Super Mario Bros. Wonder - Nintendo Direct Showcase [31 Aug 2023]

[Shiny Gems]

https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1696523235138158892

Super Mario Wonder Direct has been announced.

EDIT: Watch the Direct below.

[Salamander]

5 hours ago, ShinyGems said:

https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1696523235138158892

Super Mario Wonder Direct has been announced.

I've been a little on the fence as to whether or not I want to get this, so letting Nintendo take me on a deep-dive will be handy - and, if nothing else, probably interesting on its own merits even if I decide the game isn't for me.

[Sonicka]

Well, The Direct certainly convinced me. Yoshi riding a Yoshi is the new Knuckles and Knuckles. 

For sure it blows NSMB out of the water and finally pushes the series forward in a positive direction.  All those characters to play as, the crazy wonder effects, powers, the new art style, voice acting, stage progression, shadow online play... it all highly appeals to me.

The medal system to attach abilities to your characters in particular was a highlight - when they said "all characters except Yoshi and Nabbit play the same" I did get slightly concerned... but this system alleviates that and is good incentive for replays to find secrets and tackle areas in different ways.

This and Sonic Superstars in October - it's a good time to be a 2D platformer enthusiast. 

[Dreadknux]

Decided to split this off into its own topic to give the forum some jazz.

I missed it live, but just rewatched it here:

I do really like my 2D Mario games, so I'm very interested in this. But what's impressed me is how much work the developers have done on making the characters and the worlds feel a lot more expressive this time around. I didn't mind New Super Mario Bros, but it was all getting a bit stale, you know? I like the new power ups, the Wonder Flowers sound like a fun time, and the online stuff really seems incredible. I'm not much of an online multiplayer kind of guy, but I do really enjoy being 'in the moment' with other online players (kind of like Journey on PS3), and this looks like it's going to scratch that itch completely.

What does everyone else think?

[Blue Blood]

I think I was typing this out in the Megathread when the split happened. Lol whoops. Anyway....

______

The production values are sky high. This really is a astronomical leap for the franchise, unlike Superstars. There's so much raw innovation in Wonder. Especially with the way that online multiplayer works; its kind of genius, because it explores the idea of co-op from a totally different angle. 2D and 3D art is blended to give a truly unique style. The new abilities aren't just tacked on new moves, but instead push the boundaries of what 2D Mario gameplay can even accomplish. And finally the badges are a great way to change the game and introduce new challenges or crutches to let the player get the most of the game. 

Sonic and Mario are in completely different leagues, and I don't think that SEGA could truly compete even if they wanted to. But... Mario just doesn't do it for me. For as impressive as Wonder looks, it's just "another Mario game" in my eyes. Nothing about the series will appeal to me as much as Sonic or many other franchises, platformers or otherwise. I'm not going to get both Superstars and Wonder before the year is out, and choosing between them isn't even a contest.

[Sonicka]

It's a tricky one.

I always get Sonic on Day 1... but these two releasing in the same window could really drain my funds. It's possible I may go and get Wonder first and pick Superstars up once the price decreases by 40-50% after the first month (as ever).

Nintendo never lowers their prices physically. 

(Who am I kidding I'm getting Superstars aren't I?) 

[ZinogreVolt]

I definitely think Wonder looks excellent, and I think its key innovations like Badges will go a long way in making a 2D Mario that actually feels fresh again - and not something that feels like a glorified level pack. That said, while I wish Superstars exuded the raw creativity of Wonder, I also wish Wonder didn't seem so mechanically old-fashioned. It even still has lives after Odyssey and Bowser's Fury had finally ditched them. Maybe that's more my issue with what 2D Mario is fundamentally (like what @Blue Blood mentioned), but despite all the new stuff present I still get a very... simple vibe from the game? It's hard to explain, but maybe my personal taste have reached a point where I'm not quite as enthralled by 2D Mario as I once was. Still, this is probably a Day 1 buy for me.

[Dr. Mechano]

The badge system looks really cool. Can't wait to see what unique effects the badges all have.

I think a little customizability goes a long way to giving the game more depth.

[Shiny Gems]

I like the badges as well. I think they are like the Skills and Skill system from the Sonic storybook games and Sonic Generations. This should be fun.

[StaticMania]

The way they've decided to handle this game's Online is interesting.

Instead of simply straight up adding Online Multiplayer (which is there in a way) what they've done seems like an evolution of the way Miiverse worked for Super Mario 3DWorld.

[Salamander]

I think I'm echoing a few of us here in saying that the game looks fantastic, I respect what they're doing with it, I think it's amazing to see them absolutely straining to pack in as many new ideas as they can possibly fit... but I'm not sure I personally need to play it.  It's not my comfort food.

[ZinogreVolt]

These are exactly the sorts of things that a company as financially secure as Nintendo ought to be doing. They wanted the game to burst at the seams with constant and new ideas, and that's exactly what we're getting.

 

 

[Red Hot Jack]

I kinda feel bad to say that this looks a lot better than Superstars, which is sad because Superstars is the most complete and promising Sonic game in a long time...

There are just so many cool ideas, including the badges, online component done correctly, the worlds, personality, roster. Although the cast plays the same which is boring, and you can only equip one badge at a time but I guess they wanted to keep things simple, and Yoshi and Nabbit are only easy mode so if I wanted to play Yoshi in a more serious manner I can't, I would have opted for a general easy mode for any character, since outside of these 2 not taking damage and Yoshi's skills, the characters don't have specific features.

I think Superstars focused on being a good classic game first, while Wonder is taking things in fresh and new directions, and does more with it.

I want to get Superstars first but with the overwhelming amount of Wonder promotion, I'm really confused lol, I can't afford both in October and I haven't got enough time to focus on 2 games.

[ShadowXeldron]

Honestly looks solid! I'm not happy about Yoshi being the invincible easy mode, but everything else looks fine. I'll likely get neither this nor Superstars at launch because I have quite the backlog right now and even when I've cleaned my backlog a bit Superstars will likely take priority because it's on PC, but if I can find a physical copy of Wonder for a decent price then I'll most likely get it.

[Salamander]

Thinking about it, they needed three additional easy mode characters beside Nabbit for if all four players in a multiplayer session wanted to play in easy mode.  Add to that that they wanted the standard mode characters to all play the same, which is inappropriate for Yoshi.  My guess would be that they wanted Yoshi in the game, but he's too important these days to be just a horse, so the trade-off for his established weird powers is that he becomes an easy-mode character.  In a way, this is arguably going back to Yoshi's roots?  Back in SMW and Yoshi's Island, Yoshi was invincible to everything except instadeath hazards.

[juiceDpunk983]

On 9/1/2023 at 11:21 AM, Salamander said:

Back in SMW and Yoshi's Island, Yoshi was invincible to everything except instadeath hazards.

Yoshi's are just built different. They're use to it, after all Mario hits them over the nut to make them stick their tongue's out.

[Salamander]

On 9/4/2023 at 6:08 PM, juiceDpunk983 said:

Yoshi's are just built different. They're use to it, after all Mario hits them over the nut to make them stick their tongue's out.

They feel pain yet cannot die.  What a hellish existence.