New Super Mario Bros. Wii

From the memories of my childhood up until my current gaming state, one character will stand above them as the true icon of gaming: Mario. There will likely never be a more recognizable video game character known around the world, and despite having skipped numerous Mario titles over the years including Super Mario Galaxy, every handheld Mario title and even Mario Sunshine, I am back loving the New Super Mario Bros. as if I never skipped a beat.

There are only a handful of games on the Wii that I would consider a must-own and through the course of my time spent with the title, it is safe to say that despite having both its ups and downs, the New Mario is here to stay as possibly the top Wii title to own. For a little background to the reader, I had not turned on my Wii in at least a year, having last had it hooked up for my brief stint with Super Smash Bro. Brawl (not as good as the original). Give this a read if you’ve either bought the game, are considering buying it, or are just interested in knowing what the game has to offer. Hopefully you’ll have some opinions of your own that either agree or disagree with me, but I’d love to hear what you think, as this is one of the most talked about Wii titles of the year.

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What’s Good

Nintendo, you’re back baby!: There are very few side-scrolling platforming titles out there that can rival the level of enjoyment delivered by Super Mario Bros. 2 or Super Mario Bros. 3. Games like Sonic, Kirby and Little Big Planet provided thrills and moments of sheer enjoyment, but there is nothing like popping in an old Mario title and being taken back by the simplicity, yet challenge each of them hold. New Super Mario Bros. delivers heaping spoonfuls of classic platforming gameplay with a bit of a wink and nod to the “old school” gamer (my generation of late 20s/early 30s) by adding classic characters and old homages to the remembrance of the former titles. At least 10 times in the first hour of playing, my girlfriend and I both exclaimed, “That is from Yoshi’s Island” or “That was in Super Mario Bros. 3 on World 3-2.”

It wasn’t broken, but they managed to uber-fix it: The original Super Mario Bros. titles delivered repetitive levels early on to build the player up to the challenges faced later on. This time around, the challenge comes early and often, but leaves the player facing fewer levels per world. This is a welcome sight for a guy who doesn’t like to dink around searching for every coin or every hidden gem the first time around. In Mario games, I prefer to experience the game as a whole and beat it to get that overall enjoyment from the title, then I’ll go back and uncover the details later. My girlfriend continues to unlock all the stars and coins, but I’m a head down, rush my way to the final boss kind of guy. I’ll touch on the difficulty a little later; however, as it does distract from the overall experience in certain levels.

Enough extras to shake a penguin suit at: This time around, beyond just going from level to level, there are plenty of side bonuses that can be utilized to gain power-ups or fun bonuses. Star coins are collected throughout the course of each level. If you collect all three, you can collect bonuses later in the game. There is a mushroom house once or twice per world and this allows Mario and crew to play a matchmaking game to obtain power ups. It is basically the game Memory, but if you flip over two Bowsers, you’re doneski. On each world, you’ll be approached by a big Goomba. Upon entering his level, you have to use your wits to complete the puzzle, typically involving smashing them or collecting as many coins before killing them as possible. Fun, but nothing special here. There are also numerous power ups you can access but they get their own subhead.

Fireballs, snowballs and penguins, oh my!: New Super Mario Bros. gives the gamer access to a number of costumes previously available in other Mario titles, such as the flower to gain the power of fireballs, Star mode, small Mario and normal Mario. However, if you collect an orange mushroom, you gain access to Mario with a propeller helmet that lets you take to the sky and fly for a brief period of time. This costume grants you access to certain areas unattainable by the other costumes, as well as avoiding some obnoxious levels that require balancing on certain platforms. The best addition is access to the Penguin suit. Similar to acquiring the Ice flower, the penguin costume grants the player the ability to shoot snow balls that freeze the enemy, as well as a chance to glide over snowy portions of specific stages to gain access to hard to reach locations.

Bring a friend along if you’re looking for a good time: This time around, up to four people can play simultaneously utilizing Mario, Luigi and the two other Toads. Players can quickly be added or dropped at the World Map, so don’t feel as if you start a save with four players that you are required to keep it that way the entire time. You can specifically add people without any sense of difficulty or confusion. Once you are playing the game with multiple players, it adds a whole other level of enjoyment. You may bite it on the map, but someone else can keep going and help your crew finish the level which makes up for some of the frustration on certain levels. On top of the normal mode, there is an additional Coin Battle mode that has players collecting as many coins as possible per game as you can. The winner is the player who collects the most coins. Look out for levels changing throughout compared to the normal single player mode, which helps to keep things fresh during some fun competition.

You don’t have to fry your Wii leaving it on all night: With the addition of the Quick Save feature, players no longer have to leave their system running all night if they can’t beat the game or that specific location required to save normally. Each world allows the player to save after they beat the first castle, which signifies the half way point. With Quick Save, you can quickly stop and save at any point, which is a welcome addition to the platformer genre, as many games require you to beat your head against a wall to find a save point, when at times all you want to do is take a break.

This game looks and sounds as good as it plays: Presentation was taken up a notch to deliver beautiful, exciting graphics without bogging down the Wii hardware. This offers gamers high framerates with stunning graphics and zero moments of wishing the game would run smoother. The backgrounds look incredible and our heroes shine throughout. The sounds in New Super Mario Bros. remind the gamer of old times, but keep the music fresh and upbeat for each individual encounter, such as the classic tunes while under water and the always menacing boss fights. When powering up or gaining an extra life you’ll hear the sound come through the Wii controller, which turns out to be a nice little surprise for players old and new.

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What’s Bad

Stop freaking spinning, Mario!: This may just be me, but the controls in New Mario pissed me off. I was so frustrated at times where I’d want him to pick up an ice block, but instead jump spun himself into another baddie and I’d end up dying. Or I’d slide on a patch of ice, Mario would try to cling to a wall and get squished by two walls. Frustrating? Very! I wanted the option to turn off motion control where accidentally shifting the controller or scratching my nose would cause Mario to jump spin into a cavern of death. At times, the control scheme had me questioning just how revolutionary this Mario was, considering in the older Marios, I always felt like I was in control and at times, it felt like New Mario was controlling me, or at least my anger levels.

I am twenty seven and yet this game seems ridiculously hard at points: As a kid, I remember thinking Super Mario Bros. 3 was fairly easy up until the final air ship, but even on later stages of World 2 and 3 of New Mario, I felt challenged to the point where I thought a young kid can never do this. The aspect of adding multiplayer likely offers kids a chance to play with the adults to learn the ropes and figure out how to finish the level, along with the Super Guide by Luigi, but that still seems pretty rough for younger kids who just want to have fun. Believe me when I say that at times, I simply got too angry at my fifth death in a row and turned off the system for a few hours. Also, there is nothing more obnoxious than to die four times and then have a green question mark appear on your screen letting you know that Luigi would like the opportunity to show you how to finish the level. Guess what, Luigi? I know how to do it, but the F’ing controller won’t do what I’m telling it to do!

It’s not over until it’s over… Oh it’s over!?: Being notorious for not finishing games, I was surprised how quickly New Super Mario Bros. was beaten. The title only required about six hours to finish the initial play through. Granted I did not collect every coin or star coin and I often skipped out trying to save Toad, but I feel with such an epic title, Nintendo would have added additional content to keep you playing for at least 10 to 15 hours if you aren’t playing multiplayer.

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Worth Remembering:
Just about everything! This game is pretty much the best Wii game you are going to get within the past year. You will not find a more enjoyable platformer game this year. The graphics, sound, multiplayer action and sense of nostalgia you’ll experience while playing through the title will bring you enjoyment through the winter months.

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Worth Forgetting:
Despite some janky controls (in my opinion) and the occasional hard spots on certain levels, there really isn’t much to complain about in the title. New Super Mario Bros. could have benefited from some additional content to keep the player coming back, but like old Mario games, it is the gameplay itself that brings you back and not always the addition of a ton of levels or content.

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New Super Mario Bros. is definitely my top Wii title pick of the year and will be for a quite some time. I’ve been enjoying experiencing it by myself and with my girlfriend. We’ll likely get a lot of play time with it during the holidays coming up with friends and family and the four player experience is going to be a treat. If you’re a fan of Mario at all or enjoy the genre, then do yourself a favor and get this game. If you don’t own a Wii, but are intrigued by the thoughts of remembering your yesteryears and playing Mario like old times, then go get a Wii and this game. It’s as simple as that! That’s it for this review -  from it’s a me, a Dustin-o! How have your experiences been with New Super Mario Bros. so far? Any insight you’d like to add that I  may have left out? We’d love for you to join the conversation.

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