Few characters have enjoyed as much pop culture-based success as Mario, Nintendo’s red and blue clad Italian plumber. In fact, one could say that the grandfather of platforming gaming stands alone as the de facto mascot of this very industry, which is a statement that would be nearly impossible to argue with.
This fall, Nintendo once again proved its mastery of accessible, family friendly platforming with its Wii U exclusive, Super Mario 3D World. The four-player title, which mixed the familiarity of Mario’s traditional left-to-right side-scrolling with the more open environments of three-dimensional titles like Super Mario 64, delivered a masterful campaign that was nothing short of magical. In truth, it’s the perfect game for the holiday season, and exists as a nearly flawless system seller.
Although Mario has been around for decades, Super Mario 3D World has proven that the protagonist is still as timeless and endearing as ever. Sure, there are a lot of familiar elements to be found within the game – something we highlighted in our review – but it’s tough to truly fault the overall experience, which stands as one of the best platformers of all time.
