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Classic Mario Gameplay Makes Its HD Debut With New Super Mario Bros. U
For the first time since 1996, a Mario game will be a part of a Nintendo console’s launch window. Demonstrated last year as New Super Mario Bros. Mii, the game has been officially announced as New Super Mario Bros. U, and I had a chance to get my hands on it at a pre-E3 appointment.
While the game doesn’t completely ignore the Wii U GamePad’s unique applications, it’s clearly meant to play like a classic 2D Mario title. Like the massively successful New Super Mario Bros. Wii, it allows up to four players to inhabit Mario, Luigi, two Toads, or your Mii in a Goomba-stomping adventure. It features a similar art style to the rest of the New Super Mario Bros. series, but it’s certainly nice to see the iconic characters and environments in HD for the first time.
The three stages I played didn’t do anything particularly unexpected for a Mario game, as it still centers on stomping enemies, grabbing coins, and collecting power-ups. One such power-up is the brand new flying squirrel suit, which (as you can imagine) grants its user with the ability to slowly and safely glide through the air. A shake of the controller causes an updraft, which puts previously inaccessible areas within reach. It felt to me like a mix between Super Mario Bros. 3’s raccoon tail and Super Mario World’s cape, and it fits right in with the feel of the series.
During my three trips to the end-level flagpole, I saw many familiar enemies and gameplay elements. Goombas and Koopa Troopas are everywhere, and they still dance along to certain beats during the in-game music tracks. The annoying, biting plants from Super Mario Bros. 3 return in one level, although I was able to run across a few dozen of them thanks to a hidden invincibility star. Completionists can look forward to collecting more Star Coins, as each level still features the standard three.
Considering the game can be played with four Wii remotes, it almost resembles a direct sequel to New Super Mario Bros. Wii in many ways. However, the Wii U GamePad can be brought into the equation if you feel like mixing things up a bit. One player can use the GamePad in what’s called assist mode, which allows them to create platforms by tapping the screen with the stylus. These platforms can help other players collect hard-to-reach Star Coins or cross particularly difficult gaps, and they can be turned into coin blocks if they’re tapped twice. Up to five blocks can be onscreen at once, although they all disappear after a matter of seconds. If you’d rather play in the traditional fashion, you’re free to control your character on the GamePad screen or the TV.
As a lifelong Mario fan, I’m thrilled that this series has seen success with younger gamers and introduced them to the same gameplay that made me fall in love with the industry. From what I’ve seen of New Super Mario Bros. U, it looks to maintain the series’ high bar of quality by sticking closely to the gameplay that made it a phenomenon in the first place. I’m sure we’ll see some innovative tweaks to the formula in Mario’s first 3D outing on Wii U, but for now it looks like we can look forward to more of the fantastic platforming we’ve become accustomed to.
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