5. Super Mario Odyssey (2017)
- Final score: 76 points
- Total placements: 5 lists
- Highest placement: #3, (tie) Kevin & Schnei
Casey writes:
I think I’d forgotten a bit how weird this game is since playing it: all the costumes, the humans in New Donk City, the whole wedding scenario. It’s just really great to see a major first-party title do something so strange in this particular way. Wonder has plenty of original ideas but to me they feel more cohesive and a natural evolution of the sort of “Mushroom Kingdom” aesthetic as it already exists. This game says forget the Mushroom Kingdom, what if everywhere you go is strange and Mario feels slightly out of place in at least half of them… but maybe there’s a little outfit you can buy to fit in a little more? Truly a delight.
Schnei writes:
This is my favorite Mario game, I think, narrowly beating out Galaxy and 64 on scale and vibes, respectively. I really enjoyed the creativity of the different worlds and gameplay mechanics. New Donk City scanned to me as weirdly un-Mario from the initial press, but even that turned into a fantastic playground that felt totally second-nature to navigate and conquer. The Cappy mechanics are consistently fresh without feeling forced. The challenge level was perhaps scaled a bit low, as I don’t remember truly struggling to find or accomplish anything except the final moon gauntlet, but the game is still extremely fun to pick up and play.