SUPER MARIO BROS. WONDER is the best game to give to a young child. That’s not to offend any lover of the game in any capacity - - it’s a fantastically fun and engagingly quirky platforming romp that perfectly evaluates the current 2D Mario status quo and pushes it forward in nearly every conceivable way.
In terms of design: the game moves beautifully like every Mario game, the UI is simple and practical, and the world map is actually fun (!!), including swaths of cute secrets to uncover. It’s no wonder a seasoned industry veteran like Takashi Tezuka came up with the Wonder Flower concept, as the game’s subtitle namesake is a consistent WOW!-factor in every single level. Tezuka’s love of fantasy is apparent in many design concepts that the wonder flower expands on, adding a storybook fairy-tale aesthetic that the NewSup games seemed to be going towards but never find genuinely. Beyond this, the added badge mechanics solve many age old 2D Mario nitpicks and expand on basic platforming game theory in simple and amazingly creative ways. Yasuhisa Yamamura and Shigefumi Hino stand out among this games stacked designer roster as experienced and practiced level designers with decades of work at Nintendo developing flagship games that taught the industry we know today - - their influence in this game as a teaching tool for platformers cannot be understated. Hence my comment at the beginning of this review: the platforming design throughout this game is perfect for beginners, with a design curve that balances forgiving and engaging with nuance. Despite only including 69 regular levels, by the final pseudo-Kaizo badge test, the player will be a skilled, experienced 2D platforming gamer. This game achieves this with efficiency, style, and room for player expression through the accessible, sensory bliss of the presentation.
The presentation of the game makes it shine especially strong; Naoki Mineta’s team banged out adorable new designs for all of our Mario cast, and the titular Jumpman himself alongside the princesses and Yoshi look particularly fresh and full of emotion with the new overhaul. In contrast to the programming, design, and visual team, a relatively fledgling composing squad of lead Shiho Fujii (MK8/Oddysey fame), Sayako Doi, and Chisaki Shimazu (of which this is the latter’s first game composition credit) worked to thread the game’s stellar soundtrack. The new themes are charming, cheerful, and perfectly ‘Mario’ with a fun natural edge full of woodwinds and light drums to accentuate the nature aesthetic that permeates the game. This soundtrack comes alongside the smartest, most effective sound design I’ve seen in years led by Sanae Uchiha. Music and sound plays an important role in this game (many levels play out as a song, not simply a game level!) and often the player can be considered an instrument in the arrangement. The kinetic factor of the Joy-Cons 3D-rumble is an important factor in this feeling including the player.
This game is unequivocally special, Nintendo certainly has done it again. (I can’t give it 5 stars because half of these improvements shoulda been made at least 3 NewSup games ago :/ )
In terms of design: the game moves beautifully like every Mario game, the UI is simple and practical, and the world map is actually fun (!!), including swaths of cute secrets to uncover. It’s no wonder a seasoned industry veteran like Takashi Tezuka came up with the Wonder Flower concept, as the game’s subtitle namesake is a consistent WOW!-factor in every single level. Tezuka’s love of fantasy is apparent in many design concepts that the wonder flower expands on, adding a storybook fairy-tale aesthetic that the NewSup games seemed to be going towards but never find genuinely. Beyond this, the added badge mechanics solve many age old 2D Mario nitpicks and expand on basic platforming game theory in simple and amazingly creative ways. Yasuhisa Yamamura and Shigefumi Hino stand out among this games stacked designer roster as experienced and practiced level designers with decades of work at Nintendo developing flagship games that taught the industry we know today - - their influence in this game as a teaching tool for platformers cannot be understated. Hence my comment at the beginning of this review: the platforming design throughout this game is perfect for beginners, with a design curve that balances forgiving and engaging with nuance. Despite only including 69 regular levels, by the final pseudo-Kaizo badge test, the player will be a skilled, experienced 2D platforming gamer. This game achieves this with efficiency, style, and room for player expression through the accessible, sensory bliss of the presentation.
The presentation of the game makes it shine especially strong; Naoki Mineta’s team banged out adorable new designs for all of our Mario cast, and the titular Jumpman himself alongside the princesses and Yoshi look particularly fresh and full of emotion with the new overhaul. In contrast to the programming, design, and visual team, a relatively fledgling composing squad of lead Shiho Fujii (MK8/Oddysey fame), Sayako Doi, and Chisaki Shimazu (of which this is the latter’s first game composition credit) worked to thread the game’s stellar soundtrack. The new themes are charming, cheerful, and perfectly ‘Mario’ with a fun natural edge full of woodwinds and light drums to accentuate the nature aesthetic that permeates the game. This soundtrack comes alongside the smartest, most effective sound design I’ve seen in years led by Sanae Uchiha. Music and sound plays an important role in this game (many levels play out as a song, not simply a game level!) and often the player can be considered an instrument in the arrangement. The kinetic factor of the Joy-Cons 3D-rumble is an important factor in this feeling including the player.
This game is unequivocally special, Nintendo certainly has done it again. (I can’t give it 5 stars because half of these improvements shoulda been made at least 3 NewSup games ago :/ )