Review Super Mario 3D World

The analysis of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser´s Fury is quite an event. Mario celebrates his 35th anniversary with the return of one of the best Wii U games, along with a new 3D development, featuring the most spectacular (and wild) Bowser in the series.

Hold your cap tight, because this review of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser´s Fury comes loaded with news. As if he had taken one of the cherries in the game, Mario has doubled in his latest adventure for Nintendo Switch.

On a personal note, the previous events to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. had fallen a bit "short" for me. Keep in mind that the character of Shigeru Miyamoto is probably the most influential in the history of video games, first in 2D and after Super Mario 64 in 3D games.

So the release of two pieces of hardware like Game & Watch Super Mario Bros. and Mario Kart Live Home Circuit, and the Super Mario 3D All Stars compilation (which includes three classics like Super Mario 64, Sunshine and Galaxy) was not in the works. the height.

What I was hoping for was a new Mario, ideally as brilliant as Odyssey was in 2017. This may not be the case. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser´s Fury is not comparable neither from a technical point of view nor in design, variety or duration. And even so, it is a great game (or rather, two). At the moment, the best way to celebrate such an illustrious birthday.

In our analysis we will see the two games separately, since Super Mario 3D World and Bowser´s Fury can be played independently from the menu. They share many things, but the development is very different. And we warn you that, at the express request of Nintendo, the images and videos shown in this article belong to the first part of each one of them, so as not to ruin any surprises.

A jewel rescued from Wii U

Super Mario 3D World is the adaptation of the Wii U game that appeared in 2013, and which, in turn, was a sequel to the 3DS game Super Mario 3D Land. Although its graphics were made in three dimensions, the "gameplay" was an evolution of lateral advance games, such as the classic Super Mario Bros, Super Mario World or New Super Mario.

What Nintendo did was design small, fairly linear maps with an automatic camera system. There were zones of lateral advance and others in which we moved towards the bottom of the screen, and the fact that the levels were some depth lent itself more to exploration.

The objective is very clear, to go linking jumps and stunts (on the heads of koopas and goombas) to reach the flag that marks the end of the level, but we can entertain ourselves in the search for hidden stamps and stars, which open the way to new ones scenarios.

And for the occasion, Mario collected skills from the New Super Mario Bros (such as the mega mushroom to become giant or helicopter blocks) along with new ones, such as cherries that multiplied the number of Marios on the screen or the cat costume, which allows you to climb the walls and defend yourself with claws.

Maybe this automatic camera system took away possibilities, but it is also the culprit that we can play Super Mario 3D World in multiplayer mode with three more friends (who control Peach, Luigi and Toad). Each of these characters has different abilities, and their use becomes necessary as we progress.

Because although at first Super Mario 3D World seems easier than other installments, it retains the great level design and balance of the entire saga, and in more advanced worlds it already requires coordination and skill.

There is much more in this platform game, such as the presentation of the dinosaur Plessie that accompanies us in aquatic levels and the bonus levels, in which we control Toad as in Captain Toad Treasure Tracker; what we must do is rotate the stage to solve a series of puzzles, since this character does not jump.

Super Mario 3D World improvements on Switch

As for the improvements offered by this version, we have a lime and a sand one. The speed of the characters is somewhat higher, and we can also play in online multiplayer mode, which is a joy. A ranking is also included to compare our scores with those of players around the world and the photo mode.

The downside is that the Wii U touch control levels have been adapted to the Switch's motion sensor and are not so intuitive. Activating platforms by moving a cursor is sometimes a hassle, whereas before it was a "no brainer".

For its part, the technical section in general is very remarkable, the designs of Mario and company barely accuse the passage of time (an advantage of the "cartoon" and colorful style of the entire saga) and have some very careful details. For a 7-year-old game, the truth is that they have aged very well.

Super Mario 3D World is still a great platform game, and the fact that it appears on Switch is a perfect occasion for all those players who did not have the previous Nintendo console to enjoy it (it was the least sold game in the series in Japan ). It has one of the best multiplayer modes in the entire saga.

Unlike what has happened to us in other versions of Wii U games, this time it does incorporate improvements that justify the jump to the new machine ... and these improvements are called Bowser´s Fury.

Bowser's fury

As we have already said Bowser´s Fury is an independent game, which allows us to control the camera freely and explore a new world. This setting is the Sea of ​​Claws, an archipelago in which each island behaves as if it were one of the classic worlds.

Our objective, this time, is to collect feline suns (they act as moons or stars), to "clean" new areas of the map and give Bowser what he deserves. Each island has a feline sun that is achieved by reaching the end, but the rest depends on final confrontations, time trials, collecting blue coins and sun fragments.

The architecture of the islands is superb, and makes our way of playing different to obtain each of the suns. And from the beginning, with that delicious control system that has made it the undisputed king of platforms.

The game is connected with Super Mario 3D World in terms of the use of items and costumes (here we are not going to find a gadget like the A.C.U.A.C. or the Cappy cap that adds a new mechanic). Although again it is the feline costume, the one that makes things a little easier for us.

Plessie also returns to help us move between the islands at full speed (and take some suns in time trial circuits).

By now, you may be wondering why it was dubbed Bowser´s Fury instead of Mario Islands ... or whatever. The reason is that our nemesis has transformed into a huge beast that devastates the stage throwing fire and ashes every so often.

Things have gotten so bad with Bowser that his offspring Bowsy (who can be controlled by a second player) has sided with us. If we play alone, we can select the level of help from him, eliminating enemies and collecting coins, while in the multi, it is a "limited" intervention such as handling the cursor in Super Mario Galaxy or the cap in Odyssey.

When we have collected a number of suns, Mario can activate the giga-bell and face his rival on equal terms. This giant "super saiyan" Mario stars in some "face to face" confrontations that are the most epic this saga has left us. Even with a choral soundtrack that makes your hair stand on end.

On the other hand, there are also times when you use Bowser's jets of fire to make way for us to new locations, destroy the blocks that enclose suns or help us end with annoying fuzzies.

Although in general, the level of difficulty is simple. The reason is that we can accumulate the power ups (up to 25) and have Bowsy administer them to us in times of need ... so we almost always have a bell, a fire flower or a mushroom when we need it.

Bowser´s Fury is not as big -or as revolutionary- as the "canonical" installments, but recovering all the suns (we can reach the final confrontation with half) can take us a few hours, and it preserves the "magic" of the games that we have already mentioned.