Nintendo presented one more functionality to its Super Mario Galaxy and sequel, which allowed the fans to hear the old soundtracks through a new Soundtrack Mode. Nevertheless, the gaming community’s reaction varied from thrill to doubt. A lot of players are eagerly waiting for the music to come back, while others are raising concerns about the necessity of such a feature, particularly when considering that both games are going to be included in the Switch 2 package.
So, what precisely does this mode entail? To be honest, you now have the possibility to experience the soundtracks of Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 directly. The Nintendo‘s official tweet says, “Setting the mood. 🎵” and encourages gamers to “Start jamming today.” It is actually quite an interesting idea. The soundtracks of the games are fantastic. One of the gamers, Memelord, declared it as “probably one of the best soundtracks of any video game.” SpeederLight just chimed in with, “SUCH A GOATED OST,” which, actually, is spot on as well. The music to the games is simply amazing.
But this is where complications arise. The games can be bought in a bundle and only some people think that the price is ok. There has been a back-and-forth in the replies about the bundling being worth it or not. User Boks02_ was of the opinion that the bundle “could’ve been sold for 50-60” instead of the current price, arguing the games’ popularity and the fact they’re ports, the cost feels a bit high. This led to a confrontation with other users like LPNintendoITA pushing back with “you won’t cause you broke” and “cry harder brokey,” which is… one opinion, I guess. The discourse was pretty intense, with Boks02_ responding with “oh no someone I don’t know on the internet is wasting their money, how will I ever recover from this.” Classic internet argument.
Apart from that, the fight about the feature itself started. A User Zoey (GoMango99) raised an important question when she said, “Decent feature but it’d be much better if it was usable during gameplay as it being only on the main menu makes the mode a bit of a pain to get to.” What she is saying is indeed a valid point. Why the music player at the main menu? It sort of goes against the purpose of having a soundtrack mode if you can’t listen while actually playing the game. Zoey also raised a bigger issue, saying “I’d love to be able to access the Nintendo Music app and potentially other music apps midgame on the Switch 2.” This sparked a mini-debate with Steven the Bui! who questioned, “Why have Nintendo music app on the Switch 2 system? I mean It makes sense on a smartphone.” Zoey answered back, saying that often she wants to listen to music while playing on the Switch 2, and that “Xbox and Playstation both have Spotify and other apps for this, so I think adding Nintendo Music to Switch 2 would be a good start.” It is a good comparison. Competing consoles have had background music apps for years.
And speaking of other options, some gamers are just like, why bother? User ExpandDong15 simply said, “Cool, but I got YouTube.” And ItemsON asked, “Why would I do that when Nintendo Music is free?” Which is true, a lot of the soundtracks are available on streaming services. But then again, as LPNintendoITA argued in another thread, if people just use YouTube or Spotify, Nintendo “get no money.” So from a business perspective, bundling it with the game purchase makes sense for them, even if it feels redundant to players.
There’s also some technical chatter in the replies. User MattPatt_YT noted that “the cutscenes are still compressed on switch 2 sadly, but the game itself runs 4k natively.” So while the gameplay got a visual boost, some elements didn’t get the same treatment. It’s these little details that hardcore fans pick up on.
The conversation even veered into broader criticisms of Nintendo’s modern strategy. User LovelyXboxGamer had a nostalgic jab, saying “Wii U era Nintendo would’ve bare minimum slipped us a code for this version of galaxy 1 if you own 3D All Stars, instead now we’re keeping up a joke about how synonymous greed is to the title.” Oof. That sentiment reflects a portion of the player base that feels Nintendo has become less consumer-friendly over time.
Meanwhile, some just want more classic games. User Alex pleaded, “Ok Nintendo very good to released these now release more NSO games.” The demand for more Nintendo Switch Online retro titles is always high. And Donairdaddy immediately thought of another franchise, tweeting “Mariokart needs this yesterday.” Imagine a Mariokart soundtrack mode? That would be insane.
So where does that leave us? Nintendo added a cool, albeit limited, feature to two beloved games. No one disputes the music is phenomenal. But the community’s response highlights a bigger picture. Gamers have a big demand: they want convenience, they want to be sure that the features do really work and they want comparison to be honest between the Nintendo ecosystem and its competitors. The Soundtrack Mode is one of the perks but for many, it feels like a great opportunity to do something more significant such as a system-level music app that has not been executed.
The argument in the replies shows that players are very much lively, passionate, and possess high expectations. They are not just blindly accepting everything; they are evaluating what is being offered with scrutiny. And in this case, while the tunes are a past few overlooking ones, the execution has left some players wanting more. The feature is now live, so you can check it out yourself and see on which side of the debate you land.
