(Review)
I'll tell you what, when I first heard that Luigi's Mansion was getting a sequel, I was pretty excited. I never owned the original, to be honest; I could never find an affordable copy after I actually got interested in the GameCube classic. However, I had played it a few times at a friend's house and I had seen a Let's Play of it (particulary the Versus LP by AttackingTucans and JoshJepson), so I felt like I could at least somewhat put myself in the same mindset as someone who had already played it. The trailers for the game, the fact that it was going to be on the 3DS, and the massive room for improvement upon the original game's mechanics got me all hyped up; so much so that I planned on getting it launch day. While that didn't exactly happen due to money issues, I was able to get it within the next week though the 3DS eShop. I'll say this straight up: if you own a 3DS, this game is an absolute must-have.
Let's start with the story, shall we? Professor E. Gadd, the scientist who created the Poltergust machine Luigi used in the previous game, has apparently been researching the friendly ghosts of Evershade Valley ever since he helped Luigi rid the mansion in the first game of King Boo. Speaking of the devil, the ghost king himself appears and breaks what's known as the "Dark Moon", hence the game's subtitle. This item is what's keeping the ghosts friendly, and now that it's shattered and spread across the mansions of Evershade Valley, the ghosts have gone haywire and E. Gadd has no other choice but to call in his old pal Luigi to save the day...whether Luigi wants to or not. The green guy reluctantly "agrees" to help E. Gadd recover the pieces of the Dark Moon by infiltrating the five mansions one-by-one, and so begins our adventure.
Unlike the first Luigi's Mansion, which focused on one huge mansion that was explored in large chunks, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is split up into individual missions, tasking the player in exploring portions of each mansion bit by bit. Every mission has a seperate ranking, as well, giving you one, two, or three stars based on health lost, time spent, ghosts sucked up, and money collected. Whether this setup is better than the original or not is up to personal opinion, but I found that it gives a new layer to the progression of the game. It makes it so exploring the mansions (which grow in size and complexity as the game goes on) doesn't fell incredibly overwhelming, and provides well-placed checkpoints for going back to nab all the collectables, which there are plenty of. The game rewards you for exploring every area of every mansion, giving completionists a run for their money. Every mansion has a set of twelve gems lying around, usually guarded by a puzzle or some form of time trial. Every seperate mission also includes a Boo, the most of which are surprisngly well-hidden; you'll definitely need to train your eye to find every last one of them (amassing to 32 of them). However, collecting every Boo, gem, and grabbing all the money you see isn't really all that worth it; if you're going for 100% completion it is, but if you're just doing it for the rewards, you could end up just a tad disappointed. The rewards aren't exactly worth the time spent for getting them, which is my only major gripe with the game. While finding every jewel and coin in the first Luigi's Mansion was encouarged and gave a different overall ending depending on how much you collected, finding more cash in Dark Moon only gives you five upgrades, and past that, having more money has no impact on the game whatsoever. Finding every Boo in a mansion gives you an extra time trial bonus level (one per mansion), which are pretty fun for me, but might not be for other players. I haven't yet found out what the reward for getting every gem is, if only because searching for them all is so hit-and-miss that I've given up trying. All that being said, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon doesn't have much replayability, but is still fun in the first playthrough.
If you want to extend your playtime in Dark Moon in ways other than replaying the same level over and over hoping and praying for the three-star rating, you might want to give the multiplayer a shot, which is surprisingly really fun. It's called ScareScraper, named due to the fact that it has to do with you and your teammates progressing up floors that increase in difficulty in a large tower in an attempt to reach the roof. There are three game modes: Hunter, in which you attempt to capture every ghost on a floor before advancing all while under a time limit, Rush, in which you scramble for the exit of a floor within another time limit, and Polterpup, in which you and your teammates hunt down the elusive ghost dog seen in the single player mode to move up a floor. The amount of floors can be chosen between 5 and 25 and the three difficulty modes are Normal, Hard, and Expert. The way the match can be tailored is perfect, because it allows you to adjust the difficulty for how many players they are and how skilled they all are. You can play alone if you want, but the only mode that really allows that is Hunter on Normal difficulty; the other two modes and difficulties are tailored more towards a full team, so you'll need friends to get the full experience. If you don't have friends who want to play, don't worry, because you can also hop into an online match. The multiplayer is diverse enough so that each player can have their own preferred settings and play style, so I'd recommend trying each one to find out what you like best. The multiplayer mode is simple, but will definitely keep you going back to Dark Moon if you really get into it, which gives the game at least some form of replayability. If you must know, I personally like Hunter on Hard with a team of 3 or 4.
The artistic direction of the game as a whole is definitely something to be a appreciated. Every puzzle doesn't exactly pop out as much as it does blend into the surroundings, which is a good thing in many ways. It makes the environments feel more natural, and some of the puzzles can actually give you a real challenge. Recent Zelda games haven't gotten me stuck as often as they used to, but Luigi's Mansion 2 had a couple moments where I got completely stumped on where to go (which isn't a bad thing at all; trust me on this). All five mansions are very unique in their designs, which prevents the areas from getting bland and repetitive. I find exploring each one is relatively fun; I just wish there was a bonus "open house" mission in which I could explore the entirety of the mansion without being restricted by story-based blockades. As with Nintendo standard, if the game's environments are unique, you can bet the music will be, too. The music is very atmospheric, as in it's not something I'd listen to outside of the game, but within the game, it works wonders. If you're simply walking around for a while, Luigi will hum along with the music, which is something fans of the previous game will recognize. Speaking of Mr. Green over here, Luigi's Mansion is a perfect example of why I prefer Luigi over Mario. While Mario is an emotionless everyman (with a few exceptions here and there), Luigi actually has a very defined personality in this game. It's the little things that make me feel bad for him having to go through what the ghosts keep throwing at him. For example, after rigorously searching the second mansion for a special key, the Polterpup swoops in and nabs it and tosses it out a window. Luigi sighs in annoyance, but quickly sucks it up and gets on with his quest. The technical advancements in the 3DS' specs allow for Luigi to have very defined facial expresions and movements, which gives more life to the character than anything I've seen in a long time. This is by far the best representation of Luigi you will ever see, even more so than the Luigi in the Paper Mario subseries. The writing befinits the characters of both Luigi and Professor E. Gadd, making the two some of the most lovable, funny, and charming Mario characters in existence.
Funnily enough, I've been rambling about everything except what makes this a game: the gameplay. It's virtually unchanged from the first Luigi's Mansion: you have a flashlight and a vacuum. Hit the ghosts with the light (used with A), and suck up the ghosts (hold down R to suck and pull back on the Circle Pad opposite the ghost's escape path). Sounds simple enough, right? Well, not exactly. Some ghosts can only be stunned with the flashlight after they deal out an attack or after you yank off their sunglasses, and sucking up a ghost requires you to pay attention to your surroundings so you don't get attacked by another ghost and lose more health and the ghost you were going for. Sucking up more than one ghost at a time for a bigger money bonus all while dodging environmental hazards and free-roaming ghosts requires some actual skill, which I give the game credit for. Players who are new to Luigi's Mansion as a whole might take a short while to get used to the controls, but veterans should be able to pick the game up and play right away, but while still being given a challenge. Dark Moon brings in a new set of ghosts completely seperate from the past game, and while the designs of said ghosts are more plain than the last, they have completely different behavoirs and attack patterns, providing a difficulty curve different from the last game. If you're worried about it being too easy, don't be. I actually found myself dying a couple times, most notably during boss fights. It's a good change of pace from the other Mario-based titles on 3DS which are a teetering a bit too close to short and easy. The addition of the Dark-Light Device also gives returning players something new to use, forcing the player to search even harder than before to find what they need.
Even if you've never played Luigi's Mansion before, I definitely think you should give the sequel a shot if you own a 3DS. The artistic direction, puzzles, multiplayer, graphics, atmosphere, and overall length makes this title well worth the $40 price tag. Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is available retail and on the 3DS eShop.
I'll tell you what, when I first heard that Luigi's Mansion was getting a sequel, I was pretty excited. I never owned the original, to be honest; I could never find an affordable copy after I actually got interested in the GameCube classic. However, I had played it a few times at a friend's house and I had seen a Let's Play of it (particulary the Versus LP by AttackingTucans and JoshJepson), so I felt like I could at least somewhat put myself in the same mindset as someone who had already played it. The trailers for the game, the fact that it was going to be on the 3DS, and the massive room for improvement upon the original game's mechanics got me all hyped up; so much so that I planned on getting it launch day. While that didn't exactly happen due to money issues, I was able to get it within the next week though the 3DS eShop. I'll say this straight up: if you own a 3DS, this game is an absolute must-have.
Let's start with the story, shall we? Professor E. Gadd, the scientist who created the Poltergust machine Luigi used in the previous game, has apparently been researching the friendly ghosts of Evershade Valley ever since he helped Luigi rid the mansion in the first game of King Boo. Speaking of the devil, the ghost king himself appears and breaks what's known as the "Dark Moon", hence the game's subtitle. This item is what's keeping the ghosts friendly, and now that it's shattered and spread across the mansions of Evershade Valley, the ghosts have gone haywire and E. Gadd has no other choice but to call in his old pal Luigi to save the day...whether Luigi wants to or not. The green guy reluctantly "agrees" to help E. Gadd recover the pieces of the Dark Moon by infiltrating the five mansions one-by-one, and so begins our adventure.
Unlike the first Luigi's Mansion, which focused on one huge mansion that was explored in large chunks, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is split up into individual missions, tasking the player in exploring portions of each mansion bit by bit. Every mission has a seperate ranking, as well, giving you one, two, or three stars based on health lost, time spent, ghosts sucked up, and money collected. Whether this setup is better than the original or not is up to personal opinion, but I found that it gives a new layer to the progression of the game. It makes it so exploring the mansions (which grow in size and complexity as the game goes on) doesn't fell incredibly overwhelming, and provides well-placed checkpoints for going back to nab all the collectables, which there are plenty of. The game rewards you for exploring every area of every mansion, giving completionists a run for their money. Every mansion has a set of twelve gems lying around, usually guarded by a puzzle or some form of time trial. Every seperate mission also includes a Boo, the most of which are surprisngly well-hidden; you'll definitely need to train your eye to find every last one of them (amassing to 32 of them). However, collecting every Boo, gem, and grabbing all the money you see isn't really all that worth it; if you're going for 100% completion it is, but if you're just doing it for the rewards, you could end up just a tad disappointed. The rewards aren't exactly worth the time spent for getting them, which is my only major gripe with the game. While finding every jewel and coin in the first Luigi's Mansion was encouarged and gave a different overall ending depending on how much you collected, finding more cash in Dark Moon only gives you five upgrades, and past that, having more money has no impact on the game whatsoever. Finding every Boo in a mansion gives you an extra time trial bonus level (one per mansion), which are pretty fun for me, but might not be for other players. I haven't yet found out what the reward for getting every gem is, if only because searching for them all is so hit-and-miss that I've given up trying. All that being said, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon doesn't have much replayability, but is still fun in the first playthrough.
If you want to extend your playtime in Dark Moon in ways other than replaying the same level over and over hoping and praying for the three-star rating, you might want to give the multiplayer a shot, which is surprisingly really fun. It's called ScareScraper, named due to the fact that it has to do with you and your teammates progressing up floors that increase in difficulty in a large tower in an attempt to reach the roof. There are three game modes: Hunter, in which you attempt to capture every ghost on a floor before advancing all while under a time limit, Rush, in which you scramble for the exit of a floor within another time limit, and Polterpup, in which you and your teammates hunt down the elusive ghost dog seen in the single player mode to move up a floor. The amount of floors can be chosen between 5 and 25 and the three difficulty modes are Normal, Hard, and Expert. The way the match can be tailored is perfect, because it allows you to adjust the difficulty for how many players they are and how skilled they all are. You can play alone if you want, but the only mode that really allows that is Hunter on Normal difficulty; the other two modes and difficulties are tailored more towards a full team, so you'll need friends to get the full experience. If you don't have friends who want to play, don't worry, because you can also hop into an online match. The multiplayer is diverse enough so that each player can have their own preferred settings and play style, so I'd recommend trying each one to find out what you like best. The multiplayer mode is simple, but will definitely keep you going back to Dark Moon if you really get into it, which gives the game at least some form of replayability. If you must know, I personally like Hunter on Hard with a team of 3 or 4.
The artistic direction of the game as a whole is definitely something to be a appreciated. Every puzzle doesn't exactly pop out as much as it does blend into the surroundings, which is a good thing in many ways. It makes the environments feel more natural, and some of the puzzles can actually give you a real challenge. Recent Zelda games haven't gotten me stuck as often as they used to, but Luigi's Mansion 2 had a couple moments where I got completely stumped on where to go (which isn't a bad thing at all; trust me on this). All five mansions are very unique in their designs, which prevents the areas from getting bland and repetitive. I find exploring each one is relatively fun; I just wish there was a bonus "open house" mission in which I could explore the entirety of the mansion without being restricted by story-based blockades. As with Nintendo standard, if the game's environments are unique, you can bet the music will be, too. The music is very atmospheric, as in it's not something I'd listen to outside of the game, but within the game, it works wonders. If you're simply walking around for a while, Luigi will hum along with the music, which is something fans of the previous game will recognize. Speaking of Mr. Green over here, Luigi's Mansion is a perfect example of why I prefer Luigi over Mario. While Mario is an emotionless everyman (with a few exceptions here and there), Luigi actually has a very defined personality in this game. It's the little things that make me feel bad for him having to go through what the ghosts keep throwing at him. For example, after rigorously searching the second mansion for a special key, the Polterpup swoops in and nabs it and tosses it out a window. Luigi sighs in annoyance, but quickly sucks it up and gets on with his quest. The technical advancements in the 3DS' specs allow for Luigi to have very defined facial expresions and movements, which gives more life to the character than anything I've seen in a long time. This is by far the best representation of Luigi you will ever see, even more so than the Luigi in the Paper Mario subseries. The writing befinits the characters of both Luigi and Professor E. Gadd, making the two some of the most lovable, funny, and charming Mario characters in existence.
Funnily enough, I've been rambling about everything except what makes this a game: the gameplay. It's virtually unchanged from the first Luigi's Mansion: you have a flashlight and a vacuum. Hit the ghosts with the light (used with A), and suck up the ghosts (hold down R to suck and pull back on the Circle Pad opposite the ghost's escape path). Sounds simple enough, right? Well, not exactly. Some ghosts can only be stunned with the flashlight after they deal out an attack or after you yank off their sunglasses, and sucking up a ghost requires you to pay attention to your surroundings so you don't get attacked by another ghost and lose more health and the ghost you were going for. Sucking up more than one ghost at a time for a bigger money bonus all while dodging environmental hazards and free-roaming ghosts requires some actual skill, which I give the game credit for. Players who are new to Luigi's Mansion as a whole might take a short while to get used to the controls, but veterans should be able to pick the game up and play right away, but while still being given a challenge. Dark Moon brings in a new set of ghosts completely seperate from the past game, and while the designs of said ghosts are more plain than the last, they have completely different behavoirs and attack patterns, providing a difficulty curve different from the last game. If you're worried about it being too easy, don't be. I actually found myself dying a couple times, most notably during boss fights. It's a good change of pace from the other Mario-based titles on 3DS which are a teetering a bit too close to short and easy. The addition of the Dark-Light Device also gives returning players something new to use, forcing the player to search even harder than before to find what they need.
Even if you've never played Luigi's Mansion before, I definitely think you should give the sequel a shot if you own a 3DS. The artistic direction, puzzles, multiplayer, graphics, atmosphere, and overall length makes this title well worth the $40 price tag. Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is available retail and on the 3DS eShop.
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