Now that Nintendo has told us everything we need to know (for now) about the Nintendo Switch console/portable hybrid. That includes info on the console’s first brand new Super Mario adventure. Titled Super Mario Odyssey and with a planned release of holiday 2017, here’s all the most important information about the Nintendo Switch exclusive.
It’s a Return to “Sandbox” Gameplay
After the first trailer for Super Mario Odyssey was shown, it was presented by Yoshiaki Koizumi. He was the director on multiple Mario classics, including the iconic Super Mario 64. That’s important because Koizumi presented Super Mario Odyssey as a return to the sandbox style gameplay that both Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine specialized in.
As a Mario expert, I take that to mean that the series is turning back from what the more recent 3D titles covered. That means Mario will be exploring much larger hub worlds and searching out goals complete, like in memorable Super Mario 64 stages like Whomp’s Fortress. But this bigger Mario world is also more realistic.
Get Ready For Mario to Meet “Normal” People
Koizumi also revealed that Super Mario Odyssey sends Mario to seemingly a whole new dimension, and one that looks more like our own than the Mushroom Kingdom. Sure, there were some colorful, strange stages, but the most striking (and not entirely in a good way) were seeing Mario in New York City. Or is it New Donk City?
Mario has always been a cartoonish creation, but it was taken as fact that he’s a human man. But seeing screens like the one above where Mario is walking next to a more realistic human man makes my brain hurt a lot. Honestly, it reminds me of the weird and ugly moments from modern Sonic games where the hedgehog is stood next to a normal person and everyone is acting like it isn’t awkward. It’s so very strange — though maybe that’s what Nintendo is going for?
Mario’s Hat Gets in on the Fun
The last major addition to Super Mario Odyssey from the reveal is Mario’s newest ability. Instead of relying on power-ups like Cat Mario or the Tanooki Suit, now it appears Mario’s main attack comes from tossing out his hat. And now that his hat looks alive, it flies right back to him.
The living hat gameplay offers up new possibilities for Mario. Not only can he hit enemies with it, but he can also toss it out ahead of him and then jump on it for an extra platform. But how did his hat come alive? And how’s it play into Mario arriving in a new universe and stopping Bowser from marrying Princess Peach? Sadly, that’s all we’ll get to see of the game for now, so we’ll just have to keep wondering.
Original Update from Oct. 20, 2016
Nintendo officially unveiled what was formerly known as the Nintendo NX. The debut of the Nintendo Switch had so many firsts. Our initial look at the console, its many controller types, how portable it is, and some of its earliest software. Among all that was something that’s worthy of similar bombast: A brand new Super Mario Nintendo Switch title!
How Does Mario Nintendo Switch Play?
The brief shot of gameplay confirms that there’s a single player mode, with Mario running around a setting similar in look and movement to 2012’s Super Mario 3D World. Longtime fans of the Mushroom Kingdom will also notice the return of the triple jump in the first footage.
That stage above also has a kind of south of the border feel. You’ve got brightly painted houses, cactuses, even an NPC wearing a sombrero. Could this be a return to larger hub worlds, as we saw in the Super Mario Galaxy series?
The only other gameplay footage we see is seconds of an entirely different stage. Here we see more classic style Mario gameplay of Mario running at full speed away from a Bullet Bill.
Mario for Nintendo Switch Has Multiplayer
After those delectable morsels of gameplay, Nintendo then has a more stealthy reveal of Mario Nintendo Switch’s other prominent feature. After taking the Switch tablet with her to a party, she hands half of the Joy-Con to her friend. They are then playing Mario Nintendo Switch simultaneously.
This is Nintendo’s subtle way of confirming at least two person multiplayer is in the game. But it’s also worth noting we don’t see how the multiplayer works. Is it like Super Mario 3D World where one player is Mario and the other is Luigi in the same stage? Or is it closer to the assisted gameplay in the second player mode for Super Mario Galaxy 2? There’s a big difference between the two, and hopefully, we’ll get an answer sooner than later.
When Is it Out?
Those brief moments of Mario Nintendo Switch gameplay are all we got for now, so we’re left with on big question: when is it out? The Switch will be out March 2017, but Nintendo didn’t indicate that everything seen in the trailer was a launch game. Still, it very well could hit stores with the console in March, but that’s not what my gut is telling me.
Based on how Nintendo handled the launch of the 3DS, Mario could be hitting the Nintendo Switch in the fall. The Nintendo 3DS also had a March release back in 2011. That following November, Super Mario 3D Land was released to much acclaim and high sales. It’s possible this Mario title will be the Nintendo Switch’s big release in holiday 2017.
So that’s all we know about the game right now. As more information arrives, stay tuned to Fandom for any updates.
