Honestly, walking into the Last Resort hotel for the first time feels like a dream. Then the neon lights flicker, King Boo shows up, and suddenly you’re stuck in a haunted skyscraper with nothing but a vacuum and a green clone of yourself made of jelly. It’s a lot.
Most people starting a Luigi’s Mansion 3 walkthrough think they can just power through the floors like a standard Mario game. You can't. This game is a massive, vertical puzzle box. If you aren't poking your nose into every trash can and shining your Dark-Light at every suspicious blank wall, you're going to miss about 40% of the content.
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The Gooigi Learning Curve
You’ve gotta get comfortable with Gooigi. Like, really comfortable. He isn't just a gimmick for Player 2; he's the key to basically every meaningful secret in the game.
Gooigi can slip through bars and walk over spikes. He can fall through floor grates that Luigi can't. But—and this is the thing that trips people up—he dissolves the second he touches water. If you’re in the Boilerworks (B2) or trying to navigate the Garden Suites (7F), one stray drip from a leaky pipe will delete him.
The trick is "parking" Luigi in a safe spot. You’ll find yourself toggling between them constantly. One of the best early-game habits you can build is summoning Gooigi just to check the "negative space" of a room. If there's a cage or a pipe, Gooigi should be in it.
Don't ignore the Dark-Light
Seriously. The Dark-Light Device is the most underrated tool in your kit. Whenever a room feels "off"—maybe a rug is bunched up or a painting looks weirdly psychedelic—shine that rainbow light on it.
I’ve seen players spend twenty minutes wandering around the Mezzanine (2F) because they couldn't find a door that was literally right in front of them, just hidden by a curse. If you see Spirit Orbs (those blue floating balls), vacuum them up fast or the object will disappear again.
Breaking Down the Hardest Bosses
Look, some of these ghosts are jerks. The difficulty spikes in this game are real.
The Pianist (Amadeus Wolfgeist) on the Great Stage (4F) is usually the first "brick wall" for players. He starts by throwing chairs. Just run in circles. Don't overthink it. When the dancing ghosts come out with their masks, use the Burst (ZL + ZR) to pop those masks off.
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The real pain is the piano phase. He’ll try to crush you. Wait for him to retreat to the stage and throw bombs. You need to vacuum up a bomb that isn't flashing red and fire it directly into the open piano lid. Then, use the Suction Shot on the front of the piano to slam it. Do this three times. It’s a test of patience more than anything.
Then there’s Chef Soulfflé on the Mezzanine. He hides behind a frying pan. You can’t flash him with the Strobulb while he’s holding it. You have to grab a piece of fruit or a fish from the floor, fire it at the pan to knock it away, and then stun him.
The Security Guard (3F)
Kruller is annoying because he has sunglasses. You can't stun a ghost wearing shades. Use the vacuum to suck the glasses right off his face. If you're playing solo, send Gooigi through the bars to do the heavy lifting while Luigi stays back.
How to Actually Get 100% Completion
If you want that S-Rank or the gold Poltergust, you need money. Lots of it.
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Basically, you should be a "crazy rock star" in every room. Tear down the curtains. Smash the vases. Vacuum the rugs until they flip over. Golden ghosts and gold pests (spiders, rats, crows) are your best friends. They only stay for a few seconds, so if you see something shiny, drop everything and flash it with the Strobulb.
- Gems: Every floor has six. Some are locked behind "Toad puzzles" where you have to fire a Toad at a specific object.
- Boos: These don't appear until you've cleared a floor and returned to it. Listen for the music change and watch your controller—it will vibrate harder as you get closer to their hiding spot.
- Achievements: Some are weirdly specific, like "captured 6 ghosts at once" or "found the secret ghost in the laundry room."
The Scarescraper mode is where the real 100% completionists go to suffer. It’s an 8-player local or online co-op mode. It’s grindy. You’ll need it for specific rare ghosts that don't show up in the main story. Honestly, if you're just playing for the vibes, don't sweat the Scarescraper too much.
Navigating the Later Floors
By the time you hit the Tomb Suites (10F) and the Twisted Suites (11F), the game stops holding your hand.
In the Pyramid, you’ll deal with sand physics. Use the vacuum to build piles of sand so you can reach higher ledges. It’s counter-intuitive if you’ve spent the whole game trying to clean things up, but here, the mess is your ladder.
The Spectral Catch (12F) is another standout. The boss fight with the ghost shark (Captain Fishhook) is a multi-phase nightmare involving exploding barrels. You have to lure the shark into biting the deck of the ship, then Suction Shot the target on its chest.
Troubleshooting the Elevator
Sometimes you’ll beat a boss and the button gets stolen. It happens. Usually, it's Polterkitty. This is the game's way of making you backtrack. Use the Dark-Light to follow her paw prints through the ceilings and floors. It’s a bit of a chore, but it’s the only way to progress.
Actionable Next Steps for Your Run
- Check the E. Gadd Hotline: If you’re genuinely stuck on a floor objective, open the menu and call the Professor. He usually gives a hint that’s just shy of a spoiler.
- Upgrade your slam: Practice slamming ghosts into each other. It deals massive damage and keeps the crowd away from you.
- Backtrack after Floor 5: Once you have Gooigi, go back to the Basement and the lower floors. There are tons of gems you literally couldn't reach before.
- Farm Gold early: Don't wait until the end of the game to start caring about money. Buy Gold Bones from the Lab; they act as "extra lives" if you mess up a boss fight.