Super Mario Bros. Wonder Review In Progress

After playing Super Mario Bros. Wonder for a few weeks now (in conjunction with the time I spent on the game as part of the cover story), the embargo of the review has been lifted. However, due to restrictive embargo guidelines that don’t allow us to discuss large portions of the game, we have opted to hold our final review until the game is available for purchase. With that said, I did want to share some brief thoughts within the confines of the embargo.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder has been a great experience. It’s no surprise that the game has a name like Wonder, which evokes wonder at every turn. Every stage has a well-designed and appropriate on-ramp that introduces a new gimmick, and expands upon it in an interesting and fun way. Each time I entered a course I had no idea what to expect. I found myself pleasantly surprised. 

Wonder Effects bring you joyous surprises every time. It was always exciting and fun to find a Wonder Flower, whether it transformed the character or the course. Shiro mouri, the director of Super Mario Bros. Wonder told me during our conversation that one goal he had with this game was to add mystery and secrets. Shiro has been successful in his initiative. Super Mario Bros. Wonder kept me guessing, not only because of its new power-ups or stage conventions but also due to the Wonder Effects.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a very good game, even without that new addition. Nintendo’s ability to create a great platformer has never been in doubt, and Wonder continues that tradition. Since most characters play the same, I’m certain many people will find a character they love playing thanks to their distinct expressions and animations. And whether you’re talking about the new sound effects to accompany each action, the tracks that pay homage to the series’ past, or the splendid all-new compositions, I never once considered turning down the volume during my playthrough. A combination of the tight controls and excellent sound design with an expressive style creates a videogame experience that appeals across all five senses.

Although I played Wonder primarily in single player, the multiplayer mode was also a blast. You can play stages on your couch with two or three friends using traditional co-op. Online, you can set up race courses with other players. It’s disappointing that traditional online co-op isn’t available (especially when you consider other games from the same series have done it) but the courses races were fun.

When you activate this mode, ghosts will populate your path, and include players that are playing the level right now or who have just completed it. If you’ve activated this mode, if your life is lost, you will be able to respawn after swimming up to another player nearby or the Standee that they left behind. It was helpful on some occasions, but also spoiled a few secrets. I could now see the ghosts or Standees of players that otherwise were not visible to me. The experience was not ruined, but it did require me to turn off the feature in order to maintain some mystery.

Watch out for Play Informer in the coming days for our full review of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, as well as this week’s All Things NintendoYou can also find out more about the following: Game Informer Show podcasts. You can also check our coverage hub here. Super Mario Bros. Wonder will be available on Switch from October 20.