Luigi's Mansion - GameCube

Nintendo’s first launch title for the GameCube is Luigi’s Mansion. In this game, Luigi has won himself his very own mansion. Upon checking the mansion for the first time, Luigi’s brother Mario discovers the mansion is haunted and is captured by King Terasa, head of the ghosts. You must brave the haunted mansion, remove the ghosts and save Mario.

The gameplay in Luigi’s mansion is similar to the classic film Ghostbusters. To deal with the ghosts, Luigi has a modified vacuum cleaner strapped to his back. To catch a ghost, you must stun it with your flashlight, and then trap it in your beam. Each room in the mansion has its own set of ghosts and puzzles to solve.

If only Luigi’s life was so easy. The challenge comes when the ghosts cannot be stunned by your flashlight. They start to disappear when you look at them, so Luigi must figure out how he can catch them. For example, one particular ghost can only be caught when he is yawning, so Luigi must bide his time and then pounce.

To add more gameplay depth, Luigi can learn how to use fire, water and ice. Using the correct element helps you capture ghosts and the same holds true for certain element-based puzzles.

The graphics in Luigi’s Mansion are breathtakingly good, amply displaying the amount of power the GameCube has. Texture quality, polygon count, graphical touches like bump-mapping and particle effects all make for one gorgeous game. The audio is equally amazing: Luigi sometimes even starts to hum along to the suitably scary music.

In summary, Luigi's Mansion is a beautifully-presented game, with the added attraction of many sub-quests to enhance the playing experience.
more