Super Mario 35th Anniversary Reaction

Well they finally did it. After months of speculation, rumours and toxic fanboy bullshit, Nintendo finally dropped a Direct going over their plans for Mario's 35th anniversary. We all knew they were gonna be doing something, after all 35th anniversaries are a significant milestone and Mario is the most famous gaming icons on the planet. They had to do something. I've gotta admit though, I'm just relieved we finally got this, all the speculation and rumours were starting to get tiring and with this we can finally put it to rest.

But I digress, let's quickly go over what was announced.

But let's take a step back here because I skipped ahead a little there. Why don't we start at the beginning. They started with the announcement of a limited edition Game and Watch featuring the original Super Mario Bros. game. It's a novelty but a fun one. I used to love Game and Watch Gallery Advance so I've got a soft spot for this series. It looks like they put some work in to make it a nice little collectors item as they've included the Lost Levels as a bonus and even threw in a reworked version of Juggler because, eh, why not? It will be released on November 13.

Next they announced that Super Mario 3D World is coming to the Nintendo Switch. You can imagine my shock. At this point it's time we admit that the Wii U is officially worthless, every game worth playing on that system is now on another platform and is much better on that platform. I feel bad for the poor thing frankly. But, hey, at least we're getting Super Mario 3D World on Switch and that's a very good thing. I really liked the game when I played it in 2013, Christ it's seven years old already, and I'm looking forward to playing it with my niece and nephew when it comes out. This isn't just a straight forward port either as the game will include an expansion called Bowser's Fury. No clue what it is yet but more content is always a plus. The only question I have is what the stamps are gonna be used for since, you know, Miiverse is dead. Guess we'll have to wait and see. This version of 3D World will release on the 12th of February 2021.

Next we got the announcement of Super Mario 35. You remember that Tetris battle royale game? Well this is the same concept but with Mario and it looks like pure chaos in the best possible way. The game is basically the original Super Mario Bros. but with you competing against 35 other players. Every time you kill an enemy it travels to another players game and vice versa. It looks like you have to avoid a lot of crap since the screen can become filled with enemies. This game looks fun but it's only available to Nintendo Online Service subscribers. At least they're supporting the service in some way I guess. It will be released on the 1st of October 2020. But it will only be available until March 31st 2021.

That's the thing with this direct. A lot of what they showed off is only available for a limited time and I don't know why. The stuff they showed looks good so why leave money on the table. We then gat Mario Kart Live Home Circuit. From what I've gathered it looks like a sort of toys to life style game where you race toy Mario Karts on the Switch through tracks you make around your home with special checkpoints. It's a pretty cool idea honestly but one that's probably best for families and kids in particular. I wouldn't get one if you have pets though, that seams like a disaster waiting to happen. It will be released on October 16th.

They then showed off a bunch of events and products to celebrate the anniversary. It all looks fine and dandy but nothing too exciting. What is exciting though is that Super Mario All Stars is being added to the Nintendo Switch Online Super NES service. Kida saw this one coming but it's a nice addition nonetheless. It is the original version so it doesn't include Super Mario World but that game is already on the service so it doesn't really matter.

But speaking of All Stars, it's time for the big announcement. Super Mario 3D All Stars, a collection featuring remastered versions of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy. Now keep in mind I said remaster and not remake. Unlike the original All Stars which gave each game a graphical update, this 3D version just gives the games a slight visual update with a higher resolution. Some might be disappointed by this and I was too at first but then I thought about it for a bit. The original All Stars was a remake of four very short and fairly simple games that were all released on the same console. They didn't update any of the games on a gameplay level and they didn't really need to. They just needed to update the graphics and call it a day. Plus each game was similar enough that remaking all four games probably wasn't too daunting a task.

That isn't the case for the 3D games. The 3D games are far larger and complex than the 2D entries and would require a lot more work to remake than just giving them nicer graphics. You combine that with the fact that each game was released on a different console across three different systems and I can imagine remaking all 3 games in time for the 35th anniversary was likely impossible, especially with Super Mario Odyssey coming out only 3 years ago and the Super Mario 3D World port they're developing. Remasters were likely the best we could have hoped for.

My only real complaint with the collection is the lack of Super Mario Galaxy 2. Why skip out on that one? Maybe they couldn't fit it on the cartridge? I get the feeling they'll probably release it later as a stand alone game. Despite that it still looks like a decent collection of games. All three games have tons of content and it even comes with a music player which is always a nice bonus, especially here because Super Mario Galaxy has one of the greatest soundtracks of all time. So I will be picking it up, which is very soon since it releases on the 18th of September. That's just two weeks away.

There is a catch though, it will only be available until the 31st of March. Again, why would you do this Nintendo? Do you not know that scalpers will abuse this. I've pre-ordered my copy already just to ensure I get one. I do have a theory as to why Nintendo is doing this. My guess is that the collection will be a limited release but the individual games will be released separately later on at a cheaper price. That's my guess anyway, it just seams weird that Nintendo would just leave this money printer on the table like that.

But that was all they showed off for Mario's 35th anniversary. Overall I think Nintendo is doing a great job at celebrating this significant milestone despite everything being available for a limited time. 3D World I a nice addition to the Switch, Mario Kart Live looks great for kids and 3D All Stars is a fun look back on Mario's 3D platforming roots. I can't really think of a way they could do it better. Considering how Nintendo celebrated the 25th anniversary with a basic port of Super Mario All Stars to the Wii this is a huge step up. So raise a glass Mario and happy anniversary. Now if only we can do this kind of celebration for other Nintendo franchises, looking at you Metroid. Until next time, remember to stay safe and have fun.