Certainly, this game might already be acient history for some, but I am finally discovering the delights of Super Mario Galaxy.
Although I am only halfway through, I feel compelled to write a little something about the storybook sequences that are presented in this game.

Mario games have never been about the story. The cockteasing bitch you have to save is merely a lame excuse to get off your ass and plumber your way through countless mushroom infected enviorments.
Super Mario Sunshine supposedly is the Mario game that attempts to put some logic into the series along with a comprehensible story. While I have not played said game, I do think that the appeal Super Mario games share has never been even remotely connected to the storyline.



But I do feel that in this latest addition to the franchise, Super Mario Galaxy, Nintendo has done a superb job in implementing a narrative without doing away the "Mario-ness", if you will. "Your" princess gets kidnapped, only one italian hobo can save her, yada yada - we've heard it all before.
Some people like it, some people don't. Some say that Mario is all about good old fun and not about suspense, others say that Mario needs to get with the times and become a Godfather (I'm looking at you, Suda51)
Nintendo sets its goals high. They want to appeal to a broad market, and therefor aim to please both sides of the spectrum.

That's where princess Rosalina and her army of little star people, called Lumas, come in. Divided into several chapters, Rosalina will read you a bedtime story about how she met up with the Lumas. Cue the tearjerking music, fade in a heartwarming crayon drawing and add a few lines of incredibly simple yet effective writing here and there. It is a winning formula, which stirs up a wide array of emotions. Princess cries, you are sad. Princess laughs, you are happy.



Whether you wish to read these bedtime stories is completely up to you, as they are accessible by walking into a library somewhere in the overview world. As wonderful as they may be, these stories are not forced upon the player. Your average 10 year old kid will not be interested in the sappy backstory, and needn't waste his precious childhood on reading stupid words from stupid books.

Coïncidentally, Lost Oddysey features a similar systematic in the form of dream sequences. Sadly I have no experience with this game, so I'll pass that one on to the commenters!

PS: My addition to the Monthly Musings theme - which can be found here - reached the staggering amount of 2 whole reactions. If you are brave and willing, please check it out as well ;)