Surprisingly Refreshing
When New Super Mario Bros. first came out for the DS, I remember being thoroughly disappointed. It was largely a forgettable experience. It was too easy and too thin. The disappointment carried over to the announcement NSMB Wii at E3. After an underwhelming showing on stage (and with the announcement of the next real Mario game, Super Mario Galaxy 2), I dismissed the game entirely. So months later, with three or so intimate days with the game thus far, my experience could most simply be described as 'pleasantly surprised'.
I suppose I should first start by saying that it's probably been over a decade since I've booted up Super Mario World and even longer since I've played Super Mario Bros. 3. NSMB Wii was inspired most by these particular games in the Mario franchise. So much so, that even some of the sound effects and music are taken directly from them. Graphically, it's very accessible, with bright, cheerful colors and set pieces. While the art style is very much the same as NSMB DS, the transfer to high definition televisions, while not perfect, is clean enough to be enjoyable for just about everyone.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii has a healthy single player offering. Depending on your interest in the large gold coins, a single run-through could last anywhere from 6-12 hours. The game is divided into eight worlds, including many of the worlds you'd expect to see in a Mario game, like desert and ice. Each world is punctuated with a boss fight that, while not necessarily the most intense encounters, are generally fun and rewarding. One of my biggest complaints with NSMB DS was the difficulty. I found NSMB Wii to be plenty difficult, and I've estimated that I burned well over 75 lives on my first play through, much of those lost trying to collect every coin imaginable.
The multiplayer, as seen in the Giantbomb.com quicklook, can get pretty crazy. From what I've played, it can be both fun and frustrating. As many of you will find, some of the levels are almost impossible to get through with four people, with many tight platforms are precise jumps. I appreciate this only because it takes a special and different kind of skill to thwart your friends and make it through the level unharmed. These modes are really with most of the "new" in NSMB Wii can be found, and it really feels like a different game.
In many ways, New Super Mario Bros. Wii isn't "new" at all. It is a monument of sorts to a type of gaming and genre that has long since faded from center-stage. I understand the critique that NSMB Wii's only appeal is a nostalgic one. Like I pointed out earlier, many elements of earlier iterations were brought back, literally, in this game. But I don't agree. This game was a refreshing and, more importantly, fun experience. If you have any sort of love to 2D platforming, Mario, and/or fun, you should check this game out.
