Luigi’s Mansion 3 Review – The best chapter in the series

You illuminated, you wiped, you’re done.

I have always liked the kind of “horror” of children, I find that it has a special emotional “warmth” in trying to capture images and ideas from the traditional, “adult” horror to bring them into the eyes of the child. The feeling I would say is equivalent to enjoying a hot chocolate, so to speak, while outside it is flooding. Colorful ghosts, candles, spider webs, weird paintings, chandeliers, lightning in the window, trembling melodies, screams and of course, a good, vulnerable, fearsome protagonist. All this makes up a package drawn from the more innocent version of the “scary”, which instead of insecurity inspires you exactly the opposite: security.

You know you’re going to navigate the drawn-out traditional cliches of the genre, having fun with the comic reactions of the character – unlike us, he seems to believe them all – the out-of-date Halloween party – hilarious environments, “metaphysical” mysteries and the eccentric characters. They all look like adorable caricatures of the “real” horror. And that I think comforts me because it turns me into a childish perception of the world, where “evil” is just a farce to laugh at and have fun with. Naive? For sure. But you let her seduce you because she is… comforting and resting, at least for a while.

The Luigi’s Mansion series falls exactly into this category, a combination between Scooby Doo and Ghostbusters, under the innocent but often “sterile” Nintendo prism. And unfortunately this “sterilization”, which is present in the third episode of the series, is what deprives him of anything more than a fun, but somewhat “empty” escape into extreme childhood innocence. In other words, to become an excellent children’s fairy tale. Unlike Mario’s always uplifting and energetic personality, Luigi is more restrained, insecure, and vulnerable, offering a first-rate opportunity for the script to explore something, “go” somewhere, try to “say” something . But of course, there is no such ambition from either Next Level Games or Nintendo.

The humor is there, the characters are special and in general if we isolate and look at it at times, the game is great. It simply does not have “something” to tie it as a whole, because it refuses to give any meaning to the script beyond providing a formal justification for the actions. Expected, but, this time it’s a little more frustrating than in the past. Because the whole wrap is so carefully designed and well-made that you feel more than ever lost an opportunity to lift the line to another level.

In the field of presentation, therefore, play is on the verge of masterpiece. From the expressive and detailed animation that gives all the necessary “cartoonish” exaggeration, but also a slapstick humor, to the wonderful art direction with its drawn shapes and wonderful compositions, to the striking physics of all the objects, to the enjoyable sense of broom, with the HD Rumble performs wonders in the detailed and crystal clear sound effects that convince the world, in music that in addition to excellent compositions, is also characterized by a rich orchestration, contributing greatly to the atmosphere, to … I could go on for many more series, but the point is that Luigi’s Mansion 3 is aesthetically and emotionally, at the highest level.

Both docked and portable, the experience is so sweet and chic that you won’t want to leave the lever on your hands. This delightful feel is what gets the game out of trouble that could be created by design.

For those who aren’t in touch with the series, the core of his gameplay is based on the magical vacuum cleaner Luigi carries with him, through which he interacts with the environments and engages in ghosts or whatever else is in his way. The constant problem of the series was that, in terms of mechanisms, it always seemed a little “poor”, so repetitive. In the third part, they tried to enrich them by making two major additions to the gameplay. One is the suction cup that Luigi can throw at objects and then pulling it with the broom can move or break them and the second is the existence of Gooigi.

Gooigi is a Luigi replica made from … goo, jelly? Think about the Flubber stuff and you’ll understand what I mean. The player can call him whenever he needs to for various types of puzzles, but it is also possible for him to be permanently controlled by a second player, allowing almost the entire game to be played in co-op. But Gooigi is not a “worthy” character – he has ¼ of his life and dissolves when he comes into contact with water – and is useful in certain situations. So, I would say that while there, the game is not primarily co-op oriented.

Co-op makes it very easy in some situations, but it never seems completely necessary. This is good in my opinion, because it offers the “plus” of the company at all times, however you want, but not to the detriment of the single player experience that holds the reins. These two, along with other minor additions, bring several parameters to the mechanisms, making the game’s richest gameplay comfortably composed. The good thing is, of course, that developers have come up with inventive situations to take advantage of these new features, and the game does not seem as stagnant and repetitive as its predecessors.

Unfortunately, of course, not everything has been resolved. Ghost battles remain extremely one-dimensional and monotonous, and their relatively small variety doesn’t help at all. The second major issue worth discussing is the rewards of the game. The main and most frequent reward that the game gives is money. The problem, of course, is that this money is not, in the end, very useful: it does not contribute anywhere to the central design of the title. That is, a player who simply wants to complete the story has no incentive to “hunt” it and collect it. And it’s everywhere!

But with money you can only buy three things. Gold bones that resurrect you whenever you die, a help especially for bosses because in the rest of the game the difficulty is very high and the save points very convenient. One object that reveals to you in which room is a Boo and another that reveals a Gem. Both are about collectables, which – especially Gems – are a lot of fun to “chase” but have nothing to offer. The refusal of the game to complicate its design a bit, introducing some form of character development based on what it collects is understandable up to a point.

On the one hand, it does not want to exclude young people, and on the other hand, such systems offer only an illusion of evolution by artificial means, complicating things for no real reason. Also, they may have felt that Luigi’s gradual empowerment was going against the fragile nature of his character. All of these are valid arguments, but the result is that the game turns to “empty” achievements, a useless otherwise list to fulfill to motivate the player. And here’s where the delightful feeling comes to save the lot. Fortunately, the player enjoys doing so thanks to clever level design, inventive puzzles, “live” environments, and the addictive sense of broom and gear in general. Where, To be fair, it’s always the most important thing, because what to make of the game with hard work and substantial rewards when gameplay makes everything look like a chore. Nevertheless, the sense that the title is a little “unrelated” to its design remains.

n the end I left the structure of the game because there were quite a few complaints about the fragmented and mission-based structure of the second Luigi’s Mansion and most wanted the return of a single space to explore as the first one had. Among them, too. So I have good news to report. The game chooses an average solution, which in my opinion, serves its purpose well. The hotel that plays all the action is divided into floors, each with its own separate theme and boss. Some are larger and some smaller, but none are optional for evolution. The player can move freely between floors, but by design each of them is taken as an autonomous “track”. The hotel has a total of seventeen floors (15 floors + 2 basements) and the designers are given the opportunity to draw their creative inspiration without having to worry about whether it fits realistically with the rest of the hotel. So get ready for some really imaginative floors with unexpected themes.

All this subversive variety also adds some elements of exotic adventure that the previous games in the series did not have and seem to fit in well. So in terms of content, the game didn’t need the occasional filler missions that make you chase a character or enemy on previous floors. These are the only twists and turns in the otherwise extraordinary rhythm of the game. Special mention should also be made of bosses, which for the most part are excellent. Imaginably, both in design and in gameplay, they don’t. Some of them stand comfortably at the top of the line. To conclude, fortunately, Professor E. Gadd’s vacations have been diminished, which in the second part has been disturbingly frequent. Here,

Also to mention that the game also has two multiplayer modes, with which I didn’t have the opportunity to deal extensively with a detailed view. Even if they don’t make a difference, they are definitely a pleasant addition.

Summarizing : Luigi’s Mansion 3 is easily the best version of the series. Wonderful at aesthetic and sensual level (the HD Rumble does wonders), it has a wide variety and many imaginative bosses, and it is also inventive with its mechanisms, which have been enriched by both the past and its many collectables. Unfortunately, however, he carries with him many of the pathogens of the series, with “battles” with ghosts quickly becoming monotonous; within the overall design framework of the game. But in the end it’s a game so sweet in your hand, so beautiful audiovisual and with so many great moments, which is very easy to forget about its “twists and turns”, and in combination with the co-op option, I think it’s a great choice for those looking for a family-friendly, stress-free game. Or if, just like me, for those who find in the kind of childlike “terror” a comforting, emotional warmth. Even when it does not exceed the surface.

Box Art

Tested on: Nintendo Switch
Developer: Next Level Games
Publisher: Nintendo
Distributor: CD Media SA
Available for: Switch
Release date: 31-10-2019