A REVIEW OF SUPER Mikey_Mike WORLD (Code: OG9-XN4-FNF)

This has been promoted by its creator (and some unscrupulous news outlets) as "Super Mario Bros. 5". While I find that title hyperbolic, if not blasphemous, I do think it might serve as a better central campaign than the one included in Mario Maker 2.

I think the excitement around Mario Maker 2 petered off far too soon. The format might not work as naturally on the Switch as it did on the Wii U, but it remains a much more powerful tool for Making Mario, if you're willing to put up with a less fun and intuitive interface.

What's been made here is a full 8-world campaign for the game, never going beyond the Super Mario World style. Each level trying something unique, fun and interesting without veering too far into "fanhack" territory. It's easy to forget just how much has been added to the level creation tools past the game's initial launch, but Super Mikey_Mike World puts all the most Marioey stuff to great use. I was cheering as I saw the Super Mario Bros. 2 transformation appear, since I'd pretty much completely forgotten it was ever in here.

It mainly retains the pace and increasing complexity of a familiar Mario release, with simple levels to start with, without becoming too dull, slowly transitioning to intricate puzzles, platforming challenges and some of the best Ghost Houses I've seen in ages. Great care has been taken to make sure players are never trapped into situations they can't get out of, and there's often fun and creative solutions to any predicament you find yourself in.

Really, it's a great celebration of the visual language of Mario. It's great to see a new location with complex geometry and instinctively know how you can use Mario to get through it. Mario hits a little different on your first time through a new game, and Super Mikey_Mike World delivers that feeling.

It's not without flaws, though. I did take issue with how frequently it sends you into a one-screen room for a very simple task, and it just feels like an unnecessary extra step crammed in because the designer thought they were being cute. That stuff gets old pretty quick. The final Ghost House was especially frustrating, as it relies on unpredictable mechanics at the end of a relatively lengthy sequence of puzzles that I found myself having to replay several times before everything worked right.

I think Super Mikey_Mike World's biggest success is in how it reinvigorates excitement for Super Mario Maker 2. It's a big set of clever ideas that showcase what can be done with these tools, besides making auto-runner levels and ones that play a song from Pokémon Red. There's stuff that presents the flexibility and fun of all the familiar SMB3 and SMW stuff, but there's stuff that's entirely unique to Mario Maker 2 as well, like snowballs and upside-down levels. It's great to see that stuff put to work in something that feels like a full Mario game.

I thought it was a little optimistic of Nintendo to add tools to make full 8-world campaigns, but seeing it put to proper use, I'm quite thankful that they did. I hope it inspires other Makers to get cleverer with how they use this great game.