For Mario’s 30th anniversary, Nintendo decided to have the most fitting celebration yet- for the gaming icon who turned us all into gamers, they decided to give us a game that would turn us all into game designers. Super Mario Maker is a classic 2D platformer, that gives players tools to make devilish and ingenious platforming levels, all with the Mario series’ exemplary mechanics.
The game launches on Wii U exclusively on September 11, but the review embargo lifted today. As has been the case with most major Nintendo games lately, Mario Maker’s reception was uniformly positive.
Nintendo Life gave the game 10/10, saying, “If you’ve ever enjoyed a 2D Mario game and have a creative, playful spirit, then you should have already decided to buy this. It has plenty of tough competition, but this is the definitive Wii U game.” Gamespot was equally jubilant, giving the game a rare 9/10, noting, “The first time I discovered that, not only could I make a giant, flame-spewing piranha plant, but I could also make it fly, I cackled with horrible glee at the possibilities. And for the first time in a creation-focused experience, I look forward to returning again and again for more than just the amazing levels I know other people will create. I want to keep making my own levels better. The game won’t necessarily turn you into the next Shigeru Miyamoto, but you can almost feel a little bit of that magic rubbing off every time you upload a new creation.”
IGN gave the game 9/10. “Super Mario Maker is a great way to mark Mario’s 30th birthday, but it’s not concerned with being an overwrought history lesson,” they said. “Instead, it’s a celebration that folds three decades of Mario into one accessible, powerful creation suite. The perpetual joke at the end of every 10 Mario Challenge run informing you that the Princess is in yet another castle hints at Super Mario Maker’s bigger promise: There will always be more levels to play thanks to the online creation community, and a virtually endless pool of challenges to overcome.” Polygon gave it 9.5/10 as well, stating that “Where other publishers might release a making-of documentary of their golden era, Super Mario Maker does the unthinkable: It lets you do the making of. I have had a tremendous amount of fun playing Super Mario Maker, but the way it developed that newfound appreciation for something I’ve known my whole life was the game’s biggest accomplishment. Sure, there’s touches of fan service here and there, like a startling number of references to Mario Paint, but that’s not how it won me over. Super Mario Maker wooed me because it’s a hands-on history lesson.”
Super Mario Maker will be available on Wii U on September 11. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for more coverage on the game, including our own review.