameplay, but I think that with Co-Star mode, which also includes functions to entertain the other player, we were able to finalise the style of the two-player mode.

What I originally had in mind were situations like a parent sitting by their child – for example, a mother assisting her child. I also think it would be great if the opposite happened. I had a very strong image of the mother controlling Mario, while her child assisted her saying things like “Mum, there’s an enemy over here!” A parent and child helping each other while they play was something that I wanted to make reality for a long time, and with Super Mario Galaxy, I strongly feel that situations like this could really happen. So I think there’s a benefit to sitting next to a beginner and showing them how to play, and I think the two could have all sorts of conversations with each other as they play.

The concept of a fun 2-player mode gets me very excited.  I suppose we’ll all find out in five days.  If you’re feeling lucky though, you could try your local Best Buy today–word is there might be another broken street date happening as we speak!

–WG