Austin note: This thing is not meant to be viewed as a criticism of a game that is not out yet (SM3DW) that I have only played twice before. It is also not meant to be a criticism solely of the Mario franchise. It is, as I hope is clear, a discussion and analysis of gameplay motifs and design philosophies for many kinds of games.
Kenta Motokura is co-director of the upcoming game-that-you’ve-all-heard-of, Super Mario 3D World. In a recent IGN article he said the following regarding the development of the game:
“Going off of our monitor tests, we wanted to see what beginners thought was difficult about the game, and also what was fun about the game. We learned from those tests is that if you were a beginning player, when you come to a cliff, you might stop, think about jumping, then jump and maybe not make it and drop. But what if we added this element of sticking to the wall so you could prevent yourself from dropping down?”
So he brings up this simple question: What if you added an element that prevented less experienced players from falling down?
Several Wii U and 3DS titles will be playable at a number of different malls as part of Nintendo’s “Holiday Mall Experience”. The event will take place between November 25 and December 22.
Playable titles include:
Wii U
Super Mario 3D World
The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014
Pikmin 3
The Wonderful 101
Wii Fit U
Wii Sports Club
Wii Party U
Rayman Legends
Just Dance 2014
Splinter Cell Blacklist
Assasin’s Creed IV: Black Flag
Disney Infinity
Batman Arkham Origins
3DS
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Super Mario 3D Land
Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Mario Kart 7
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move
Animal Crossing New Leaf
Mario & Luigi Dream Team
Pokémon X & Y
Mario Party Island Tour
Scribblenauts Unmasked
Sonic Lost World
Skylanders Swap Force
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages
You can find the full list of participating locations here.
Nintendo Land appears to have been removed from the North American Wii U eShop. It’s simply no longer available for purchase as a digital download.
This only applies to North America. As far as we know, Nintendo Land is still up on the European eShop.
Rex, Deimeto, Raptor and Torikera have been confirmed for Toriko: Ultimate Survival. Rex is officially playable, while it seems as though you’ll have to fight the others.
Another tidbit: those who scan barcodes in Weekly Shounen Jump will be able to unlock special missions.
So this seems a bit random, doesn’t it? For whatever reason, this particular scene from Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy shows different-colored clothing for one of the characters (on the right). He’s apparently a priest-like character, so some speculate that the change could be religious-related.
How many hours of gameplay will Super Mario 3D World have to offer? TheBitBlock’s Josh Thomas, who has been playing through the title for review, said it took him about eight hours to complete. Naturally, this amount will differ by person.
Before you get too concerned, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. First, Super Mario 3D World has two extra modes available: Captain Toad and Mystery House. It’s unclear how much gameplay is contained in each, but it will surely extend the experience – even if it’s just by a bit.
We may also be dealing with a similar situation as Super Mario 3D Land’s post-game levels. Two separate reviewers, writing on NeoGAF, said the following about World’s length:
I won’t spoil anything, but anyone who has played 3D Land, knows that finishing the game is really not finishing it at all. That’s all I can say.
It’s a lot longer than 8 hours, folks. I can’t really say much more than that, but don’t worry.
So it may take you eight hours to complete Super Mario 3D World’s main story, but there should be more for players to see and do.
