But thats the thing, I doubt its intended for that audience. Its more like NSMB has run its course so this is a way to get that fanbase back on board by switching things up while keeping the traditional feel.

I don't think there has ever been a 3D Mario capture what an old school Mario game would look like if transferred into a 3D environment. But 3D World doesn't do a better job at attempting that. Maybe its the art style, maybe its the sense of a barren 3D field, but I'm not sure 3D Mario can capture a 2D Mario in look or feel.

Heck, NSMb doesn't capture the old school Mario feel all that well and that's in 2D! 3D World looks anything but traditional, it looks like NSMB or one of Mario Partys' mini games.  

The problem is, it seems to retain the very seeds of NSMB's demise though; the lazy feeling given off by its lacklustre production values.

It very well could but thats not the point im trying to make

If u were to remake Super Mario World from the ground up but in a 3D setting would it be more like 3D World or would It be more like Galaxy?

I never said they have completely captured the feel or look of old school Mario, just thats what they are trying to accomplish.

That's the problem though, we want fresh experiences with each 3D Mario game, not a 3D version heavily based on 2D platformers from the past (the term "fresh" is used loosely, because they are still Mario games). 3D Land is a great game, but it doesn't have that open feeling of games like SM64 or SMS. Even Mario Galaxy had some opened feeling to the levels, despite being somewhat linear. 3D World is 3D Land with HD, multiplayer and new levels, and each level is timed, it just doesn't have the feeling of a full console 3D Mario game. 8 directional movement makes it even worse.

And they already went back to their roots...with 3D Land, 3D World essentially went back to a game that went back to its roots.

The New Super Mario Bros. series sells so much more than the 3D Marios that I think it's just that simple -- Nintendo wanted some of dat NSMB audience. Unfortunately I think they've kinda run the NSMB formula into the ground by not improving it enough.

They got carried away with the "see? People don't care about graphics, just keep giving them Mario with minimal presentation and they'll eat it up like candy!" formula and it's failed them at the worst possible time (trying to ignite 3DS sales in the West while trying to also launch the Wii U).

Thats definitely a big part of it. NSMB was the first original 2D Mario in close to 15 years so it was a big deal. NSMBWii was the first console 2D Mario close to 20 years and the first to have 4 player simultanious co-op so that was a big deal as well. NSMB2 and NSMBU really brought nothing new to the table and no longer deserved the term "NEW". I think 3D Land/World are true successors to the DS/Wii versions of NSMB.

Well, I think the problem is people see 3d World and a "traditional" 3d game are mutually exclusive, while I (even though I have no evidence to this) believe they are probably still developing the latter.