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Super Mario 3D World Review (Nintendo Wii U)
Review by 
9.47/10 from 47 user ratings
 
Mario is back in a game that celebrates all (well, most) things Mario, using familiar and fresh elements to create a superb platforming experience. (A mostly spoiler free, MONSTER sized review)


3D Mario games have taken quite a journey since Super Mario 64. Looking at all of the 3D Mario games, from 64, to Sunshine, to Galaxy (and Galaxy 2), to 3D Land, it is easy to see how Nintendo has strayed more and more from the "playground" blueprints that Super Mario 64 created. Even after the exceptional Super Mario Galaxy (and its sequel), it wasn't until Super Mario 3D Land where Nintendo finally went "back to basics," so to speak, with its flagship franchise. Nintendo had finally created a 3D Mario game that combined the three dimensional gameplay of Super Mario 64 with the tight, linear, "point A to point B" nature of the original games. Once again, players were nabbing Fire Flowers and Tanooki Suits, bashing blocks and climbing up flagpoles. With Super Mario 3D World, Nintendo has taken what they started with Super Mario 3D Land and made it even bigger and grander.

The question then arises....is that enough? And the answer is....well absolutely it is.

Let's set the stage with what the game is all about. Mario's arch-nemesis, Bowser, is once again up to no good, but this time, he has NOT kidnapped Princess Peach. Instead, he has captured the various princesses of the Sprixie Kingdom, a nearby land. Mario (along with Peach, Luigi, and Toad) follows Bowser to the Sprixie Kingdom, in an attempt to free them from Bowser's clutches.


That's right, this time, players cannot only play as Mario, but also as Peach, Luigi, and Toad. Each player has their own set of abilities, which will be familiar to any veteran Mario gamer. Luigi can jump high, but is a little slippery, Peach can float briefly, and Toad can run quickly. Mario remains the "all around" character who does just about everything pretty well. I personally found myself sticking with Mario throughout the bulk of the game, using Peach when faced with some more difficult platforming sections.

Players will guide these four characters through dozens of colorful and creative stages. You start at the beginning, and work your way to a flagpole at the end. Sound simple? It is!

What isn't quite so simple, however, is the game's incredibly fine-tuned level design. Almost every level in the game will treat players to something new, or put a fun spin on an old idea. And since every level is relatively short, the game does a wonderful job of making you want more. I can't say how many times I thought to myself "Just one more level." Then, "just one level" would turn into "just another hour and a half." Nintendo's Tokyo team is incredibly good at designing levels that are creative and fun, but never overstay their welcome. They make it look so easy, yet one cannot ignore the level of care that has gone into every single level. I'm sure that designing a game such as this SEEMS simple, but the little nuances in the level design shows that Nintendo is truly a master at what they do.


What makes the level design even more enjoyable is the inclusion of the game's new power-up, the Cat Suit. With the Cat Suit, Mario can scratch and dive at enemies, as well as climb up walls. It sounds like fun, sure, but what really makes it fun is the fact that the entire game is built around the new ability. Secrets are cleverly hidden atop walls and behind breakable blocks. The Cat Suit is equal parts adorable and functional. It does what every great Mario powerup should do: It makes you feel like you're "missing" something when you don't have it, and it makes you feel POWERFUL when you do get it.

Levels are also cleverly built around other powerups in the game, from the Fire Flower (some areas might be littered with enemies) to the new Double Cherry, which allows Mario to multiply. The Double Cherry, in particular, is loads of fun, partially due to its ability to stack with other powerups. If you have a Fire Flower and get a Double Cherry, you then control two Fire Marios. You can control up to 5 Marios at a time, which is equal parts hectic and exciting. Try to keep them all intact, as levels will often reward you for wrangling them towards the end of a level! It can be very rewarding to control all of the different characters at once. It's like the Mario version of the "extra ball" in a pinball game.

Players can enjoy Super Mario 3D World either by themselves or with up to three other players. Since I played through the game solo, I cannot comment on the game's multiplayer implementation. I can, however, say that the game includes a variety of control methods (including the Wii U Gamepad, Wii Remote, Wii Remote and Nunchuck, Pro Controller, and Wii Classic Controllers), so the option for multiplayer may be more doable than you think. If it means anything, I was not terribly interested in the feature, and its inclusion didn't necessarily detract from my experience. The game is still excellent when playing as a single player experience.

So, the Cat Suit is great. The levels are fun, beautiful, and addicting. Multiplayer could be a plus for those who like the feature. The music is stellar, and picks up right where Super Mario Galaxy 2 left off. What else is there? Miiverse is a fun little addition, and also allows players to use pre-made stamps to create their own scenes. You can turn off this feature if you want. I must confess that I delved into the Miiverse when trying to find some of the game's trickier Green Stars (every stage has three tucked away).

Off-TV play is also supported, so if you don't feel like firing up the TV, the Gamepad makes for a worthy and convenient substitute. Like all Off-TV games, however, be prepared to lose that sharp, crisp, HD image, which IMO is one of 3D World's biggest selling points.

The game also features three types of levels: Standard "reach the flagpole" obstacle courses, Captain Toad stages, and Mystery House stages. In the Captain Toad stages, players must guide Captain Toad (originally from Super Mario Galaxy) through isometric 3D obstacle courses reminiscent of bonus areas in Super Mario 3D Land. The twist is that Captain Toad cannot jump, so the player must think of different ways to move Captain Toad around. In the Mystery House levels, Mario and crew have only a limited time to perform various quick tasks to gain Green Stars. It sounds simple but they get very difficult towards the end of the game.


Guide Captain Toad through isometric 3D levels found throughout the game.

Speaking of which, it must also be mentioned that collecting Green Stars, as well as Miiverse Stamps and landing at the top of each stage's flagpole, are all required to see all of the game's content. I still haven't beaten the game's final level, but I can assure you that it is one of the most difficult courses in Mario history (and this is coming from your Negative World Super Mario Bros. Speedrun 2013 champion, cough cough).

Other fun little additions include various "hidden Luigis" in the most unlikely of spots. You may see him pop out of blocks or tucked into the environment, but there are dozens to find. They don't do anything functional, but they're a nice little extra that shows Nintendo's attention to detail. There are also some fun stages throughout the game that are truly memorable, including one based on a very familiar franchise. Nintendo spoiled it in a Nintendo Direct, so I will not be mentioning it here just in case anyone has been avoiding media regarding the game.



What isn't to like? (Get ready for a bunch of nitpicky complaints about a great game) Admittedly, I think the game's first worlds start off a little slow (but if you think about it, this could be someone's first Mario game - each game tends to start out a little slow before you get to "the good stuff").

The Sprixie Kingdom is different from the Mushroom Kingdom in name only. I was a tad disappointed that Nintendo didn't take the opportunity of a new location for some more visuals and motifs separate from the Mushroom Kingdom. The only thing that really separates the two kingdoms is the use of clear pipes, which only really factor into a handful of levels. Fans hoping for more of an homage to Super Mario Bros. 2 will be setting themselves up for a disappointment. Perhaps this is a small complaint but I just thought I'd mention it.

I wanted to shy away from spoilers, but I couldn't help but also mention that the boss fights in this game aren't the greatest. There are a couple of really fun boss fights that require you to use Mario's abilities in fun ways, but on the whole, the boss roster isn't very memorable. Even the game's Bowser battles, often a high point for Mario games, seem very out of place, and not very exciting at all (save for the game's final battle, which is quite exhilarating). Once again in a Mario game, I find myself wishing that the final boss fight in the game was the FIRST boss fight, and that the bosses got more creative and exciting from there.

I must also unfortunately mention that I am not a fan of how this game controls. Don't get me wrong - I love how Mario and his friends feel. I love how much momentum they seem to have. I even went back to play Super Mario Galaxy recently, and didn't realize how stiff he felt in that game. He feels great here. My gripe with the game comes with the fact that, like in Super Mario 3D Land, the player must hold a run button to make Mario sprint. This makes sense to me if I'm playing with a Wii Remote, but not when I'm playing with an analog stick. All it seemed to do was make the game arbitrarily require more coordination, especially for players who are new to Mario games. I didn't even feel like the game encouraged you to run all that much until a little bit into the adventure, where, if you haven't mastered the run button, you're screwed. So, if you're new to Mario, keep this in mind. You're going to want to hold that Y button if you want any success in this game.

Players may also notice that Mario doesn't exactly have 360 degrees of movement, even with the analog stick. It's not 8-directional movement, but it isn't fully analog. Personally, this is something I didn't even notice until completing the game, but if you ever wonder why things feel slightly different than in previous 3D Mario games, this could be why. I believe that Mario doesn't have full analog movement for one simple reason - since the Wii U analog sticks do not have ridges on them (like on the Gamecube and other Nintendo platforms), Nintendo wanted to make sure that the player never mistakenly runs at a slight angle. This prevents the player from, say, jumping off the side of the stage by accident.

I also didn't find the swimming levels very entertaining. There are some very, very cool concepts in them, but I found them just a little disorienting. For example, when Mario is swimming, it can be tough to place him in the 3D space. Is he close to the camera? Far away? Usually, the player would be able to quickly gauge this using Mario's shadow, but it can be difficult underwater. On the plus side, Mario and crew will have a cute little face animation when underwater - they puff out their cheeks to indicate they are holding their breath! What a nice little detail.

Again, without spoiling TOO much, I do think that a certain unlockable was a bit of a wasted opportunity. It's a little disappointing that Yoshi has absolutely no presence in this game whatsoever (although of course, he's a unique character that requires the utmost care).

One last complaint, at least for me, comes from the fact that there are a couple of levels that require the player to use the Gamepad's touch screen. I didn't find it intuitive at all, and kind of dreaded any time I had to do it. I appreciate the effort to make the game more creative, but I think it's an experiment that was better left on the cutting room floor.


However, despite any of these complaints, I can't help but give Super Mario 3D World my highest recommendation. If you seek out all the game's Green Stars and stamps, you have potentially dozens of hours’ worth of gameplay ahead of you. You'll be addicted from the very beginning, and won't be able to put the Gamepad down (especially towards the end of the adventure). The game is absolutely gorgeous, and the only downside in its visuals that I can see is that I almost wish the camera was a little zoomed in more - the characters and environments look fantastic up close. The music is the best the series has seen since Super Mario Galaxy 2. This game is just fun from top to bottom, and is an absolute must-have for any Wii U owner. And for those on the fence, this should be the very first game you pick up once you make your console purchase. It's one of the best games in 2013, and another spectacular Super Mario game.




too long;didn't read version:
This game is great. It's pretty and sounds awesome. The levels are incredibly well designed. The run button feels weird. Bosses aren't the greatest.

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 Excellent  9.5 / 10
01/01/14, 00:23   Edited:  01/01/14, 03:34
 
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@r_hjort

Too easy? Interesting. I think 3D World is one of the more challenging entries in the series. I die a lot, and I like it.

Posted by 
 on: 12/03/14, 23:35
@sirmastersephiroth

I did it as a gauntlet and... was pretty sick near the end. You might have a good plan on your hands.

Posted by 
 on: 12/04/14, 01:56
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