Valdney said:
I really don’t want to sound like I am dumping on the game because I really think Nintendo put a lot of effort into this game and I praise them for that. But they failed.
Elephant Mario looks bad and it’s pretty useless, the other powerups are meh, the wonder affect is overused and transforms Mario into weird things( I despise it), no boss variety, no challenge. Outside of really tight controls and good music this game does not have much going for it. |
I guess it's just sad you see it that way, but hey opinions are gonna be opinions in the end.
The wonder effects are wonderful to change the perspective of gameplay during any given levels and differenciate the challenges from time to time.
Power ups are either the standard fair or quite useful in any case, to find the collectibles or aid yourself in the platforming challenges. The bubble and drill power up are essential in those endeavors for example . Gotta also take into consideration the removal of the level timer, meaning the game actively encourages you explore the levels to your heart content instead of pressuring from point A to B and there's a load to find here.
Then, there's the badge system which can change widely your toolset to platform your way through the levels or even better "expert" badges which gives an extra challenge to the way you must travel levels.
Really, the level of challenge you get from this game is quite customizable compared the series ever had before.
Next the world maps now features open spaces where you can explore and find hidden levels or pipes, coins and light puzzles. A welcome advancement to the quasi linear path we were usually given in those games.
Also, it might not mean much for some, but having a character selection screen of more than 7 characters to choose from is also really nice. We haven't gotten more than the usual Mario, Luigi and Toads for years in those games.
Afterwards, we could talk about the whole sets of animations that have been reworked which give the game such a lively feeling ... Completely different from the quasi automotive feel non expressive the NSMB games had.
The online aspect is also quite welcomed since it is there to enjoy the community aspect of seeing ghost players "interacting" to a certain degree while play through the levels. The could help by posting their emotes panels for revive, give a power up or simply do their own thing without consequences.
Nonetheless, I'll give you this when it comes to boss battles. The game has it's weakest aspect there. They use the Wonder mechanic to give trippy moments in them but they could've find better I think. Final Boss is great though, joining it thematically to the musical angle the goes for was a great loop to close the game on.
Anyway, game's got plenty for anyone to enjoy and be creative with their approach on it. It's not something the NSMB really allowed previously.
+ I ain't sorry for saying this but NSMB Wii is the worst single player Mario game of all time if you're looking for interesting platforming challenges. Aside from the reused level themes. The grand scope of these levels were simply not suited for a single player experience, transforming them into the closest the series has come to "walking simulator". The game clearly had its focused put on the multiplayer aspect and the level design greatly suffered from it. Dope final boss though.
Currently Online 
