Hands-on | New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Format: Wii | Genre: Platformer | Publisher: Nintendo | Developer: Nintendo | ETA: 20/11/09

By Graham Jones

At the Eurogamer Expo this week, editor Lewis Denby went around introducing me to everyone as “our Wii man.” Well I’m taller than bloody Lewis…

But I am a Wii man – or, more generally, a Nintendo man. If a game’s come from the mind of Miyamoto, the chances are I’ll love it. So I was particularly excited to get my first hands-on with New Super Mario Bros. Wii – and doing so has left me just as excited about getting hold of my own copy in the next few weeks.

Following a successful return to classic side-scrolling platform action for the Italian plumber in New Super Mario Bros. on the DS in 2006, Nintendo decided to bring us a sequel, but this time for their ever-popular home console. Anyone who’s played the handheld original will feel instantly at home, and anyone who’s ever played a classic Mario game won’t be far behind. Run, jump, swim, crawl, glide and slide your way across the level from left to right until you reach the castle at the end, grab the flagpole and move onto the next area. There’s no doubt going to be some sort of storyline involving a princess who’s more kidnap-prone than Kim Bauer, but it’s hardly going to be the most important aspect of the game.

There were several levels on display on the show floor, all very much standard Mario fare. Grassy hills, underground caverns, icy wastelands and Egyptian ruins all featured as one might expect, and everything was as it should be. Hopefully the full game will showcase some more original design, as despite the variety on offer, these ideas have all been seen before, and there’s a risk of it feeling too much like a greatest hits package from previous titles in the series.

//Rude awakening
The controls are as tight and balanced as ever, with the Wii remote being held on its side like a classic NES pad but with a bit of motion control thrown in for good measure. Don’t be alarmed though – this isn’t as gimmicky as it sounds; it’s simply a spin attack performed by quickly jolting the remote upwards. But it’s not through waggle commands that New Super Mario Bros. Wii is set to define itself, but through one of the most hectic, riotous and hugely enjoyable multiplayer modes since Nintendo’s mascot first went kart racing.

When played on your own, the game delivers a solid and entertaining platformer. But grab up to three friends and all hell breaks loose. Four players can simultaneously play through the game and you can either co-operate, watching your friends’ back from Koopa attacks and helping them to grab an elusive power-up on an otherwise out-of-reach ledge, or – and this is the way most of my games went – you can ruthlessly pound on them, ensuring you get as many coins as possible and finally bumping them off by lobbing a red shell or two in their direction. At the end of each stage the coins and number of enemies killed are tallied up, and an overall winner is declared.

It’s a great new way to experience a Super Mario, title and I’m stunned by just how much fun it is, and how competitive each stage becomes. On one occasion, some snotty-nosed teenager beat me to a giant golden coin before Koopa-shelling my arse down a pit towards instant death, thus taking first place. At this point the demonstrator felt the need to step in, as you’re apparently not allowed to use the term “Twatty McTwat-face” on the family-friendly Nintendo stand.

//Ah, memories…
The previous DS game took some criticism for being too easy, but New Super Mario Bros. Wii appears much more challenging. Absolute precision is required to negotiate your way through obstacles, and when you’re in competition with other players there are going to be a lot of game over screens displayed. Even in single-player mode, the difficulty on a couple of levels conjures fond yet frustrating memories of the final battleship in Super Mario 3. Casual gamers who aren’t accustomed to such hardships can breathe easy though, due to the promised “Super Guide” function that lets the computer take over control if a level proves too much.

As with all new Mario titles, there are the obligatory new power-ups to go alongside the classic fire flowers and mushrooms. There’s a propeller suit that allows your character to jump high into the air before slowly gliding back down to earth, and a penguin outfit that lets you freeze enemies and thus turn them into handy temporary platforms. Everyone’s favourite saddled dinosaur, Yoshi, also makes a welcome return.

There’s a reason Mario’s appeal has endured for all of these years. Nintendo’s ability to continually throw in fresh ideas to the formula has prevented its games from ever feeling tired or dull. New Super Mario Bros. Wii’s multiplayer is certainly a huge step for the series, and first impressions are that it’s a huge amount of fun. What remains to be seen is whether Nintendo have pulled enough tricks from their cavernous sleeves to ensure this “New” Super Mario isn’t just “Old” Super Mario with a great multiplayer mode. Either way, I can’t wait to play through the full game in the privacy of my own home, where I can shout all the obscenities I desire.