Luigi's Mansion 2 (Hands-On) (Nintendo 3DS) Preview

Seeing the various Nintendo 3DS trailers at this year's E3 definitely made the system look far more appealing to consumers than it had done at launch a few months prior. On top of Super Mario Bros and Mario Kart, there was the surprise addition of Luigi's Mansion 2, and just as Q-Games have been looking after Star Fox 64 3D, Grezzo handled The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, and Retro Studios are co-tackling Mario Kart, this sequel for 3DS is being worked on by Next Level Games.

At what was basically a miniature version of Nintendo UK's usual post-E3 event, where two DS games were available to play, along with a handful of Wii titles, yet nothing for Wii U, there was a dark library-esque corner where a couple of consoles were set at a tables, as well as others left on the side that required players to stand, hunched over the 3DS for the entirety of the 15 minute demonstration version of Luigi's Mansion 2 on offer. The agony was well worth it, though.

Anyone who played the original will be truly enamoured by this sequel, with the same mechanic of moving Luigi around an impressively detailed haunted mansion in a top-down viewpoint being the order of the day. Unfortunately there were no headphones available, so any creepy music, eerie sound effects or cries of terror from the cowardly lead man were completely unheard. However, considering how faithful the rest of Luigi's Mansion 2 is, no doubt Next Level Games will not disappoint.

The aim in the demo was to wander around the deserted mansion in search of special keys and triggers to unlock new areas of exploration, all the while getting reacquainted with Luigi's vacuum-like device that can draw spirits into its large sack, removing the nuisance critters from the building once and for all. Luigi's special weapon can consume not only ghosts, but anything else that is not fixed down, such as curtains, table cloths and even piles of money lying about the place. Should a ghostly apparition make its presence known, Luigi must quickly face it and shine his torch to stun them before engaging his suction power to commence battle.

Spirits do not go down easily and there will be a hefty pull from each one as they attempt to scarper and hide, dragging Luigi around as he attempts to capture them, with Mario's brother losing coins if knocked into tables, cupboards, or any other immovable piece of furniture, as well as losing energy (expressed in the form of a shrinking heart) if coming into contact with the ghouls themselves. It is not simply a case of chasing them around constantly, though, as players must hit the A button at specific prompted times to send shocks out to keep wearing ghosts out completely.

The main concern that rose its head in the first five or so minutes was that the pacing seemed slow and ghosts were far too simple to grab. However, upon finding the first key, wandering back to the main hallway and unlocking the next room, larger ghosts with more energy were pitted against the green plumber, and following that there were ones that wore pans for helmets and used shields to protect themselves from Luigi's incessant flashing (of his torch, of course...). To get past their defences, it was a case of letting them go crazy, spinning about until getting dizzy, at which point it was time to go in for the kill.

The matter of paramount importance in Luigi's Mansion 2 is that the gameplay does not begin to grow stale too quickly, yet there is sufficient substance to lift it above the likes of Pilotwings Resort and Steel Diver that delivered great experiences, yet lacked enough content to justify their full price status. Luigi's Mansion on GameCube was short and sweet, but left the impression that had it been longer in its original state, the standard adventure could have started to become monotonous. Thankfully Luigi's Mansion 2 started showing variety even in its early stages, so hopes are indeed high.