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New Super Mario Bros. U (JP) (also called NSMBU, New Super Mario Bros. 4, or NSM4) is the fourth installment in the New Super Mario Bros. series for the Wii U. It was officially revealed at Nintendo's 2012 E3 conference on June 5. The game allows for up to five players to play at the same time; One with the Wii U GamePad, and four others with Wii Remotes or Wii U Pro Controllers. It is a sequel to the 2009 Wii game New Super Mario Bros. Wii and a follow-up to the Nintendo 3DS game New Super Mario Bros. 2 (which was also released in 2012 and is a follow-up to the 2009 game). An expansion pack for this game was later released in June 2013, titled New Super Luigi U which was also released on Wii U. A port to both Wii U games, titled New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe was announced on September 13, 2018 and released for the Nintendo Switch on January 11, 2019. It includes new game modes and features Toadette as a new playable character. She also has her own Power Up, the Super Crown, which turns her into a Peach-look-alike named Peachette.
Like New Super Mario Bros. Wii, players have the option to play as either Mario, Luigi, Yellow Toad, or Blue Toad, but players also have the option to play as their Mii characters.
Plot[]
Mario, Luigi, Yellow Toad, and Blue Toad are in Peach's Castle having lunch together. Bowser arrives in his airship. The airship, now armed with a giant mechanical fist, smashes the four and throws them far away. With the Mario Bros. out of the way, Bowser hijacks Peach's Castle. Mario and the gang land in a giant acorn tree, launching Super Acorns throughout the area. When the four get back onto solid ground, they realize they are now in Acorn Plains, far from Peach's Castle. The four run back to save Peach once more.
Gameplay[]
Screenshot.
New Super Mario Bros. U iterates on the gameplay featured in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. The objective of each level is to reach the goal flag at the end while avoiding enemies and hazards. The game can be controlled either using Wii Remotes or the Wii U GamePad, the latter of which allows play separate from the television screen. Like the Wii game, up to four players can play simultaneously, choosing from Mario, Luigi, and two toads colored blue and yellow, same as in New Super Mario Bros Wii.
Certain game modes also allow players to play Mii characters saved on their console. New to this version is an asymmetric multiplayer experience called Boost Mode. In this mode, an additional player using the Game Pad can use the touchscreen to place blocks on the screen or stun enemies to aid the other players. This can be used to both assist amateur players and allow expert players to perform speed runs.
Along with returning elements, such as Ice Flowers and Yoshi's, New Super Mario Bros. U introduces new power ups, such as a flying squirrel suit that allows players to glide across long distances or slowly descend down vertical paths and cling to the side of the walls. Baby Yoshi's, which last appeared in Super Mario World, can be carried by the individual players. Each Baby Yoshi has a special ability based on its color, such as inflating in midair magenta, blowing bubbles to attack enemies blue, and illuminating dark areas yellow.
Some older power-ups also have new abilities; for example, the Mini Mushroom now allows players to run up walls. Unlike New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which had separate maps for each of the game's worlds, New Super Mario Bros. U features one large map containing all the game's worlds and levels, similar to that of Super Mario World. Some levels have multiple exits that lead to different areas on the map.
The game features two new modes of play, Challenge Mode and Boost Rush. Challenge Mode adds unique challenges to various levels, such as clearing them in as quick a time as possible or earning as many 1-UP's in a row as possible without touching the ground. Boost Rush takes place on an automatically scrolling level which increases in speed as players collect Coins, with the goal to clear the stage as quickly as possible. The game will also utilize Miiverse, allowing players to share comments or feelings about particular levels with one another.
History[]
Rumors about a New Super Mario Bros. title being in development for the Wii U had circulated since the Wii U tech-demo New Super Mario Bros. Mii was playable at E3 2011. In early 2012, Nintendo confirmed that they were indeed working on a new game based on that tech-demo. On Sunday, June 3, 2012, during a Nintendo Direct live video stream, video of the game was shown, though not directly confirmed to be an actual game in development.
The video focused on showing how the Wii U's social network Miiverse might be used while playing a game. The video showed comments from players around the world appearing when Mario failed a level as well as on the over-world map. The game was officially announced and named at E3 2012, as well as a trailer.
Playable Characters[]
- Mario
- Luigi
- Yellow Toad
- Blue Toad
- Mii
- Yoshi's
Power Ups[]
Post game[]
Enemies[]
Worlds[]
| Acorn Plains | Layer-Cake Desert | Sparkling Waters | Frosted Glacier | Soda Jungle | Rock-Candy Mines | Meringue Clouds | Peach's Castle | Superstar Road |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-1: Acorn Plains Way | 2-1: Stone-Eye Zone | 3-1: Waterspout Beach | 4-1: Spinning-Star Sky | 5-1Airship: Mighty Cannon Ship | 6-1: Fuzzy Clifftop | 7-1: Land of Flying Blocks | 8-1: Meteor Moat* | 9-1: Spine-Tingling Spine Coaster |
| 1-2: Tilted Tunnel* | 2-2: Perilous Pokey Cave | 3-2: Tropical Refresher | 4-2 Cooligan Fields | 5-1: Jungle of the Giants | 6-2: Porcupuffer Falls | 7-2: Seesaw Shrooms | 8-2: Magma-River Cruise | 9-2: Run for It |
| 1-Tower: Crushing-Cogs Tower | 2-3: Fire Snake Cavern | 3-Tower: Giant Skewer Tower | 4-Tower: Freezing-Rain Tower | 5-2: Bridge Over Poisoned Waters* | 6-Tower 1: Grinding Stone Tower* | 7-3: Switchback Hill | 8-3: Rising Tides of Lava | 9-3: Swim For Your Life! |
| 1-3: Yoshi Hill | 2-Tower: Stoneslide Tower | 3-Ghost House: Haunted Shipwreck* | 4-3: Prickly Goombas! | 5-3: Bramball Woods | 6-3: Waddlewing's Nest | 7-Tower: Slide Lift Tower | 8-4: Firefall Cliffs | 9-4: Hammerswing Caverns |
| 1-4: Mushroom Heights | 2-4: Spike's Sprouting Sands* | 3-3: Above the Cheep Cheep Seas | 4-4: Scaling the Mountainside | 5-Tower: Snake Block Tower | 6-4: Light Blocks, Dark Tower | 7-Ghost House: Spinning Spirit House* | 8-Castle: Red-Hot Elevator Ride | 9-5: Spinning Platforms of Doom |
| 1-5: Rise of the Piranha Plants | 2-5: Dry Desert Mushrooms | 3-4: Urchin Shoals | 4-5: Icicle Caverns | 5-Ghost House: Which Way Labyrinth* | 6-5: Walking Piranha Plants!* | 7-4: Bouncy Cloud Boomerangs | 8-Bowser's Castle: The Final Battle | 9-6: Fire Bar Cliffs |
| 1-Castle: Lemmy's Swingback Castle | 2-6: Blooming Lakitus | 3-5: Dragoneel's Undersea Grotto | 4-Ghost House: Swaying Ghost House* | 5-4: Painted Swampland* | 6-Tower 2: Screwtop Tower | 7-5: A Quick Dip in the Sky | N/A | 9-7: Lakitu! Lakitu! Lakitu! |
| 1-Secret Stage: Blooper's Secret Lair | 2-Castle: Morton's Compactor Castle | 3-Castle: Larry's Torpedo Castle | 4-Castle: Wendy's Shifting Castle | 5-5: Deepsea Ruins* | 6-6: Thrilling Spine Coaster | 7-6: Snaking Above Mist Valley | N/A | 9-8: Pendulum Castle |
| N/A | 2-Secret Stage: Piranha Plants on Ice | 3-Secret Stage: Skyward Stalk | 4-Secret Stage: Fliprus Lake | 5-6: Seesaw Bridge | 6-7: Shifting Floor Cave | 7-Castle: Ludwig's Clockwork Castle | N/A | 9-9: Follow That Shell! |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5-7: Wiggler Stampede | 6-Castle: Roy's Conveyor Castle | 7-Airship: Boarding the Airship | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5-Castle: Iggy's Volcanic Castle | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 5-Secret Stage: Flight of the Para-Beetles | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Extra Modes[]
| Level | Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Time Attack | |
| Time Attack Trial | 1 Star |
| Acorn Plains Speed Run | 1 Star |
| Full Speed Ahead | 2 Stars |
| Stone-Eye Desert Dash | 2 Stars |
| The Boo Ballet | 2 Stars |
| The Boo-Ballet Encore | 2 Stars |
| Icicle Skating | 2 Stars |
| Huckit Hustle | 3 Stars |
| Mini Mountaineer | 3 Stars |
| Lurchin' Urchins | 3 Stars |
| Penguin vs. Torpedo | 3 Stars |
| Slick Slopes and Bullet Bills | 3 Stars |
| The Haunted Propeller | 4 Stars |
| Fliprus Crossing | 4 Stars |
| Rickety Sprint | 4 Stars |
| No-Cash Dash | 4 Stars |
| Poison-Swamp Scramble | 5 Stars |
| Swing into Action | 5 Stars |
| Stoneslide Tower Climb | 5 Stars |
| Screwtop It Up | 5 Stars |
| Coin Collection | |
| Triple-Jump for Coins | 1 Star |
| Hot Hidden-Coin Hunt | 1 Star |
| Stingy Big Piranha Plants | 1 Star |
| Lakitu's Cloud Heist | 2 Stars |
| Hot-Air Yoshi Ride | 2 Stars |
| Ghost House Coin Curse | 2 Stars |
| Perilous Coin Dodge | 3 Stars |
| Waddlewing Wipeout | 3 Stars |
| Prickly Goomba's Coinless Run | 3 Stars |
| 200 Clifftop Coins | 3 Stars |
| Dark Dark Coaster | 3 Stars |
| Cloud Top Coin Evasion | 3 Stars |
| Attack of the Bob-ombs | 4 Stars |
| Spine Coaster Coin Cruise | 4 Stars |
| Castle Coin Bypass | 5 Stars |
| Don't Touch Anything | 5 Stars |
| 1-Up Rally | |
| The Goombrat Stomp | 1 Star |
| Stone-Eye Koopas | 1 Star |
| Goomba Bounce Bash | 2 Stars |
| Penguin Bowling | 2 Stars |
| Three Dry Bones | 3 Stars |
| Bullet Bill 1-Up Bounce | 3 Stars |
| Star Connection | 4 Stars |
| Big Goomba Bounce Bash | 4 Stars |
| Airship 1-Up Rally | 5 Stars |
| Paratroopa Panic | 5 Stars |
| Special | |
| Fire, Bro! | 1 Star |
| Graceful Glide | 1 Star |
| Mole to Goal | 2 Stars |
| Marathon Glide | 2 Stars |
| Bubble Up | 3 Stars |
| Nonstop Flight | 3 Stars |
| Be Gentle to Giants | 3 Stars |
| Big Air at Sundown | 3 Stars |
| Balancing Act | 3 Stars |
| Bowser's Airship Sneak | 3 Stars |
| Larry's Groundless Battle | 3 Stars |
| No Climbing Allowed | 3 Stars |
| The Trial of Bullet Bill Hill | 3 Stars |
| Spin Jump, Get Dizzy | 3 Stars |
| Mole to Goal Returns | 4 Stars |
| Wobble and Rock | 4 Stars |
| Seriously! Fire, Bro! | 4 Stars |
| Elevator Out of Service | 4 Stars |
| Castle Crawl | 4 Stars |
| Express Elevator | 5 Stars |
| Cashless Castle Crawl | 5 Stars |
| Boost Mode | |
| Piranha Plant Hideaway | 1 Star |
| Coins in the Forecast | 1 Star |
| When Waddlewings Attack | 2 Stars |
| The Perpetual Shell | 2 Stars |
| Boost Block Coin Stalk | 3 Stars |
| Icicle Falls | 3 Stars |
| Fuzzy Alert! | 3 Stars |
| The High Road | 3 Stars |
| Three-Legged Lava Race | 4 Stars |
| Fuzzy Cliff Climb | 4 Stars |
| Thwomp Castle Cash Flow | 5 Stars |
| Cloudy with a Chance of Fire | 5 Stars |
| Ultimate Boost Blast | 5 Stars |
Enemies[]
- Goomba
- Koopa Troopa
- Piranha Plant
- Fire Bro.
- Boney Beetle
- Boos
- Paragoomba
- Urchins
- Waddlewing
- Boom Boom
- Koopalings
Reception[]
New Super Mario Bros. U has received generally positive reviews. The game currently maintains an 84 average on both Metacritic[3] and GameRankings[4]. GameXplain gave the single-player and multi-player modes 4 stars out of 5[5], IGN gave it a score of 9.1 out of 10[6], EGM[7] gave a score of 9/10, Joystiq gave it 4.5 stars out of 5[8], Polygon[9] and Destructoid[10] gave the same score of 8.5/10, VentureBeat[11] gave it a score of 83/100 (83%), Games Radar gave it 4 stars out of 5[12], and Gamespot gave a score of 8.5[13].
The game has been praised for its balanced gameplay and challenge mode, with IGN's Rich George describing it as "the best thing to come to Mario's world since 3D", while criticizing it as not pushing the Wii U's visuals and audio potential. He also stated, "though it doesn't necessarily redefine Nintendo’s iconic hero, it still manages to capture the sense of carefree adventure that many of us felt as kids." He also criticized the game's "weak graphics and audio, plus the return of the irritating chaotic, bouncy multiplayer mode". He praised the progressing difficulty in the game and the additional difficulty of Challenge Mode.
Legacy[]
Eventually this game got DLC in the form of New Super Luigi U. This game was included in a Wii U bundle that started in August of 2013. The bundle included a black Deluxe Wii U and a disc containing both New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Luigi U.
As of March 31, 2014, this was the best-selling Wii U game at 4.16 million units sold until March 31, 2015, when it became second best-selling Wii U game behind the latest Mario Kart game Mario Kart 8.
Development[]
As stated above, New Super Mario Bros. U was based upon the New Super Mario Bros. Mii Wii U experience demo shown off at E3 2011.[14] A translation of a Spanish online magazine revealed that the new title was in development and would be revealed at E3 2012,[15] with the game fully revealed to be New Super Mario Bros. U during the E3 trailer.[16]
New Super Mario Bros. U began development soon after the completion of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, using pre-existing elements from the Wii game, as development equipment for Wii U did not exist at the time.[17] The game's singular, interconnected world map was inspired by the one seen in Super Mario World; Masataka Takemoto desired to take the map from that game and use the Wii U in order to recreate and expand upon the concept.[18] The map being seamless also had a role in Miiverse integration, as with the setup of the map it was possible to display comments across each of the levels.[19] The concept of drop-in play with one player on the Gamepad placing blocks was brought up early in development. When the Wii U Gamepad was brought up during development, the team began to conceptualize ways to use it, talking specifically about the drop-in play. Wanting to make a feature with "controls that you can understand right away with no explanation," the concept of using the GamePad to place blocks the other players can jump on went through.
Challenge Mode was based upon the idea of setting a self-challenge in previous games, as well as the challenge site for New Super Mario Bros. Wii. Because of ideas like this, the developers decided to put the Challenge Mode into the game from the beginning. The challenges were created with all types of skill levels in mind.[20]
Boost Rush Mode was based on the Free-for-All Mode featured in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, in that they wanted a similar mode for playing the main game stages in short bursts. The developers tried connecting courses together and playing them through, but found it uneventful; they then added the concept of collecting coins resulting in the screen scrolling faster, and found it to fit a Super Mario-style of gameplay.
Credits[]
Gallery[]
| Main article: New Super Mario Bros. U/gallery |
Trivia[]
- If the Miis are selected as P1, they will be colored like Mario. If P2, they will be colored like Luigi. If P3, they will be colored like Wario. If P4, they will wear blue shirts and dark blue overalls, similar to Luigi's light blue alternate costume from the Super Smash Bros. series. However, this could be a reference to the player 4 in some of the Wii U Virtual Console ports of the Game Boy Advance iteration of Mario Bros.
- When the Mario Bros., Toads, or Miis are not moving, they stop and stare at the screen until the player starts moving them again.
- Sometimes, on the title screen, Luigi almost trips over instead of jumping and ground-pounding the ground.
- Bowser transforming Peach's castle into a stronghold of his in this game is similar to the climax of Super Mario Bros.: Peach-hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen!.
Music/Audio[]
- After working on the 3D games since Galaxy, this is Mahito Yokota's first (and, to date, only) work in a 2D installment.
- Shiho Fujii, the lead composer, would later work in Mario Kart 8 and Super Mario Odyssey.
References[]
- ↑ Nintendo.com - New Super Mario Bros. U - Game Info
- ↑ Nintendo.com.au
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ [2]
- ↑ [3]
- ↑ [4]
- ↑ [5]
- ↑ [6]
- ↑ [7]
- ↑ [8]
- ↑ [9]
- ↑ [10]
- ↑ [11]
- ↑ Mario Wii U "Based On" New Super Mario Bros. Mii Wii U News @ Nintendo Life
- ↑ Miyamoto To Show Wii U Mario at E3 - Wii News @ Nintendo Life
- ↑ Wii U - New Super Mario Bros. U E3 Trailer
- ↑ Iwata Asks : New Super Mario Bros. U : "What Should Be New?"
- ↑ Iwata Asks : New Super Mario Bros. U : One Map
- ↑ Iwata Asks : New Super Mario Bros. U : Reading the Posts in your Hands
- ↑ Iwata Asks : New Super Mario Bros. U : "Mottainai (What a Waste)!"
External links[]
- New Super Mario Bros. U at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- New Super Mario Bros. U at GameFAQs
- New Super Mario Bros. U at MobyGames
- Official American Website for New Super Mario Bros. U
- European Website for New Super Mario Bros. U
- Japanese Website for New Super Mario Bros. U
- Official YouTube channel of New Super Mario Bros. U
- New Super Mario Bros. U at Super Mario Wiki, the Super Mario wiki.
- New Super Mario Bros. U at TV Tropes