New Super Mario Bros. Wii

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Eighteen years. You might not believe it, but that's how long it's been since the last 'proper' side-scrolling Mario game (Super Mario World) was released on a home console. Once Super Mario 64 arrived (we're not counting Yoshi's Island because it was essentially a Yoshi game, not a Mario one), everything went 3D and any 2D adventures Mario was to have were reserved solely for handhelds. We were sure we would never see the portly plumber legging it from left to right on our telly in a new game again. Until now.

There seems to be an unwritten rule that if enough people say something on the internet, no matter how wrong it is, most people end up believing it. Because of this, we'd forgive you for being led to believe that New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a 'straight port' of the similarly-named DS game. After all, the first trailer and screens didn't show enough to prove it was a different game except for the addition of a four-player multiplayer mode.

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Let us clear this up right away then. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a completely new game, and not an enhanced version of the DS title at all. You have never played a single one of the 76 stages in this game before. It might as well have been called New Super Mario Bros. 2 (and we actually wish that it had been, to avoid the confusion).

There are no prizes for correctly guessing the game's plot. It's Peach's birthday and Mario, Luigi and a couple of Toads are at the castle celebrating. A mysteriously large cake is wheeled into the room (you can probably tell where this is going) and everyone is pleasantly surprised. Suddenly, Bowser Jr and the seven Koopa Kids burst out of the cake, grab Peachy and leg it to their airship, flying away with her. Naturally Mario gives chase.

At its core, New Super Mario Bros. Wii plays like the DS game in so much as it has a similar appearance (though greatly enhanced, of course), similar music, a similar feel and a similar general structure. However, there have been many new additions, tweaks and improvements that make this a much more enjoyable game in many ways.

A Peach Of A Story
Some of these changes are large. The map screens are now much more like those in Super Mario Bros. 3, with mushroom houses giving you the classic 'pick two matching cards' mini-game and Toads giving you items in treasure chests. In fact, there are SMB3 vibes throughout the whole game, from the way each world is inhabited by a certain Koopa Kid, to the ever-present airship, to the way you battle enemies who bump into you on the map, right down to the numerous familiar enemies who return for the first time since that game. There are also various nods to Super Mario World too, such as the obvious inclusion of Yoshi (more on that in a bit) and the addition of a spin-jump move.

Then there are the more subtle additions. The flowers spinning as Mario walks past them, the way you hear power-up and 1-Up noises in the Remote as you play, the way the penguin suit acts just like the Super Mario Bros. 3 frog suit when you use it underwater, the way Mario's feet change position depending on how steep the slope he's standing on is... the level of attention given to the tiniest little details in this game is very impressive.

There are some small annoyances. It's great that Yoshi's been added to the game, which is why we're disappointed that when you finish a level with him Mario jumps off and leaves while Yoshi waves goodbye. You can't take him with you to any of the game's levels, meaning he's only available in a handful of stages. It would also have been nice to have had a different character as a fourth player instead of just another Toad, or even a selection of characters (Toadette, Wario, Daisy) to choose from. And online multiplayer with WiiSpeak could have been fun too. These are minor quibbles though, and the good so greatly outweighs the bad that it seems churlish complaining about such trivial issues.

The Four The Merrier
It should go without saying that the main addition to New Super Mario Bros. is the four-player multiplayer mode. For the most part it's very entertaining, and with four people on-screen things get absolutely ridiculous at times. You might not like it but cooperation really is the name of the game here, since the four characters are able to bump into each other (they don't just pass through each other like ghosts) and some levels have such narrow gaps and dangerous obstacles that if you don't time your movement perfectly you're going to knock someone down a hole.

Once you start a game with a set number of players, you're not stuck to that number throughout. At any time in the map screen you can pause and add or remove players, making it easy for your pal who always turns up late to join in at any point. As well as the main adventure, there are also Free Play (choose any unlocked level from a list) and Coin Battle (get more coins than anyone else in a level) modes for multiple players. Coin Battles are particularly fun because teamwork goes out the window and the whole thing turns into a bonkers free-for-all.

Coining It In
We were initially concerned that the option for four-player multiplayer would lead to the levels becoming more open and less full of enemies and obstacles. We feared this would then have an impact on the single-player game, making it much easier. This simply isn't the case. Indeed, instead of feeling like it was designed primarily for four players with the single-player mode as an afterthought, it seems like the opposite is true. Had there been no multiplayer mode whatsoever in this game, we'd still be praising it for being harder than the DS version. The game does start off as easy as its handheld sibling did (by the end of World 3 we had earned 68 lives), but it soon gets fiendishly difficult and will have even the most die-hard Mario players cursing at times.

As hard as it is with one player, the difficulty level ramps up immeasurably as you add more players to the mix. You really have to work together in order to get through each level without losing loads of lives. Continuing isn't a problem should you run out (the game automatically continues for players during multiplayer mode, with Mario uttering a cheery "Here we go again!"), but with the game logging how many times each player's continued, bragging rights are still very much on the line as you can clearly point out who was the most rubbish at the game.

Hard To Beat
That's not to say the game's impossible to get through, mind. Experts will still be able to blitz through all eight worlds in the single player mode within around six or seven hours. As was the case in the DS game though, that's only half the battle.

The other half involves getting all three Star Coins in each level, some of which are located in ridiculous positions this time around. Contrary to popular belief (that pesky internet again), there are no Star Coins that need multiple players in order to be collected. The game doesn't punish you for not having anyone to play with. Yes, it might be easier if you had a mate there to help you get to those hard-to-reach coins, but there isn't a single Star Coin in the game that can't be collected on your own. You'll want to do so too. Whereas in the DS game collecting all the Star Coins simply allowed you to choose a special design for the bottom screen display - a bit of a let-down considering how much work it took - this time around there's a genuine reason to collect all the Star Coins that expert players will appreciate. What is it? Ah, that would be telling.

A Star Performance
New Super Mario Bros. Wii is essential. This is the sort of game you bought a Nintendo console for, not those daft mini-game collections that are considered a success if the controls actually work. No, games like this. Games that are lovingly crafted and packed right down to the tiniest detail with charm, invention and polish. Games that make you smile and chuckle even when there's nobody else in the room. Games that challenge you and infuriate you but never in a cheap way, always tempting you back to try again. Games that are welcoming enough to new players, but have so many nods and winks to previous games that you know they were really made for long-serving Nintendo fans.

Games that are so entertaining that when you get to the end, play through the final epic boss battle, complete the game and deal with the extra stuff (that we're not going to spoil) you'll happily start all over again and fill up all three save slots just to enjoy the ride all over again. It's the game that should be top of every Wii owner's Christmas list, and it's our favourite Wii game of the whole year, without a shadow of a doubt. Mario is back.