Table of Contents
- For those who want to create
- for those who want to play
- Network Play and Super Mario Maker 2's terrible online mode
- Worth it?
Since the launch of the Nintendo Switch, fans were clamoring for a port (adaptation, in free translation) of Super Mario Maker no console. A Nintendo went further and preferred to release the sequel right away: Super Mario Maker 2, which hit stores at the end of June.
The game has the same premise as its predecessor: allowing players to create, share and play levels in the styles of the franchise's main 2D games Super Mario Bros.. Taking note of the criticism that the first title received, the Nintendo manages to deliver an excellent game with practically infinite content.
For those who want to create
If you want to put all your talent as a game designer into practice, the Course Maker this is where you will spend most of your time.
The editor has been completely overhauled. unlike the Wii U and your gamepad, on Switch you don't always have access to a touch screen.
Of course, the interface works very well in portable mode, allowing use on the touch screen, but the big news is the arrangement of items for access with physical control. It takes a while to learn to edit from the controller, but you soon get used to the shortcuts.
This time, all content is already available for use in the editor right from the start. Starting with playstyles, it is now possible to create stages based on Super Mario 3D World. The themes present from the previous game continue here, namely: Super Mario Bros. (NES), Super Mario Bros. 3 (NES), Super Mario World (SNES) e New Super Mario Bros U (Wii U).
Levels created using the themes from the previous game can be adapted to each other. For example, if you start editing a level based on Super Mario World, you can at any time switch to the style of the Super Mario Bros 3 without losing all your work. But if you want to change to the style Super Mario 3D World, will have to start from scratch. This is due to style-specific mechanics, characters, and items, such as the ability to transform into Cat Mario, allowing wall climbing.
The themes range from traditional, sky, underground, forest, underwater, ghost house, desert, floating ship, snow and castle. Each with their own music and backgrounds, even if the game the style is based on didn't have the theme included. It's quite interesting to create levels in the style of the first Super Mario Bros. with a ghost or desert house theme. The attention to detail is incredible: even original songs for these hitherto non-existent themes in these styles were composed.
Also, some themes have special settings. The forest and castle themes, for example, allow you to adjust the height of the water and lava respectively. The moon, in turn, enables the night mode of the phases and adds some very fun modifiers to each theme. With the moon, the subterranean scenarios are upside down, in the forest the water turns into poison and so on.
And to name a few of the new obstacles, we now have ramp-style platforms (the #1 fan request), on/off blocks, snake blocks, and the theme-exclusive special items Super Mario 3D World.
To share your levels with the community, the same rule as the previous game applies here: you need to be able to finish your level from start to finish. This avoids uploading impossible levels and the frustration of many players.
The new contents, combined with the powerful editor, allow users to create surprisingly creative and ingenious levels.
for those who want to play
Story Mode
This time, Super Mario Maker 2 It has a story mode. The objective is to explore a series of levels collecting as many coins as possible to rebuild Princess Peach's castle. The levels are created by Nintendo's designers and are very different from the standards of a traditional Mario game. It's a welcome addition for anyone who likes to play a series of levels made by professionals.
Course World
The way Course World has a number of experiences so you can play stages created by other players around the world.
The option Courses it is the main starting point and is where you should spend most of your time. Here you can play and evaluate a multitude of levels. The main tab shows the most popular levels or those that are gaining some notoriety in the community.
Each stage is displayed in a list with title, description, screenshot, number of likes and number of players. Levels are also categorized, signaling whether the level has puzzles, is focused on speed, or is a simple, well-developed level. It is also possible to perform refined level searches, based on game style, theme and category.
Em ID, you can search for levels created by friends by entering a 9-digit code generated when the level was uploaded. The option Leaderboards shows the leaderboards, with the players who played the most and created stages. Is at Endless Challenge, the game curates stages and puts you to play one after the other, until your lives run out. Great request for the undecided on duty!
The only problem is the difficulty and number of steps required to play stages with more than one player locally. Before, it is necessary to lower the level and access it through the option Course Bot. In addition, it is not possible to navigate through the menus using only a joy con, which forces the main player to take control of the partners in each game.
Network Play and Super Mario Maker 2's terrible online mode
Em Network Play It is possible to connect with other players locally or around the world to play the levels cooperatively or competitively. If the idea is to play with friends and strangers online, don't get carried away: the online mode is terrible and poorly implemented.
Even with an excellent connection, matches happen practically in slow motion. The current state of online mode borders on impractical. Add that to the inability to invite friends to private matches (an update with this feature was promised) and the result is one of the worst and most frustrating online modes I've ever experienced.
Worth it?
It doesn't matter if you want to use the creation tools or just play games: if you're a fan of the Mario franchise or you like platform games, Super Mario Maker 2 it's an excellent title. The community nature of the game brings endless possibilities that will guarantee many, many hours of gameplay.
However, if you intend to purchase the game exclusively to have fun with friends over the internet or locally, it's better to rethink. In its current state, the multiplayer modes of Super Mario Maker 2 are the perfect recipe for frustration. It is better to wait for an update with the correction of the numerous problems.
The game is available exclusively for Nintendo Switch for R$250,79 on Nintendo's digital store.
