Luigi's Mansion Review (GCN)

A launch title for the Nintendo GameCube, Luigi's Mansion was overlooked by many and begrudgingly accepted by others; for the first time for many gamers, Nintendo released a console without a companion Mario title. Worse still, their flagship game was some sort of haunted house game that didn't even feature a jump button!

Though it's not what the masses wanted, Luigi's Mansion is actually a really solid title. Luigi finds himself the recipient of a spooky mansion located in some equally spooky woods, and also discovers Mario has gone missing within that same mansion. If that sounds somewhat familiar, don't worry -- this isn't educational software.

After meeting one Professor E. Gadd, Luigi is equipped with the Poltergust 3000 (a souped-up vacuum cleaner) and Game Boy Horror, and tasked with clearing the haunted structure of its inhabitants and finding his more famous older brother. Luigi's flashlight is used to stun ghosts before he's able to suck them in with the Poltergust in a game of tug of war. There's a good enough variety and hierarchy of ghosts to keep the game fun throughout its entirety.

As you progress through the game, Nintendo only changes up the basic formula enough to keep the core ghost hunting mechanic entertaining. In addition to ghost hunting, there's also a lot of money to be found within the mansion, and this acts as your score and ranking basis once you beat the game. Nearly every single item in the mansion can be searched, so if you're after a ton of loot, it can definitely add to your play time.

Though not the most technically impressive launch title for the GameCube, Luigi's Mansion boasts one of its most impressive art styles. The odd-angled architecture and furnishings, together with the music and Luigi's mannerisms, really creates an incredibly impressive atmosphere that's a joy to experience.

And the game wasn't just a demonstration of Nintendo's new console's capabilities, it was also a demonstration of Nintendo's new controller with its fancy new second analog stick and analog shoulder buttons. The former is used to aim Luigi's flashlight and the nozzle of the Poltergust while the latter are used to to suck in and expel from the vacuum -- with analog precision. Which isn't actually useful in the game at all, but dammit if Nintendo didn't need to do something with their new tech.

Admittedly, Luigi's Mansion wasn't the best title to holdover new consumers during a launch period -- it's short and lacks significant variety. But as a title you can go back to now, I think the experience that's put together works extremely well. There's only so much you can do with ghostbusting in a single building, and Nintendo covers it extremely well. My only problem with the game arises from its fixed camera angle; oftentimes I would find myself losing a ghost because my flashlight or Poltergust wasn't aimed where I thought it was.

If you want to run through a very short yet extremely focused title, definitely give this game a shot.

One last thing -- the music in this game is frighteningly catchy. Seriously, I've had the main tune stuck in my head for days now. Must... not... whistle...

TV and Lust: http://www.tvandlust.net

Category:

Gaming

Tags:

• review
• gameplay
• nintendo
• gamecube
• luigi
• luigi's mansion
• halloween
• video game

[SilverMongooseVideos]

Really liked the review minus one thing. Opening a review video with the opening of the game is very overdone. I've seen the Luigi's Mansion opening more times on reviews then I have in the actual game.

[hetnkik]

@SilverMongooseVideos Eh, I was just going for the whole spooky build-up thing. And it's not even the full opening. Cut out around 20 seconds of that, 'cause that would have just been ridiculous. But I can understand how you're tired of seeing it. Definitely matched what I wanted to do, though.

[NintendmanMidget]

@hetnkik what ARE the 7 deadly sins exactly?

[hetnkik]

@NintendmanMidget Wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony. I suggest visiting Wikipedia or something if you'd like to learn all about them. Or hell, I would be surprised if there weren't 40 videos here on YouTube that can teach you all about them. Don't think the comments section of a silly review of a 9 year old game would be the best source of information on the matter. Also, rent Seven starring Brad Pitt.

Now, if you want to talk about Smurfs, you've come to the right place.

[NEWdumbich123455432]

Nice review, and very funny, I liked it :D

[ZombieBrainsDev]

Awesome username. He was one of my favorite characters from that book.

[Carlthecommenter]

Epic Ending

[SilverMongooseVideos]

@hetnkik Ah ic. Fair enough.

[Orbital74]

Great review! Definitely a great game.

[BennSaturn]

Great Review! I wonder if can find this game on Wii's Virtual Console, that would be fun!