Should I say spoilers? Sure…okay… Finding a stamp in each level reveals a new image in a large collage made up of many a beloved Mario game character. What is new is…uh…new stuff in the game is…um… Well, the secrets: the green stars and the stamps. The sheer cuteness of all this is making my teeth hurt. Your goal is to rescue a Sprixie from each level and eventually defeat Bowser. And it’s a story that doesn’t involve Peach getting tricked by Bowser’s “free candy” van! Rather it’s a story that involves Bowser kidnapping a group of Sprixies, an all-female band of adorably adorable sprites. Cuter still… GODDAMN CUTE!Īnd, there’s also a story. And yes, I did just type “adorbs.” I kinda hate me too. Each has their own special abilities, and each looks stunningly adorbs in their respective cat suits. And the Super Bell means the cat suit, and the cat suit means CAT MARIO! And cat friends! Oh yes, in this game you can chose to play as Mario, Peach, Luigi, or Toad. In addition to the well-known super mushroom and fire flower, there the Mega Mushroom ( G-I-A-N-T Mario), the Boomerang flower (yay, boomerangs?), the Propeller box (helicopter Mario, anyone?) and a couple different Super Leafs that bring out the Tanookis in us all.

The game’s power-ups are the same but decently different from what we’ve gotten in previous games. Everything about the game pops…literally! Traverse the themed levels (grass, snow, sky, fire, etc.) from the starting point to the end flagpole, gathering coins, power-ups, and other treasures along the way, all while paying attention to the timer for each level. Insanely colorful, active, and nicely tactile, the game’s various levels appear open, remain linear, but still offer up plenty of secrets to discover. And it’s a world worthy of the Mario brand. Taking cues from Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Galaxy, Super Mario 3D World once again sets Mario and his companions in, well…a 3D world. Super Mario 3D World cover art © Nintendo Then, at Christmastime, Super Mario 3D World finally came along. It wasn’t until we got Bayonetta/Bayonetta 2 near the tail end of 2014 that the Wii U saw any action. The Wii U got relegated to the sidelines. In my house, 2014 was really about the Xbox One, the PlayStation 4, and the Alienware Alpha – redoing our entertainment space, making them all work, trying out all their spangly, new features.

Is there some ridiculous, juicy, and convoluted reason as to why that might warrant THIS INCREDIBLE BLOG POST?! Um … … … no? To be honest, my initial excitement for Super Mario 3D World didn’t last much beyond 2013. And yet, it would be a year before Super Mario 3D World was added to my collection. And good thing too because I had only recently gotten my shiny, new Wii U, and I didn’t have a damn thing for it except New Super Mario/Luigi Wii U.

Cat mario 4 play