That's not to say it reinvents the seriesfar from it. The classic Mario mechanics are back, from running and jumping to fire flowers and Yoshi. Mario and his friends are notably sticky, allowing for heroic aerobatics with rotating platforms and wall jumps. The nostalgia factor is in full force as well. Long-time fans will shout out with glee as they encounter almost-forgotten baddies and subtle head-nods to prior games in the level designs and soundtrack (Remember Fire Chomp?).
But NSMB Wii is Nintendo EAD's first 2D Mario console game since Yoshi's Island for the Super Nintendo, and its efforts to harness the technology are readily apparent. Most obviously, NSMB Wii features four-player co-op and can handle far more on-screen action than the SNES ever could. But much like The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures on GameCube, NSMB Wii uses the extra horsepower in clever ways that directly affect gameplay. For example, one extremely dark level leverages dynamic lighting, enticing players to discover their surroundings using Mario and enemies' fireballs. In another, players can freeze underwater baddies (using the ice flower) so that they float upward in blocks of ice.
Most importantly, NSMB Wii sticks to the fundamental rule of all good Mario games: focused level design. As I explained in my review of Super Mario Bros 3 for Game Boy Advance over half a decade ago, the NES classic remains distinctive to this day because almost every level presents a unique challenge or twist. Whether large or small, this nugget of personality makes each level memorable and worth revisiting. NSMB Wii carries on this tradition far better than the DS entry, introducing new gameplay variants and baddies from start to finish and never lingering on a single idea. The one arguable exception are the fortresses and castle designs, but the varied and clever Koopaling boss battles help address thiseven if they are somewhat easy.
The brand new multiplayer gameplay is a triumph. A second player introduces an element of unpredictability that runs counter to Mario's empowering skill-set. In a single-player Mario game, it's the player's job to remain in control of the environment; attempting to do so in NSMB Wii's co-op is futile. Players will stumble over each other, swipe items, scroll the screen forward, and generally engage in horseplay. Much like in Super Smash Bros., the action can become profoundly chaotic with four players, and unintentional interference can result in some catastrophically hilarious failures and colorful banter. The result is a multiplayer experience that plays very much like a single-player Mario game, but simultaneously feels new and different. One nice touch is the ability to add and drop players from the map screen without having to exitperfect for passersby at parties. The multiplayer experience is further bolstered by Coin Battle mode, in which players can quarrel through any of the main game's levels in addition to a handful of extra stages, competing for the most coins.
What makes New Super Mario Bros. Wii's robust multiplayer even more impressive is that it hasn't upset the game's difficulty. This Mario game isn't afraid to put veterans through Bullet Bill Hell. Gamers aiming for 100 percent will have to exploit Mario's arsenal of power-ups to find secret areas and nab star coins, and even those who simply want to clear each level will be expected to pull off some advanced moves. The game remains difficult in multiplayer, but for a different reason: death itself is no longer a great inconvenience (players with remaining lives respawn in bubbles as long as someone is alive), but coordinating amongst friends is often its own challenge. Players looking for some tips can purchase demo videos with star coins they collect, and struggling players can defer to the Super Guide, but discovering secrets and tricks alone is far more satisfying.
The game does have its shortcomings. There is no online playalthough the feature's omission is perfectly understandable after the similarly busy Super Smash Bros. Brawl's failed attempt. The graphical style is crisp and less plastic-y than on the DS, but still unimaginative, as is the use of a second Toad character for Player 4. Allowing you retain Yoshi instead of sequestering him to specific stages would have been nice, and the game could have used a greater emphasis on secret exits and map exploration. Also, the game bafflingly allows the team to commit suicide in co-op by accidentally pushing the A button to idle in a bubble.
But the complaints above amount to nitpicks. This is New Super Mario Bros., not Super Mario World, and on its own terms New Super Mario Bros. Wii holds its own. As both a platformer and a party game, for both casual and enthusiast gamers, Nintendo's latest Mario game delivers in spades.
Pros:
Lastability: 10.0
NSMB Wii's interesting levels are worth exploring several times over both alone and with friends. Everyone plays Mario a little differently, and whether you are a die-hard Nintendo fan, a lapsed gamer, a newbie, or somewhere in-between, you will most likely appreciate this game and find that it remains as fresh as your friends and their zany antics.
Final: 9.5
New Super Mario Bros. Wii champions 2D gaming. Its elegant and familiar design makes it instantly approachable, while its distinctive multiplayer appeal makes it worthwhile for even the most seasoned of gamers. I cannot recommend New Super Mario Bros. Wii highly enough.
The one arguable exception are the fortresses and castle designs, but the varied and clever Koopaling boss battles help address thiseven if they are somewhat easy.
I'm not a fan of shaking the wiimote to pick up items or people.
QuoteI'm not a fan of shaking the wiimote to pick up items or people.
Agreed. Waggle is the only thing so far that I can say it outright BAD with this game. I've had Mario drop items or goof up jumps because I couldn't hold the controller still enough.
Picking up items is fine with me but I agree that the waggle for spin moves and such is obnoxious and caused me to die unnecessarily several times or wasn't precisely right and a move didn't activate like the helicopter spin.
Picking up items is fine with me but I agree that the waggle for spin moves and such is obnoxious and caused me to die unnecessarily several times or wasn't precisely right and a move didn't activate like the helicopter spin.
Actually, I thought the shake for spin was okay, but it was a pain for picking up objects, especially since you had to hold another button to do it anyway.
Actually, I thought the shake for spin was okay, but it was a pain for picking up objects, especially since you had to hold another button to do it anyway.
Actually, I thought the shake for spin was okay, but it was a pain for picking up objects, especially since you had to hold another button to do it anyway.
Only have gone through the first two levels, but I also do dislike how I have two different ways of picking up items... just holding 1 and then holding 1 and shaking?? Just takes a little to understand what's possible too. For example I once couldn't pick up a frozen flowers (due to clearance I guess) and died as a result, no biggie but still.
I don't know if the spin jump has the same effect as it did in super mario world... where you could tap jump off spiny objects. I've not run into many such enemies yet. If it does then I'd probably have a complaint where I would have liked to have the spin jump as a separate button for comfort reasons.
Con
-Well-worn graphical style
The game forces you to both shake the remote and hold a button to pick up items/Toads so you don't accidentally pick up one of your teammates in co-op. Get used to it--it's not hard.
Why even have the shake then except to force motion control down our throats? Every other Mario game mapped the pick-up and run functions to the same button. So why in NSMB Wii do they have to make it that same button PLUS waggle?
The game forces you to both shake the remote and hold a button to pick up items/Toads so you don't accidentally pick up one of your teammates in co-op. Get used to it--it's not hard.
Why even have the shake then except to force motion control down our throats? Every other Mario game mapped the pick-up and run functions to the same button. So why in NSMB Wii do they have to make it that same button PLUS waggle?
See my previous post.The game forces you to both shake the remote and hold a button to pick up items/Toads so you don't accidentally pick up one of your teammates in co-op. Get used to it--it's not hard.
Also, the game bafflingly allows the team to commit suicide in co-op by accidentally pushing the A button to idle in a bubble.
See my previous post.
QuoteCon
-Well-worn graphical style
i wish Nintendo made the game look like this:
http://fc03.deviantart.com/fs38/f/2008/362/a/d/Mario_World_by_Orioto.jpg (http://fc03.deviantart.com/fs38/f/2008/362/a/d/Mario_World_by_Orioto.jpg)
or
http://fc09.deviantart.com/fs32/f/2008/233/a/e/Milky_Sky_by_Orioto.jpg (http://fc09.deviantart.com/fs32/f/2008/233/a/e/Milky_Sky_by_Orioto.jpg)
but Nintendo is lazy with art style in mario games. I guess they don't want to try to top Yoshi Island.
Unless you're implying that people would accidentally pick up their teammate with the 1 button as well.
INEPT PEOPLE, YOU PLAYED MARIO 20 YEARS AGO, YOU SHOULDN'T BE ACCIDENTALLY HITTING WEIRD BUTTONS BY MISTAKE.This message has been brought to you by the Pro Message System. Please take note of this, media outlets who gave this game a 7.
"OH DRATS, I ACCIDENTALLY HIT SELECT, CAUSING TEAM SUICIDE. WOE IS THIS IDIOT."
That's exactly what I was saying. You'd hit thdown on accidents.e 1 button to start to run but you'd accidentally grab a nearby teammate. Forcing you to both hit the 1 button and shake the remote reduces the likelihood of frustrating mistakes.
How much of the music is recycled from the DS game, and how much of it is a new composition? It's been a while since I played the DS one so I don't remember all of the music.
How much of the music is recycled from the DS game, and how much of it is a new composition? It's been a while since I played the DS one so I don't remember all of the music.
I've only at the castle level of world 3, so what I say isn't the full picture, but from the sounds of things:Thanks for the response. I knew of the SMB3 remixes, I just wasn't sure what was from NSMB on DS because it has been a while since I've played it.
The Overworld, Athletic and Fortress themes are taken from the DS game (and I guess you could include the famous Underground tune, which has really been taken from practically every Mario game), though 'recycled' is a spotty term. None of the arrangements in the Wii version are the same as before; it's a set remixes to those songs.
Beyond that, I think everything else is a remix from another game or a new composition. The Desert, Underwater, Ghost House and Castle compositions are new. The Map Enemy and Fortress Boss themes are from Super Mario Bros. 3, but the Castle Boss music is totally different. This isn't taking into account all the different Map Screen themes - those in the first three worlds are new pieces of music, at least.
That music isn't that memorable , I much rather they just recycle the music from Brawl. Brawl had some amazing remixes of mario themes.Other than the underground theme from Super Mario Land, I thought the Mario remixes were pretty "blah".
Why defend the the waggle in this game? It just doesn't belong in this game. At. All.
Shoulder buttons are placed differently from B. B is intended only for when you hold the controller in one hand.Tell that to all the games that successfully utilize B in sideways mode.
Define "successfully". Can the button be pushed? Yes. It is comfortable to do so? No.Shoulder buttons are placed differently from B. B is intended only for when you hold the controller in one hand.Tell that to all the games that successfully utilize B in sideways mode.
Would I have liked a classic controller option where shake was replaced with X or something? Sure. But I don't think NSMB's control scheme detracts from the experience. It's certainly not broken as some posts in this thread would imply.
While it was a lot of fun the game actually doesn't seem like it was really designed for multiplayer. It feels a lot like this is a single player game with multiplayer shoe-horned in. It still works and it's still fun but it really feels like a predominantly single player game.Miyamoto has said in interviews that this is exactly what it is. The levels were designed for single player, and then they added multiplayer.
While it was a lot of fun the game actually doesn't seem like it was really designed for multiplayer. It feels a lot like this is a single player game with multiplayer shoe-horned in. It still works and it's still fun but it really feels like a predominantly single player game.Miyamoto has said in interviews that this is exactly what it is. The levels were designed for single player, and then they added multiplayer.
Can you pick up without shaking in single player?
As there's no one else playing the "accidental team-mate pick up" problem wouldn't exist, no?
By the way, NSMBW is harder than previous Marios due to less forgiving jump collision, in previous Marios as long as you were moving downwards it was assumed that you jumped onto an enemy when you touch it (could be exploited in Paper Mario to jump onto enemies that are higher than you), NSMBW actually requires you to hit its top while touching the side, even when falling, registers as a hit against you.
So I played it with my brothers this weekend. We blasted through it and are now on Bowser's Castle which I assume is the last level. (I didn't need to spoiler that, did I?)
I told them nothing regarding any of my complaints about the controls. They didn't complain about any slipperiness compared to Super Mario World so I guess that's just me sucking. They hate the waggle though and accidentally set it off WAY more than I do.
While it was a lot of fun the game actually doesn't seem like it was really designed for multiplayer. It feels a lot like this is a single player game with multiplayer shoe-horned in. It still works and it's still fun but it really feels like a predominantly single player game.
Worst thing in the world? You're on a boss and you die and while you're floating in a bubble towards your brother his thumb slips and he accidentally pushes "A" putting himself in a bubble and ending the level ON A BOSS FIGHT! ****ING MOTHER****ER!!! My brother has a tendency to be a figgity idiot at the worst times and I just lost it at him when he did this. This happened like three times though thankfully only once on a boss.
How does your hand "slip" the centimeter over and on to the A button? I am not saying it can't happen, but I would sure like to know how it does.
