The best Super Mario games are ones I find myself coming back to again and again. I’m not sure I want to count how many copies of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World I own across various Nintendo platforms, but it’s worth it because of just how satisfying it is to replay those classic levels, like revisiting a favorite album. They’re simple enough that you can jump in easily, but with a level of depth that means I’m always discovering new things. And over the last few years I’ve added Super Mario Bros. Wonder to that list, a game that is absolutely bursting with new ideas and that exudes playfulness. It’s a great way to unwind — and if you’re looking for an excuse to hop back in, the new Switch 2 upgrade is the perfect place.
The new release — full name: Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Meetup in Bellabel Park — is basically a medium-sized expansion for the game. For me, the biggest addition has been a handful of challenging levels to play through, each with their own boss battle. The levels are all centered on a different Koopaling (their backstory is a little complicated) who gets access to a “wonder” flower, giving them a new power. In the grand tradition of Mario Wonder, the powers are all pretty weird: In one level you’re being hunted by a giant fish that flies through the air using portals; in another there are gigantic Piranha Plants that can also be used as platforms. The final level even introduces weather effects, as you’ll have to fight strong winds and avoid lightning strikes.
There are only seven of these levels, but they showcase the best of Wonder, offering challenge and surprise in equal measure. And when you beat them all you unlock more challenging versions of each boss battle. These are part of a series of challenges that the game calls its “training camp.” Here you’re given a goal — collect every coin before time runs out, for instance, or make it to the end of a level without losing invincibility — and move through a series of progressively challenging versions of it. The levels get harder, with trickier jumps and more enemies, and you’re often shackled with specific power-ups and badges that force you to play in a specific way. I can tell these will keep me busy for a while.
That’s about all there is for single-player additions, as the bulk of the expansion is focused on a new area filled with multiplayer minigames. This location basically turns Wonder into a miniature version of Mario Party, except without all of the Mario Party nonsense.
There’s a huge amount of variety to the games. In one, you have to work together with other players to only collect a certain number of coins or jump a certain number of times before you complete the level. And since the game doesn’t track this for you, all of you need to work — and count — together to hit the exact right number and not fail. Another game has one player using Mario Maker-style controls to build platforms for their co-op partner to navigate. Many of the other games are more straightforward, like competing to collect the most coins or feed a baby Yoshi the most food, and there are a total of 17 to play through. My favorite is a version of tag where everyone who isn’t it can disguise themselves as inanimate objects. It gets very chaotic.
There are a few other additions — Rosalina as a playable character, a power-up that turns you into a flower, a park you can decorate, and some unnecessary mouse controls — so overall it’s a pretty robust package for a $20 upgrade. And for me, at least, it’s a no-brainer. While the multiplayer games are a fun bonus, all I’m looking for are fresh levels and challenges for those moments when I decide I need a little more Wonder in my life.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Meetup in Bellabel Park launches on the Switch 2 on March 26th.
