Super Mario Maker 2 Review, Is Worth it?
Super Mario Maker 2 does nearly everything you’d want in a sequel to the 2015 instant classic Super Mario Maker for the Wii U.
More power-ups, new tools, and new design styles are added to this follow-up. With a new platform though, you get the added portability of the Switch that also means the parallel tv and tablet synchronization is gone.
Playing all three releases of Super Mario Maker on Wii U, 3DS and Nintendo Switch. This new sequel certainly feels like the definitive experience. But not without some trade-offs.
Gone is the perfect tablet and tv system that was established with the Wii U. Despite the Wii U hardware not being the best hardware for most games.
The way it integrated the tablet with tv play was perfect for quick level creation and demoing. Now on the Nintendo Switch, you still have the tablet in your hand. But you don’t have that snappy switch between the tablet screen and the tv display anymore.
You’re either creating in handheld mode or in dock mode, not both at least not without having to get up and walk to the dock every time.
In place of the Wii U combo is the ability to use the
Switch’s capacitive touch while in handheld mode.
It works fine after getting used to it. But I still miss the Wii U stylus for the more precise placement of items. Sure you can use your fingers.
But it’s a slower experience. The capacitive screen is put to good use though with the ability to pinch to zoom on the screen as you work on your level.
When playing in dock mode controls are switched to the physical buttons on the controller you’re using. The analog stick takes the place of your stylus and using the Dpad.
You’re able to quick select tools saved at the top or swap over to the new dial system and pin new items to use. It took a bit to get adjusted to.
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But after about 10 mins of creating I was used to it and back to crafting some new levels. The weird choice is not being able to use the physical controls in handheld mode.
I understand being able to use the touch screen to create in handheld mode. But it’s a bit odd to be forced to use it when the physical controls were just shown as a viable option as well.
Playing in dock mode you can also create in co-op mode. But in practice, it felt way too cumbersome to actually use. The space is just too cramped for two people to work together.
It’s more limiting than anything. Controller adjusting and nitpicks aside though, Super Mario Maker 2 is a beautiful follow up to the original.
The gameplay is once again split between making levels and
playing them.
Creating levels has been streamlined, getting rid of the weird time requirement the Wii U entry had.
Now everything is available to you from the star so those that just want to design levels can do so without any unlocking handicaps.
Just like the first installment, you’ll create your levels, clear it to make sure you can and upload it online for others to play.
Sadly the online experience hasn’t changed. So you’ll still be sharing pictures of codes to share levels online. It works but sharing could have been simplified.
What has seen a massive upgrade is all the amazing things you can do with levels. I’m not going to list all off because that could be a video in itself. But some notable changes include vertical levels, slopes and a brand new Super Mario 3D World themed.
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All the themes from the first entry are back, those are Super Mario Bros, Super Mario Bros 3, Super Mario World and New Super Mario Bros U. You can still switch between those themes and have the gameplay adapt to each theme.
The new Super Mario 3D World doesn’t though and that’s because it plays fundamentally different from all the other themes.
It’s absolutely fantastic. I love the design choices added to this theme. You can use the 3d cat suit to climb up platforms, do leap jobs and just about everything you could do in 3d world but in a 2d view. This isn’t a thing I knew.
I wanted until I played it and now it’s possibly my favorite level type in Super Mario Maker 2.
Designing levels is only half the fun though and there’s fun to be had with the new tools at your disposal. Equally as enjoyable as creating levels is being able to play a virtually endless collection of levels designed by people all around the world.
An unexpected addition in this sequel is the story mode consisting of 100 levels designed by people at Nintendo, whether it’s the development team or the Nintendo Tree House.
The backdrop for the levels is that you’re going around collecting coins and completing levels for money that then goes towards the building of Peach’s new castle.
It’s an oddly charming story whose writing had
me chuckling throughout my time playing.
If Nintendo decided to make an rpg out of this story mode, I’d totally be up for it.
On top of the preinstalled 100 levels, you have all of the internet’s levels to play through with new ways to play them.
You’re still able to sort through the hottest new courses online. But search has gotten an upgrade.
Sadly you can easily search someone’s username, instead, you’re looking up user ids or course ids. But least now you can categorize levels.
When you upload a level, you’re asked to use tags like auto scroll or short and sweet to help people find certain types of levels. It’s not the best way to categorize levels.
But it’s better than what we had before. Any level online is also available to download and leave comments on, it’s really neat, almost like a lost remaining piece of Miiverse.
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The small touches like your creator profiles are lovely additions. You can customize your Mii with outfits you unlock, animations and more. It’s simply delightful.
What’s more of a mixed bag though is the online multiplayer. That’s right, this is the first major online multiplayer traditional Mario game.
Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. Multiplayer local co-op is as chaotic as. It always has been in 2d mario games. Taking that experience online is just weird though.
At the moment you can only play online with strangers although friend support is coming at some point in the future.
That’s not my major gripe though, that instead would be that the game throws multiple people into any online stage.
Some of these levels are designed for single player use and so suddenly throwing four players at once can just ruin the design at times. When it works it’s fun.
When it doesn’t, I just want to drop out and move on to
another level. There’s a level tag for multiplayer vs. But not one for co-op,
seems like a random misstep.
Performance isn’t always stellar. I’ve had moments where the online feels one to one with just playing local co-op and other times where the lag is so bad that Mario starts to feel heavy.
Like a lot of Nintendo’s most popular games, Super Mario Maker 2 falls into the theme of being an absolutely remarkable game that is plagued by Nintendo’s odd online choices.
A lot of these things are simple fixes that Nintendo can make over time, some of which like the online friend matches will eventually get fixed. Other things like the multiplayer co-op tag may not.
Much like the first entry, Super Mario Maker 2’s visual language transcends through the different themes encompassing its levels.
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You’ll get the lovely art from Super Mario Brothers, Super Mario 3, World, and New Super Mario Brothers U. What really stands out is the new Super Mario 3D World theme.
Despite being a game that was made for 3D platforming, now in 2d it’s just so extraordinary. I love the look and feel of Mario being in actual 3d here. But in 2d whereas new super mario bros u still feels primarily 2d.
This is absolutely what a modern 2d mario should look like and so to finally get it and be able to design our own levels with it is impressive.
Much like the visual design taken from older Mario games, the soundtrack for Mario Maker 2 is all taken from Mario’s past adventures. What’s a bit more surprising to see are the songs that aren’t taken from visuals featured in gameplay.
For example, you’ll find the likes of Mario’s gamecube and n64 for past here, a pleasant surprise that feels like a celebration of the Mario series as a whole, both 2d and 3d.
While it’d be great to hear more
original tracks with Super Mario Maker 2. I can’t disagree that the collection
of classics here are outstanding.
Super Mario Maker 2 is an absolutely great time on the Nintendo Switch. You will have to make some small adjustments with the controls and the online being constrained with some Nintendo design choices.
But their easy sacrifices to make when the final package is this good.
Level creation and playthroughs have never been this complex and entertaining to go through. Whether you’re more into designing, playing or both, Super Mario Maker 2 is one gem well worth adding to your library.
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