Super Mario Bros. Wonder impressions - a wonderful platformer that aims to be GOTY

When Super Mario Bros. Wonder was announced, part of the community questioned whether the plumber’s voice corresponded to that of Charles Martinet, the actor who has given him life since Super Mario 64 in video games. Weeks later, Nintendo confirmed that the interpreter would leave aside this work to become a character ambassador. In the absence of knowing the identity of the new Mario -and other of his friends and enemies-, we have finally been able to try it at Gamescom. Our feelings? Unbeatable, amazed, the best Mario returns!

Despite being a 2D side-scrolling platformer, the game breaks away from the visual style of the New Super Mario Bros. series. These changes not only affect the artistic design, but also affect key aspects of the gameplay. Protagonists no longer collide with each other, preventing an ally from being able to hinder (either by mistake or of their own free will) the progress of their companions. What is similar to NSMB is that when the character in question dies, it becomes a ghost, so that a partner must touch it to return it to its normal state. On the other hand, the objects of one and the other are not “stealable”, so each one has their own.

Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Toad, and Toadette play equally: they don’t have their own abilities. In contrast, Yoshi can’t pick up Power-Ups, but he can carry another friend on his back. Nabbit, another of the selectable characters, will be the preferred option for the youngest players, since he does not receive damage from enemies. Nintendo has created a game that suits all types of gamers.

New Kingdom, New Rules: Elephants and Wonder Flowers

We leave the Mushroom Kingdom and enter the Flower Kingdom, a world of exotic contrasts and lurking dangers. The basic formula of Super Mario Bros. remains intact, but as usual, Mario takes the wrench to give the gameplay a twist. The result is a platformer with organic and changing stages, that favor varied situations and that are influenced by the objects and by the transformations of the heroes.

The first contact with the game is the introductory level, which teaches us the playable fundamentals of the adventure, starting with the most important: jump, jump, and jump. As soon as we start, we move to the side and jump on the blocks. From one of them comes one of the objects that debut in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the one that transforms us into elephants. In this way, plumper and more imposing, the heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom look heavier, but they deliver strong blows with their trunks and can absorb water from fountains or puddles to throw it at enemies and paralyze them. After expelling several bursts (three in total) we will have to reload the aqueous ammunition, which also helps us to lift pipes and reach higher areas.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is full of curious little details, a crystalline reflection of the care that Nintendo has put into every aspect of the video game. For example, when accessing a pipe turned into an elephant, we will see how the hero makes a gesture of effort when going in and out because he can barely fit through the narrow gap.

Another novelty is a very particular object, the Wonder Flower, an item capable of altering the scenarios and the perception of reality. Pipes start to move up and down or slide like a worm, adding a new playable dimension to the game. As in the classics, the stage ends when one of the characters touches the flag: the one who finishes highest gets the laurels of victory and in the next game will receive the honor of having the camera follow him.

In the next level, marked with a difficulty star, a scary little squirrel throws acorns at us, but thanks to our elephantine powers we can return them with a movement of our trunks. With a clean blow, we destroy other objects that get in the way. The characters’ strength increases to the point that they move pipes. We also find blocks that alternate between different objects, so that the one we receive is the one that appears inside just when we hit it.

Secrets are not missing from any level: from the classic bonus coins when going down a pipe to mini-games with musical blocks, going through secret places, vines that lead to elevated areas, etc.

The next Wonder Flower causes a shower of stars...and in Mario’s games we already know what that means: invincibility and speed. Be careful because the fast pace wreaks havoc, don’t forget that there are bottomless pits...

Classic and New Power-Ups

We have mentioned the elephant Power-Up over and over again, but it is not the only one that we can take advantage of. Although we are no longer in the Kingdom ruled by Peach, classic items like the mushroom or the fire flower are back. We move on to another stage, in which we face creatures similar to a bull, charging left and right. Wonder Flower’s effect is a stampede, another new playable option. We get on the animals, who run feverishly and get to ascend and pierce the clouds. Thus we approach the top of the flag.

It makes sense that in a stage with mining details the Power-Up is an indispensable tool to survive, a drill cap. We can not only dig the ground and slide under and over, but also destroy special blocks. Here the Wonder Flower does something wonderful, not so much for the heroes, who are forced to descend while a huge block falls with all its bad milk (and there is a countdown!). The Bubble booster has been shown on the Nintendo Direct, but we didn’t see it in the Gamescom demo. It consists of launching a bubble against the enemy to enclose and defeat it quickly.

According to Nintendo, the developers have embodied certain smaller ideas through the mini-games. They are quick stages that are resolved in a short time, like the one we experienced during the session: the objective is to jump over the blocks when the piranha plants pass over them. A few seconds later, the level has been beaten and we get a juicy Wonder Seed.

This is how the badge system and online multiplayer of Super Mario Bros. Wonder work

Those who have played Paper Mario or Mario & Luigi will be familiar with the badges. In Super Mario Bros. Wonder they are an element of progression because by acquiring and unlocking these objects we will obtain certain upgrades, such as jumping higher, swimming faster, being able to get more extra coins or automatic mushrooms, to name a couple of examples.

Regarding the multiplayer, Nintendo has explained to us that in each game there can be up to 12 players in the game worlds, although in the levels themselves only a total of 4 people can participate. During the test, three players played locally, while another joined online. In this case, the external character is listed as a marker and does not intervene in the other’s stage. However, you can participate by pointing out secrets or providing items. The heart above their username indicates how much help they have provided.

Another possibility is to see them as specters. In that case, you can send them emotes or use them to resurrect when you are ghosted.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a continuous discovery, an imaginative overflow that elevates the platform genre to its maximum expression. Both visually and sound-wise it builds a wonderful atmosphere, a network of colors and effects that looks and plays fantastic on Nintendo Switch. An ambitious title cared for down to the smallest detail and with a multitude of good ideas. The new Japanese production will be available on October 20 exclusively for the Switch. The Nintendo Switch Red OLED Model (Mario edition) will be out a few weeks earlier, on October 6th.