Destination Point Reached: Level 7-2

Number of Players This Session: 2

Level design is still holding strong and multiplayer continues to be a blast. The only gameplay element I haven’t addressed is the “Super Guide”. From what I’ve read in the manual and many other reviews, it’s very well-integrated into the game. Dying several number of times will make a “Super Guide” block appear, just like any other question block. Upon hitting it,  a CPU-controlled Luigi will play the level for you. You can let him finish it or stop him at any point, continuing the level by yourself. I haven’t encountered this block during my play-through, and if I ever do I don’t think I’ll even hit it. My pride as gamer in at stake here. However, I did try out the “Super Guide” videos located at Peach’s Castle in World 1. They’re basically pre-recorded play-throughs that show you how to obtain certain Star Coins or locate certain secret exits. More are unlocked as you advance in the game. Some of them are free to watch, while others require a fixed amount of Star Coins. I tried out one of the free ones just to see how it works. I also was stumped to find the secret exit in Level 2-4 so I had to pay up and see that video. In short, all these elements act like in-game strategy guides. You won’t need a book anymore to get through this game. The developers have the freedom to ramp up the difficulty as much as they please with the “Super Guide’ in place.

I think it’s come to the point that I’ve run out of praises to say about this game. That doesn’t mean that it’s perfect. Far from it. This is going to be one of the hardest reviews I’ve ever written because of how divided this game is. My biggest complaint about NSMB Wii is how rushed the overall package feels from a presentation standpoint. No matter how awesome the level design and muliplayer are, one can’t help but notice that this game misses a lot of things. It’s almost as if Nintendo has rushed a game for a holiday release. For one, Nintendo had the chance to get the audiovisuals up to par with high-end Wii games, but didn’t. Instead, the game looks like it’s stuck somewhere between a rock and a hard place. I would’ve appreciated the game more if it were intentionally retro ala Mega Man 9…but to tell you the truth it’s basically New Super Mario Bros. DS upscaled to a console experience. One evidence that shows how rushed the team has been is the roster. A Blue Toad and Yellow Toad? Seriously? Out of all the characters in the Mario universe, Nintendo chose to have two identical generic Toads to star alongside Mario & Luigi? That’s just lame. To be fair though, Nintendo took one step forward with things like how smooth the game runs even during chaotic 4-player sessions and the abundance of nice-looking special effects (including the “Zoom In/Out” scrolling ala Yoshi’s Story n64).

Another big complaint in the community is lack of online multiplayer. I’ve been too busy enjoying offline multiplayer to even rant about this…because to tell you the truth, many developers continue to ignore offline multiplayer in favor of online, and videogame websites and critics continue to praise online-only games as if nothing’s missing. It really has gotten to a point where online is the default and offline is secondary. Both are equally important. Either way, the lack of online in NSMB Wii is surprising considering the strength of Mario Kart Wii online. We all know that Nintendo can do both. It’s not just online multiplayer we’re talking about here…it’s total lack of online integration that’s frustrating. I mean…there are “Super Guide” videos that show you actual staff speedruns of some levels, complete with snazzy gameplay and a plethora of tricks in order to get through levels as fast as possible. So how come we can’t do the same and share our own speedruns with the world? What’s the use of showing off these skills if nobody will watch? Sharing video recordings through an online server would’ve been an element that pleased everyone if online multiplayer wasn’t an option. For some reason Miyamoto and company have completely opted out of online options.

As I’ve shown in this log, I think I’m ready to write the full review. It’s going to be tough coming up with scores due to how polarized my impressions are. We’ll see how things go. It’s possible that I write one last log before the actual review…so be on the lookout.