New Features Showcased at Nintendo Direct for Super Mario Maker 2
Super Mario Maker 2 was the sole star of the show at last night’s Nintendo Direct event and with it came a host of new gameplay details and improvements over the original game that released on the Wii U and 3DS.
New to Super Mario Maker 2 is a singleplayer story mode, in which Mario helps Princess Peach rebuild her castle. However, in order to raise the resources to rebuild the castle, Mario must take on jobs to collect coins as he takes on challenging courses. In total, there will be over 100 courses to playthrough in the singleplayer campaign, which will no doubt act as a great way to learn the ropes of Super Mario Maker 2.
Also, you will now be able to play Super Mario Maker 2 with up-to three other players via 4-player multiplayer, with players taking control of Mario, Luigi, Toad and Toadette. You can play a co-op mode where players must work together to beat the courses. You can also play Versus in which players must race from start to finish and the player that earns the best Versus Rating, wins. Multiplayer can be played locally on one system or playable on four Nintendo Switch consoles, as long as each player owns a copy of the game (only one of the participating players needs a Nintendo Switch Online subscription).
One of the great features about the original Super Mario Maker was the ability to have themes to build your levels based upon Super Mario games of yesteryear, and this sequel promises even more themes than ever before. Not only will you be able to use all theme included in the original game, but it will now even include themes and tools for Super Mario World 3D to name but one. The new courses will also allow you to build levels using deserts, snow, forests, moons sky themes, and much more.
Well that pretty much concludes the main highlights from the Super Mario Maker 2 Nintendo Direct Event, but I’ll also include all the added details via the official press release below. You can also watch the Nintendo Direct even in full below. Are you looking forward to Super Mario Maker 2? Let us know across our social media channels.
Super Mario Maker 2 will release for the Nintendo Switch next month on June 28th.
What’s New?: There are a ton of new course parts, tools and features for creators to use in Super Mario Maker 2, some of which include:
- Slopes – Create angled surfaces by just picking a direction and setting the length. Gentler slopes are an additional option as well.
- Angry Sun – Remember the angry sun that attacked Mario in Super Mario Bros. 3? It’s back and ready to put the pressure on players in this new game.
- ON/OFF Switch – Hit an ON/OFF Switch, and all the red and blue blocks in the course will swap. Setting them up wisely will help players create tricky puzzles and obstacles.
- Water Level – The water level in Super Mario Maker 2 can be adjusted in the Forest theme, so only half the course can be underwater if that’s what the player wants. Water can even be set to rise and fall at different speeds over time.
- Banzai Bill – The red variations of these classic Super Marioenemies have a homing function that chases poor Mario wherever he goes.
- Co-op Making: Pass a Joy-Con controller to a friend to create a course together.
- To Be Continued…: There are more new secrets in Super Mario Maker 2. Players will have a blast experimenting with all the tools and features they can use to create the courses of their dreams.
Super Mario 3D World: Players can choose to create their courses in the style of Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, New Super Mario Bros. U and a new style based on Super Mario 3D World. Some new features unique to this style include:
- Cat Mario – Cat Mario can climb walls, scratch, slide and pounce on enemies. Players can even use Cat Mario to climb up the Goal Pole.
- Clear Pipe – Clear Pipes can be placed in any shape the player wants, but they have to be careful, as enemies can also slide through these transparent pipes.
- Koopa Troopa Car – Hop in this sweet ride and zoom through the course. Players just need to make sure not to crash!
- Track Block – The Track Block will follow any path the player draws. The blue one starts moving when the player steps on it.
- Piranha Creeper – The Piranha Creeper follows the path that the player draws, extending its dangerous spiky stem around the course.
- Who’s Who in Super Mario 3D World? A cast of other familiar faces will also make appearances in Super Mario Maker 2, so players are in for a treat.
Course World: An online hub where players can play and share courses, as well as play together, Course World is available for players around the world who have a membership to Nintendo Switch Online. Players can browse by Popular Courses, New Courses or even search for specific tags like “puzzle-solving” or “auto-scroll” using a pre-defined set of filters. Once a course is downloaded, it can be played anytime – even offline.
Players can also personalise their Mii character’s appearance using items like shirts and hats that unlock after completing various objectives. In Endless Challenge, players will try to complete as many Course World courses as possible on the difficulty of their choice before getting a game over. Earning impressive scores in this mode might even get the player on the Leaderboards.