I am incredibly conflicted on New Super Mario Bros Wii. So much so to the point where I am reconsidering a lot of the criticisms I levied on the DS original. This game always existed in my mind as a fun nostalgia piece, much like many of the famous Wii titles that my generation of gamers ooze over. However, coming back to it, I realized the game has many more flaws than just being an "alright game".
We're looking at one of the best-selling games of all time right now so I will just run through the things everyone says about this title. The game controls smoothly, exactly as you'd expect it to and I never found a hiccup anywhere. I'd even say that it's fun to run around in this game, more so than the original. The spin allows for much more leeway when platforming and being able to play the game from the Wii remote upright with a nunchuck or the Wii Pro controller means that anyone can play in any way they please. Music is alright, although incredibly generic and quite repetitive, as even for someone who has a soft spot for these games and their soundtracks, I got really tired of hearing the same song for every grass, water, or desert level. Level design is good enough; nothing ever feels like it pertains to the particular world's theme but they do a good job of introducing ideas and expanding on them. Although that's where my praise towards level design stops and my criticism begins.
This game has nothing interesting going for it, and I feel it makes the game feel even more painfully generic. With the original, I at least remembered most levels when playing them again and a few levels genuinely stand out to me as unique ideas. Nothing about this game is memorable. I played it in the span of a week and the only level I remember is the second to last level because the star coins were so difficult. Speaking of, why do the star coins exist in this game other than as a stand-in collectible? What do they do? They unlock a special world, sure but that could be unlocked after you beat the game normally anyways. Super Mario World doesn't force you to collect all the dragon coins in order to unlock it's special world. What else can you do with these collectibles? Spend them on hint videos that would not be necessary if you had no star coins in the first place. These things are literal contradictions in this game, their only prize is themselves which basically makes them pointless to collect in the first place. Not to mention they are not hidden cleverly at all because you really have to go hunting if you want to find these things. Most of them are hidden in an unnoticeable wall or barely take any effort to find as they just take a well-timed wall kick to reach. So effectively these things have no reason to exist, as all they do is pad out the game.
But of course, that's just if you want to beat the game to completion. What about those who just want to run through the game? Well then I am sorry for you because this game's difficulty dips and spikes sporadically like it has some kind of quota it has to fill. Most of the difficult levels are placed somewhere in the middle of the world and are usually only difficult cus they restrict something like your vision or natural progression like a sidescroller, and they can really be pace breakers. Not to mention the levels attempt to actively harm you for exploring which further puts the star coins into question. All around my feelings about the pace of the game is best summed up in World 8 where levels that take place in dark caves make it difficult to find your way through but have some genuinely creative ideas at play, there are lava rollercoasters that are probably the most fun part of the game and then the final castle just finishes the game with no interesting mechanics and no final gauntlet that tests your skill of the game like the original. I actually got all three star coins and beat the final boss in one try, it was that much of a breeze. Which pretty much sums up the whole game if you're just running through it. It's a breeze.
So those are my feelings on New Super Mario Bros Wii. Coming back to this honestly made me think about why people do not like this game as much as the original and coming back to it made it clear to see. The game has no reason to exist or be a sequel other than to cash in on 2D Mario hype and was pretty much the place that any hope for New Super Mario Bros to improve as a franchise died. I will always love this game but I will never want to return to it, not when the original outpaces it in every way.
We're looking at one of the best-selling games of all time right now so I will just run through the things everyone says about this title. The game controls smoothly, exactly as you'd expect it to and I never found a hiccup anywhere. I'd even say that it's fun to run around in this game, more so than the original. The spin allows for much more leeway when platforming and being able to play the game from the Wii remote upright with a nunchuck or the Wii Pro controller means that anyone can play in any way they please. Music is alright, although incredibly generic and quite repetitive, as even for someone who has a soft spot for these games and their soundtracks, I got really tired of hearing the same song for every grass, water, or desert level. Level design is good enough; nothing ever feels like it pertains to the particular world's theme but they do a good job of introducing ideas and expanding on them. Although that's where my praise towards level design stops and my criticism begins.
This game has nothing interesting going for it, and I feel it makes the game feel even more painfully generic. With the original, I at least remembered most levels when playing them again and a few levels genuinely stand out to me as unique ideas. Nothing about this game is memorable. I played it in the span of a week and the only level I remember is the second to last level because the star coins were so difficult. Speaking of, why do the star coins exist in this game other than as a stand-in collectible? What do they do? They unlock a special world, sure but that could be unlocked after you beat the game normally anyways. Super Mario World doesn't force you to collect all the dragon coins in order to unlock it's special world. What else can you do with these collectibles? Spend them on hint videos that would not be necessary if you had no star coins in the first place. These things are literal contradictions in this game, their only prize is themselves which basically makes them pointless to collect in the first place. Not to mention they are not hidden cleverly at all because you really have to go hunting if you want to find these things. Most of them are hidden in an unnoticeable wall or barely take any effort to find as they just take a well-timed wall kick to reach. So effectively these things have no reason to exist, as all they do is pad out the game.
But of course, that's just if you want to beat the game to completion. What about those who just want to run through the game? Well then I am sorry for you because this game's difficulty dips and spikes sporadically like it has some kind of quota it has to fill. Most of the difficult levels are placed somewhere in the middle of the world and are usually only difficult cus they restrict something like your vision or natural progression like a sidescroller, and they can really be pace breakers. Not to mention the levels attempt to actively harm you for exploring which further puts the star coins into question. All around my feelings about the pace of the game is best summed up in World 8 where levels that take place in dark caves make it difficult to find your way through but have some genuinely creative ideas at play, there are lava rollercoasters that are probably the most fun part of the game and then the final castle just finishes the game with no interesting mechanics and no final gauntlet that tests your skill of the game like the original. I actually got all three star coins and beat the final boss in one try, it was that much of a breeze. Which pretty much sums up the whole game if you're just running through it. It's a breeze.
So those are my feelings on New Super Mario Bros Wii. Coming back to this honestly made me think about why people do not like this game as much as the original and coming back to it made it clear to see. The game has no reason to exist or be a sequel other than to cash in on 2D Mario hype and was pretty much the place that any hope for New Super Mario Bros to improve as a franchise died. I will always love this game but I will never want to return to it, not when the original outpaces it in every way.