Unfortunately we cant discuss this game because I don't have it yet. I will discuss putting a hold on this thread with a mod. If they say no then we will have to close to this to further notice

I think they did a great job with it, it's really convienent to use especially when playing multiplayer and you've already died with no lives remaining.   You can just switch over to the game pad and help the other person by creating  blocks and getting 3up boxes.

Or annoy them by creating blocks that instead of helping, hinders their progress.That´s what I like to do, anyway ^_^

My only gripes about this game:

1). Still no gaddamn indication of which levels have secret exits. I found a handful of them just screwing around (how else would one find them?) but it would be nice to know which levels I need to be more thorough in. It'll save me from dummy missions (i.e. looking for a hidden exit that ain't there).

2). We don't get to keep a stock item at the top of the screen. I miss that feature.

Other than those two minor annoyances, this game is actually brilliant. It's been a long time since I had this much fun in a 2D Mario game. Nintendo nailed it with this one.

9.5/10

Completely agree with your points and your overall score.  One other thing I wish they'd bring back from SMW is the ability to throw shells/items upward.  I miss that feature as I loved how they worked that mechanic into levels and the Bowser battle in SMW.  Oh well, maybe next time.

I don´t agree with you here. I think that the best way to make a secret special is to not give any indication of it at all. Remember the warp whistles in SMB3? It felt incredibly rewarding whenever you found one. 

They're supposed to be secrets.

Unfortunately, you are correct the soundtrack is the same with a small remix coming out the gamepad. I'm not a big fan of the NSMB soundtrack as it was coming into this game so yeah, bummer.

Unfortunately I don't have the game nor a Wii U yet! But when I do get it, hopefully this thread will still be up and running.