The developers behind Super Mario Bros. Wonder have revealed that the game originally had live commentary, and players would be able to choose between a “generic” voice or a Tsundere version. That news was shared in an official interview that went up today.

Game designer Koichi Hayashida said that Nintendo spent around six months of serious development on the concept. During the game, players would be able to hear voices that matched their actions. But the idea ultimately didn’t feel right to the team and there would have been a lot of work involved for voice variations. The original concept was scrapped, but the idea lives on with the Talking Flowers.

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Super Mario Bros. Wonder reviews roundup

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

With only a couple of days to go until launch, Super Mario Bros. Wonder reviews are now starting to go live. We have a roundup of some early verdicts.

We don’t need to remind you, but this is a huge release from Nintendo. Aside from the fact that Mario platformers are always big sellers, this is the first original side-scroller in the series in over a decade. There’s a lot that’s new here with the Wonder Flower that changes up each level, the badge system, Elephant Mario, new enemies, and more.

Here’s a roundup of reviews for Super Mario Bros. Wonder:

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Super Mario Bros. Wonder devs on how the Rolla Koopas came to be

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

The developers behind Super Mario Bros. Wonder have opened up about the origins of the Rolla Koopas. This comes from Nintendo’s new interview that went out today.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder features a number of new enemies, and Rolla Koopas are a new take on the classic foe. Koichi Hayashida, one of the main game designers, mentioned how during the making of Super Mario World, the developers talked about changing up the look of the Koopa Troopas. That’s something the current Super Mario Bros. Wonder team tried again. Art director Masanobu Sato said “one of the designers came up with the idea of making the Koopa Troopas roll around on roller skates” – and you can check out some concept art above.

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Super Mario Bros. Wonder joints and animations have more than doubled in number since last game

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

Super Mario Bros. Wonder has more expressive animations than ever before, and the team has spoken more about that in a new interview published today.

Designer Koichi Hayashida revealed that ” joints and animations have more than doubled in number since the previous title.” This is ultimately what made more expressive movements possible.

One issue during development concerned characters turning towards the player to show their expressions. As art director Masanobu Sato put it: “if we set Mario’s nose to face the direction of travel, like we used to, with a modern 3D model, you wouldn’t be able to see his facial expressions.” The team “had to find the right balance to make it easy for players to see both the character’s expressions and where they’re headed.”

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Super Mario Bros. Wonder devs on Mario Maker 2 motivation and new engine

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

The team behind Super Mario Bros. Wonder has discussed being motivated by the reception to Super Mario Maker 2 as well as making a brand new engine for the game.

In an official Nintendo interview today, producer Takashi Tezuka noted how some felt that Mario Maker 2 “had eliminated the need for another 2D Mario game.” He added that “those kinds of sentiments may have been what motivated me to come up with ideas for this game.”

Right after that in the interview, Koichi Hayashida – who worked on game design – mentioned how director Shiro Mouri pushed for “a new game engine that would serve as a foundation for future 2D Mario games.” This was in part possible because the team wasn’t forced to rush for a deadline.

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Nintendo spent more dev costs on Super Mario Bros. Wonder animations

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

There’s a lot to like about Super Mario Bros. Wonder, including the game’s visuals and animations. It sounds like this has been a particular area of focus for the team.

In an interview with NPR, producer Takashi Tezuka said Nintendo poured more of the development costs into the game’s animations. Funds for the company’s titles are typically focused on actual gameplay. Also mentioned is how the team wanted players “to experience something similar” to what fans saw in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

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Super Mario Bros. Wonder ROM leaks online

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

There’s been another big leak for a Switch game in which the ROM has appeared online before launch, and now it’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder that’s affected.

Reports recently started to surface that some retailers have started to sell it early. Because of that, fans are starting to gain early access and someone went as far as to dump the whole thing online.

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Sonic Superstars producer on close launch to Mario Wonder and differences between the series

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Switch | 0 comments

Sonic Superstars producer Takashi Iizuka has weighed in on the game’s close launch to Super Mario Bros. Wonder. In an interview with Automaton, he said that he was “surprised” that the two were releasing just a few days apart from each other.

Iizuka was asked about differences between the two franchises, and noted that they “are enjoyable in different ways.” He also sounded appreciative of the fans that have supported Sonic over the past few decades.

Our full translation reads:

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Kevin Afghani revealed as the new voice of Mario in Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Switch | 0 comments

Kevin Afghani has come forward as the new voice of Mario, confirming that he’s handling the character in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. He will also be playing Luigi.

Yesterday, rumors swirled that Mick Wingert would be taking over the role after a store demo for the game was datamined. However, while his representative confirmed his involvement, we also received confirmation that he wouldn’t be playing Mario.

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New Mario voice actor for Super Mario Bros. Wonder possibly discovered

Posted on 1 year ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Rumors, Switch | 0 comments

Original: The new Mario voice actor in Super Mario Bros. Wonder may have been discovered stemming from a new datamine. Nintendo said players would be able to find out who’s taken on the role from Charles Martinet when the game launches, but we seemingly won’t need to wait another week.

The game itself isn’t out yet, so you might be curious as to how a datamine could already exist. As it turns out, someone has managed to get their hands on the demo that recently popped up in stores across the country.