TOKYO, Oct 2 — Primed for release right into the midst of a holiday season maelstrom, “Super Mario 3D World” is ready to face off against the combined might of the Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
Nov 22 sees the Nintendo Wii U’s prospective system-seller arrive in North America, the same day that the Xbox One launches.
For Europeans, “Super Mario 3D World” is set for Nov 29, the day that the PlayStation 4 is made available.
Japan doesn’t receive either new console until 2014 – although the PlayStation Vita TV’s portable set-top box will have been introduced on Nov 14 – and “SM3DW” is due a week later on Nov 21.
In the series’ upcoming instalment, Mario, Luigi, Peach and Toad set off on an adventure to rescue the Sprixie Princess from spiky turtle king Bowser, each character imbued with slightly different attributes when it comes to sprinting, jumping, and falling.
Princess Peach is a series regular, with numerous active showings in spin-offs such as “Mario Kart,” “Mario Party,” “Paper Mario” and “Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games.”
But here she takes a leading role in a traditional “Mario” jump’n’run game for the first time since 2006 DS release “Super Princess Peach.” Before that, her previous and first appearance as a main, playable character was in 1988’s “Super Mario Bros 2.”
And in the same way that the portable 3DS’s “Super Mario 3D Land” took some of its inspiration from “Super Mario World,” the Wii U’s elaboration does too, adding elements from “Super Mario Bros 3” and “Super Mario Sunshine” among others along the way.
Nintendo’s “Mario” strategy remains that of combination previous games’ best innovations with a suite of novel tricks – in “3D World” look out for a cat Mario and clone Marios, feline and rodent enemy types, see-through pipes, and a Sprixie Kingdom to bound through, as well as off-screen play that works with the Wii U’s tablet-style GamePad.
Wii U - Super Mario 3D World gameplay trailer here.
Official website: supermario3dworld.nintendo.com — AFP-Relaxnews
