Super Mario 3D World Critic Reviews

Compact by the standards of the Galaxy adventures but still loaded with bountiful secrets, beneath the warm familiarity of 3D World lies one of the strangest Mario games in years - or at least one of the most random in its influences and its moment-to-moment indulgences. And that's a very, very good thing.

Thankfully 3D World isn’t just a refinement of the Mario formula, it’s a powerful re-imagining. It’s an explosive cavalcade of color and excitement as well as a well thought out evolution of Mario.

Super Mario 3D World can be easily summarised — it’s a terrifically enjoyable, tight and impeccably structured experience. It recalls the mascot’s 3D heritage while providing the perfect starting point for those that prefer 2D platforming, catering to an audience of beginners and skilled veterans alike. Nintendo’s also mastered Mario multiplayer for, arguably, the first time; it’s still manic and can be either co-operative or competitive, but there’s also a sense of space that allows determined groups to progress coherently.

It was then that I realized that Super Mario 3D World had achieved a level of platforming design that's close to perfection, and there was almost never a moment where I didn't have a smile on my face. This is the unequivocally the best Mario game since Galaxy 2, and it shows up anything the "New" series has ever done, and then some.

Put simply, Super Mario 3D World is stunning. Its world is beautiful, its design is impeccable, and its fun is infectious. I'm running out of superlatives here, so let me finish where I started: Go play it.

Super Mario 3D World is both gorgeous and about as enjoyable as a video game can be. There is an immense amount of depth that kept me coming back for more, time and time again. This is the rare type of game that I believe ten years down the road we will be coming back and playing again and again. It’s that good.

The closest we will ever come to a perfect Mario game, one that is a culmination of every right decision ever made in the series. Alone, or with friends, the first time, or the tenth time, it does everything right. It's a wonderful adventure.

It's platforming perfection, brimming with clever ideas and flawless execution.

Once again, Nintendo completely re-defines platforming with the latest Mario installment. This is the game to buy a Wii U for and co-op will probably never be much more fun than this.

A triumph from start to finish. Beautiful, colourful, amusing, and bereft of any cynicism whatsoever. An utter breath of fresh air that plays like a dream; this is almost certainly the game Nintendo should have launched the Wii U with. However, here we are, finally getting the incredible Mario title we deserve.

To some, Super Mario may appear tired: a mascot whom Nintendo trots out every few years to sell another console with repackaged but fundamentally stale ideas. Super Mario 3D World is a fierce rebuttal to the accusation. Mario and his makers once again assert their dominance of spatial navigation games, displaying a rude abundance of ideas to delight, surprise and celebrate innocence and playfulness.

Super Mario 3D World justifies a Wii U.

World might not be the same revelation that Super Mario 64 or Super Mario Galaxy were, but it doesn't look at traditions as a crutch, and instead uses what you know as a way to delight and entertain.

Super Mario 3D World is a great game full of amazing games inside. The boundaries of the imagination were again overcome and the strong interactivity and magnificent achievements in technical terms prevails.

It really is a fantastic game. That thrill of hitting the top of the flagpole is still there after all these years, Mario and co leap about at the top of their game, it's colourful, friendly, joyful, and the most fun I've had with a platform game since Super Mario Galaxy 2.

Super Mario 3D World is a master class in platforming fun, and deserves every bit of praise heaped upon it.

It's more than just a simple Mario title with multiplayer bolted on. The game weaves together a plethora of unique, compelling and occasionally downright bizarre ideas that simply work.

A peerless title full of virtuosity and richness that combines the tight mechanics of old school games with sophisticated formal experimentation, full of liberty, complexity and mastery that reminds us that art has no limits.

It’s a masterpiece.

In the end, everything comes down to the incredible level design and the pure joy of playing. Super Mario 3D World makes 3D Land seem like a prototype. It's a product from a team at its creative peak - it's Mario in its purest essence.