Nintendo is about to drop one of the most exciting and wonderful 2D platforms of 2023: Super Mario Bros. Wonder (because we just didn’t have enough awesome games in 2023).
Thanks to Nintendo, Quest Daily went hands-on with Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the most original 2-D Mario game in years.
It’s all in the name, Mario’s latest adventure is shaping up to be a wonder.
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Enter the Flower Kingdom.
There’s a bit going on here, but the basis of the “new” things in Mario and the gang’s next big adventure:
- You can transform into a freakin’ elephant.
- Character-specific blocks to reward certain players.
- Power-ups galore… You can pop on a drill hat to go underground, or float up to the sky Violet Beauregarde-style.
- Look out for moveable objects throughout levels.
- Fancy badges that offer a world of abilities.
- New enemies never seen before in a Mario game.
- New worlds and more… Just to name a few.
Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Toad and Toadette are among the game’s main playable characters. While none of them have unique abilities tailored to them, you can apply badges (or perks) to your character for a skill boost in each level. You can also play as a variety of Yoshi, who can suck up and spit out enemies, and Nabbit, who can turns extra power-ups into flower coins.
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There are specific challenge levels throughout the world that offer these badges as a reward, completing these little challenges will allow you to earn some coins and also pick up a new badge with a new ability. You don’t have to play the game with badges, but they do offer unique abilities for your characters, like the ability to float down like a parachute, jump high and wall jump. I saw about six badges with spaces to unlock dozens more.
The game is called Wonder for a reason — it truly is wondrous. I had a smile on my face the whole time; the little talking wonder flowers were an absolute highlight.
The bubbly and playful music seemingly has a bigger role to play in the game, but I have yet to see it at its full potential.
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In addition to standard Mario coins, you’ll be able to collect an additional flower coin. These coins can be used to purchase special items from the World store like extra lives, abilities and power-ups.
The game looks to really pick up in the later levels, I can’t go into detail, but from what I saw, there is so much more to the game that meets the eye. New enemies, themed levels and exciting abilities await.
Online multiplayer is also a thing, and while features haven’t been entirely outlined, in the store I saw stand-in/wooden cut-outs that you can place in levels; presumably to let your friends know that you’ve been there or to perhaps highlight an area of note for them to explore.
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Super Mario Bros. Wonder will no doubt be one of the best family games of 2023. My 45-minute playthrough has me excited for what’s to come.
A similar demo will be playable at Pax Australia in the Nintendo booth — highly recommend checking this out. You can also score yourself an 8-bit Mario badge (while stocks last).
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is coming to Nintendo Switch on October 20.
