Super Mario Galaxy is considered by many to be one of the best Mario games ever made. With tight, responsive controls, inventive and engaging platforming, and memorable music and atmosphere, Super Mario Galaxy is easily one of the most beloved and influential 3-D platformers ever produced. Now, early footage of the game surfaces online for the first time that showcases the game all the way back in E3 2006.
2006 was certainly a big year for Nintendo. With the launch of the Nintendo Wii back in 2005, along with all of the creative usages of its motion controls, it was undeniably clear that Nintendo had a lot more up its sleeve than most may have initially given the studio credit for. Though, the subsequent launch of Super Mario Galaxy may very well have provided the Wii with a system selling title.
Recently, footage from E3 2006 surfaced online, provided by Project Starworld, that showed early gameplay footage of Super Mario Galaxy. This was back when Nintendo still held press conferences at E3 before opting to digital only events, such as Nintendo Direct. In any case, it's fascinating to see the subtle differences that the earliest build of the game had, as opposed to the final product the gaming community would receive the following year.
Upon first glance, the user interface is definitely different from the final version of the game and instead of the cursor being blue, it's yellow. The star bit counter is also in bottom left corner rather than being in the bottom right corner. One curious little detail that some viewers may have missed is the fact that once the star appears, the same sound clip from Super Mario Sunshine that plays whenever the player would unlock a shine is used as a placeholder.
In any case, it's interesting to see what is essentially a long lost piece of gaming history. The Nintendo Wii was one of the most successful gaming consoles ever made and with it came a large variety of flagship titles for players to choose from. This included games like Super Mario Galaxy, the original Xenoblade Chronicles, Wii Sports, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
Although, it makes one consider what the future holds for 3-D Mario games at this point. Considering that at one time, Super Mario Galaxy was very much the future, given how much difference there is between it and its previous entries. With Super Mario Odyssey still fresh in most people's minds, it will be interesting to see what Nintendo does next.
Super Mario Galaxy is available on the Nintendo Wii and part of Super Mario 3D All-Stars on Nintendo Switch.