Back in the before times, prior to the launch of Nintendo’s mega-hit Switch successor, I had an article series going called Road to Nintendo Switch 2, wherein I reviewed Switch 1 games from my backlog and rediscovered why the legacy Switch was (and still is) a solid console worth considering.
I got through quite a few titles, it turns out: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, among others. The last game I covered was Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and then life happened, and now we’re here.
I want to keep the Road to Nintendo Switch 2 going, but obviously, we have since traveled said road, and now the Switch 2 is officially in the wild. So, I need a different, more appropriate title moving forward. Road Beyond Nintendo Switch 2 is how I’ll continue this series of impression pieces, I think. It’s got a nice ring to it. Or maybe it doesn’t. Just let it go, man.
And who knows… maybe in eight years, when the Switch 3 is due to release, I’ll change it to Road to Nintendo Switch 3. For a marquee launch title, I’m picturing a follow up to the excellently reviewed Donkey Kong Bananza, which comes out today, July 17, actually. I really need to play DKB, but unfortunately, I still don’t have a Switch 2. I can’t control if Costco will restock the bundle or not. Or can I?
Play Puzzles & Games on Forbes
Anyway, for today’s RBNS2 entry, we’re celebrating Halloween in July—Summerween, if you will—with Nintendo’s spooky-fun Luigi’s Mansion IP. Specifically, we’re playing the second game in the long-running first-party franchise, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, a game that started on the 3DS as Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (in the U.S., specifically) in 2013.
This newer remaster was released on the legacy Switch rather recently back in 2024, quite a while after 2019’s Luigi’s Mansion 3, also on the Switch. As of this writing, the GameCube’s original Luigi’s Mansion hasn’t been re-released or remastered for any other platform, though it will be coming to Nintendo Switch Online soon.
If you haven’t played any of the Luigi’s Mansion games, the premise is pretty simple: Guide Luigi through various haunted locales in search of ghosts and collectibles. It’s sort of a cross between Ghostbusters, Blinx: The Time Sweeper and Resident Evil, only if the latter were suddenly G-rated.
It’s a very Nintendo take on survival horror, in that it’s slow-paced, atmospheric and about as terrifying as Disney’s Haunted Mansion. Playfully creepy, I’d label the specific vibe, and Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD ultimately feels directly inspired by the aforementioned theme park ride. Even an homage to it, perhaps. I dig it.
Speaking of pacing, don’t go into this expecting something like Super Mario Odyssey or Super Mario 3D World. Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD is not an action game; it’s methodical and plodding and more akin to an old point-and-click adventure than anything else. Sure, when you’re sucking up the ghosts with your Poltergust (clever) device, there’s a sort of action-oriented minigame that ensues, and you can make Luigi run when necessary.
But with he exception of the surprisingly enjoyable ScareScraper mode, which I played online for a bit, the main single player experience is largely about peeking into every nook and cranny of the game’s diorama-esque, secret-laden rooms. It’s fun to see what’s behind curtains and on top of chandeliers, but gamers who are easily bored should probably lean more into the Switch’s solid Mario library instead.
Maybe the biggest change from the first Luigi’s Mansion to this entry is, instead of a single house, there are now multiple mansions to explore. They all have their their own unique personalities, and my absolute favorite has to be the Haunted Towers, because it has a giant tree growing through the middle of it. Plus, there are greenhouses, seed labs and carnivorous plants all over. Super cool.
The basic gameplay loop for recovering the scattered pieces of the Dark Moon is mission-based: You choose a mansion, you choose a mission, Professor E. Gadd updates your Dual Scream (also clever) with coordinates and instructions, then zaps you into the house. From there, you complete your quest by capturing entities, and you get experience and coins to upgrade your equipment.
You can also earn earn medals, which gives the missions some deal of replay value. The same could be said of the way each mission slightly changes the makeup of the mansion, so it’s interesting to see what’s been altered every time you teleport in.
The conversation and exposition E. Gadd dispenses during cutscenes does lend the game an overarching narrative, but I really don’t care for the game’s mission-based structure, as it’s too dry and by-the-numbers, so to say. A more open story mode could have possibly provided better cohesion, although I’m sure the portable 3DS origins of this title explain the bite-sized nature of the missions and the lack of a more fleshed-out adventure.
At the end of the day, I think Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD is a solid Switch romp, but also an acquired taste. I honestly need to be in the mood to play it, but when I do, I can appreciate that it’s wildly creative, beautifully themed (much like Disney’s Haunted Mansion attraction) and I can respect how the visuals are a massive upgrade from the 3DS version. It didn’t constantly keep my interest like a Mario game would, but come Halloween, I might boot it up again.
Stay tuned for the next entry in Road Beyond Nintendo Switch 2, which could also have something to do with monsters that go bump in the night…
Disclosure: Nintendo provided a review code for coverage purposes.