It's a fully-fledged game, with 40 courses and eight worlds

If you ever wanted to play a theoretical Super Mario Bros. 5, you can, in this fan-created version by way of Super Mario Maker 2.

Over on Twitter, super-creator Metroid Mike 64 unleashed their finished project out into the world: Super Mario Bros. 5. As Mike puts it, they've been "working toward this moment since 2015," aiming to "create a classic Mario game that plays as if Nintendo created it themselves." To that end, it'll feature eight worlds, with 40 full courses (24 from the Super Mario World archetype, 14 from Mario 3, and two courses from Super Mario Bros.). The idea was?? to give the entire project a "classic"?? feel.

Going even further with that philosophy, Metroid Mike's aim isn't to "troll or purposely try and kill you," but rather to ease you into level designs that feel like they're organically present in a prior classic Mario game. While there's plenty of room for "instant/death can you even beat this" Mario Maker designs, I appreciate the core focus here; as it'll make it even easier to pick up and play from a ??general audience standpoint. Going a step further than that, Metroid Mike added in world maps with "branching paths," as well as some light puzzles.

This is an extremely "weekend plans set" situation. Want in? Just plug the below ID into Super Mario Maker 2.

Super Mario Bros. 5 Maker ID: 0G9-XN4-FNF

//twitter.com/MetroidM??ike64/status/15740657960280??06400

The post This dedicated creator spent years making a Super Ma?rio Bros. 5 fan project i??n Mario Maker 2 appeared first on Destructoid.

It's on April 14

[Update: Well the time has come for one major element of Mario Maker 2 to die as well. After noting that the Ninji Speedrun event was coming to a close last month, that era is upon us. Nintendo confirms ?that the final Ninji Speedrun is Bowser's Castle t?hemed, and? is "packed with tricky gimmicks" worthy?? of a last event.

It'll run through April 27 at 7PM PT, at which point a major online component of Mario Maker 2 will cease to exist. Like Mario Maker 1, you can expect Nintendo to shut off? online support at some point too.]

Nintendo is killing Mario Maker 1 online support at the end of the mo??nth (don'?t forget!), but it seems like they're going to be stopping support for Mario Maker 2 soon too, in some form or another.

In this innocuous tweet, Nintendo reminds us that the "Cap Mario Master" Ninji Speedrun Course is out now, which tasks players with collecting 100 coins amid the Super Mario World theme. Fine, right?

Well, in the next tweet reply, which is a little more sly and sans a marquee accompanying image or ha?shtag, Nintendo also notes that another Ninji speedrun event is "planned to launch on April 14." That's fine too, right? Read the fine print: "The volume of this 20th and final Ninji Speedrun will be bigger than ??usual and last for 2 weeks. Please be sure to keep an eye out!"

Wait, what? Yep, if you're still enjoying those Ninji speedruns, keep in mind that they seem to be ending in roughly a month. Also, note that Nintendo is willing to drop Mario Maker support like a sack of potatoes, so it stands to reason that in a few more years, Mario Maker 2 could be shut down like its predecessor.

Especially if there's a Mario Maker 3 in the works,?? with 3D support. I kind of want it, but I also don't? want it to be inevitably shut down. Catch-22!

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

The post (Update) Nintendo lo?w key lets it slip that the next Mario Maker 2 Ninji speedrun even??t is the last appeared first on Destructoid.

You need to place in the top 35

[Update: The course is live! Just log into Super Mario Maker 2, go to "play," then "course world," then locate "35th Anniversary Auto-Mario." If you can't find it, bring up the n??ews reel: it'll be the latest update. Or, locate it at the bottom of the main Course World menu under "Ninji Speedruns." To complete it (and thus, complete the mission), all you need to do is stand still. Of course, that won't get you the top time necessary for the coin reward.]

For weeks now I've been ??waiting for the 35th anniversary auto-Mar??io Ninji speedrun event to actually hit, and today, the day has come.

As a reminder, Ninji speedrun is a mode in Mario Maker 2 that periodically drops first-party levels into the game that players can literally speedrun. Completing a stage will then p?lop little Ninjis into subsequent runs, which are basically "ghosts" of other compe??titors, similar to classic time trials in other games. It creates an intense atmosphere where you're racing the clock.

There's a bunch already available that you can run for fun, but tonight at 6PM PT, Nintendo is dropping a special map with a real-life reward. If you place in the top 35 (a feat!), you can net an actual Mario commemorative coin. The front showcases the 35th anniversary of Mario, while the back shows off Mario Maker 2's logo, as well as Mario and Luigi in color.

You have until November 24 at 6PM PT to get your score in. Now this is important: ma??ke sure you specifically sign up for the challenge on Nintendo's site. You can play Super Mario Maker 2 separately ??if you want, but registering for the event will ensure that you're good to go.

Double-check your mission list to ensure you entered here. Oh, and don't forget to click a button and enter the "My Ni??ntendo Super Mario Sweepstakes" too while you're there!

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

The post (Upda?te) The race to win this real Mario speedrun coin begins appeared first on Destructoid.

Also, the Frog Suit returns.

Super Mario Maker 2 has seen its fair share of updates, but its last one may be its best yet. Nintendo dropped a new trailer for the game showcasing all the elements coming to title this ??week, including the World Maker mode. Now, instead of just creating individual levels, we'll be able to string them together into our little worlds. Or not so little, because we'll actually be able to craft eight different worlds with up to 40 levels.

In addition to World Maker, SMM2 will introduce the SMB2 Mushroom that turns Mario into his Super Mario Bros. 2 form, letting him pick up enemies just as he did in the NES classic. The Frog Suit also returns from Super Mario Bros. 3, the Super Acorn from New Super Mario Bros. U, and t??he Boomerang Suit. Also coming in the update are a set of masks that change Mario's abilities, including the Goomba Mask, the Bullet Bill Mask, and Red Pow B??ox.

The Koopalings are also coming in this update, letting you add some variety to your boss battles. Phanto from SMB2 is also joining the game with the new Cursed Key item as is Mechakoopa with a whole set of n?ew abilit??ies.

The final update for Super Mario Maker 2 will be available April 22.

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The drought continues

The wait for a traditional Nintendo Direct continues. So we recently got an Animal Crossing-themed one, but other than that, we've been waiting since early September. One Mario Maker 2 creator decided to take m??atters into th?eir own hands.

Spotted by YouTuber BeardBear, the stage is titled "Nintendo Direct: The Level," and takes players through an automatic cruise of sorts that serves as a series of text announcements. We begin with an intro from current Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser (an actual Bowser), going straight into a "2029 Breath of the Wild 2" announcement.

The "one more thing" is "Super Mario Galaxy 3 this fall" with a slow reveal with teases like the appearance of Rosalina and the tagline "out of this world." It's short, but cute! This is the sort of positive reaction to a lack of a Nintendo Direct that you'd hope for.  If you want to play it the actual stage was created by ReallyJosh, and the level ID is: 35C-B74-20H.

The post There’s a Nintendo Direct level in Super Mario Maker 2 now, as the wait continues appeared first on Destructoid.

Go crazy

Super Mario Maker 2 was released last June. Feel old yet?! No? Good. True youth is contain??ed in the soul.

Nintendo, like they have been with nearly all of their first-party games, have been updated Mario Maker 2 every so often with grea?t free enhancements, and this week they have another minor patch in store for us.

As of today the level cap is now increased from 64 to 100. It's a simple change, but a welcome one for folks who can't stop making levels and want to keep all of their old creations. As a reminder, this is probably the "one more time" update Nintendo was talking about way back when. Unless they change their mind, this is the last level increase on the do??cket.

In other news, folks have uploaded over 10 million playable courses to Mario Maker 2. Quite a feat! I'm sure that number will increase expone?ntially over time due to the aforementioned change.

Thanks to the creativity of Makers around the world, there are now over 10 million playable courses in #SuperMarioMaker2! To celebrate, you can now upload up to 100 courses to Course World! pic.twitter.com/v23ALxyVAS

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) January 7, 2020

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Link is now in the game, tools and all

[Update: You can find the full version 2.0 patch notes below, or here.]

Super Mario Maker 2&nbs??p;is getting ready to host a massive 2.0 update that brings a ton of new ??stuff into the mix.

Highlights include a new Spike enemy (that throws snowballs in the winter theme!), Pokey (who is customizable), a Frozen Coin, the P Block, a Dash Block (to help create an auto-runner theme) and the granddaddy of them all: the Master Sword. The latter will actually transform your Mario into Link (only in the Super Mario Bros.&nb?sp;theme, just like the ??first game), but it's not just a skin! Link will sport his working sword, shield, dash, downthrust, arrow and bombs.

Version 2.0 also brings new "Ninji Speedruns" into the mix, which? is a new mode that allows you to create courses specifically for the purpose of speedruns. Nintendo will also distribute courses on their own, which grant extra sta??mps and Mii costumes.

Th??e update will arrive on December 5! After a short lapse I'm ready to dive back in.

Ver. 2.0.0 (Released December 4, 2019)

Course Maker

• New course parts have been added.
  • Each new part can be used in the following game styles as shown below
    

    	Super Mario Bros.	Super Mario Bros. 3	Super Mario World	New Super Mario Bros. U	Super Mario 3D World
    Master Sword	YES	NO	NO	NO	NO
    Spike	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
    Pokey	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
    P Block	YES	YES	YES	YES	YES
    Frozen Coin	YES	YES	YES	YES	NO
    Dash Block	NO	NO	NO	NO	YES

  • Select the Master Sword by first placing a Super Mushroom, then changing its type from the options available.
  • Select the Frozen Coin by first placing a Coin, then changing its type from the options available.

Course World

• The Ninji Speedruns mode has been added.
• New conditions have been added to Detailed Search when searching for courses.
  • Multiplayer Versus courses can now be displayed in order of popularity.
  • Course searches can now be further refined by applying the “Date Uploaded” condition.
  • Course searches can now be further refined by applying the “Number of Plays” condition.
• The number of likes a maker has received will now be displayed in the Overview section of their Maker Profile.
• Makers are now less likely to lose Maker Points when uploading a new course.
  • As part of this change, Maker Points may revert to their value prior to installing this update.

General

• Issues have been fixed to make for a more pleasant gaming experience.

The post (Update) Super Mario? Maker 2 gets one of its biggest patches yet, which includes Zelda conte?nt appeared first on Destructoid.

Versus and co-op

When we all found out that Super Mario Maker 2 wouldn't support direct online play with friends, we kind of had a collective headshake. This is 2019, Nintendo is charging money for ?online services now, shouldn't this be a given when much smaller studios can figure it out?

It was such a big deal that the game's producer had to publicly address the issue during a playthrough at E3, and even went as far as to confirm that eventually, there would be an update that added that functionality into the game. That time is now, as Nintendo stealth-dropped version 1.1.0 of Super Mario Maker 2 last night. In addition to sprucing up the leaderboards section and adding touch-screen pl??us button building (at the same time) suppor??t for handheld mode (which is kind of a big deal, especially given that the portable-only Switch Lite is now in play), 1.1.0 also adds online into the mix.

It's of the co-op and versus variety for global play and folks on your friends list/players that are nearby. Between this and the addition of an "Official Makers" (read: first party) curated list, I'll be hopping back into Mario Maker 2 after a hiatus: these are by far the things that were holding me back the most. You can find the full patch notes here or below.

Nintendo of America [Twitter]

Ver. 1.1.0 (Released October 1, 2019)

Course World

Network Play

• Added “Play with friends”
  • You can now play online with friends in either Multiplayer Versus or Multiplayer Co-op modes.
  • You can now select courses uploaded to Course World as well as courses saved to Coursebot.
  • The Nintendo Switch Online mobile app is now supported.
    • You can automatically match online with people that you were matched with via the app, and can voice chat with them.
• Added features to “Nearby Play”
  • You can now play in Multiplayer Co-op mode as well as Multiplayer Versus mode.
  • You can now select courses uploaded to Course World as well as courses saved to Coursebot.
  • When playing a course saved to Coursebot, the host system doesn’t need to be connected to the internet.
• Added “LAN Play”
  • Players connected to the same LAN (Local Area Network) can now wirelessly play together.
  • fter selecting Network Play, you can switch to LAN Play mode by clicking in the L Stick and pressing the L or R buttons.
• If the connection is unstable before Multiplayer Co-op or Multiplayer Versus starts, the match will be cancelled.
• In Multiplayer Co-op, when everyone chooses “Let’s start over!”, the timer will now be reset.
• Changed the look of the gauge for S+, the highest rank in Multiplayer Versus.
• If a player places Builder Boxes after a warp point, other players will now be able to break them and proceed forward.
• All players will take the same amount of time to move through a Warp Pipe, regardless of the state of their character.
• After updating to Ver. 1.1.0, you will no longer be able to match with players using Ver. 1.0.1 or lower in Network Play.

Course Info

• You can now select Play Together directly from any course uploaded to a player’s profile.
• Simplified the display of comments containing stamps in “View comments.”

Maker Profile

• Added a refresh/update button to “Courses uploaded.”
• Added a list showing a user’s 100 most recent First Clears.
• Now displays a user’s total number of First Clears.
• Now displays a user’s total number of world-record times.

Official Makers

• Added a list of Official Makers in Leaderboards.

Course Maker

• You can now use touch with button controls in handheld mode.
  • You can also go back to touch-only controls from Settings in the Main Menu.

General

• You can now play with a horizontal Joy-Con in all Game Modes.
  • You can change your controller grip from Settings in the Main Menu.
• Other issues have been fixed to make for a more pleasant gaming experience.

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Hammer time

Nintendo is very proud of Super Mario Maker 2. How proud. So proud.

Just this week they announced that the new entry in the Maker series pushed over two ??million copies in a very shor?t amount of time, paving the way for support for months/years?? to come. Alongside of hard sales numbers they also have another milestone to share: the community has uploaded four million courses since the game's launch last month. Not bad!

Now a lot of those numbers are typically meaningless, but given the course limit (for a long while it was 32, now it's 64), that means a lot of creators actually are uploading levels for ever?yone to try out. To celebrate Nintendo provided an official new level to test, which you can check out in the video below or access through the Course ID "XYK-9FY-CGG."

I've mostly been enjoying the story mode so far (some of the levels are really clever, a? few, not so much) due to a lack of good official curation tools from Nintendo: for the most part, the only levels I make a point to try are ones I find on Twitter or hear about via word of mouth. Alongside of the multiplayer update I hope there's more to come on that front.

Nintendo [YouTube via Japanese Nintendo]

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Just enough to *not* crack the top 10 all-time Switch sales list, but it'll get there

Among Nintendo's general hardware earnings f??or this past ?quarter, the publisher also took the time to specifically call out at least one software success: Super Mario Maker 2.

In its quarterly report, Nintendo boasts that in the short period since its release, Mario Maker 2 hit a target of 2.42 million units sold, stating that the game is "off to a good start." ?Given that the Nintendo Switch has a much brighter future than the Wii U that's likely an understatement, so long as they can keep their level-sharing infrastructure intact for years to come.

So what does 2.42 million units sold actually mean? Well let's break it down. It's not a rip-roaring success like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which crushed the 10 million mark in less than six months, but it's almost enough to put Mario Maker 2 in the "to?p 10 be?st-selling Switch games of all time" list. Currently 2.42 million is just under Mario Tennis Aces, which holds the coveted 10th number on the lis?t.

I'd say give it less than a month for Mario Maker 2 to take its ri?ghtful place. Which, mind, would mean that "Mario" branded games still take up exactly half of the spots on the entire list.

Consolidated Results for the Thre??e Months End?ed June 30, 2018 and 2019 [Nintendo]

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For the creators out there

Nintendo has some work ahead of them for Super Mario Maker 2 (I'm very much thinking of the post-launch friend update), but for now, we? feast on an increased course load cap.

After booting up my copy this morning I was greeted with a new notification under the "news" heading. Answering th?e call of fans who wanted?? more upload space, Nintendo has increased the limit of 32 courses to 64 as of this week. The good news, if you're a course-uploading fiend and need even more room to express yourself, is that Nintendo says it is going to "raise the course upload limit one more time." No time frame was given for this future update.

There's been a ton of great courses on the market already (though they are generally hard to find, hopefully a future update is a better in-game curation system), so this should give folks who are already on a roll more leeway. I'm thinking of people who re-create entire Mario games specifically here.

The post Super Mario Maker 2 ups course upload limit to 64, Nintendo will do it ‘one more time’ appeared first on Destructoid.

'SMB 1-1 with a tiny twist'

I can see it now: You're innocently browsing for courses in Super Mario Maker 2 ??and you come across something described as "1-1 but with a twist." What could it be? It's only a quick click away! That's how they get you. That's how you fall into the abyss. You can't possibly escape with your dignity intact.

The iconic Super Mario Bros. level has wormed its way into countless games that feature user-created content, but this one's different. This one is out for blood. If you aren't feeling anxious right now, ??get ready to. Creator Sunny has taken 1-1 to the extreme with an onslaught of ever-rot??ating Fire Bars.

I held my breath during most of this playthrough.

Think you have the patience and skill to clear this challenge? ??The course ID ?is YXL-D4C-TQF.

The fiendish creation calls to mind an article from the Destructoid archives simply titled "Show-off."

@YTSunnys [Twitter]

The post Super Mario Maker 2 lev??el reimagines 1-1 for modern times appeared first on Destructoid.

Thank you Yamamura-sensei

Personally, I think the quality of Mario levels, now that we live in a Super Mario Maker 2 world, has gone up consider??ably. There are some cool, high-stress runners, some comically-themed levels, and some fun, puzzle-oriented levels.

The jbsgame.community also has its own fair share of aspiring "Mario Makers," from casual designers to intense critics and everything in-between, creating all sorts of levels that you'd expect from this community of weirdos. So, just like last time, here are a new smattering of custom levels made by our happy-go-lucky readers??, all test-run by yours truly (in some cases, quite painfully).

First up is "A Lost Key" by Scionvyse. This level is sort of more in the vein of being designed like an actual Super Mario level, as opposed to being a st??ressful speedrun or a zany puzzle-p?latformer. Once the locked door is taken care of, the rest of the level has some actual platform gameplay my muscle memory for jumping hasn't experienced in a while, and not in any maliciously difficult way either.

Lokhe's "Tower of Duality" is a level I enjoyed. Or enjoyed after I got past a very difficult and narrow jump clearance any??ways. 70% of my time was spent repeating the first jump segment over and over, and a few times I'd screw up on the following buzzsaw/Bullet Bill combo obstacle so I'd have to start over.

Once I threaded the needle though, the rest of the level was a fun jaunt of crisscrossing door paths. Maybe you're jumping skills won't struggle so much as mine did, but after the first major obstacle, it's all gra??vy and good times after that.

RiffRaff's "A Leisurely Jaunt in the Winterlands" is actually anything but that. I blame myself for most of my deaths? because the level is designed specifically around something that is stated up front in the level's description: using long jumps (ZR) to clear the gaps!

After dying a couple of times by mistiming my jumps, th?ings got a bit easier, but, this level is never a pushover. There's still quite a few other design el??ements to shake things up beyond the long jumps, so I gave this level a hearty favorite.

"Hedgehog's First Platformer" is at least honest about itself. Boxman's ?custom level is a fairly basic exp??erience, but let's not forget there are levels we want to spend days and days tweaking and optimizing, and there are also levels we just want to create in just a few hours and enjoy.

There is something to be said about taking a leap of faith, with only the assurance of coins telling you that you will be fine, and just dropping? straight down without endangering yourself completely.

The Blonde Bass' "Happy Hills 1-1" is the first in a series of levels designed to canonically take place within the Super Mario series of games. The first entry is pretty straight?forward, with the only notable thing being a gauntlet of piranha plants as you descend a plateau. But all the future levels in Bass' portfolio that follow the number scheme are also pretty nice. My personal favorite is "Basic Beach", so try Bass' Happy Hills and delve into the rest of his levels in his profile ??to see what else sticks for you!

Hiryu I'd say is the community's resident art critic for Mario levels, as he's perused a lot of the community's levels already and offered his own critique and tips for what's good and what could be good for improvement. "Tides & Tracks" and "Mr. Goomba's Wild Ride" are good appetizers, but Hiryu's latest stage, "You Should Make An Ice Level", has the design that I really liked the most. It really feels like a normal Mario level that would've been right at home in any Super Mario 3D World title. All the alternate p?aths were reall?y fun to explore too.

So that's what I've gathered so far from our community for great Super Mario Maker 2 stages. But this feature will be returning to feature all the great levels made from our awesome community. Until next time, keep making! And don't forget to leave your own levels in the quick posts or in the comments below.

The post Check out the jbsgame.community’s Super Mario Maker 2 levels appeared first on Destructoid.

I miss the stylus

Super Mario Maker is one of those console defining games. On the Wii U, it represented one of the best uses of the system's tablet controller and offered players a chance to show off their level design skills in the one way Ni??ntendo wouldn't issue a DMCA notice against. While Nintendo did include some of its own created levels in the final product, the actual life and longevity of the game were determined by the c??ommunity and how well it globbed onto the simple interface and extensive number of level-design options.

Anyone who kept up with it in the months and years after it launched will tell you user-created courses were a mixed bag. There is a legitimate number of great levels made by members of the community, but also so much crap. That crap returns in Super Mario Marker 2, even though Nintendo went above and beyond t?o give players the ultimate level creator toolkit.

Super Mario Maker 2 (Switch) 
Developer: Nintendo 
Publisher: Nintendo 
Released: June 28, 2019 
MSRP: $59.99

I remember before the original Super Mario Maker released, one of the biggest grievances reviewers had with it was the unnecessary waiting period it applied to players to unlock all of the course design options. There was a workaround for this and eventually, it was removed via an update, but when word of this time-gate got out, it was obvious Nintendo thought the process of designing a Super Mario level might overwhelm players, even those who had been playing since the 1980s. It wanted to hold our han?ds, to slowly walk u??s through the techniques it had been perfecting for 30 years.

Super Mario Maker 2 would rather push players directly into the deep end. Outside of a few special items, everything you need to create outstanding Super Mario levels is ready right from the start. Does this mean we'll be seeing outstanding levels quickly pop-up in Course World? Of course not, but it does allow those like me who sunk hours into the original to pick up r??ight w??here they left off.

I left Super Mario Maker with a checklist of improvements I wanted to see in the inevitable sequel. Some of it I knew wouldn't happen, like letting us chain together levels to create our own worlds, but Nintendo managed to tick off most of my list as well as surprise me with some new options I didn't even consider. Slopes, perhaps the most requested feature from the first game, are here along with enemies like the Angry Sun and Boom Boom and a few new level themes that span each of the Mario game styles. I love seeing Super Mario Bros. levels that feature snow and desert landscapes, though I wish Maker 2 would let me pick the design of my ground pieces in the 8-bit game styles. In the desert-themed levels, it will automatically transform a single vertical column of ground pieces into either a pipe ??or a desert plant that's a brown version of the underwater coral, which is a design I don't really care for.

Perhaps my favorite addition is night mode and the various effects it has on the levels you make. From altering gravity to turning the screen upside down, it fundamentally alters how each level is played and the courses created by Nintendo give a great look at how this feature can be memorably utilized. There are also the new vertical sub-areas that have already led to the creation of at least one stupendous level, scroll stop, win conditions and the new Super Mario 3D World game style that brings many of the elements from that masterpiece into the Mario Maker fold.

If you are a creator-type, a person who'll buy this game to make levels, you really couldn't ask for more. Yes, I miss the precision of the stylus that came with the Wii U and I really wish Nintendo would have sold the stylus it created for this game here in the states, but a finger works well enough and designing courses while in docked mode is quite intuitive once you get a feel for how it works. Whichever way you choose to create, Super Mario Maker 2 has just about everything you need to make thoughtful, challenging, and mem?orable levels. Now if only we could get the community to actually do that.

I've been playing this game since it launched and I have to say that overall, I'm pretty disappointed with what I've seen. There have been some gems??, mostly levels I find out about on Twitter or Reddit, but most of my experience in the various play modes has been saddled with crap. The Nintendo-created single-player levels of the story mode are quite creative and great examples of what you can do with the toolkit it's given you. A majority of the levels I've encountered in Course World are the opposite of that.

Course World is split up into three different play options and a leaderboard. The standard Courses mode works the same as it did the last time around. You can search by course ID; browse hot, new, or popular courses; or use the th??orough search options to whittle down the selection of levels to those that match your preferences. Levels you like can ??be downloaded, however, players cannot edit them this time around.

Endless Challenge replaces the 10 Mario Challenge from the first game, letting players attack an endless number of levels with a set number of lives. Network Play offers a few multiplayer options, including cooperativ?e and competitive play with strangers online or local play with friends. Online play with friends will be coming in an update, but it won't make that much of a difference if the online stability isn't improved??. Most of my attempts at both co-op and competitive play have been hampered by a poor connection and disconnects, with the speed of the game slowing down drastically until it's like every level is an underwater level. Even when I have full Wi-Fi bars, it's no guarantee the online will work well. Thank god we don't have to pay for online play on Switch.

Oh, wait.

But even if the Network Play worked flawlessly, there would still be issues with the quality of the levels available. This is the conundrum of creating a game where players are expected to provide a majority of the content. There is no guarantee the content will be any good, and thanks to the popularity and intuitive nature of Super Mario Maker 2, you're going to get a lot of people clogging up the Endless Challenge and multiplayer modes with courses that have no business being played by anyone. I've already encountered more than a dozen stages ?designed around a random hidden block and a sub-25-second ??time limit. The first level I played in Endless Challenge was over in 10 seconds.

Most of the courses I've encountered so far has been a colossal waste of my time, with roughly eight out of ten levels netting a "Boo" rating from me. There have been a few decent stages, but they're few and far in between. That's the challenge of reviewing a game like Super Mario Maker 2. Because if I were just judging it as a level-creator toolkit, it would be second to none. An improvement in possibilities over the original, in the right hands it could lead to courses better than even Miyamoto could c?reate.

But that toolkit is only half of the equation. The other half is a platform game with no quality control, no impetus for putting legitimate effort into your original designs, and no way to weed out poor content creators other than trusting that players will be able to discern the difference between a bad level and good level and rate them accordingly. Given how many positive messages I've seen attached to genuinely bad stages, I don't have much faith in the Mario Maker&?nbsp;community right now and I question whether it'll get better down the line.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Super Mario Maker 2 appeared first on Destructoid.

Five tips from the master

Super Mario Maker 2 producer Takashi Tezuka just put out a "top five tips" video to assist players in the creation process. In case you aren't aware, Tezuka helped direct the very first Super Mario Bros. back in 1985, so he's the sort of? person you want to listen to.

You can find the summation of his tips below, and although the first one is very important, "inspiration" is a common theme with Tezuka's philosophy. I recently had the good fortune to attend the J.R.R. Tolkien-centric Mythmoot conference, and its keynote speaker, Diana G??lyer, had a wonderf??ul talk on that very subject.

The gist was that inspiration should be seen as a form of collaboration, something Tezuka-san is trying to foster within the Mario Maker 2 community. If we learn from each other and impart our own unique ideas within a community, we can all learn and better ourselves from the ?ex??perience.

• Don't think too hard
• Start by coming up with a name for your course, which serves as a rough draft
• Check out other courses for reference
• If you get writer's [maker's] block, try other modes to pick up ideas
• Try making courses with someone else

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No more 'randoms only'

Nintendo continues to drill down on some of the stuff they revealed so far at E3, and Super Mario Maker 2's Treehouse live stream is honing in on something the company has said in the past: that online play was limited to randoms only.

Takashi Tezuka, producer for the game, was on-hand to share that a post-game update will be co?ming that allows friends to play online with each other. Tezuka says, "we wanted to create an environment where people could play." He goes on to clarify: "The game is completed where we can create a cycle where people can get ideas, share them wit?h others, and play those. That's when we feel like we've done our job of creating a complete experience."

He did not elaborate on whether or not this was always in the works, or a response to? the immense backlash the publisher received when this restriction was announced. Nintendo has since uploaded a video of the Treehouse discussion: the conversation about the update begins at 28:00.

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No Waluigi?

One of the absolute best parts of the original Super Mario Maker was going through your amiibo collection and seeing which new characters you unlock. Sure you could earn them normally through gamepl?ay, but I loved the idea of slapping my Waluigi figure against the controller and playing as him right away.

Much to the chagrin of amiibo owners and to the joy of everyone else, Super Mario Maker 2 will lack these features: at least according to a rep's statement to GameXplain. The reasoning behind the omission is so Nintendo can focus on the four main characters, which doesn't really explain the fact that Mario Maker already kind of?? did that by limited costume changes to the Mystery Mushroom pickup. Plus, all four main roster members will play ??identically anyway.

In all seriousness, Nintendo has really winded amiibo support down over the past year or so, so this all makes sense. Right now only six characters in? 2019 have been released in half a year'?s time, all six of whom are part of the Smash Ultimate line (which Nintendo probably sees as an obligation at this point). The only interesting figures on the way are from a third party developer (the Shovel Knight 3-pack).

There's probably going to be ??token E3 amiibo announcements coming, but for now they're treading water.

Super Mario Maker 2 [GameXplain]

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Why is there always a catch?

Hello. Hello. I've got a message for you and you're not going ?to like it.

Super Mario Maker 2 doesn't support onl??ine multiplayer matchmaking with friends and Nintendo's explanation makes the odd omission even more frustrating. "As the game is now, you cannot bring friend lobbies online," the company said in a ?statement. "You can only play online with randoms."

What gives? As relayed to Nintendo World Report during a Super Mario Maker 2 press event, the decision has to do with online leaderboards and?? an at?tempt at keeping things fair.

The way things stand right now, you'll be able to round up your friends for multiplayer with a single Switch console or multiple Switches in the same room, and in the latter scenario, one of you w??ill want to have an active Nintendo Switch Online membership and a persistent connection so you can play together in a virtual room. "You won't be rated in this mode, but you can check out the standings."

Here's how that setup – playing with nearby friends who have their own system – looks in-game:

In other words, you can team up or go head-to-head with your pals in Mario Maker 2 in a quasi-l??ocal setting where your scores are unranked, but the same can't be said for online, ??match-made multiplayer.

After the recent jam-packed Nintendo Direct presentation, this stings a bit. It's another one of those unfortunate situations (not unlike games that lack Pro Controller support) where plenty of peop?le won't find out until it's too late. They'll pause the game, pull up a? search, and see the bewildering results.

In other Mario Maker 2 news, the themed Nintendo Switch stylus isn't coming to North America.

Onl?ine Play in Super Mario Maker 2 Limited to Randoms Only [Nintendo World Report]
Super Mario Make?r 2's paid online mo??de won't let you matchmake with friends [Ars Technica]

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Not bad

Nintendo has done it again. No, I'm not talking about the Switch outselling the PS4 as it pertains to lifetime sales in Japan. Or the success of a few of their first party titles, thanks to the recent reveal of t?heir fin??ancials I'm talking about compression and optimization.

As I've said before, Nintendo rules at it. While some Switch games are pushing 10, or 20GB (like the recent Mortal Kombat 11), Nintendo is able to pack down fairly robust games into respectable file sizes. The massive sprawling Mario Odyssey? Less than 6GB. The impressive Breath of the Wild? 13.4GB. Now, thanks to a listing on the Canadian eShop, it seems as if Super Mario Maker 2 is going to clock in at a cool less than 3GB (2,954 MB).

That's a future-proof file size. If any DLC or free updates arrive, you can bet your bottom dollar that they won't break the capacity bank, as they'll probably be inline with the assets already in-game. Also found on that same listing: video capture is supported. This is important to note because not all games allow it on Switch, but given Super Mario Maker's raw viral appeal, video share had to be a priority for Nintendo.

With that huge Maker Direct out of the way that gave us a ton of new info, all we basically have to do now is wait until Ju??ne 28.

Nikki [Twitter]

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An honest-to-goodness sequel

What's new with Super Mario Maker 2? So very much. The sequel is packing not only a story mode with 100+ Nintendo-made levels, but also online multiplayer – including co-op and versus modes – and adjustable win conditions. We got a bevy of details in a 15-?minute Nintendo Direct pre??sentation.

Story mode revolves around rebuilding Princess Peach's Castle and we saw some wild new characters during today's showing. The gist: Beat Nintendo's levels, earn coins, and rebuild. As for multiplayer, we're looking at four-player versus – a race to see who can clear the course first – and co-op. I would've bought Super Mario Maker 2 for these upgrade??s alone, to say nothing of the new playt??hings.

There's too much ground to cover, but in terms of elements wi??th which to fill out your levels, ther??e's:

• Slopes, including gentle slopes.
• Super Mario Bros. 3's Angry Sun. I hate him.
• The floating Snake Block, which you can plot out by tracing its flight path.
• On/Off Switches for red and blue blocks and conveyor belts.
• Swinging claws.
• Adjustable rising water and lava levels.
• Custom side-scrolling camera movements, including settings for trajectory and speed.
• Vertical sub-areas.
• A way to stop the camera from showing stuff outside the current room. (Ideal for secrets.)
• Dry Bones Shell, which lets you surf on lava.
• Big Coins, which can be worth up to 50 coins.
• Diagonal conveyor belts.
• Red Yoshi.

Aside from cooperative course building, another feature I'm stoked about is the ability to download courses and play them offline, on the go. Then there's this bombshell: the new course themes are desert, snow, forest, and sky, and there's accompanying music from famed composer Koji Kondo. What's more, Super Mario Maker 2 has a nighttime variant that can, say, turn water poisonous, and there's a moon equivalent to the sun that'll clear out all on-screen ??enemies once touched.

The Super Mario 3D World style has its ??own elements that aren't used elsewhere, like Cat Mario, Clear Pip?es, Warp Boxes, Spike Blocks, Exclamation Blocks, Blinking Blocks, Track Blocks that follows a path you draw, the Mushroom Trampoline, Piranha Creeper, Skipsqueak, Koopa Troopa Car, Charvaargh, Pom Pom, Banzai Bills that can fly at the screen toward you, the player, and of course Meowser.

In terms o??f online browsing, you'll be able to filter and search for specific tags (like "speedrun"), customize your creator profile with your Mii character, and leave comments on other folks' creations.

Nearby Play is nice, too. "If up to four players each own a Nintendo Switch system and the Super Mario Maker 2 game, one ?can set up a virtual room that the others in the same location can join to play together on their own systems. Only the player setting up the room needs an internet connection."

What else? Nintendo announced the Super Mario Maker 2 Invitation 2019 tournament for June 8. Really, it's a thing! And the Dire??ct presentation was heavy on promoting Nintendo Switch Online. You can nab a $70 bundle with the game and a one-year membership, which amounts to a $10 savings.

This is a game built to last, and the hint of DLC opens the door even further??.

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May 15 at 6PM ET

Well, we didn't get that rumored "Good??bye Reggie" Direct, but we are getting something before E3.

Nintendo has just announced this morning that the next Direct on the table is all Super Mario Maker 2 relat?ed, and will be dropping post-haste. It's arriving tomorrow May 15 at 6PM ET as yet another evening (US) direct (I really miss the days when these were in the morning, marinating all day and not in the dead of night in Europe).

Nintendo says it's roughly 15 minutes and will solely cover Super Mario Maker 2, so don't get too excited. My guess is we'll get a look at each theme, as well as some more si?lly elements like amiibo supp?ort.

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Seemingly confirming the online requirements

Along with confirming the release date yesterday, Nintendo UK has announced a limited edition of Super Mario Maker 2 for Europe. While it doesn't have a fancy case or any extra content, it does include a year subscription to Switch Online. I suppose it also inadvertently confirms that Mario Maker 2 will require a paid subscription to the service to ??share levels.

If you happen to pre-order Mario Maker 2 in Europe, you'll receive a themed stylus compatible wi?th the Switch to help you build levels. Digital pre-orders from the eShop will receive a My Nintendo voucher for the stylus, which will be shipped out soon after launch. As superfluous as that stylus is, I want it!

To reiterate, Super Mario Maker 2 will be releasing globally on June 28, 2019. It will contain all of the building blocks from the original with new content based around Super Mario 3D World. Get ready for a whole lot of cat Mario!

Super Mario Maker 2 limited edition includes year's S??witch Onlin?e subscription [Eurogamer]

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The suffering will be legendary

In a couple short months, Super Mario Maker 2 will remind us how it feels to be alive. The level-making platformer is coming to Nintendo Switch on June 28, 2019 – a little later than previously thought.

There's no new trailer today, just a simple release-date confirmation. The first trailer can fill you in.

Nintendo posted the news direct on Twitter, and now here we are, left pondering our time spent with the original Super Mario Maker on Wii U or perhaps even the 3DS port. It's a great game that can surely be made even greater, so I'm stoked to see how this sequel pans out for new and returning players.

The course-building community has no doubt had plenty of time to dream up fresh horrors for Super Mario Maker 2. W??????????????????????????ith expanded tools opening up dreadful new possibilities, I am afraid?? of what's ahead.

Still, not all level creators are out to hurt us, and I'll cherish the chance for some 2D Ma??rio ?on Switch.

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But it probably is

When does Super Mario Maker 2 release? We don't know. But, Nintendo knows and retailers possibly know. It's becau??se of the latter's slip-up that we might actually have a pretty good ?idea.

YouTube channel GameXplain is reporting that Amazon UK has sent out emails to customers who have pre-ordered, stating that Super Mario Maker 2 is set ??to ship to them on June 14. That seems perfectly plausible. June?? 14 is a Friday in the not-too-distant future. 

If it's incorrect information, it's suspiciously specific wrong intel. Placeholder dates are usually set as something o?bviously inaccurate, such as December 31. This isn't like that. This is more likely to be a case of someone pre??maturely emailing classified info. Also, ;Nintendo has already confirmed it's launching in June, so the puzzle pieces fit.

So, I'm not saying Super Mario Maker 2 is defi??nitely releasing on June 14, but I'm saying there's a decent chance that's exactly what will happen. Retailer leaks aren't infallible, but they have a surprisingly good track record. Let's call it a 70 percent chance. And if it's wrong, you won't remember this post anyway.

RUMOR: Super Mario Maker? 2 Launching June 14th According ?to Amazon UK [GameXplain]

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Mario and Smash and Zelda, oh my!

Nintendo's Direct presentations either go one of two ways: they are chock full of surprises no one saw coming or kind of meander along until they reach the finish line. Thankfully, this week's Direct was?? full of a lot of good ??info and it led to some great banter between myself and Dan. We figured talking about our highlights and dislikes from the February presentation would make for some great discussion below.

Personally, I'm beyond stoked for that Link's Awakening remake. I know rumors had been passed around for years, but I didn't think Nintendo would be crazy enough to do it. The last few remakes have all been of 3D entries and I would have put money on Skyward Sword getting an HD release ahead of any of the Gameboy installments. With this absolute classic of a game getting the modern treatment, hopefully, this means Minish Cap won't be far behind.

Since this is a longer discussion (almost a full half hour!), I could understand not wanting to sit in front of your computer and listen to me and Dan prattle on about video games. Thankfully, Impulse is available on SoundCloud for your portable listening pleasure! You can even play this in the background while checking out those demos for Yoshi's Crafted World and Daemon X Machina. That sounds like a?? good companion to this episode??.

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Coming to Switch this June

Nintendo is picking up where the Wii U's delightful and sometimes infuriating Super Mario Maker left off with a full sequel. Yep, Switch owners are getting Super Mario Maker 2 and it's overflowing with nostalgic nods to the classic games. I'll never get tired of that iconic Super Mario World aesthetic.

Beyond the debut footage, Nintendo didn't have much else to add. Super Mario Maker 2 is coming to Nintendo Switch this June with new "fe?atures" ??and "elements." Also, Cat Mario.

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