November the twelfth marks the anniversary of the release of Super Mario Galaxy, which was released on this day in 2007. You may be wondering why I am celebrating this particular day despite the relative newness of the game in question. My reason is simple: Super Mario Galaxy is pure video game magic.

And magic would be an appropriate label for a game like Mario Galaxy. It, more then any other game this console generation, captures that special kind of magic that made the world fall in love with video games to begin with.

On the one hand, I would say Mario Galaxy is almost impossible to describe (to take a note from EDGE’s book). The pure joy and overwhelming fun factor of the game stand toe-to-toe with some of the best in video game history. It’s the kind of game that just makes you smile the whole way through. It produces that same kind of magic quality that these days you can usually only find in the best of animated films.

But on the other hand, I could say that at least part of the factor in Mario Galaxy’s appeal is the fact that it refused to conform to any of today’s gaming conventions and maintained that classic video game essence that made the Mario franchise so beloved to begin with.

In today’s gaming world, with its overabundance of shooters and gritty “mature” games, filled with gratuitous violence and language, unappealing and ridiculously macho characters (seriously Gears of War, enough is enough!) and failed attempts at artsy storytelling, a true blue Mario adventure is an infinitely refreshing gaming experience.

Even the box art, with Mario gleefully flying through the cosmos past colorful satellites, is a reprieving image in a gaming world where most box art is littered  with overly masculine super soldiers, explosions and disembodied heads.

And Galaxy also serves as a reminder of why we play video games in the first place. It is a wildly inventive and colorful experience that should make one feel joyous as well as capture one’s imagination. It doesn’t give one a false sense of being cool because you racked up a higher body count than some random guy you’re competing against online, and it doesn’t have an undeservedly overblown ego and a big gun.

No. Mario Galaxy knows what it is: A video game. And a darned good one at that.

It’s not that I’m saying all first-person shooters are bad or anything, but most of today’s games (most of which are shooters) have some misguided sense of self importance. They try so hard to be cool and don’t give a thought about trying to be endearing. How many of these games will be truly remembered down the road? I would think only a few. Making a game for the sole purpose of giving its fanbase of teenage boys the idea that they are somehow cooler for playing it does not make one timeless.

But Galaxy wouldn’t be so heralded just for being more traditional in its core. Galaxy’s greatest strength is its ability to take the series’, and gaming’s, traditions and make them feel anew. Upon first glance, some (incredibly annoying) fanboys labeled the outer space motif as a gimmick. How wrong they were.

As if the idea of Super Mario adventuring through the deepest reaches of space weren’t reason enough to geek out, Galaxy managed to pull off its concept with flying colors. This isn’t just Mario in space, this is Mario’s universe. Mario didn’t just run around alien worlds greeted by little green men, Mario traversed things such as space apples, floating rivers, giant toys and other Mario-esque locales while greeted by what is arguably the most imaginative lot of creatures and denizens in the entire Mario canon. Amongst them a gargantuan Queen Bee, a group of penguins who surf on manta rays and exploding ghosts, just to name a few. Of course, Mario’s old friends (and enemies) are along for the ride as well.

But of course, where would Mario be without that timeless fun factor he made so famous. When it comes to gameplay, Galaxy shines. Mario still runs, jumps, and throws fireballs. But now Mario has a new best friend in gravity, who perfectly compliment each other. You almost wonder why this combination didn’t happen sooner.

The gravity effects also open up another gameplay innovation: Sphere walking. Sounds simple enough, but it really does add that much extra fun to the game (what isn’t fun about Mario running around a tiny planet?). But it doesn’t just end at sphere walking, Mario runs across objects of all shapes and sizes, whether rightside up, upside down or inside out (reverse sphere walking? Genius!). Of course, there are plenty of more traditional “grounded” levels in there as well, to make sure your head takes a few breaks from spinning.

And of course, the game once again pays tribute to the old and new in the most blunt of ways, dimension flipping.

Galaxy is a marriage of the series’ past and present. With some stages of the game placing Mario in sidescrolling environments reminiscent to those that made him who he is today. Then he is thrown into the more 3D worlds that made Super Mario 64 the stuff of legend. And of course, there are the aforementioned space stages, which prove that Mario only grows younger with age.

And let’s not forget the soundtrack! Galaxy boasts a score that is amongst the greatest in the history of gaming. The whimsical, ever so catchy tunes Mario is famed for are here in full force, and they are joined but orchestrated pieces that are nothing short of epic, many of which are quite beautiful.

As you may know, a sequel (aptly named Super Mario Galaxy 2) is in the works. some would say it is just to capitalize on this Galaxy’s impact. But really, every one of Mario’s primary outings has offered an experience of its own, even the less popular outings, like the underrated Super Mario Sunshine, offer an experience unique unto themselves. I’m confident Galaxy 2 will follow suit. Not to mention that the nature of the Mario series is only bound by imagination, and outer space is a realm of infinite possibilities. You put the two together, and you have endless potential, hard to imagine it could get too repetitive.

I am reminded that Yoshi’s Island was referred to as “Super Mario World 2″ but offered an experience unique unto itself, but one that was every bit as wonderful as the original Mario World. If  Galaxy 2 is the Yoshi’s Island of this generation, I say bring it on.

But that is for another day, today we celebrate Mario’s first intergalactic adventure.

In conclusion, Mario Galaxy is simply this: a work of art.

It seems most video games that are deemed with such praise are RPGs, due to their stronger narrative. But Super Mario Galaxy proves to be a treasure amongst games, the kind some say has been mostly lost. It revitalized that same kind of magic you found in the most classic NES, SNES and N64 titles, but did it all in its own way.

As previously stated, there is a magic to Super Mario Galaxy. It is a wonderfully crafted experience filled with creativity and ingenuity. Mario Galaxy is a work of art because it is this: a video game. A video game that is truly and genuinely fun. Pure, simple, smile inducing fun.

Happy Birthday.