Super Mario Galaxy 2 is quite simply the greatest game of all time.
The plot is kept simpler than the first game but, then again, Mario isn't really a story driven franchise, is it? It actually forgets what happened in the original Galaxy and starts all over again. Peach invites Mario to the castle to watch shooting stars. On the way there, he sees a Luma who is probably lost. He gets a liking for Mario and gives him the power to spin. When he gets to the castle, Bowser who is now the size of a planet, kidnaps Peach and carries her to space. The Lumas, who were there with Mario's Luma, make a launch star and send Mario to a space mechanic named Lubba. He has a planetoid shaped ship that runs on power stars and since Bowser stole them, it can't move. Mario found one and gave it to Lubba. In thanks, he redesigned the ship to look like Mario's face and called it the Starship Mario. Mario being the new captain of the ship must find those power stars. I know it's not much, but Shigeru Miyamoto stated himself that he wanted little story as possible.
Gameplay is similar to that of its predecessor. There's spherical worlds with gravitational pulls and black holes and star bits and launch stars and everything from the original Galaxy. The crazy, new level designs are where the game shines though. They make for plenty replay value as well as the even more varied objectives to get the power stars. Speaking of which, there are 40+ entirely new galaxies to explore with new objectives to boot. So don't fall into the trap thinking this is just a sequel. This game has way more new than anything else.
And If the new variety of objectives doesn't cut it, then the new power-ups will. first off is Yoshi. He controls better than ever and can swallow almost anything. He also gets 3 new power-ups for his exclusive use. The dash pepper lets him run at exhilarating speeds. The blimp fruit lets him float like a balloon. And the bulb berry lets him see invisible ground. Mario himself gets 3 new power-ups. The cloud flower which lets him create cloud platforms in mid-air, the rock mushroom which lets him roll like a giant boulder to crash into obstacles, and the drill which lets him dig through dirt. Some power-ups return from the original Galaxy, like the bee suit, the boo mushroom, and the fire flower.
The game runs on the same engine as the original game so you're not going to see a major difference or change in the graphics. That's not saying much though. You still can't help but to drool over these gorgeous visuals. Much like in the first game, the characters animate fluidly, there's advanced water and lighting effects, there is a ton of detail poured into even the little things. If there is one difference from the original Galaxy, the levels in this game are more colorful and vibrant. In the first game, it captured the feeling of being in space with its dark worlds. But in this one, there's less of that and more happy-looking worlds and colors and I think I like it better as it delivers more of that Mario charm.
As with the first game and every Mario game before, control is spectacular and very tight and responsive. You have traditional analog control of Mario, but at the same time, you utilize the Wii remote mainly by pointing at the screen to collect star bits and shaking to spin Mario. But this game doesn't abuse the remote like some other games on the Wii. You will use the remote in unique ways but you don't have that gimmicky feeling that the remote has been pushed upon you just because it's there.
Gone is the confusing hub world from the original game and replaced with a world map similar to Super Mario Bros. 3 or New Super Mario Bros. It's quick, simple, and it works. When not at the world map, you're bound to be tooling around on the Starship Mario. Running around getting used to the controls and walking upside-down is easier than ever.
Also from New Super Mario Bros. Wii is the Cosmic Guide. Whenever you die a bunch of times, you will have the option to have Rosalina show you and complete the level for you. She will get you a bronze star though. You have to do it yourself in order for it to count. This is helpful to newer players, but veteran players will curse themselves for having the game trying to help them beat a level.
Returning from the original is the multiplayer but receives some major and much-needed upgrades. The second person can now kill enemies ands well as grab coins and power-ups. It's still not necessary to have 2 players but it is a neccessary upgrade.
The soundtrack is also better than the original's. It is once again fully orchestrated. and it sounds amazing. It mostly contains most of the old Mario songs remixed and they sound better than ever. Even in the very last level there's songs from the original Galaxy. You also have new songs in which they all perfectly fit the mood.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 wholly exceeded my expectations and is probably my favorite game of all time. I'm not like that either. I have been playing video games for over 10 years and I tend to stick with the classics like Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time, but this one blew my head off. Gee, if there is a game that can be better than the greatest game of all time, it would be this. I should also note that this is the true 25th anniversary title for Mario. Unlike Mario All-Stars for Wii, this game shows the legacy and culmination of 25 years of gaming with the world's most famous gaming character in one masterful game. With this amazing package you get the perfect game with all elements nearly flawless that lasts weeks to finish entirely. It also took everything that made the original a classic and made them even better. Few games are this polished. I don't give a damn if you have to pay $199 to buy a Wii and spend another $50 on a copy of the game, but if you haven't played this incredible game, you are missing out on the ride of your life and one of the finest gaming accomplishments in the past 15 years.