The title for both the game and this article is very apt, as from the moment you start at that first level, the wonderful joys just start coming. And don’t ever stop. Super Mario Bros. Wonder brings the first truly new 2D Mario experience in over ten years. Across those ten years, a lot of ideas have been injected into the 3D Mario games. Now, the same can be said for the 2D ones.
The big thing at play here is the Wonder Seeds, the objects of power found in the Flower Kingdom. These things can make weird changes to reality. Just unfortunate Bowser has to show up, then. Mushroom Kingdom residents have been invited by Prince Florian of the Flower Kingdom to see the effects of a Wonder Flower. They see what sort of power is involved when Bowser fuses to one of the castles of the Flower Kingdom and becomes a floating fortress.
The Mushroom Kingdom residents want to help put things right, so Mario, Luigi, Peach, Dai… there’s twelve of ‘em. All twelve decide to help Prince Florian, including Nabbit, who’s here for some reason. Multiple Toads and Yoshis round out those residents, and all twelve are playable. There’s little difference between all these characters, so it is down to preference on who you like to use.
That is owing to the badge system, which serves to make gameplay changes to make things easier. Or harder. To start with, you’ll get the hat float badge, which will allow you to slow your fall rate and glide across distances. Soon more will be unlocked, including the dolphin flipper badge to speed up swimming, and the wall jump badge which will give you a vertical jump up a wall before the usual horizontal one. These type of badges come from levels which will test your ability to use them. Though there are those without such levels which are bought from shops.
As for those Wonder Seeds, the first time you complete a level, you will get one. These seeds serve as a way to gate progression at important checkpoints, such as boss battles. Also in every level are extra Wonder Seeds. Found in a level, touching them will bring about a reality warp in the level that will need to be completed by finding that Wonder Seed again. Some are easy, some are timed, and some bring changes to a level that will open further sections of it. But all will delight whether from the surprise, challenge, or weirdness they bring.
It’s not just regular levels, bosses, and badge challenges here, as there’s also break time events, Wiggler races, and KO Arenas to partake in. Completion of these will also give Wonder Seeds, which does allow a lot of choice on how you collect enough Wonder Seeds to meet the progression gates. KO Arenas and Wiggler races are easy enough to understand, with the former asking you to defeat enemies to progress while the latter has you race against a Wiggler through a level.
Break time events are more varied, even if they are simple challenges. Whether collecting five tokens to reveal the Wonder Seed, or taking out an enemy that is defending itself with ice blocks, these small events are nice little breaks from regular levels. There can be a few that might prove a little tricky, but otherwise they never pose the same sort of challenge of the regular levels.
Purple flower coins can be found throughout the levels, with three 10-coins in each. Those 10-coins count towards a level’s overall completion status, just as getting all Wonder Seeds and touching the top of the flagpole do. The coins are used in shops, where badges and 1-Up Mushrooms can be bought. Each shop you encounter also has a Wonder Seed in their inventory. These shops also sell standees. If you’re wondering what standees are, this is where the online stuff comes into play.
When on the world map, there are connection devices which allow you to swap to online mode. While you can’t actually play with other people, you can see what they’re doing in a level. These standees can be placed in levels to revive other players when they would otherwise lose a life. Placing them is simple, as is using them. It’s also rather lovely to see what other players are doing in a level, even if that’s as far as your interaction with them will go.
The animations and art breathe life into the game, with many small details to delight at. Mario feels energetic when jumping and running, with his cap bobbing slightly when doing both. As he falls to the ground after a long jump, he’ll have arms wide and belly out. Even enemies have a touch more detail, with Rolla Koopas smoothly skating across surfaces, and sleeping Goombas having a slight movement with their breathing. It’s always a joy to see what new enemy or powerup you’ll encounter to see these small details.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder feels a beautiful new direction for 2D Mario to go. While I have mostly ignored badges, there’s no denying the impact they make in how you tackle levels. Those levels are varied in design, even within the same world, with Wonder Seeds further increasing that variety. Honestly, I’d say my only gripe is not allowing a greater split between the jump and run buttons. It can only be A/B or B/Y, which I guess is a Mario staple. But I can’t help but think how easier it would be for some players to have greater freedom with that. Such as… placing one or both on the shoulder triggers.
Despite not having a greater control over the controls, there’s still a lot to love with this one. Love them or loathe them, the flowers seen throughout levels always have something to be saying. Some can be helpful while others will further that smile you’ll already have. As said at the beginning of this review, the Wonder of the name is true. There’s always some new wonder to find, with very little in the way of whatever the opposite of wonder is. So for me, Super Mario Bros. Wonder is an easy recommendation.
Images Taken From:
Super Mario Bros. Wonder | Nintendo Switch [Handheld]
