For the longest while, Super Mario Galaxy modding seemed like nothing but a pipe dream. After all, the Galaxy games are some of the most complex 3D platformers Nintendo has ever released, with advanced gravity mechanics, detailed graphics and a host of clever programming tricks to keep things running well even on the notoriously underpowered Wii hardware.
So, the idea of fan-made projects replicating that seemed unlikely to us.
But now things have changed. With remakes of 64, Sunshine and 3D World in development, along with full-length original games like Neo Mario Galaxy and Mario Galaxy 2.5, it’s been an amazing time for the community and its work.
And one of the best projects of them all is Super Mario Gravity. Created by Louis Miles in 2019, the mod aims to be a full sequel to the original Mario Galaxy, with new levels, characters, mechanics and items. It’s an incredible-looking project with some fantastically designed levels and a game which could almost pass off as an official sequel based on the recent trailers and demos:
So today, we’re going to interview Louis himself and find out all about this awesome project. Are you ready folks? Let’s go!
The Interview
Let’s start with some background info first. Who is Louis Miles?
Hi, I’m Louis Miles, 24-year-old game modder and 3D modeler from Germany. I started game modding at the age of 13, creating custom level mods for various Mario games, including Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart DS, and Mario 64 DS but also older classics like Super Mario Kart from the 90’s, but eventually I got stuck with Super Mario Galaxy.
How did you get into gaming? What was your first game?
In my early childhood years, I didn’t have too much contact with video games. At the age of about 5 I got the game console “V.Smile” with “Mickey’s Magical Adventure” and also point-and-click games like “Pettson and Findus” on the PC.
Fun but nothing groundbreaking, haha.
I also got a few good but short Disney platformers for the PC like “Donald Duck: Goin Quackers” at the time, which was probably my first real three-dimensional game.
This was one of Louis’ childhood games
Real gaming didn’t start until I finally got the Nintendo DS for my 10th birthday with games like New Super Mario Bros and Mario Kart. Back then, almost everyone in my school class had one, so I had to follow suit!
What about your first Mario game?
My first Mario game was Mario Kart on the DS. The game was all the rage in the neighbourhood back then and made for many exciting duels, especially in battle mode!
What games are you playing at the moment?
At the moment I’m playing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and occasionally Mario Kart 8 and F-Zero 99.
Louis is currently playing the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
How did you discover Super Mario Galaxy?
When I finally bought a Wii with my pocket money, it was the first game I had on my radar.
I saw it on the TV commercials back then and was absolutely blown away by the unusual game concept of walking on planets, not to mention the gravity games.
I was even more blown away when I played it for the first time. It was an incredible gaming experience!
Onto modding now. How did you get interested in video game mods?
Back in 2011, at the age of 12, I saw videos on YouTube of game mods such as Mario Kart Wii Custom Tracks and the very first custom levels for Mario Galaxy. It was very interesting to see how creatively custom content was combined with existing assets. At that time I had no idea how to softmod my video game console to play or create mods, but these videos inspired me to make some first drawings and notes for my own levels and tracks. Among them were the first planets for Mario Gravity, like the cube-like planet with the house that you can see in many trailers. This was more than 10 years ago now…
What about Super Mario Galaxy ones in particular? What made you decide to mod those games?
I found it simply incredible how gravity plays such a special role in the game, unlike anything I’ve ever seen in any other game. Constructing my own planets was an alien challenge that I really wanted to tackle.
Did any previous projects inspire you here?
A big influence for me was the Super Mario Galaxy 2.5 project, the first Galaxy mod that was in development with new levels and planets, which was unfortunately cancelled. I still remember playing the demo of the mod on my Wii.
Another project that inspired me was Newer Super Mario Bros Wii. It was so incredible how they made a mod with so much of their own passionately created content with their own style and released a completely original game as a mod.
Why are almost all Super Mario Galaxy hacks mods of Galaxy 2 rather than Galaxy 1?
On the one hand, Galaxy 2 contains all the items from the first game plus new ones, including Yoshi, and on the other hand, Galaxy 2 is easier to mod thanks to its improved internal structure and more customizable settings, which are indeed mainly defined in Excel-like tables, whereas in the first game, they are rather shrink-wrapped in game code and much more complicated to edit.
This means that Galaxy 2 not only gives you more options but also much more freedom.
What inspired you to create Super Mario Gravity?
In 2015 and 2016, I started experimenting with the Galaxy Engine and created the first small levels, but only as a small occasional project, without the real idea of making several complete levels. When I saw the first trailer for the Neo Mario Galaxy mod at that time, which came with self-created and remixed levels in a mod pack, it also inspired me to develop several levels packed in a mod for a long game fun for others.
Caption: This is one of Super Mario Gravity’s first test levels
And what’s the story for this one? We can see a new spaceship with a new alien-like character that teams up with Mario. But what’s their goal here?
The story begins with a spaceship armada invading the Mushroom Kingdom and abducting Peach and other inhabitants to a distant galaxy. The new yellow character named Lubert, who is travelling through the galaxy in his spaceship, was also attacked by this armada and had to make an emergency landing in Mario’s garden. After Mario and Lubert meet, they decide to follow the armada into the galaxy and collect stars to power the spaceship to travel to the far reaches of the galaxy.
Does Bowser play a big part in this title? Or is the antagonist potentially someone new?
Of course, Bowser should not be missing, but he teams up with a new alien villain in Gravity. But I don’t want to give too much away about that yet 😉
What’s the actual game structure like? The demo uses Mario’s house and a 4-level select menu, but presumably, there’s a bit more to that in the final version…
In the final version, the game also starts in the house, but the HUB will be the spaceship with which you can move around on world maps and unlock galaxies.
Similar to Galaxy 2, you can unlock several NPCs and rooms on the spaceship.
How do you design levels for the game? The demo has some incredibly well-designed stages already…
Many thanks for the feedback! 🙂
I take a lot of time planning the levels. I doodle a lot of level ideas and layouts on paper.
Only when I’m happy with the level do I continue on the PC. I create the required 3D models and textures, import them into the level and place enemies, items, cameras and more on them. This requires a lot of testing because, unlike in freely accessible game engines such as Unreal, you don’t have the most sophisticated tools and therefore have to spend time testing a lot of things in-game instead of playing them directly in the editor. The 3D models are also constantly revised and re-imported.
Then comes the polishing, where each section is put through its paces and tested for playability on the Wii. This can actually be one of the most difficult and time-consuming steps, especially if the level does not run smoothly on the Wii and requires a lot of repair work.
This was also one of the reasons why the release of both demos was delayed so often.
As you can see, Super Mario Gravity’s levels change quite a bit during their development
A for Super Mario Gravity takes shape in the Galaxy 2 level editor
Do you have a favourite out of the 4 in that version?
I think Gravbuster Galaxy is my favourite because I’ve taken gravity to the extreme in this level, and because I’m such a big fan of that spacey atmosphere.
What about favourite levels we haven’t seen yet? Any cool concepts you want to share with us here?
One of my favourite levels that hasn’t been shown yet is a large pizza spaceship where large pizzas are prepared for Bowser and his henchmen. Mario has to use these pizzas as a platform but avoid the knives and spatulas. At the end of the level, you have to fight a big bad pizza oven robot.
Here is a little work-in-progress picture of the boss:
This pizza oven will be a boss in Super Mario Gravity
Compared to the regular version of Super Mario Galaxy, your levels seem a lot more… grounded thematically, with places that feel like NPCs could actually live there. Is this going to be a running theme?
I’m trying to breathe a bit more life into it to give the player the feeling of being in a lively level, especially if it’s a big level like Spin City. The first galaxy, “Milky Way Valley”, is a small village where Mario travels from planet to planet in the neighbourhood and helps them deal with a piranha plant infestation.
The game is also quite a bit harder than either Galaxy 1 or 2 from what we’ve seen. Is it intended for players that have a lot of experience with the original titles?
In terms of difficulty, I try to keep it more or less the same as the original, but with a twist so that even experienced players can enjoy a nice change of pace.
There’s also quite a bit of custom coding here, with new actors and objects galore. What’s it like creating these for Super Mario Galaxy 2?
Apart from the red coins, an improved power star spawner and the flying red star restore, there aren’t many new actors in the project so far. Mario Galaxy 2 comes with many simple and highly customizable actors as well as a well-thought-out switching system that allows me to get creative and get the best out of it. Things like moving cars, moving satellites or flying ghost road parts use simple actors that move along a rail or spline.
The custom code from the demo like the red coins and the red flying star restore are free to use actors that other modders have coded and made available for others to use.
I got support from the modder Evanbowl who helped me to compile his red coin patch and other code for the Mario Gravity demo.
Do you have any favourite additions there?
I think the red coins are a super addition, which not only have a variety in a collection task but can also be equipped with a timer, similar to Super Mario Sunshine (which does not yet appear in the demo).
According to the description, new and changed power-ups are going to be a thing here. What sort of new ideas do you have planned for this?
I plan to replace the spring power-up with a pogo stick, which will make it a bit easier to control as I’ll be using it in tricky areas that also play with gravity.
The Spring Mushroom power-up will be changed into a pogo stick instead
Another idea is a power-up which, when collected, allows Mario to pick up and move certain objects for a short time using the Wiimote.
Are any power-ups from other Mario games going to be brought into the fray?
I had also planned the Double Cherry from 3D World, but it hasn’t been realised yet.
The Double Cherry may make a return in Super Mario Gravity
What’s happening with bosses in Super Mario Gravity? Are they mostly going to be the vanilla ones or all new opponents?
A mixture of both. Bowser battles in particular will be structured differently than in the original Galaxy games.
Some new bosses, such as the large robot satellite that can be seen in the current trailer, are also in the works.
Vanilla bosses, which are plentiful in the original game, will be adapted with new arenas and slightly different attacks or tactics, such as the Poltergeist boss from the Haunty Highway Galaxy in the demo.
How’s the soundtrack here? Are more songs going to be remixes or entirely new compositions?
So far there are many fantastic new compositions in the same style as the Galaxy soundtracks, but also some great remixes.
They all sound really good and a lot of time and passion has certainly gone into creating new melodies. You can already listen to some of the songs on the SoundCloud and YouTube channels of Trinkets’ Toad Symphony, Solargress and Linus Olsson Music. Very worth listening to!
What are your favourite songs so far?
It’s hard to say. All songs are great, but one song that I always find catchy is Gravbuster’s theme. I find the melody combined with the choice of instruments and effects very successful. But that’s also the case with all the other songs.
Will any of the original voice actors return here? Or will most characters use their original voice clips?
A crazy idea would be to write to the German voice actor of SpongeBob, who is also active on social media, and ask if he would like to do the voice of the new alien character. There won’t be much spoken dialogue, rather in important big cutscenes, but throughout the game, there will be speech bubbles with simple sounds like “Hey” or “Super”, just like in the original game. So it would be very little work and time for a voice actor.
Either way, Gravity isn’t the only awesome Galaxy mod in development. What are some of your other favourites from this community?
Difficult question, they are actually all really good! I’m looking forward to Super Mario Starshine, Super Mario Galaxy 63 & 64 and 3D World Galaxy, which give well-known games a new Mario Galaxy look, as well as mods with new content such as The Lost Levels. Neo Mario Galaxy is also one of my favourite mods, as it offers remastered and completely new levels with beautifully designed 3D models.
Still, Gravity is a huge success, with lots of people online playing the demo. How does it feel to know so many people are enjoying this game?
It makes me so happy to see people having so much fun on this new adventure! Especially after all the work and time that has gone into this project.
I also find it very interesting to see how differently players approach and play a level.
I hope that the success of this project will encourage other people to get into Galaxy modding!
Do you have any other mod plans for when this game is completed?
Once I’m done, I’m definitely not going to stop modding Galaxy! But after that, I think I’ll start working on other games and smaller mod projects. I also have an interest in creating new tracks for Mario Kart, as well as new levels for Super Mario 3D World.
Also at the moment, I like to work on other smaller crazy mini projects besides Gravity like a repair patch for an old Donald Duck N64 game, where I’m fixing midis and sounds.
At the moment I’m also familiarising myself with the Unreal Engine and might plan to work on my own indie game after the release of Gravity.
Finally, what advice would you give someone looking to get into Super Mario Galaxy 2 modding, or game development as a whole?
If you want to start with Galaxy Modding, you definitely have to reckon with a big enemy: Time. The Mario Galaxy games are probably one of the most complex Mario games that require a lot of setup for the levels and will probably lead to a lot of trial and error and crashes during the first tests. However the community has provided great tutorials and documentation. I would recommend taking some time to familiarise yourself with the structure and layout of the game. When you are ready, you can start with the first tests and levels.
But I’m sure that in real game development, time can be a big, unpredictable enemy too. I gained a lot of experience at game jams, where even if you have planned it well with the team, the realisation can often take much longer and also differently than you would have expected.
But that’s exactly what makes game development a fun challenge. Expect the unexpected!
Honestly, I couldn’t have put it better myself. Game development is a very unpredictable beast indeed, and the quicker you understand that, the better your work will be.
Because you just can’t plan it all out in advance.
Trust me, I’ve tried. I’ve tried to come up with meticulously crafted design docs and plans for games and to figure out the concepts in every level before putting them together.
And it’s just never worked out that well. What works on paper doesn’t necessarily work in the engine, and what you learn while experimenting with game mechanics is often something that just can’t be replicated with a pen and paper.
So don’t overthink things when designing your game. Take it one step at a time, and go into each level with nothing more than a vague idea for what the theme and mechanics should be.
That way, you’ll create levels that are both creative and flow well, and which integrate ideas and mechanics you’d never have otherwise even thought of.
Either way, that’s the interview done and dusted. Thanks to Louis for his amazing work on Super Mario Gravity, and for providing so many useful resources for the interview…
And thanks to you guys for reading to the end. So what do you think about Mario Gravity as a game so far? Are you excited to see what the future holds for the Super Mario Galaxy modding scene? What other interesting projects are you excited about at the moment?
Leave your thoughts in the comments below, on social media, or our Discord server today!