New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe is Lazy, but Fun
Playing the most recent 2D Mario Platformer in preparation for Super Mario Wonder
I think I speak for all gamers when I say the “New” Super Mario Bros brand has grown a bit tiresome. All games in the series were never terrible, but over time it felt like they lacked a lot of originality. I had quite a bit of fun with the original New Super Mario Bros on DS, and remember New Super Mario Bros Wii more fondly than most video games of that era. At nine years old, I didn’t really understand how the games might be better or worse than the 2D Mario games of the 80s and 90s. I just knew it was a fun platforming challenge.
I didn’t have a 3DS at the time that New Super Mario Bros 2 rolled around, so I didn’t get it til years after it released. I do remember seeing it on store shelves though, and never once did it cross my mind that it might be “too much” of the same type of game. I just thought it was cool they made another one.
Now when New Super Mario Bros U was released, that’s when I began to realize something was up. For some reason I was one of like ten kids that actually knew the Wii U was a successor to the Wii, and I wanted one so badly. I loved my experience with the Wii, and was worried that wouldn’t continue if I didn’t get the new system. When my brother and I got a Wii U for Christmas of 2013, it came bundled with New Super Mario Bros U. I believe it was the only Wii U game we had for a while, and I remember playing it for the rest of Christmas break. I think I enjoyed it for what it was, but I do remember thinking that it just felt like playing New Super Mario Bros Wii…again.
Plus I really like the propeller suit from Wii, and although you can get it in U, it isn’t nearly as prominent. Thirteen year old me didn’t like that.
Unlike the first two games, I never beat New Super Mario Bros U. I made it past the first couple levels, but eventually I got other games for the system that looked much more interesting. I did eventually beat New Super Mario Bros 2 once I got my 3DS XL, but don’t really have any distinct memories about it. As for New Super Mario Bros U, it just sat on my shelf, only occasionally being popped in from time to time if I wanted some New Super Mario action on a home console.
Later, the Nintendo Switch launched to critical acclaim and I picked one up within a year of it’s release. There were some great games on the platform, but I did notice that quite a few releases were ports from the Wii U. As somebody who still had their Wii U plugged in, I didn’t see a reason to get these games again. Even games I didn’t own on Wii U that got Switch ports, like Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, I knew I could always pick up for cheaper on the original system. I actually just bought Tropical Freeze for Wii U a few months ago for around $20, which is so much better than $60 for a Switch port that adds almost no new content.
There was one port to the Switch that perplexed me, but for all the wrong reasons. In January 2019, Nintendo released New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe. This wasn’t an original “New” Super Mario game for the Switch, but instead a port of the Wii U game. I always thought how, despite my love for Nintendo and it’s overall support for the Switch, rereleasing this game instead of a new 2D Mario game was so odd. I thought there was no way I would EVER purchase this port.
That is, until my senior year of college rolled around. In 2021, one of my roommates and I were talking about how we enjoyed playing 2D Mario games. I said that while I didn’t have my Wii U with me, I did know that one of the New Super games got a port to the Switch. Within the next couple days I picked it up, and we played it…for maybe, like, five hours. Then I rarely touched it.
New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe is fine, but at the time it still felt like a senseless and lazy port. However, with Super Mario Wonder on the horizon, I decided to pick it up and actually beat it for the first time. It only took me around five hours to do so, but I think my opinion on it has slightly changed.
Think about how when Super Mario 3D World released on Wii U. While it was a decent game, some fans were upset because the Wii U didn’t have a traditional, more explorative 3D Mario on the system. However, once it was ported to the Switch, it felt right at home next to Super Mario Odyssey and could get the true attention and praise it deserved. It’s not a bad 3D Mario game, it’s just a different type of 3D Mario game. One that works well as a complimentary title, not a supplementary one.
I believe the same rings true for New Super Mario Bros Deluxe. It’s a decent enough platformer, but with no original, unique 2D Mario for the Switch to call it’s own, it stuck out like a sore thumb. Everyone groaned at the sight of what is technically the fifth time we’ve received a New Super game. Now that Super Mario Wonder is releasing in a few months, players will have the option to play a 2D Mario with loads of new ideas, or something more scaled back and familiar. Neither are particularly the right or wrong choice. They both have their own strengths.
This is my plea for you to give New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe another shot. There’s plenty to of challenging stages in the game, and while I never found anything outright hard, there were definitely levels I died quite a few times on. While I don’t think I’ll 100% the game, I have been trying to seek out some of the star coins, which is an added layer of depth to the series that I’ve loved in every New Super game. Even if it’s not a perfect Mario game, I guarantee you’ll enjoy it and see it as a fun farewell to the New Super series before Super Mario Wonder comes out. Give it one more shot.
And now it’s time for…
Andrew Other Stuff Blog
Where I share non-video game things that captured my attention this week. Except when I feel like adding other video games. Because It’s MY newsletter.
Now that it’s September, I rewatched Over the Garden Wall in preparation for fall. It’s not the last time I’ll be watching it this season either.
Olipop Cream Soda rocks. It tastes just like actual Cream Soda, but has barely any calories or bad stuff in it. I know this sounds like an add, but I swear it’s not.
A new ride at a small theme park known as Bay Beach opened last weekend. I wrote an article about it on my theme park website, Limitless Park. Check it out here.
New Scott the Woz video on Store Exclusives came out. Always a treat.
Later! - Andrew