Tag: Super Mario

Super Mario 3D World – World 2

I continued my adventure in Super Mario 3D World, this time heading off to World 2. This is the desert world…it seems like World 2 is always the desert world in Mario games, doesn’t it? Anyway, after clearing the first level of this world, I was given the option to enable the Miiverse features of the game, as well as ghost Mii characters. I didn’t look into how the ghost Mii characters work just yet, but the Miiverse features became apparent immediately. On my world map were some Miis belonging to people on my Wii U friend roster, with some posts they made about the game. The first one I saw was this drawing of Mario “pooting” on a Goomba Cat.

sm3dw-pootWorld 2-3: Shadow-Play Alley is an interesting level that makes use of shadows. They may help you find a secret or they may distract you into making a mistake. In some parts of the level, you’ll see both your character and your shadow; in other parts, you can only see the shadows. It’s a fun level.

sm3dw-shadowJust another note about the Miiverse features. After completing a level, various Miiverse posts about that level will scroll across the top of the screen. These aren’t limited to people on your friend roster. Here are some of the posts that scrolled by after I completed World 2-3:

sm3dw-miiverseI then headed off to World 2-2: Puffprod Peaks. (Yes, I played 2-3 before 2-2). This level introduced some new gameplay mechanics that involved using the touch screen on the Wii U GamePad (much like Rayman Legends) or blowing into the microphone near the home button. It was a bit gimmicky, sure, but it worked well (in this level at least). It remains to be seen if later levels go overboard with the gimmicks.

sm3dw-blowThe most interesting level in the desert world is World 2-5: Double Cherry Pass. It introduces the cherry power-up, which makes a duplicate of yourself. So if you’re Cat Mario and you grab a cherry, you’ll now control two Cat Marios. Find another cherry and you’ll have three Marios. I managed to get FIVE Marios in this level, and it’s all sorts of crazy fun. I can’t wait to see how these multiple Marios are used in later stages. But for now, here’s a video of this level:

The desert world comes to a close with World 2-Tank: Bowser’s Bullet Bill Brigade. You have to make your way past an army of tanks armed with Bullet Bills, spikes, and of course some enemies too. It reminded me of the tank and airship levels in World 8 of Super Mario Bros. 3, but in 3D of course. This level wasn’t as challenging as those levels in SMB3, but this is only the second world and the levels are still pretty easy. It’s still quite a fun level to play through, though!

sm3dw-tankNext time, I’ll be off to World 3, which appears to be an ice or crystal world. I’m sure it’s going to be fun!

Super Mario 3D World – First Impressions

Today was a big day for Nintendo games, with a new Mario game and a new Zelda game released on the same day. These are the games I’ve been waiting for, so I picked them both up today: Super Mario 3D World for Wii U and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for 3DS.

mariozeldaMario and Zelda are two of my favorite game series, but I have to say Mario just slightly edges out Zelda. So Super Mario 3D World is the first of the two games I played, and it will be the focus of this blog entry. Right near the beginning of the first level, there is a bell power-up, which turns you into Cat Mario. Of course the first level is a great place to just explore and learn how to be a cat. Cat Mario can use his claws to scratch enemies and climb up walls.  The game has transparent pipes, which you basically fly through. I had fun just going back and forth through some of them. When you hold the run button, you can see a steam trail behind you. Here, you can see me chasing a rabbit.

sm3dw-rabbitThe game feels surprisingly fresh and innovative. That’s something that couldn’t be said of any Mario game of the past few years, not since the first Super Mario Galaxy on Wii. Most levels have three green stars to collect (so far), which you can grab all in one go–you don’t have to keep restarting the level to collect them one at a time like in some previous games.

sm3dw-purpleSome levels are completely different, including this stage where you must play as Toad. Toad can’t jump in these levels, so you have to cross bridges and platforms to reach ramps that let you ascend the tower.

sm3dw-toadThere was also a racing-type level where you ride a dinosaur named Plessie down a river.

Riding Plessie down a river.I’ve only played the first world, but I’m very impressed with the game so far. If the remaining worlds are as good as the first, this could be the best Mario game in a very long time. Other Mario games have had solid gameplay, but this one seems to have that spark of innovation that’s been lacking from Mario games in recent years. I’ll have more updates in the coming weeks, so check back for more. Here is a video of the first level, World 1-1. I’ll be sure to make more videos of this hot game, so subscribe on Youtube if you want to see more.

Buy Super Mario 3D World at Amazon
Buy Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds at Amazon

Super Mario Bros. 3 – Memorable Levels

Today, I’m taking a look back at my favorite video game of all-time, Super Mario Bros. 3. In particular, I’m revisiting three of my favorite and most memorable levels. Just a note, though: Even though SMB3 was first a NES game, the videos included here are from the SNES version as seen in Super Mario All-Stars.

First up is World 6-5. Located midway through the ice world, this level seems to be an endless loop of Buster Beetles and ice blocks initially. Those ice blocks are ultra cool though, in more ways than one, as you can pick them up and throw them at enemies. Even if you miss, they keep sliding until they hit something and break. But still, the numerous Buster Beetles can be tricky to deal with in here. There is a small room that has renewable power-ups, and it’s there for a reason: You need to be raccoon Mario (or have other means of flight) to finish the level. A lone Koopa Troopa must be stomped on and his shell flown up through a certain hole in the ceiling to clear a path to the ending. This was the type of level that may have been confusing at first, but it’s very rewarding when you figure it out.

Next up is World 5-3. It is the only level in the game that has a rare power-up known as Kuribo’s Shoe. Some Goombas in this level will be wearing the powerful shoe, and you have to hit the blocks they’re standing on from underneath to defeat the Goombas. Once you do that, you’re free to hop right into the shoe and get stomping! With the shoe, you can jump higher and safely walk across Munchers. Not only that, but you can stomp on Spinys and piranha plants to defeat them! How cool is that? Kuribo’s Shoe makes this level unique and lots of fun. Unfortunately, once you clear this level, you’ll never see it again for the rest of the game.

And last but not least is the first fortress in World 7. The main point of interest in this level is the huge room made up almost entirely of gold bricks. Hidden amongst them is a P-switch that turns all those hundreds of gold bricks into coins! You can run and jump through them for lots of 1-ups! Even better, the room resets when you leave and re-enter it! So you can rack up tons of extra lives by doing this over and over. And if all that wasn’t cool enough, a secret door revealed by the P-switch leads you to a room where you can grab a Tanooki Suit!

So those are three of my favorite and most memorable levels in Super Mario Bros. 3. What are yours?