After months of rumors, Nintendo has finally announced that it’s re-releasing several Super Mario games in various ways to celebrate the series’ 35th anniversary this year. All these announcements came from a surprise Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary Direct. If you’d like to watch the presentation, you can do that right here, but for everyone else who wants to just get the rundown, let’s dive in.
Game & Watch Super Mario Bros.
First up, Nintendo announced it would be releasing a special Game & Watch device that you can play the original Super Mario Bros. on. It will also include 35 “little touches to discover,” implying that there are new secrets built into the game for even the most astute veterans will have to find. It will launch on November 13, but will be a limited product, so if you want it, you’ll need to find it fast.
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
Way later than most people would have expected it to, Super Mario 3D World is finally coming to the Switch. Previously a Wii U exclusive, the game was really the only 3D platformer Mario and friends got on the system in its five-year run, and it’s been a major gap in Nintendo’s history of porting Wii U games to Switch for some time now. It will also come with new content called Bowser’s Fury, but there weren’t any real details on what that would entail. It’s coming on February 12 of next year.
Super Mario Bros. 35
In an interesting, almost battle royale take on the original Super Mario Bros., Nintendo is releasing a competitive version of Super Mario Bros. where enemies you defeat in your run will be sent to other players, and you’ll also be able to use items that can help you or harm your opponents. The game will be exclusively for people who are Nintendo Switch Online subscribers starting on October 1. However, for some reason, Nintendo is pulling the plug on the game on March 31 of next year.
Mario Kart Live Home Circuit
One of the cooler reveals, in my opinion, was that of Mario Kart Live Home Circuit, which is an AR Mario Kart game that lets you use Switch-controlled Mario Kart toys to make any place in your home a track to race on. The trailer showed Mario and Luigi toys with cameras on the back of their karts that will stream to your Switch, as well as track markers to keep up with your laps. It will be available on October 16.
In-game and real life events
Next, Nintendo announced a few events, both in the real world and in its games, that will be celebrating the Super Mario 35th anniversary, including the following:
- Between now and March 31, Nintendo is listing online Mario challenges for fans to take part in on its website, which will result in rewards like a 35th anniversary pin set featuring different pins of Mario throughout the ages.
- Mario Kart Tour will be having a Super Mario Kart Tour event, which will bring Mario and Donkey Kong Jr. from the original Super Mario Kart as playable characters.
- The Nintendo Store in New York City will be selling Super Mario 35th anniversary merchandise in October, and that doesn’t sound very social distance-y at all.
- A 35th anniversary speedrun course is coming to Super Mario Maker 2 in November.
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be holding a tournament exclusively starring Mario characters, stages, and items later this year.
- In January, Splatoon 2 is bringing back the Splatfest to pit the Mario Super Mushroom and Super Star power-up items against each other. Keychains for either side will be available as My Nintendo rewards. Shirts based on the Splatfest will also be available later today.
- Super Mario furniture will be coming to Animal Crossing: New Horizons in March.
- Nintendo is collaborating with PUMA, BlackMilk, Hasbro, Jakks Pacific, and Lego to release new Mario-themed products.
Super Mario All-Stars
Nintendo is releasing the Super Mario All-Stars collection on Switch through the SNES extension today. It includes Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Bros. The Lost Levels, each with updated visuals and audio.
Super Mario Bros. 3D All-Stars
Closing out the show is the long-rumored announcement of re-releases of several Super Mario games on Switch, including Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy (but not the sequel, unfortunately) in a collection called Super Mario 3D All-Stars. They’ll have higher resolutions and are optimized for the Switch. You can also listen to the soundtracks of all three through a “listen mode.” The collection will launch on September 18, and will also, for some reason, be a limited edition run until March of next year. So I guess that will make it a collector’s item soon enough.
