The Super Mario franchise has always been extremely popular for Nintendo. Over the decades, the games have retained their core formula while also pushing the platformer genre forward in ways that are truly innovative. It’s satisfying to see Nintendo celebrate the series’ 35th anniversary with some very exciting titles that showcase fresh takes on old ideas.
Super Mario Bros. 35 is an upcoming Switch game that takes Super Mario Bros. and turns it into a tense battle royale experience. There’s a lot of potential in such a game and with the right touches, Mario 35 can be truly special.
10 A Single Player Story Mode
Clearly a title like Super Mario Bros. 35 is supposed to prioritize online multiplayer, especially since it’s a title that will only be available through Switch Online. That being said, there’s no reason why a single-player story mode with CPU opponents, even a simplistic one, could not be worked into the game.
The fact that the Switch is portable and can be played on the go makes a feature like this even more advantageous. A satisfying ending to working through a collection of levels would help make this feel like even more of an anniversary celebration.
9 A Physical Release
Nintendo has a strange fascination with holding back on physical releases for their special titles. It’s an understandable way to cut back on costs, but gamers also have a valid reason to be worried about the impermanent status of online purchases. Nintendo hasn’t just restricted Super Mario Bros. 35 to Switch Online, but they’ve also said it will only be available until March.
Tetris 99 started as a Switch Online-exclusive, but Nintendo eventually released a physical version that comes bundled with Switch Online. It’d be nice to see Mario 35 get the same treatment.
8 Team & Co-Op Play
There’s certainly a level of adrenaline that’s experienced in something like Super Mario Bros. 35 that pits 35 opponents against each other. That being said, a sense of community can be fostered through co-op play, and it would not take anything away from the game’s chaotic pacing.
Something like this could make a huge difference in Mario 35 as even splitting up the 35 players into smaller teams would introduce a whole other style of strategy. This feels particularly necessary considering that Super Mario’s roots go back to Mario and Luigi working together as a team.
7 Different Playable Characters
The Super Mario series has featured a growing list of supporting characters over the years. There’s a level of absurd novelty behind 35 Marios locked in combat with each other, but it’d also be a shame to not take advantage of the many other exciting characters from the Super Mario.
It’s shocking how much of a difference something like the ability to play as Peach, Yoshi, or Toad can make for people. These characters don’t even need to do anything different and simple palette swaps would be enough. It’s a better way to celebrate 35 years of Mario.
6 Tournaments
The tension that is created from 35 different players competing against each other should ideally be enough to satisfy gamers. Battle royale titles survive on this energy and how there are always new players who will bring a unique level of challenge to the game.
At the same time, stakes can be made even higher by the implementation of simple things like tournaments. These can help corral in the chaos and can lead to bigger events and celebrations through Mario 35. Other titles like Mario Kart have indulged here, so Mario 35 should be no exception.
5 Many Different Gameplay Modes
Super Mario Bros. 35 seems like it will be able to work so well because the basic formula to Super Mario Bros. is so simple and easy to pick up. In that sense, it’s the addition of many competitors that forms the challenge, but Mario 35 will hopefully do a lot more in this area.
There are many different gameplay modes that Mario 35 could feature that showcase variations on its structure. These don’t have to be radical changes, but even shifts like focusing on time, coins, or enemies lend themselves to many diverse options.
4 DLC
A game like Super Mario Bros. 35 can provide a ton of fun upon its initial release, but then the appeal can have diminishing returns and players have less reason to return. DLC is a great way for a game to assure its fans that it will have continued support.
This is an even greater concern for Mario 35 since the game will only be available until March. There are plenty of areas for DLC, like new maps, weapons, characters, gameplay modes, or tournaments. More than anything, fans just want to know that the game has a future.
3 Timed Missions
Another way that titles like Super Mario Bros. 35 can prolong their replay value is through the addition of timed missions and events that find ways to continually bring their audience back to the experience.
Tetris 99, for instance, has daily missions that offer new goals and incentives. It’d be appreciated to see the same level of love involved in Mario 35, even if these missions were done at a less frequent rate. Extra challenges like this are what fans crave once the standard multiplayer experience begins to wear thin.
2 Local Multiplayer
Super Mario Bros. 35 wants players to experience the madness of 35 opponents from across the world going head-to-head with each other, but that doesn’t mean local multiplayer can’t also be exhilarating.
There’s just as much fun to be had in a living room full of friends playing this game against each other, whether it involves the addition of CPU opponents or not. Even a game like Tetris 99, which also started as a Nintendo Switch Online exclusive, eventually incorporated local arena multiplayer options, whether through the game’s DLC or with its later physical release.
1 Unlockable Content
Battle royale titles like Super Mario Bros. 35 are often only as good as the players who are involved. Still, it would be nice to have an achievement to strive towards other than bragging rights over a high ranking.
Mario 35 could add a whole lot more replay value if there is some kind of system to gain experience or points that can be redeemed for new content, even if it’s superfluous stuff like themes or music. This feeling of success is so satisfying and it adds more to the experience than purely the need to defeat others.