Mario is one of the most iconic gaming franchises, so it probably comes as no surprise that it is one of my favourites. I didn’t have any expectations going into Super Mario Bros. Wonder, so I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable this game was. This is Nintendo at its creative best. There is so much fun and replayability to be found in this game, and it’s one I can see myself going back to over and over. It may be a bit simplistic, but sometimes all I want in a video game is the opportunity to lay back and just have some fun.

The gameplay does have some uniqueness to it, as you can gain a multitude of unique abilities throughout the course of the game. While yes, this is par for the course in Mario games, we have a variety of new abilities alongside tried and true classics. The elephant fruit allows you to become an elephant! The bubble flower allows you to create bubbles to defeat enemies and float to hard to reach places! The drill mushroom allows you to drill underground to avoid enemies as well as gain an advantage over them! These new ideas are so interesting and work so well in the game.

Alongside the new abilities, there are also new enemy types, ranging from rebranded classics (such as the Melon Piranha Plants) and brand new creations (such as the Konks). The way the levels are structured allows for multiple ways in which they can be completed, which I’m always a fan of in games. The levels increase in difficulty, allowing me to find occasional frustration followed by immense satisfaction upon completing them. The game features eight different worlds and 152 levels, with each level feeling distinctly its own rather than like a repeat of an earlier one. Some levels are simply going from point A to point B while avoiding different obstacles, while others are timed levels where you have to defeat several rounds of enemies as quickly as possible. Yet there’s always a twist to each one that keeps the gameplay feeling fresh.

The graphics, as expected from Nintendo, are excellent. Every environment feels incredibly detailed and original, and the love put into creating them is deeply tangible. Most of the boss fights are all repeats of previous 2D Mario games, but the final boss fight makes it all worthwhile. There’s so much ingenuity that goes into defeating the final boss, and it doesn’t hurt that it takes place in such a unique location! The music also stands out a lot more in this section, elevating the final boss and making it stand out from the other boss fights.

This game genuinely surprised me so much at how much fun I had with it. While I still feverishly anticipate the release of Nintendo’s next 3D Mario adventure, this was more than enough to satiate me for the time being. 

8.5/10