Genre: Adventure

Year Released: 2001(Gamecube)

Number of Players: 1

Luigi's won a mansion! Too bad it's haunted, and to add insult to injury, Mario's gone! With the help of Professor E. Gadd and the Poltergust 3000, Luigi's ready to kick ectoplasm and find his brother!

Graphics: The Gamecube's excellent graphics really shine, as evidenced by the superb animations of objects, such as curtains swaying in the wind and desks rattling from the suction of your vacuum cleaner, and Luigi's comical expressions of fear. You can also see great looking smoke, dust, and even Luigi's breath!

Play Control: At first, using the two sticks on the controller may seem complicated, but you get used to it. When trying to capture a ghost, think of reeling in a fish, by pulling the control stick in the opposite direction of the ghost while you're sucking it in. Other key items, like Luigi's flashlight and his useful Game Boy Horror, are activated by a simple button press.

Sound: The sounds, like distant thunder and ghosts cackling, add to the atmosphere. You can even hear Luigi nervously humming the theme song to himself! Excellent.

Challenge: Unfortunately, under all the great graphics, sounds, and play control, this game is cursed by being too easy. Once you get used to the method of which to suck up ghosts, only the bosses provide any challenge, and even they're easy to defeat after a few tries at most. The real challenge is simply finding out when to turn on the ol' Poltergust by looking at the ghosts' actions. I bet I could get halfway through this game in a few hours. No replay value, either. Too bad.

The Bottom Line: Despite its low challenge level, this game is still worth at least a rental for Mario fans. Just don't think it's another Mario is Missing, because it's still a must play experience.

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