New Super Mario Bros. 2 and New Super Mario Bros. U are both releasing sometime later this year, but many gamers are questioning the differences between both games. One of the most obvious returning elements are the world themes, and both games don’t seem to stray too far from what we have already seen in the Wii and DS versions. From the all the trailers and screens released since E3, we can conclude that the standard grasslands, desert, snow, beach, jungle, mountain, sky, and volcano world themes are returning. But what if Nintendo decided to change things up? Read along to see some of the world themes I would love to see in the next New Super Mario Bros. game.
Clockwork/Factory
One of the more surprising levels to appear in Super Mario 3D Land was the clockwork level seen later in the game. In the levels Mario would be seen jumping from rotating platforms as gears grind in the background. The level was serene yet deadly, making for a unique experience that could translate well into the New Super Mario Bros. series. The entire world would not be comprised of the clockwork levels, but instead feature levels that would take place in a factory or some kind of mechanical setting.
Pipe Land
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSQsx6nAYt4
Remember the Pipe Land from Super Mario Bros. 3? Remember the World 7 level of New Super Mario Bros. that was composed of nearly all pipes? For the next New Super Mario Bros. game, how about an entire world dedicated to these kinds of levels? Levels can be mad into pipe mazes, and the difficulty in general is ramped up as players have no idea what might pop out of the many pipes. Natural elements like water and lava can be thrown into the mix, allowing for a variety of pipe jumping levels.
Ruins
The New Super Mario Bros. games stay away from any sort of civilization when it comes to world themes. On a regular basis, we see open lands with enemies scattered about, but any sign of life outside of Peach’s castle is absent. I’m not asking for Mario sprinting through downtown Mushroom City, but it would be nice to find some levels set in ancient castles and ruins. Exploring different rooms of a castle or avoiding traps all while trying to reach the goal at the end is something I am sure we would all love to see.
Toy Land
This one is a bit out there, but a world based off the idea of toys would really spark some life into the world themes. The Toy Box from the first Paper Mario game is the inspiration for this world, and the theme would help make this a distinctive world from the rest. Imagine oversized teddy bears and playing cards scattered about, all while riding a giant toy train. Kind of crazy, but it might just be what New Super Mario Bros. needs.
Space/Rainbow
Probably one of the most requested and most likely worlds to appear in the next New Super Mario Bros. game, a world dedicated entirely to space. With the great success that was Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2, the space theme is more prevalent than ever, and a theme like this would work perfectly as a secret world after beating the game. While World 9 of New Super Mario Bros. Wii had the right idea by throwing in a rainbow theme, the actual levels were no more than a combination of the previous eight worlds. For the next game, let us play during the night sky as we hop from planet to planet. Let’s see Rainbow Road made into a level!
Thanks to Mario Wiki and Shy Guy’s Toy Box for the screens!