New Super Mario World

New Super Mario World is a 2023 Mario game developed by Nintendo. It is the sixth game in the New Super Mario Bros series, and features several new mechanics that set it apart from the rest. It is the first mainline New Super Mario game where Miis are playable. The game was received positively by critics and considered to be the best in the series.

Story
Bowser has kidnapped hundreds of Toads from the Mushroom Kingdom and is using them to build his kingdom. He teams up with his long-lost brother, who first appeared in Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. Mario, Luigi, Toad, Toadette, and Peach have to rescue the Toads, who are being held captive in various locations across the Mushroom Kingdom. Mario eventually reaches Bowser's castle and fights him and his brother, who are both defeated. The Toads are freed and Mario rides home in a clown car with Peach.

Gameplay
New Super Mario World has several mechanics that make it the most unique game in the series. Each level has at least one exit, which contains a Toad being held captive. When Mario rescues enough Toads in a world, the next world opens up. The worlds are much larger than normal, with both Towers and Castles, and sometimes Airships. There are 150 different levels, and some will open up in an earlier world when you are later in the game. For example, World 1-7 opens up after completing 3-4. Each level is larger than previous entries, with several hidden areas and secret exits. While New Super Mario Bros. U had 12 secret exits, New Super Mario World has 35.

The core gameplay is roughly the same as previous entries, however there are new power-ups and enemies. There are 8 worlds in total. World 8 can only be unlocked after the Castle is completed in each world up to that point. Yoshi also returns in some levels, and can be taken between levels. Some levels take advantage of this and have secrets only accessible with a Yoshi.

Rescuing enough Toads can open up various buildings throughout the worlds. This includes item houses, 1-up houses, and warp cannons. An entire world called Toad Town is available after clearing World 1.

Power-ups
New Super Mario World has a total of 10 power-ups, excluding Super Mushrooms and Super Stars. The returning power-ups are:


 * Fire Flower
 * Ice Flower
 * Propellor Mushroom
 * Penguin Suit
 * Mini Mushroom
 * Boomerang Flower
 * Super Acorn

The new power-ups are:

Water Flower
Shoots a water ball in an arc that travels far but doesn't bounce. Most regular enemies (Goombas, Koopas, etc.) cannot be defeated by it, but are instead stunned for .75 seconds. However, It can vaporize magic balls, Bowser and Bowser Jr's fireballs, Lava Bubbles, and fireballs shot by any enemy. It can also harden Lava into stone that can be walked on for a few seconds. If a Water Ball is swallowed by Yoshi, he'll spit out a small wave of water that travels far and defeats enemies.

Phoenix Suit
This lets Mario fly and shoot fireballs. The flight is similar to the Wing power-up in Kirby's Return to Dream Land, but with a limit. It can be used to reach higher areas. It also shoots fireballs, making it a fire counterpart to the Penguin Suit. It appears commonly in World 8.

Gold Mushroom
The Gold Mushroom originated in the Mario Kart series, and appears as a rare power-up here. It is functionally similar to the Superball Flower from Super Mario Land, and the Gold Flower from New Super Mario Bros 2. It allows Mario to shoot up to two golden balls at once that ricochet off walls and explode after hitting enough walls or an enemy. This power-up is one of the rarest, but also highly powerful, as it can defeat a cluster of enemies or send a Koopaling into its shell with one hit.

Worlds
New Super Mario World contains eight expansive worlds which each have a theme. Unlike previous New Super Mario games, the world themes are more broad and contain multiple level types. For example, World 7, the Sky, also has Mountain levels. The worlds are:


 * World 1 - Green Hills
 * A traditional plains/forest theme, Some levels have large trees and flowers, and there are multiple cave levels.
 * Reznor is the boss for the tower, and Larry is for the castle.
 * World 2 - Aqua Kingdom
 * Water/ocean themed. Most levels are underwater, but there are also beach type levels, and levels on pirate ships.
 * Boom Boom is the boss for the tower, and Roy for the castle.
 * World 3 - Frigid Fields
 * Ice/snow themed. There are normal ice levels, snowy forests, and ice caves.
 * Wendy is the tower boss, and Bowser has an encounter in the castle.
 * Contains an airship fight with Bowser Jr.
 * World 4 - Lush Jungle
 * Jungle/bamboo themed. There are both forest levels and bamboo forest levels.
 * Morton is in the tower, and Ludwig is in the castle.
 * Contains an airship fight with Bowser Jr.
 * World 5 - Sarasaland
 * Desert and autumn themed. There are some water levels and sand caves. This world introduces the Autumn level theme, which is similar to the Forest but with orange leaves. All Autumn levels have a mild wind which pushes the player back.
 * Pom Pom is the tower boss, and Bowser's Brother has an encounter in the Castle.
 * World 6 - Cloudy Canyon
 * Sky/mountain themed. This is the only world with multiple airship levels.
 * Iggy has a battle in the tower, and Kamek for the castle.
 * Contains the last Airship, with a fight with Bowser Jr.
 * World 7 - Star Nebula
 * Space themed. Most levels have low gravity and sometimes meteors. There are levels that take place in space stations.
 * Lemmy is the boss for the tower, and the Castle is a boss rush with all the Koopalings.


 * World 8 - Magma Mountains
 * Lava/rock themed. Most levels are hilly in terrain and filled with lava and meteors. There are also lava cave levels. Bowser and his brother are fought together in the castle.
 * This world does not have a tower or airship.


 * Toad Town
 * Toad Town is unlocked after beating World 1. It contains shops, minigame huts, and bonus levels. New minigames are unlocked when enough Toads are rescued or worlds completed. Toad Town contains Peach's Castle where you can purchase watch walkthroughs of levels, as well as play various bonus/challenge levels to earn extra Star Coins. These levels do not contain Toads. The Toad Shop is in Toad Town as well, where you can exchange Coins/Star Coins for cosmetic items for your character/Mii, and power-ups.

Characters
New Super Mario World has 6 playable characters. While playing the main game, all the characters have Mario's physics. However, 2 extra worlds can be unlocked by clearing enough levels with each character. These worlds give the characters (excluding Mario and Mii) their own set of physics and abilities, with levels designed around them. Each level has a character assigned to it, meaning no characters aside from the assigned ones can be played in these levels. The playable characters are:

The extra worlds are:


 * World 1 - Sky City
 * A world with elements of the Sky theme, plus castles and floating islands.
 * This world contains levels that utilize Luigi and Peach.
 * World 2 - Magic Hills
 * A world themed around fantasy, with crystals, auroras, and trees.
 * This world contains levels built around Toad and Toadette.

Multiplayer
New Super Mario World supports local and online multiplayer with up to 4 players. You can host a game with random levels picked, or levels of your choice. The following characters are playable:


 * Mario
 * Luigi
 * Toad
 * Toadette

All of these characters can be played as in single-player, and one will be randomly chosen in online games. (excluding Miis). Cosmetic items from the Toad Shop can be applied to each character separately, meaning each character can wear a different costume.

Development
New Super Mario World was first revealed in a Nintendo Direct. The next Direct showcased the new power-ups and gameplay in detail. The game was released later in the year. A special Mario edition Switch OLED bundle was released alongside the game.

Reception
New Super Mario World was received highly positively. The game was praised for how it broke the common formula of 2D Mario games. IGN rated it a 9/10, praising the unique gameplay and power-ups. It received a 95/100 on Metacritic. Many critics said it was the best 2D Mario to date, and a must-buy for Switch. It sold around 8.5 million units, putting in the top 20 most successful Switch games.