This review contains spoilers
In the world of 2D Mario, fans agree there’s a little over dozen of them in the mainline series. Can you believe this little freak has been running and jumping from left to right for more than 40 years? I’ve played nearly every single one of these games and Super Mario Bros Wonder is the best of the best. Navigating these razor sharp level designs combined with this infectiously joyful ethos is peak 2D Mario.
The first thing you’ll notice as you jump into the first level is how many no-brainer improvements were made compared to past titles. Remember the 300 second level timer that would kill you when it got to 0 and honestly had no reason to exist but was still in every single past 2D Mario game? That’s gone! Remember the score system where doing things like killing a goomba or hitting a block granted you some amount of meaningless points? See ya later nerd! Remember the sterile lab-grown artstyle of the New Super Mario games that have been so prevalent the past 10 years? Get outta my sight because Wonder has done a blissful 180 on that. 2D Mario has not felt this fresh in decades. It’s like Miyamoto himself administered the morphine straight into the ole plummer’s veins.
And let’s touch on that shift in aesthetic because it was probably the most exciting thing I’d perceived from the first reveal trailer. Mario Wonder has a level of expressiveness that reminds me a lot of Mario Odyssey except turned up to 11. Never has Mario’s mustachioed, beaming grin and an airy, triumphant “wahoo!” felt so genuine. Every playable character just looks like they’re having the time of their life navigating these courses. Take a look at New Super Mario Bros U gameplay besides Super Mario Bros Wonder gameplay and you’ll see the difference instantly. Wonder’s animations in particular are a standout. They feel so springy and responsive like an old hand-drawn cartoon. These principals extend to the enemies and environment too. Part of my allure of seeing a new enemy or stage gimmick was my curiosity to see how the team injected this energy into them and every single time the animations were beyond my wildest expectations. Just a wicked display of artistry on display in every facet of Super Mario Wonder.
Of course if you wanted to drool at art you’d go to a gallery or museum, this is a video game so you might be asking how it plays. The answer is flawlessly. I’ve played a lot of 2D Mario and this is without a doubt the best he’s ever controlled. It’s to be expected after this many years of iteration but seriously Mario or Toad or Peach or whoever I played as felt like an extension of myself. Mark Brown could easily do a 3 hour video essay on this shit. I’m running out of ways to describe it because tight controls just have this certain indescribable feeling to them. Just trust me, Super Mario Wonder has some of the best feeling locomotion in a video game. Period. End of story.
Using this tried and true toolset, playing these levels felt so natural but Mario Wonder’s greatest trick is it’s reinvention of 2D Mario Level Design. In previous titles, there was a pretty obvious formula for a Mario Level. It starts with introducing a new mechanic, testing your ability to use the mechanic in a few different contexts, and then finally testing your mastery of the mechanic before the final flagpole. Simple, effective, but played out. Mario Wonder’s entire gimmick, the Wonder Flower, flips this formula on its head. Once per level when the Wonder Flower is found, it takes the central mechanic of the level and puts an unexpected spin on it. Usually these twists are something you’ve never seen in a Mario game which adds to the novelty. It’s just so much fun. It’s the very definition of “surprise and delight.” Disappointingly some of the Wonder effects are reused from time to time but typically it’s in a brand new context which I appreciate and they most definitely don’t get old. My favorite wonder effects ended up being the Singing Piranha Plants, Rolling Spikey Ball Transformation, the Top-Down Hotline Miami Camera Swap, and finally the Goomba Transformation.
And how about this badge system? You’re telling me that Mario can equip one of a dozen new movement abilities/modifiers and they all feel extremely polished? They absolutely didn’t need to go this hard but they did. The only flaw I can find in this system is that they give you one of the best badges, the Parachute cap, right as you enter the first world so I rarely switched up my choice of extra ability. Still, the Badge Challenge stages were some of the best levels in the whole game for me as they test you on using these unorthodox but still somehow natural feeling sidegrades. Like seriously Mario can equip a fucking grappling hook what more do you people want?
Another thing I love about the levels is that they’re never afraid to be challenging. Each level has a difficulty rating that is shown before you jump in which does a fantastic job to prime the player for the task ahead. As a bonus benefit, it sends the message to newer players that it’s okay to skip this one and come back later. Progression is never locked behind completing all of the levels in a given area so beating the game is accessible to all experience levels of 2D platforming enjoyers. Of course, I however have a horrible lizard brain and I live for the thrill so I ended up 100%ing every single one of these gosh-darn stages. Let me tell you, some of the unlockable star world courses are NO JOKE. Remarkably, even in levels where I lost upwards of 50 lives, I never felt the challenge was unfair. The manner in which coins are placed and obstacles arranged, it always feels like the designers are secretly cheering you on. It’s clear as day the creators of these devilish challenges want you to succeed. This is the type of thing I adore. I love seeing the invisible hand of a creator shine through in their work. Also I really appreciate that they have a 100% completion reward that feels tangible in the game world. My illustrious save file is adorned with 6 gold medals and I receive the highest honor of a super secret badge that replaces some of the sound effects with HUMAN MOUTH NOISES. ARE YOU SERIOUS? Come the fuck on. I love it so much.
Okay, it’s time to stop gushing because here’s where I address some serious problems with the game. Firstly, the boss fights are pretty unremarkable. They’re decent at best and generic at worst. They boil down to 2 types. The first is facing Bowser Jr where the objective is (shocker) to jump on his head. There’s always a slight spin on either the arena or the moveset of King Koopa Kid but honestly it’s nothing to write home about. The 2nd and much worse is disabling a conveyor belt on an airship? I just don’t understand what screams Mario about that setup and in addition they’re piss easy with the goal being jump on a big red button one time. They’re just not great across the board. The exception to the rule, thankfully, is the final battle against Bowser. I’m not saying it's revolutionary but it’s pretty decent for a 2D Mario boss fight. My second biggest gripe is the camera during multiplayer. In the past 2-4 player Mario games the camera would zoom out to capture all players on screen but in this one they made it immeasurably worse by only following the player with the crown. What is the crown you might be asking? Well of course the crown is rewarded to whoever touches the flagpole first on the previous level. This ultimately discourages cooperation because quite literally the focus is placed on one singular player. I really just don’t understand why the zoom-out method wasn’t used here. It’s a classic, “if it aint broke don’t fix it” scenario. Me and my partner decided a pass-the-controller type of multiplayer was much superior. Lastly, this one is really minor, but the talking flower is kinda annoying. I can count the times on my fingers that he got a smile out of me. Usually he was just there to give a Marvel-esqe quip such as “wow that sure was weird” or “woah how did you end up here?”. It was giving me Forspoken vibes which is never a good thing in regards to writing. The reason I say this is minor though is because it really doesn’t impact the experience for me personally.
Through and through Mario Wonder is an achievement in the 2D game space. I’d say it rivals the all time greats of 2D platforming such as Super Meat Boy, Celeste, and Super Mario World. It’s a masterfully made experience that never overstays its welcome. It exudes Wonder in every sense of the word. I have a hard time imagining how Nintendo is going to top this in the next installment of this legendary franchise but I’ll be here eagerly waiting to see them try.
The first thing you’ll notice as you jump into the first level is how many no-brainer improvements were made compared to past titles. Remember the 300 second level timer that would kill you when it got to 0 and honestly had no reason to exist but was still in every single past 2D Mario game? That’s gone! Remember the score system where doing things like killing a goomba or hitting a block granted you some amount of meaningless points? See ya later nerd! Remember the sterile lab-grown artstyle of the New Super Mario games that have been so prevalent the past 10 years? Get outta my sight because Wonder has done a blissful 180 on that. 2D Mario has not felt this fresh in decades. It’s like Miyamoto himself administered the morphine straight into the ole plummer’s veins.
And let’s touch on that shift in aesthetic because it was probably the most exciting thing I’d perceived from the first reveal trailer. Mario Wonder has a level of expressiveness that reminds me a lot of Mario Odyssey except turned up to 11. Never has Mario’s mustachioed, beaming grin and an airy, triumphant “wahoo!” felt so genuine. Every playable character just looks like they’re having the time of their life navigating these courses. Take a look at New Super Mario Bros U gameplay besides Super Mario Bros Wonder gameplay and you’ll see the difference instantly. Wonder’s animations in particular are a standout. They feel so springy and responsive like an old hand-drawn cartoon. These principals extend to the enemies and environment too. Part of my allure of seeing a new enemy or stage gimmick was my curiosity to see how the team injected this energy into them and every single time the animations were beyond my wildest expectations. Just a wicked display of artistry on display in every facet of Super Mario Wonder.
Of course if you wanted to drool at art you’d go to a gallery or museum, this is a video game so you might be asking how it plays. The answer is flawlessly. I’ve played a lot of 2D Mario and this is without a doubt the best he’s ever controlled. It’s to be expected after this many years of iteration but seriously Mario or Toad or Peach or whoever I played as felt like an extension of myself. Mark Brown could easily do a 3 hour video essay on this shit. I’m running out of ways to describe it because tight controls just have this certain indescribable feeling to them. Just trust me, Super Mario Wonder has some of the best feeling locomotion in a video game. Period. End of story.
Using this tried and true toolset, playing these levels felt so natural but Mario Wonder’s greatest trick is it’s reinvention of 2D Mario Level Design. In previous titles, there was a pretty obvious formula for a Mario Level. It starts with introducing a new mechanic, testing your ability to use the mechanic in a few different contexts, and then finally testing your mastery of the mechanic before the final flagpole. Simple, effective, but played out. Mario Wonder’s entire gimmick, the Wonder Flower, flips this formula on its head. Once per level when the Wonder Flower is found, it takes the central mechanic of the level and puts an unexpected spin on it. Usually these twists are something you’ve never seen in a Mario game which adds to the novelty. It’s just so much fun. It’s the very definition of “surprise and delight.” Disappointingly some of the Wonder effects are reused from time to time but typically it’s in a brand new context which I appreciate and they most definitely don’t get old. My favorite wonder effects ended up being the Singing Piranha Plants, Rolling Spikey Ball Transformation, the Top-Down Hotline Miami Camera Swap, and finally the Goomba Transformation.
And how about this badge system? You’re telling me that Mario can equip one of a dozen new movement abilities/modifiers and they all feel extremely polished? They absolutely didn’t need to go this hard but they did. The only flaw I can find in this system is that they give you one of the best badges, the Parachute cap, right as you enter the first world so I rarely switched up my choice of extra ability. Still, the Badge Challenge stages were some of the best levels in the whole game for me as they test you on using these unorthodox but still somehow natural feeling sidegrades. Like seriously Mario can equip a fucking grappling hook what more do you people want?
Another thing I love about the levels is that they’re never afraid to be challenging. Each level has a difficulty rating that is shown before you jump in which does a fantastic job to prime the player for the task ahead. As a bonus benefit, it sends the message to newer players that it’s okay to skip this one and come back later. Progression is never locked behind completing all of the levels in a given area so beating the game is accessible to all experience levels of 2D platforming enjoyers. Of course, I however have a horrible lizard brain and I live for the thrill so I ended up 100%ing every single one of these gosh-darn stages. Let me tell you, some of the unlockable star world courses are NO JOKE. Remarkably, even in levels where I lost upwards of 50 lives, I never felt the challenge was unfair. The manner in which coins are placed and obstacles arranged, it always feels like the designers are secretly cheering you on. It’s clear as day the creators of these devilish challenges want you to succeed. This is the type of thing I adore. I love seeing the invisible hand of a creator shine through in their work. Also I really appreciate that they have a 100% completion reward that feels tangible in the game world. My illustrious save file is adorned with 6 gold medals and I receive the highest honor of a super secret badge that replaces some of the sound effects with HUMAN MOUTH NOISES. ARE YOU SERIOUS? Come the fuck on. I love it so much.
Okay, it’s time to stop gushing because here’s where I address some serious problems with the game. Firstly, the boss fights are pretty unremarkable. They’re decent at best and generic at worst. They boil down to 2 types. The first is facing Bowser Jr where the objective is (shocker) to jump on his head. There’s always a slight spin on either the arena or the moveset of King Koopa Kid but honestly it’s nothing to write home about. The 2nd and much worse is disabling a conveyor belt on an airship? I just don’t understand what screams Mario about that setup and in addition they’re piss easy with the goal being jump on a big red button one time. They’re just not great across the board. The exception to the rule, thankfully, is the final battle against Bowser. I’m not saying it's revolutionary but it’s pretty decent for a 2D Mario boss fight. My second biggest gripe is the camera during multiplayer. In the past 2-4 player Mario games the camera would zoom out to capture all players on screen but in this one they made it immeasurably worse by only following the player with the crown. What is the crown you might be asking? Well of course the crown is rewarded to whoever touches the flagpole first on the previous level. This ultimately discourages cooperation because quite literally the focus is placed on one singular player. I really just don’t understand why the zoom-out method wasn’t used here. It’s a classic, “if it aint broke don’t fix it” scenario. Me and my partner decided a pass-the-controller type of multiplayer was much superior. Lastly, this one is really minor, but the talking flower is kinda annoying. I can count the times on my fingers that he got a smile out of me. Usually he was just there to give a Marvel-esqe quip such as “wow that sure was weird” or “woah how did you end up here?”. It was giving me Forspoken vibes which is never a good thing in regards to writing. The reason I say this is minor though is because it really doesn’t impact the experience for me personally.
Through and through Mario Wonder is an achievement in the 2D game space. I’d say it rivals the all time greats of 2D platforming such as Super Meat Boy, Celeste, and Super Mario World. It’s a masterfully made experience that never overstays its welcome. It exudes Wonder in every sense of the word. I have a hard time imagining how Nintendo is going to top this in the next installment of this legendary franchise but I’ll be here eagerly waiting to see them try.