All right... well, I spent more time with Luigi's Mansion then I did with Super Smash Bros. Melee, believe it or not, and here's what I have to say:
First off, you might have heard that the control scheme is hard to pick up. It's not that bad. After three goes in the training mode I was able to get around with relative ease. So, not a big deal there.
Secondly, a lot of people have been wondering: Is sucking up ghosts really all that fun? Well, yes. Yes it is. Each type of ghost (I didn't get too far, and I still found SEVERAL different types) has a different way of catching them, so it never really gets boring. Oh, and this game isn't just about catching ghosts. There are some devious puzzles, and figuring those out can be a challenge. Although the basic idea of the game is to catch all the ghosts and turn on the lights, the puzzles you must solve to DO this can be hard. Also, the mini-boss and boss ghosts are fun to try and catch, because there is a specific way you have to do it... you can't just shine the light and suck with the Poltergust 2000 (Luigi's Vacuum) with these guys.
Also, there has been some confusion over the plot and storyline, etc. Well, after watching the intro sequence four times, because the Cube Clubs didn't have memory cards, so you couldn't save the game (Oh, by the way, Toad is the save point, and he's really funny, but I'm sure you knew that), here's the plot. Luigi WON the mansion (didn't inherit it) from a contest he'd never even entered in the first place. He arrives at the mansion, looks around a bit and before long is attacked by some orange ghosts. Enter Dr. E. Gadd (which is his official name, not Fran, not Dr. Gab) with the Poltergust 2000. Hence a hilarious vacuum ride scene, which ends with Luigi in the Lab. Gadd tells Luigi about seeing Mario enter the Mansion, and also informs him that the Mansion was just built by the ghosts the night before (those must be some hard working ghosts...!). Now, the thing is, Gadd had already captured all the ghosts, but they were freed from their paintings and built the mansion after everyone was free. I can't remember the details, but I think it was a fella named "King Boo" who freed them. ^_~ So naturally, Luigi runs off to save his brother and reassure Toad, who was sent by Princess Peach to find Mario, in the process. That's all I know.
Now, one extra thing. If you liked Goombario in Paper Mario (and you should have), be happy, because there's a similar thing in Luigi's Mansion. By searching various objects in the Mansion, Luigi makes comments about them in a very Goombario-ish manner. Just a nifty addition that I enjoyed seeing. ^_^
Overall, I am now more excited about Luigi's Mansion then ever... and if you have any doubts, don't worry... I did, too, and I'm reassured. The storyline is rather bogus, in my opinion-- but that's not why we play the Mario games, now is it? What matters is the game is fun, and let me tell you, from what I played, the game IS fun.
If I didn't cover something here that you really wanted to know, send me an email at the_mushroom_kingdom_squad@yahoo.com with your questions, and I'll answer them as best I can. Some of the other games I played were Wave Race Blue Storm, Eternal Darkness, Star Fox Adventures, Pikmin, and Super Monkey Ball. So if you want to know something about THOSE, email me and I'll see if I can tell you what you wanna know. I'm so nice.