Nintendo Announces Super Mario Bros. Wonder Direct

We may have heard Mario and Luigi’s new voices in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, but Nintendo will not be confirming who is voicing them until the game’s release, according to Nintendo president Doug Bowser.

If the last six months or so of gaming have taught us anything, it’s that the “rivalry” between the three main gaming publishers is still going strong. That might be sad to say or hear, but it’s the truth. Sony sued Microsoft for anti-trust reasons basically, and during those proceedings, neither of them wanted to admit that Nintendo was a “true rival” for them due to the Switch’s price point, of all things. These three have been going at it for a long time, yet Phil Spencer found time to go and play Super Mario Bros Wonder at the recent Nintendo Live event.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder includes chatty flowers which share jokes and useful hints as you pass by — though Nintendo has now confirmed you can put them on mute if you'd prefer.

Many people have Super Mario Bros Wonder on their minds, given that the title just had a significant Nintendo Direct that broke down the various elements of gameplay, plot, and the new kingdom players will be in. As if on cue, the floodgates opened after that, and the team talked about everything to do with the game, including the parts of its development process. For example, the team wasn’t rushed to develop something special early on, as the producer wanted them to make something special. But a question about what Mario’s creator had to say about the game has popped up.

One of the biggest complaints in the video game community is that certain developers are so driven to get their video game titles out that they’re willing to rush through development. That’s a problem, as it can leave games feeling incomplete, or they can be so rushed that it leaves a ton of bugs and glitches in the title. Nintendo has always been a company that has prioritized a game’s quality over everything else more times than not. That was apparently the case with Super Mario Bros Wonder, as the team wasn’t rushed during the early stages of development.

The director of Super Mario Bros Wonder says Nintendo has to try harder to surprise players these days.

It's been 11 years since the last proper Mario side-scroller, a fact that surprises Nintendo's veteran exec Takashi Tezuka when I point it out. Tezuka has worked on dozens of projects since the launch of 2012's New Super Mario Bros. U — including Super Mario Maker, Nintendo's create-your-own-Mario sandbox. Still, such a wait for more handcrafted Mario levels seems notable.

«People have their own image of what online play might be. Maybe it's a little difficult, or maybe it's a little scary.»

It’s hard to believe that the last brand-new 2D Mario game came out more than 10 years ago. That’s not to say I don’t appreciate updates to classics like Super Mario 35 or remixes such as the Super Mario Maker series. But without a fresh entry to the franchise, it felt like there was something missing. However, after getting a chance to go hands-on with Super Mario Bros. Wonder ahead of its official release on October 10th, it feels like the magic is back.

Nintendo has released new information, footage, and screenshots of Super Mario Bros. Wonder as part of today’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder Direct, introducing new gameplay, new power-ups, Wonder effects, and more.

In the new Super Mario Bros. Wonder Direct, we got a glimpse at a whole bunch of elephant-ified characters. Daisy, Peach, Luigi, and even Toad are putting on their trunks and crushing everything in their path. Then there's Yoshi.

By Ash Parrish, a reporter who has covered the business, culture, and communities of video games for seven years. Previously, she worked at Kotaku.