Super Mario Bros. Wonder Preview – How Difficult Is It?

Super Mario Bros. is one of the best-known and most influential video game series. It must be appealing to players of all levels of skill. The main stages of nearly every Super Mario Bros. game accomplish this daunting feat through balanced level design, innovative gimmicks, and fun challenges that nearly anyone can complete. Nintendo has always tested the skills and mettle of veteran players in the late-game stages and special levels.

Areas like Special Zone in Super Mario World and stages like Champion’s Road in Super Mario 3D World are just a couple of examples of Nintendo flexing its game-design muscles in ways rarely seen during the main courses. We don’t yet know if Super Mario Bros. Wonder includes a post-or late-game difficulty, but in the conversations I had with director Shiro Muri and producer Takashi Tzuka for this month’s cover, we discussed it.

Although the stages I have played in my three hand-on sessions are a great deal of fun, the fact that they can be enjoyed by players with varying skill levels is also consistent with Mario’s traditions. According to Mouri however, I have barely touched the surface of the game. What you’ve experienced is only a tiny portion of what the full game has to offer. There are many more exciting and innovative experiences. It would spoil it, so I’d rather encourage you just to play it and experience it yourself.

A couple of stages – namely, Bloomps of the Desert Skies and Countdown to Drop Down – are clearly more difficult than the others I’ve played, but nothing tripped me up more than a stumble here or here. Nintendo warns that you will need to be able to master certain areas if your goal is to complete Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

The collection of every Badge will be a goal for Super Mario Bros. Wonder completers. Some badges can be obtained through the store in-game using Flower Coins. However, some must be earned. Mouri warns that it will be hard to get all the Badges.

In response to Mouri, Tezuka chimes in, “No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t get the last one.” 

Mouri replied, “You can tell that it is difficult for even the developers.” I got the badges!

Tezuka says, “I have worked on every Mario game I can remember, starting with Super Mario Bros. I was the first Mario game I ever created.” But for this game, I had to get help on two of the courses. “I did all the other courses myself.”

Tezuka said that, in the end, he passed every course with some regrets. Tezuka says, “I couldn’t do everything in two courses.” “I am not as talented as the rest of our staff.” “I’m happy that the hardest stages are at this level of difficulty because if they were created based on the skill levels of the staff, many players would feel it was lacking.”

Though that final Badge tripped up Tezuka’s quest for 100-percent completion, once you have them in your inventory, Badges can serve as a way to adjust your character’s abilities if you’d like to make certain sequences easier. Action Badges can be used to unlock useful features, such as higher jumping or gliding, and Boost Badges offer passive capabilities, including the ability for your character to bounce automatically out of a pit, or begin each stage by using a Super Mushroom. If you’re hoping to inject more challenge into the experience, a third Badge type, Expert Badges, provides difficult-to-master abilities, like forcing your character to sprint through the stage or turning them invisible to both enemies and players. The Badges are intended to enhance gameplay, but they also can be difficult until you learn how to use them.

Mouri explains: “We could have Badges which, for example, automatically save you when you fall into a pit or Badges to turn you invisible.” “There are Badges that are suited for supporting novice players and also Badges that kind of provide advanced players with a little bit of handicapping as they’re playing the game. This really gives a variety of choices and options for different types of players.

Even the characters themselves are a good way to adjust the difficulty. Mario, Luigi Peach Daisy and Toads will all have the exact same gameplay, whereas Nabbits or Yoshis can take no damage, so they are more suitable for newer players. These characters have been balanced out by the fact that they can’t be used as power-ups. This means some of their uniqueness and exploration may get lost.

Both characters are good options for those who don’t play action games but who do enjoy them. [action games]Tezuka claims that their pride could prevent them from selecting Yoshi and Nabbit. But they’re really unique, and it took us a long time to design them. It would be wonderful if people were to play with Yoshi or Nabbit occasionally, despite their earlier hesitation due to pride.

Mouri also recommends that those struggling with the more challenging Mario courses use Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s multiplayer functions, such as the Standee feature, which can be used to act like a checkpoint in-stage. He says that even though some courses are very difficult, the multiplayer features of Super Mario Bros. Wonder can help you clear them. “I would like to encourage everyone to have a go.”

Many games use boss fights to test the player’s skills. Nintendo has only given us a few glimpses at what we can expect. However, they say that the game will feature some crazy, outrageous encounters. Mouri explains that “right off the bat we felt the boss battles needed some sort of new paint.” As I considered what kinds of boss battles I wanted to see in this title, it became clear that I would want them to utilize Wonder’s powers. It’s spoiler-ish territory so I can’t say much. But expect to see a lot more Wonder-inspired attacks.

It remains to be determined whether or not these inventive encounters will translate into a high level of difficulty. At the very least, it is likely that we will experience boss battles like none other in the franchise. Super Mario Bros. Wonder will be available on Switch from October 20. Check out the coverage hub below for additional information about the game.