Luigi (Luigi's Mansion)

First Luigi gets his own starring role in Luigi’s Mansion and now he’s showcased in plastic glory. Mario’s underrated brother is finally getting the props he’s earned over the years – stepping out from Mario’s formidable shadow.

This is one of the best figures Joyride has produced. Luigi’s big, even bigger when displayed in his default "capturing the ghost" pose. And he looks great! His videogame likeness has been absolutely nailed, right down to his football-sized nose and huge black moustache. And the ghost and vacuum have also been received close attention. The ghost is translucent with its heart visible inside and once again grabs the action from the videogame.

Articulation is limited, especially while displayed on the base and wearing his vacuum. However, thanks to the hinged elbows and seam-jointed shoulders, he can be posed in more than one position with varying degrees of success. His right foot pegs him securely to the base but if the ghost is pegged into the vacuum he can become unbalanced. (This is somewhat alleviated by the ghost’s sweeping "tail" that drops down to the floor.) His hands are just the right size to hold a number of other accessories, such as Viking Spawn’s battle-axe. This lends a hint of menace to Luigi that a vacuum cleaner just doesn’t do. 

(Strangely, the same can be said of Viking Spawn holding Luigi’s vacuum.)

The color scheme is particularly appealing and once again it’s perfectly translated from Luigi’s Mansion.

Luigi’s size and kid appeal is practically a guarantee he will receive some attention from the younger crowd. Unfortunately, he’s not very durable and has lots of breakable parts. The ghosts arms can be broken off, the straps on the vacuum cleaner will snap under rough play, and his head can be popped off. This is a chronic problem for characters with big heads and small necks. It articulates fine but kids aren’t known for their soft touch.

"Pet the dog nicely," you say.

Whap! Whap! "Nice dog," your 4-year old says.

Basically, Luigi’s practically asking for his head to be popped off. He might not be in rotation for long though since he doesn’t have an equivalent figure, except maybe Link (also from GamePro Presents 3) so the risk is minimized.

If you count yourself among the many Luigi fan out there, grab him – there’s never been a better Luigi character even though he’s a better display piece than play toy.

- Omni