Super mario 3d world review
But a smart player realizes that the key to keeping the coveted crown lies not in wrestling over it with friends, but rather from getting in front of them with another excellent performance. In each co-op session I played, we’d all gang up on the leader to keep him from repeating his first-place showing. I love how the crown, which is functionally meaningless – paints a bullseye on a leader’s back. Unlike the constant frustration of bumping into other players in New Super Mario Bros., here the other three characters (Luigi, Toad, and Peach) aren’t obstacles, but rather competitive buddies all vying for first place at the end of each level – and the privilege of wearing the crown in the next stage.
Played alone it’s amazing, but multiplayer stands as one of Super Mario 3D World’s greatest accomplishments. Expect to hear plenty of those signature falsetto caterwauls as you succumb to the later pitfalls of this adventure.
Eventually, later stages (and particularly some of the post-game worlds after the eight main ones) provide a maddening reminder that platformers can still offer a stiff challenge, even for us self-proclaimed experts. I should note that Super Mario 3D World shows a little restraint at first, and the initial four overworld areas don’t present much of a challenge for veteran Mario players. The pacing also gave me flashbacks as I reveled in the sheer brilliance of how much energy and gameplay mileage Nintendo has packed into every world. Traveling through the clear pipes constantly reminded me of propelling through the galaxy between planetoids. Obviously, Super Mario 3D World isn’t a sequel to the ingenious Super Mario Galaxy 2, but the overall design feels every bit as informed.
3, Super Mario 3D World doesn’t rest on its laurels or lean on any form of predictability. Much like the NES classic Super Mario Bros. I fought quirky new bosses and jumped across platforms on a speeding train. I rode on the back of a co-op controlled dinosaur named Plessie, and later sped through a charming stage paying homage to Super Mario Kart.
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I explored a circus carnival full of tricky platforms, then carefully rode on oversized ants by bouncing on their heads as they crossed over deadly spikes. These levels are even better than in SM3DL, since they have much more entertaining flair and don’t constantly reward you with enough extra lives to render death meaningless. Much like Super Mario 3D Land, many stages present a unique and clever idea, play with it, and then bow away gracefully before it becomes boring. The amount of visual variety genuinely surprised me, but just as importantly, the level designs take interesting risks and aren’t restrained by obligatory grassy-field motifs or other well-traveled Mario stage themes. These tiny whimsical details add up, and Super Mario 3D World’s overall visual design captures a youthful energy that flows into the expertly made levels themselves. A random pattern of stars popped out each time I pounced on an enemy. And then there are the little things: Mario and crew leave tiny puffs of smoke with each step and, after you’ve run for long enough, the trail explodes into a smoke trail. There’s a surprising amount of texture detail stitched into these worlds, along with subtle lighting and effects that accentuate each onscreen action beautifully. Of course Mario games have seen their share of vibrant hues and stylized art direction, but Super Mario 3D World outdoes the simplistic visuals of New Super Mario Bros. But, most importantly, Super Mario 3D World nails something that the New Super Mario Bros games could not: it gracefully switches back and forth between a fun solo game and great competitive co-op play. The characters and levels all showcase an unbridled sense of joy the soundtrack crisscrosses between trendy jazz and orchestral arrangements of familiar Mario tunes and even the surprisingly adorable cat suit managed to melt my stone-cold heart. But Super Mario 3D World defies such logic and creatively sets itself apart – in good ways – from its outstanding recent predecessors, Super Mario 3D Land and Super Mario Galaxy 2. After 28 years of making marvelous Mario platform games, you’d think Nintendo would run out of ideas.