Countdown to New Super Mario Bros.

[Smoke]

It's been over fifteen years since the last Super Mario Bros. game Super Mario Brothers 4: Super Mario World came out in Japan. To put things into perspective that was over half a lifetime ago for me. Now we're finally getting a new Super Mario Bros. aptly named "New Super Mario Bros.". If that doesn't deserve a countdown I don't know what does.

In a recent interview with Nintendo Power Magazine, Takashi Tezuka--Shigeru Miyamoto's right hand man--revealed some new information regarding the highly anticipated New Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo DS.

In the interview Tezuka is asked who may be returning in the new game:

NP: Will we see any other beloved characters from the Mario universe, such as Yoshi, Toad, etc.? How about Bowser and the Koopalings?

TT: All of the characters you mentioned will show up except for Yoshi (laughs). Because we're trying to get back to the spirit of the original Super Mario Bros., Yoshi doesn't really fit.

This is good news as the Koopalings have been sadly out of action for some time now. Having them join in the fray will be a great plus and will also add to the boss elements of the game.

Tezuka also stated that New Super Mario Bros. will be a sort of throwback to the original NES Super Mario Bros.. Basically he feels that as Mario evolved, the games became more for the hard-core audience. He quickly clarifies that statement by saying, "That's not to say this game isn't for hard-core players, but I want to recapture the spirit of the original Super Mario Bros."

Whether this means that we will get back levels of Bullet Bills flying at us constantly or not is up in the air. But let's hope so!

He touches rather quickly on a few other subjects.

-The story is set in the Mushroom Kingdom.

-There will be no boss battles in two player mode.

-This is not a Wi-Fi compatible game.

-It will not use the microphone in any way.

-Koji Kondo (Super Mario Bros. and Legend of Zelda musical mastermind) will be doing some of the soundtrack while the bulk will go to Asuka Ota who worked on the Yoshi Touch & Go soundtrack.

Near the end Nintendo Power asks if we will be seeing another Mario side scroller on a home console. Tezuka replies with, "The probability is not zero, but no further comment at this point." Then he just laughs.

Not to say that this game isn't going to sell like mad when it comes out anyway, but if you weren't fully decided on your purchase, you should be now.

Source: Nintendo Power Magazine

GamesAreFun

Scans from Famitsu magazine: Page 1 Page 2
New Scan from Famitsu magazine: Scan
New screenshots and artwork from Nintendo.

North American release date has been set for May 7 2006.

57 Days till "M-Day".

[EdenMaster]

Ah, it's been a while since we had a good old fashioned TC countdown! I can't wait for NSMB!

[lazyfatbum]

Too bad about wifi, but I love the idea of co-op, that's gonna kick ungodly amounts of ass. I hope Mario and Luigi can do co-op mmoves too, sorta like in the multiplayer of Mario 64 DS.

Lack of Yoshi is interesting, I assume that Mario's powerups are going to remain in the Mushroom/fire flower range, and perhaps Nintendo is hinting at the idea of Yoshi actually breaking off all together from the series and finding his own series.

Music by the guy who did Yoshi Touch and Go is a good choice, he knows the plucky lounge styles quite well and will instantly breath audible life in to the game, especially being co-produced with Koji. here's to hoping for a SMB 2 style soundtrack which to this day is probably my favorite.

I think with this, and Metroid Hunters, Nintendo just might announce Zelda as a Revolution title at E3 and drop the GC version; Using these two major DS titles as a peace offering, which i'm fine with.

i'm also expecting mini-games as a faster multiplayer option, this has usually been the case with DS games but we'll see. No one has mentioned them yet.

[N-Man]

Ahh yes. The return of the king. And his ass-friend, Luigi.

I'm so-so on the graphical style, but it's tolerable. It'll be interesting to see if this one can be as innovative as the other titles in the series.

[Smoke]

Lack of Yoshi is interesting, I assume that Mario's powerups are going to remain in the Mushroom/fire flower range, and perhaps Nintendo is hinting at the idea of Yoshi actually breaking off all together from the series and finding his own series.

In the Nintendo Power interview Tezuka says the reason for Yoshi not appearing in this game is because it's a spiritual successor to the original Super Mario Bros.

Did anyone notice that Tezuka confirmed the Koopalings being in the game?



The Koopa Kids + Bowser Jr??

[EdenMaster]

The Koopa Kids would be better than the Non-Bowsers at the end of every SMB level, IMO. Never really liked the way you fought so many damn Bowsers and you could never kill the guy.

[Paco]

The Koopalings are back?!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!1!

Yes! I hope they have more varied forms of attack than in any previous game.

[lazyfatbum]

Yup yup, I never did figure it out, but I think the Koopalings are from a previous marriage.

[The Former DMiller]

I just assumed Bowser slept around, and they are all from his various encounters.

[EdenMaster]

I think Bowser was tired of having so many damn kids always aksing him for money and spikes and stuff that he hired E. Gadd to merge them all into one horrible son. Bowser Jr. is born :D.

[A Black Falcon]

This game looks like it could definitely be very good...

But this isn't the "game to be the last Mario platformer since SMW". That would be the nonexistent Mario platformer for a major console. This is the last Mario platformer since the previous one, Super Mario Land 2 for the GB... (made by different people from the other Mario games I know, who went on to make the Wario Land games, but still, it's a Mario platformer... not counted because it's on handhelds, but my point is that if this new game counts as the next platformer, that one counts as the last one, also being on a handheld.).

Anyway, a very good looking game.

[Smoke]

It is the first game in the Super Mario Bros. series in over fifteen years though. I know it's just a title but it seems they're trying really hard to make it feel like the first SMB.

[A Black Falcon]

I just don't think that the differences between the Super Mario Bros., Super Mario World, Wario Land, Super Mario Land, etc. serieses are enough to make a big deal out of the fact that this is the "first one" in a long time... in most ways, it's really not...

For instance, the last Nintendo Mario-style side-scrolling platformer was Super Princess Peach, released very recently. Before that there was Wario Land 4, Yoshi's Story, Wario Land 3, etc...

[EdenMaster]

Yes, but what Smoke is trying to say is that this game throws away a lot of those extranous elements and harkens back to the core game of SMB. They're hoping for a game that will feel like the original SMB, with only minor additions.

[Grace Saunders]

Mario is cool. Wario is also pretty good. I like the games where you race each other and fire shells at the drivers.

[Smoke]

Mario is cool. Wario is also pretty good. I like the games where you race each other and fire shells at the drivers.

Those are fun but I prefer the games where Mario jumps on things.

[EdenMaster]

Well, I like the game where you can fire shells at other racers WHILE jumping on things!

...

It could happen!

[Dark Jaguar]

Does that mean you go forward but can't go backwards in levels? I am also hoping for "intentional glitch" throwbacks, like being able to run "over" a level, only this time since they might actually intend that, they might have surprises up there, like a boss battle against the level timer :D.

And yeah, the koopa kids being back is great. Koopa Jr just didn't impress when you knew about the whole litter from the old days, they actually had some personality to them!

[A Black Falcon]

You could go backwards in Mario 3...

Yeah, I get the whole "throwback" thing. But still, the point is that it's not actually 'first-in-fifteen-years' by most any reasonable count. But it is a very good looking Mario sidescroller, and it is the first Mario-universe sidescroller to use this graphical style (3d world, 2d game)...

Oh, the first Wario game, Wario Land 1, is still the best Wario title... though WarioWare is pretty awesome too...

[Dark Jaguar]

http://weareborg.ytmnd.com/

[Darunia]

Screen shots... I want screen shots~!

[EdenMaster]

Does that mean you go forward but can't go backwards in levels? I am also hoping for "intentional glitch" throwbacks, like being able to run "over" a level, only this time since they might actually intend that, they might have surprises up there, like a boss battle against the level timer :D.

A fight against the timer! That's an awesome idea! Well, part of the whole Super Mario Bros. experience is those little "glitches" like running on the top of a level, the warp zone, and Zero World. I think they would have to keep them to preserve part of the feel of SMB (excapt perhaps Zero world). I man, come on, is there ANYBODY who doesn't know how to find the warp zones anymore? It's just one of those things that defines Mario.

[Weltall]

After nearly twenty years, I have still not yet managed to access Minus World.

[EdenMaster]

Nor have I. I've seen videos of it being reached, instruction on how to reach it, and countless lives lost from the timer running out on World 1-2, but I still just can't get the timing down.

[lazyfatbum]

remember all the rumors of a black/yellow/flaming squid that gives you infinite lives in minus world?

The trick I love is the infinite lives koopa shell trick.. I actually forget which world it is... that's sad. But the world where there's koopa's on the final steps before the flag, if you time it right you jump on the shell, bounce it off a step, and jump on it again automatically which eventually gives you massive amounts of lives.

[EdenMaster]

Yeah, but aren't there no numbers in the game that go that high? After you pass a certain point the numbers get replaced with crowns and stars and stuff, doesn't it?

[Dark Jaguar]

Nothing that goes as high as the concrete mathematical term "massive"?

At any rate, I remember that trick. It was even better in Lost Levels, because you had access to a similar trick at the very start of level one. I ended up having to use that trick, but fortunatly I managed to beat every single world without warping, giving me access to world 9, the world that smoked a game genie.

The "minus world" as it is commonly called is really just a repeat of the first water level over and over again. It doesn't add anything except perhaps a challenge. How many times can you go through the loop before the timer runs out? Anyway, you've seen the video, so you know the idea is to destroy a couple bricks to give you some head room and then jump backwards while ducking in such a way as to "clip" through the remaining brick and get into the warp zone without triggering the normal warp zone code, resulting in going into a pipe that has no idea where to send you and thus warp you back to world -1, or the "minus world", using the first template it seems to be able to find, the first water level of the game, minus the end.

The trick is to hold down, and then jump straight up, and then hold right as you are going up. To be honest, I have to try many times to get into it myself. It's tricky.

[Smoke]

To his fans he’s a knight in shining armour; a creator of fantastic worlds where plumbers rescue princesses and young boys become sword-wielding heroes. But now Shigeru Miyamoto has become a real life knight himself, of the ‘Order of Arts and Letters’.

The title (which doesn’t make him ‘Sir Shigeru’, sadly) was bestowed upon Mr Miyamoto in Paris this week by the French Ministry of Culture. Miyamoto, along with Michel ‘Rayman’ Ancel and Frederick ‘Alone in the Dark’ Raynal, became the first videogame designers in the world to receive such an award.

The accolade is further recognition for Miyamoto’s lifetime of work that has brought pleasure to millions (and led Time Magazine to call him “The Spielberg of Video Games”). Also, for a game designer to be honoured for his contribution to the arts is great news for the whole games industry.

We joined Miyamoto in Paris after the ceremony where we got a glimpse of his shiny new medal (check out the pics in the Images gallery), drooled over his Nintendo DS Lite, and played with his new Nintendog: a Dalmatian called Luigi.

Helped by his interpreter we first ask Miyamoto how it feels to be given such a prestigious award, and in his trademark style he remains as humble and down-to-earth as ever.

“My feeling is that I have received this on behalf of many other people who have been working together with me to create videogames,” he says. “And in a much broader sense I think it’s very important for the industry that we can receive this kind of award.”

So does Miyamoto think videogames are now becoming culturally acceptable, like movies and literature?

“Videogaming has only about 20-25 years of history; in comparison movies have over 100 years, and literature has a lot longer,” says Miyamoto. “We have just come to the stage where everybody recognises videogaming, so I think we have just passed the first phase. I think videogaming is going to go forward in an exciting way. We are expecting a number of different new technologies that affect our industry, and the ability of people to deal with new technologies is going to be a vital part of how the videogame industry is going to evolve."

Listening to Miyamoto speak in his easy-going way, we forget for a second that we’re sitting in a posh Paris hotel, surrounded by journalists from across Europe who are clamouring to interview the legend himself. There’s no doubt Miyamoto is a massive star – but does he feel like one?

“Well, you know I used to commute to work by bicycle until recently,” he says, laughing. “But because I am now one of the executive board members, the company ordered me not to, for the sake of ‘risk management’!”

So what is a typical ‘day in the life’ of Shigeru Miyamoto?

“As for the morning, I’m afraid to tell you that I am not a very punctual person,” he laughs. “But every day I have to work until very late at night. People report to me via email the progress of software in development and I am always looking into what’s happening with each game and sometimes, if it’s necessary, I add my own opinions and advice. That takes up about half of my working time and as for the remainder of the time I visit each developer to see what kind of progress they are making. I often become a tester myself so that I can touch and get a feel for the project they are working on.”

So what about his latest project, New Super Mario Bros. (coming to Europe this summer)? Why did he decide to bring back Mario in the classic side-scrolling style?

“We are always challenging ourselves to make something really new and this new Super Mario Bros. game is going to be very important. Nintendo DS has been hugely successful, especially in Japan, and we owe a big part of the success to a software line-up called ‘Touch Generations’. People who have never played videogames before are purchasing Nintendo DS as their very first game machine.

“When we launch New Super Mario Bros. for DS this could be the very first videogame these people play. Of course we already have Super Mario 64 DS but it is a more advanced version of Mario. With New Super Mario Bros. we are going back to the basics. It’s going to be simple enough to control but yet have sophisticated enough content. We have been working hard to make the best Super Mario game we can.”

We’re intrigued. Can he reveal what the game’s story will be, for instance?

“That’s rather interesting because a number of our staff members came up with a number of different stories,” says Miyamoto, smiling. “I told them that we really don’t need any story behind this new Super Mario Bros. at all. I have narrowed down the whole story to about half of what my team originally came up with. Peach is kidnapped, Mario has to go and rescue her from Bowser and the Koopa Kids. That’s about all you need to know for the story!” he laughs. “But what you really need to know is that in the quest you are going to encounter some unprecedented play ideas.”

'Can you give us some examples of these ideas?' we ask.

“Well, we have drawn everything from 3D graphics,” explains Miyamoto “so that from time to time you are going to encounter something really astonishing visually but as far as the gameplay and control is concerned, that is going to be very simple.

“When it comes to Mario, sometimes you may be able to do an ultra super jump and you are going to see a very unique and unprecedented jumping style. In terms of Super Mario, everybody already expects him to become bigger but this time, with the help of a Super Giant Mushroom, Super Mario can become gigantic, taking up almost all the screen, and he can destroy everything.”

‘And Mario can also become very small, by using another type of mushroom, right?’ we add.

“Right,” says Miyamoto “and that’s not all. For example, two players can play as Mario and Luigi at the same time, in the multiplayer mode. Sometimes you have to compete with each other to reach the goal, and sometimes they can fight against each other. You remember the game Mario Bros.? In that, Mario and Luigi could sometimes cooperate, sometimes compete. I think it’s more fun to have two players play simultaneously in this New Super Mario Bros.

“And you remember in Super Mario 64 DS we incorporated a number of minigames? Each of these minigames is going to be available in New Super Mario Bros. In each minigame both Mario and Luigi can compete against each other. Some you can play in two-player or four-player mode with one cartridge.”

Sounds great! But hang on, didn’t Miyamoto mention Koopa Kids a second ago? We haven’t heard from them in a while. We inquire if the new game has the same kind of ‘Level, World, Fortress, Boss’ structure as in Super Mario Bros. 3.

“Unfortunately I am not in a position to tell you anything further, sorry, but basically yes you are right!” says Miyamoto, chuckling.

OK, consider our appetites whetted! So New Mario Bros. is a classic style game, therefore, we want to know, are there going to be classic style cheats, like warp pipes and the old ‘walking along the top of the screen’ trick?

“Well, there will be many people who play New Super Mario Bros. that have never played a Mario Bros. game before," he tells us. "But at the same time we want to evoke a kind of nostalgic feeling in those people who used to play with the past series, so we are now trying to incorporate as many old tricks and tweaks as possible into this new DS version.”

OK, time to switch to Miyamoto’s other famous creation: Zelda. What’s the latest on Twilight Princess?

“I would say that we are progressing well with completing it,” says Miyamoto. “And one of the most important features is that, because Revolution can run GameCube software, when you play Twilight Princess on Revolution you can take advantage of the Revolution controller.”

We press further but Miyamoto is remaining tight-lipped on specifics. So, speaking of Revolution, what kind of cool software has he seen so far?

“You know, the DS is a very good example when we talk about Revolution software. Nobody would have expected brain training software or puppy communicating software when we were originally talking about the concept of the Nintendo DS. People would never have imagined that line-up of software could ever be as successful in the marketplace as it is now.

“In the case of Revolution, there is going to be a lot of software that are so-called 'sequels' to the existing type of games, however what is going to be the most attractive point about Revolution is the other applications. These kind of applications are going to make Revolution something really important for any ordinary household; more specifically catering for each type of family member in the house.”

So when can we expect to find out more about Revolution? For instance will everything be revealed at E3?

“Almost everything,” he laughs. “I don’t know about the pricing at the moment or anything like that but, yes, basically at E3.”

And with that tantalising answer hanging in the air, we’re told our time is up. Mr Miyamoto is about to be whisked off to catch the Eurostar to London, for more interviews and also to record a special webcast in which he answers questions sent in by you.

So if you fancy pumping him for more details about those Koopa Kids, or want to know what his Brain Training 'brain age' is (clue: it's in the 20s) you can submit your question at http://www.webchats.tv. If it’s a good one, Miyamoto will answer it personally on the webcast this Friday.

Nintendo-Europe
Found in this GAF thread.

[lazyfatbum]

YEAH!!!!! Nintendo is porn for the SOUL!!!!

[EdenMaster]

Nintendo-Europe
Found in this GAF thread.

Or you could have found it in this TendoCity thread :p

[A Black Falcon]

Or you could have found it in this TendoCity thread

Smoke doesn't read TC enough to notice when we get things, clearly... :)

Anyway, it definitely sounds like a SMB3/SMW design, which is great, because those two games are about as good as it gets for side-scrolling platforming...

[Smoke]

Or you could have found it in this TendoCity thread :p

Wait a second. I just checked your thread EM and that just tells about Miyamoto being Knighted. The article I quoted is a recent interview with Miyamoto by Nintendo-Europe.com but you have to be a VIP member to read it on their site so I just quoted the whole thing from GAF.

Oh and the reason I linked to that GAF thread is a Nintendo Europe employee who's been known to let certain details slip in the past has given out some info on how the Revmote will be used in Twilight Princess.

Yep - this is all true - we weren't expecting Mr. Miyamoto to be quite so open in his interview answers during his visit - but it's great he's announcing these things, especially the Zelda/Revolution control - apparently you can use the wand as the string on the bow, pulling it back as you're riding epona with the analogue stick. Sounds good!!

Haven't played it.......but from what I hear you point with the wand in the direction of the camera, and then press the trigger when you want to pull back the bow. I would assume the other trigger would enable sword control.........

When questioned about whether he'd heard about any graphical upgrade to TP when played on Rev he said no. He also said there's more news to come.

Somebody else posted this:

Actually, THIS is what I was referring to in that other thread. Since the link is in the ever popular dutch language, I'll summarize: when asked to elaborate on the Revmote use in Twilight Princess, Miyamoto responded with "One word: Boomerang."

Spannnuuuuuuuund!

[lazyfatbum]

I wonder if the revcon will be used for 2-D movement instead of 3-D for TP? f you're just 'aiming' with the Revcon and then pressing the B button to fire an arrow, that's 2-D movement... i wonder if it'll incorporate the sniping method where you push forward on the revcon to zoom in and pull back to zoom out.

[Dark Jaguar]

Yeah, it's a safe bet it'll just be for 2D stuff, except for that one mini-game designed exclusively for the Revolution that involves flying tingle around a 3D plane collecting rupees or force gems or something.

[lazyfatbum]

hahaha :D Nintendo said Tingle is dead, dont forget :D

well, I would think fishing would get the 3-D treatment, as well as sword play (while locked on). i could see the harder you 'throw' the boomerang, the further it will travel, which would need a sense of 3-D movement. Even if it's like WW's awesome boomerang targeting, you could lock on to 5 targets and then have to throw it the hardest to make sure it has enough spin to get them all.

you're right though, I'm also expecting special mini-games, siide-quests, side-dungeons, etc that will take full advantage of the controller. And if these areas are locked until you plop it in a Revolution, what's to say that those areas wont have more graphical effects or higher poly counts, like massive rooms with hundreds of enemies at once, ala MM and the expansion pack. 'm also gonna say that when you play it on revolution, there will be a new item to get, probably from a new dungeon, that takes advantage of the controller too.

Say it with me:

Epona's Wings.

booyah

[Smoke]

They should have a bone in the game that you can throw with the Revolution controller and play fetch with Wolf Link.

[EdenMaster]

They should have a bone in the game that you can throw with the Revolution controller and play fetch with Wolf Link.

:D

[Smoke]

According to this thread it's been revealed in Nintendo Power that NSMB will have over 80 levels and an overworld.

Here's some scans of the new issue of Nintendo Power:






More here.

[Smoke]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=...q=nintendo

[lazyfatbum]

holy shit, check out the pic of bowser, the drawbridge is back!

[Great Rumbler]

"I'm sorry, Mario, but our princess is in another castle."

They'd better bring that back too!!

[lazyfatbum]

Did you also catch in the last shot in the bottom right hand corner, Bowser Jr.? For some reason, he has a soccer ball.... Mario Strikers reference?

[Smoke]

He's just a huge Manchester United fan.

[Dark Jaguar]

You mean the one with the ax?

First of all, why did Bowser even PUT an ax right next to all the bridges in the game? Second of all, that gives me an idea. Maybe Miyamoto will have some scene where Bowser jumps onto the ax and tries to sink Mario?

Think about this. If Bowser just destroyed the drawbridge, Mario couldn't possibly ever get to him, ever!

[Smoke]

GameTrailers have a new video of New Super Mario Bros. that shows the intro and the overworld.
YouTube mirror.

Multiplayer video from 1up.com
YouTube mirror.

IGN's New Super Mario Bros. video page has new videos taken at GDC.
Here's a compilation of IGN's videos from GDC put together by Nintendo Gal.

GameSpot also have some new videos.

I'm amazed at how much better this game looks than when it was first shown. The 3D really does look good.

Since Mario was delayed till May 15 that makes it 48 days now.

[Smoke]

It's the last On the Spot before E3, and we have an announcement about next week that you won't want to miss! Plus, we'll be chatting live via webcam with Mortal Kombat creator Ed Boon to discuss his latest game, Mortal Kombat: Armageddon! Also, we'll play the New Super Mario Bros., roll through Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter on the PC, dive into Jaws Unleashed, swing wildly with Real World Golf, take a look at some user videos, and wish GameSpot a happy 10th birthday.

For one week only, every GameSpot user that's level three or above can join our live chat during the show as we prepare for our live coverage of E3. Don't miss this week's live show, because we want you to try and break our chat server! Come on! Bring it!

We'll see you live right here, each and every Thursday at 4 p.m. PDT, 7 p.m. EDT, and Friday at midnight for our friends on the west coast of Europe. Who's bringing presents? We're live and On the Spot!

http://www.gamespot.com/pages/features/o.../index.php




10 Days

[lazyfatbum]

yunno, i'm gonna make an assumption.

"BUT SEAN YOU STUPID FUCK ASSUMPTIONS ARE RETARDED"

And yet i continue.

NSMB... will outsell Nintendogs in all territories, by double the amount, in half the time.

My ass spoketh.

I also have a tingly feeling that NSMB is going to be a flagship title that allows you to somehow play it on Wii. but that's more of a guess and not an assumption. Like i said, tingly feeling.

[Smoke]

It really would be cool if one of the Wii's secrets were that the SD card slots also function as a Nintendo DS Player.

[Smoke]

Youtube:
New Super Mario Bros. - IGN Gameplay Video - Part 1
New Super Mario Bros. - IGN Gameplay Video - Part 2