I was initially skeptical on this game because I had never played a level-based 3D Mario game. It ended up being everything I could've asked for in a Mario game and more. Fantastic level design, great co-op, great music, and overall an extremely fun experience that had me wanting to come back to it 24/7. The co-op in this game was surprisngly flawless. I played the last 3 worlds on my save file co-op and it was overall a better experince to play this game with someone else. Certain levels are better off played solo though. I also absolutley love how the levels in a world do not follow the theme of their level select screen. The game would've gotten stale quick if they went that route.

Bowser's Fury is incredible. It was a brand new, albeit short, sandbox mario experience with 3D World mechanics. Bowser's Fury was an absolute blast to play. Incredible final boss fight too.

One of the best Mario games that's not in the main 3D platformer line, if not the best, AND better than some of those more marquee titles. Tight platforming with a great runtime. Innovation for captain toad, challenge houses are a blast.

Even more value with the free inclusion of Bower's Fury.

Check out our book club style gaming podcast, Garbage Game Club on Super Mario 3D World - https://open.spotify.com/episode/1KmzSBRJXSQb0g9ZE6i5rV?si=MtWam2j6RdWlVhLoDol-GQ

Super Mario 3D World is a very delicate transition of Super Mario Bros. courses into 3D and captivates with an incredible level design and creative ideas. Finding all secrets and completing this game is a fun challenge.

Mario has been granted new moves and his movement speed is higher than ever — which allows him to jump even further.

This time, 3D World comes with an optional online multiplayer (which Shigeru Miyamoto scrubbed for the Wii U version) and I’m fascinated by it, since I didn’t experience many lags. It almost works flawlessly. No online multiplayer for Bowser’s Fury, though.

Bowser’s Fury is a sandbox Mario with the mechanics of 3D World and surprises with an unexpected spectacle, without losing its focus on gameplay. This addition is full of unusual surprises. When I listened to its soundtrack, I wasn’t sure if I’m playing a Super Mario game or Shin Megami Tensei.

Bowser’s Fury contains a lot of Super Mario Sunshine references, so I immediately felt in love with it, since Sunshine is one of my most beloved childhood games.

Mario 3D World sits perfectly at the crossroads between the design of New Super Mario Bros and Mario Galaxy. It offers shorter, more simple levels built for co-op in the vein of NSMB, but with the moveset and creativity of Galaxy. This fusion is far from perfect, but if you enjoy either of those Mario sub-series this is definitely worth checking out. I can't find much to complain about aside from some minor camera issues, and the Wii-U mechanics that don't translate very well.

3D World on its own is worth the price of admission, but it's the addition of Bowser's Fury which puts the package over the top for me. Bowser's Fury feels like the evolutionary link between Mario Odyssey and whatever the next 3D Mario game will be. It's essentially an open world Mario game where you travel between islands that act as individual levels with objectives ala 64 or Galaxy. It feels great, looks great, has a ton of really fun objectives, and the only flaw is that it's not longer.

A lot of people have already said it, but its definitely true. I really feel like I can appreciate 3D World for what it is now that Odyssey is out. I first played this back around 2015 and I liked it in the same way that I liked New Super games, maybe a little bit more. I was more so just craving a new Sandbox style game though desperately, and this just didn't scratch that itch. Fast forward to a little after Odyssey came out and my appreciation for what this game and what it was trying to acomplish started going way up. There wasnt (and still really isnt) a well made co op 3D platformer, and its really nice that one does exist in 3D World. Its so valuable in that aspect. Now, all the other 3D games, 64, Sunshine, Galaxy 1 and 2 and Odyssey, in my book are 10/10s. While I still love 3D Land and World, they just arent quite the masterpieces that are the others. Which is okay, they dont need to be. For Bowsers Fury, I liked it alot as an added bonus. It takes about 7 hours to 100%, but the smaller scope is nice. Fury Bowser can TANK the frame rate though whenever he comes out, and he always came out at the most inconvenient times. It definitely feels like a proof of concept of something in the pipelines coming in the next few years. And I’d be interested to see a Mario game with wholly unique assets and mechanics, not like how this one (smartly) repurposes things from 3d World. I don't know if I’d like a game in this style more than I would Odyssey, but its always better to try new things and constantly shake things up, and id like to be proven wrong. Also, back to 3D world, I marked this mastered, but really I just got all the green stars, flagpoles and stamps and did Champion’s Road. Getting all the flagpoles with all the characters is kind of dumb and doesn't really accomplish anything aside from wasting time. Also, Nintendo owes me compensation for wrist and eye surgery for Champion’s Road

I remember being somewhat underwhelmed by my first experience with this game back on the Wii U. Not because it was disappointing or mediocre, but because it was just a good mario game that didn't blow me away in any regard.
Something I've come to realize is that not every entry in a series needs to be groundbreaking or reinvent the wheel. Yes - that's always an exciting experience - but sometimes a game just needs to take familiar ideas and polish them to a ridiculous degree. Not that this game lacks new ideas, but it builds upon previous games with a sharp focus on tight level design and smooth controls.

I feel like this game has somehow come back and shattered my original impression. I cannot confidently say that this is my favorite mario game or anything, but I firmly believe that 3D world is one of the most beautifully paced and creative platformers I have played.

One thing I realized upon my replaying of this game is just how varied and consistently creative these levels are. It's apparent within the first several levels. The world design and mechanical variety is on full display pretty quickly. The new power ups are utilized for creative problem solving or player freedom - rather than a gimmick surrounded by an environment that isn't built for it. You never need a power up to progress, but you are provided a multitude of ways to reach your goal.

There may be a few levels that border on becoming tedious - but those are sparse and nothing outstays its welcome. 3D world also has one of the best post-game worlds of any mario game. There is a shocking amount of content here and it isn't a tiresome experience to fully complete this game (excluding the whole 'beat the whole game with every character' thing. That's a bit too far).

It isnt flawless though. Kind of a pointless statement as this applies to any video game - but there are a couple things worth noting.
If this is your first time playing this game, this is a really good deal. You get a better version of the original with a free expansion. It somewhat justifies the $60 price.
However if you have completed this game before - there isnt much in the realm of new content (aside from Bowser's Fury which I will touch on later in the review). The movement has been updated and I do believe this faster pace fits this game perfectly. It feels better in my opinion. There is also the use of gyro aiming with a cursor to replace the touch screen controls - which some levels require the use of. This new control scheme works pretty well - but it isnt as natural as the touch screen, but the effort to make it work is appreciated. It is also surprising to see that there are no new characters. People returning to this game may not have much incentive to do so unless theyre utterly curious what it is like to run a little faster.
This re release is saved by the fact that you get Bowser's Fury with it, but on its own it is not worth the $60 bucks. If you haven't played it before though - I think its a safe purchase.
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Now let's touch on Bowser's Fury.
I think this might be the most inventive idea the mario series has seen since the first Galaxy game. It takes the engine of 3D world and puts you in an open world platformer essentially. The full camera control feels great and the transition to this style works shockingly well for this engine. The freedom to explore and collect Cat Shines in any order makes for a really unique platformer. Bowser is actually a threatening foe for once. Every encounter is exciting, and the new musical compositions made for this expansion are incredible. It's an addictive and satisfying journey, and I would love to see a full title attempt to utilize this formula if possible. It may only keep you busy for 3-4 hours, but it provides a lot of post game content to do squeeze another couple hours out.

If you only want to play BF and plan on skipping 3D World - BF does not warrant 60 dollars on its own. If for some reason it was ever sold on its own for 20 dollars maximum - I'd say go for it. Nintendo proves they still have new ways to reinvent the platformer genre and I hope they continue to tap into that creativity.

Although 3D world on its own is an incredibly standard re-release of a superb game - its worth is validated by Bowser's Fury being included. If you are dying to replay this or haven't given it a shot, it is 100% worth your time.

Marking this as complete for finishing Bowser's Fury, and 100 %-ing 3D World back on the Wii U.

Bowser's Fury is a great experiment. Plenty of kinks to work out, but it's the best open-world game I've played in years.

Four stars for the overall package.

Judging it for what it is, a 3D Mario game with 2D design principles, this is near-perfect. My only complaint (besides needing to complete every level with every character if you want 100% completion) is that the difficulty scaling wasn't significant enough until there were only maybe ten levels left. This was a problem I had with the Wii U version as well, so I shouldn't really knock it half-a-star because of it, but it would have been nice to see some new hard levels thrown in on top. At the time of original release, I think I was let down by the fact that this game strayed even farther away from "3D Mario" than Galaxy and Galaxy 2 did, accentuated by the lack of support for the Wii U. However, in a post-Odyssey 3D world (Earth 2021), 3D World is much easier to embrace. Especially with increased movement speed and the new dive move!

I still am craving more Odyssey content, which Bowser's Fury didn't fulfill, as I prefer the movement options (and exploration) in that game. Would love to see a mod that throws all of the SM3DW + BF levels into the Odyssey engine, even if it breaks the challenge.

[100%'d, except for the aforementioned gripes with 100%-ing the game the "true" way]

What a delightful surprise, this port made me have a complete 180 on this game and learn to absolutely love it when I just liked it before. All the enhancements in this port fix a lot of my issues with the original. This time the game is a super fast paced frantic adventure with new moveset options that add to the flow, making this incredibly fun. All the levels have fucking incredible design albeit they can be a bit basic at times, but they are so much fun and a joy to play I could hardly care less. The secrets in every stage are super fun to try and find, some being pretty cryptic. Bowser's Fury adds a nice bit of sandbox Mario into the mix (my personal favorite) which is a nice breather from all the linear levels and is a ton of fun to boot! They balance spectacle and gameplay almost perfectly with astounding music that I would absolutely not expect to hear in a Mario game. Do I have to even say Bowser's Fury is a blast too? Future Connected this ain't. I still think this game plays it a bit too safe, but I have so much fun with this I could hardly care less, and I love playing online with friends. This is easily a strong recommendation from me and a must have for the Switch.

Calling this Mastered because I beat Champion's Road. Only a true Super Mario Psychopath would aim for the 100% file in this game (beating each of the 82 levels with every character!!).

My girlfriend discovered Super Mario via last year's 3D All-Stars, and has since voraciously consumed pretty much any plumber-based video game I've put in front of her. To see her go from "so if I hold the button in longer, he jumps higher?" in the castle grounds of SM64 to the end of Champion's Road in the space of 6 months is what I think it would probably feel like to see your child winning the 100m sprint at the Olympics.

3D World essentially has two distinct difficulty modes: solo and co-op, each with its own unique challenges. Having to return to the start of the level every time you die in solo play makes it arguably harder than co-op, where fallen players return in bubbles after five seconds, but solo players don't have to contend with the multiplayer-exclusive enemy types - bloodthirsty versions of Mario, Luigi, Toad and Peach who relentlessly chase you across the entire course and attempt to throw you into pits at any convenient opportunity. Terrifying!

In all seriousness - who the hell at Nintendo decided that [Run], [Use Powerup], [Throw] and [Pick Up Player] should all be mapped to the same button?! By trying to simplify the control scheme as far as possible, 3D World's designers have inadvertently made the game harder to play with friends... B-but I also kinda like the chaos that ensues when someone's accidentally picked up? Hmmm...

The pick-up button dilemma is emblematic of the bold design dichotomy at the heart of this game - it wants to be a friendly-family romp that everyone can enjoy, but it also has a fairly obvious desire to return to the days when Mario games were breathless challenges that required talent and nerve - perhaps partly as a response to all those people who complained that 3D Land gate-kept its good shit behind eight worlds of relatively mindless, toothless platforming.

I read in Iwata Asks many years ago that this game's Captain Toad sections were an attempt to wean casual New Super Mario Bros. fans onto the concept of a 3D camera that's controlled by an analog stick - a new take on the castle grounds for people who weren't around for the Nintendo 64. I think 3D World's secret agenda was to sell Mario Luddites on the Triple Jump Era...

For the most part, 3D World succeeds in its aim to bridge casual and hardcore mindsets - the placement of green stars in the early worlds feel almost tailor-made to cater to multiplayer setups where one person is still trying to grasp the idea of running and jumping while their partner is side-flipping, wall-kicking and dive-rolling all over the space. Unfortunately, around the time of World 6, auto-scrollers and slidey platforms and boost pads begin to run riot and gaps in skill become much more pronounced and frustrating. The bubble-up mechanic is a best-of-a-bad solution to the co-op camera problem, but it can sometimes feel like certain levels were never meant to be played multiplayer. The final showdown with Cat Bowser in particular is a complete fucking nightmare - I remember hating it as a single man and player back in 2013, but trying to get me and my girlfriend up that stupid auto-scrolling tower together in 2021 was nigh-on impossible, with us both randomly disappearing off-screen and becoming bubbles at seemingly random intervals! Ugh!! It's really annoying, because the idea of Bowser getting into Mario's big bag of tricks for a final boss battle is really fun and cool - it deserved better execution!

Funnily enough, we had far less problems with the post-game levels, which in many cases felt specifically designed for ridiculous Mario Party-style fun. The rolling block level in particular is almost a game unto itself, a true test of co-operative spirit and patience that could probably stand alone as its own fun little indie game! Oh how we laughed!! And the shmup-homage level? Wonderful! I like when Nintendo's designers are allowed to crib from boxes of toys outside their own corporate playpen.

I'm gonna go ahead and give the 3D World + Bowser's Fury package a whole-assed 5 stars because even though Bowser's Fury and 3D World are probably worth four stars each when packed apart, together they form this really joyous, heartfelt whole that encompasses almost the entire Super Mario experience - there's homage to just about every mainline game here and then a whole lot more! The ideal jumping-on point for anyone who has somehow managed to miss out on the Mario phenomenon in the last 35 years.

As everyone knows, Super Mario 3D World is the only Mario game that matters.

So it's only fitting that Nintendo decided to bring it back for Switch owners to experience for the first time and for suckers like me who owned a Wii U to pay $60 for a game they already bought seven years ago.

Forreal, tho, this game's pretty sweet. It really felt like a breath of fresh air when it came out. Glad it's commonplace now for these more traditional Mario's to have multiple playable characters. This game also adds some new enemies, new bosses, no kidnapped Peach, and strays a bit from the usual world themes. It controls even better than I remembered it, too. The dive mechanics they added honestly change the gameplay more than I thought it would.

It's a very, very well-designed 3D platformer with tight controls, a stellar soundtrack, and lots of replay value.

Bowser’s Fury is a fun romp and gives you an extra dose of the Mario Odyssey formula with an interesting twist. It makes for a great pack-in title so no complaints here.