New Super Mario Bros. U

Platforms

• Nintendo Wii U

  Nov 18, 2012

  ---

  8.4

  playscore

  8.4

  18 Critics

  8.8

  75.2K Players

18 critic reviews · 14 community reviews across all platforms

Critic Reviews

• 

  Hardcore Gamer

  9.0

  New Super Mario Bros. U plays it safe in the right areas while providing enough new things and challenge to make it worth not only playing, but coming back to for series veterans. Featuring tons of platforming fun, it plays wonderfully on both the GamePad and Wii Remote and has the best level design of any New SMB-series game to date.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  Nintendo Insider

  9.0

  Neat touches demonstrate the level of polish that we’ve come to expect from Nintendo, enemies skipping and hopping their way along to the music, whilst Miiverse, the Wii U’s social service, is also integrated. With this, players are invited to share their successes or courses in which they struggled. Once posted, these will then appear on the World Map in other players’ games.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  COGconnected

  8.8

  I think they played it safe for the most part but it is hard to argue with tried and true success. Considering the side scrolling 2D platformer has been around for the better part of 30 years I will forgive the design team for not really providing me with a ‘Hey that’s entirely new and amazing!’ moment. In the end it’s a great game with some new challenges and it is a bright light for what we have in store as Nintendo’s newest console begins its life cycle.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  GameSpot

  8.5

  New Super Mario Bros. U is not a game that takes many risks, nor is it definitively the best 2D Mario title, but it's certainly a contender. It's consistently charming, often challenging, and an excellent illustration of that which makes Mario games so special. Nintendo seemingly recaptured traditional, distilled platforming, but also incorporated a newfound attention to modern gaming trends and expectations.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  IGN

  9.1

  It’s difficult to find freshness or brilliance in a 2D landscape. Mario’s world is now three decades old. That would seem to suggest new territory is scarce, and in some ways the formulaic New Mario series had come to reinforce that fear.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  Polygon

  8.5

  That's really what separates New Super Mario Bros. U from its "New" predecessors: It adds something to the Mario formula. It's exciting and full of inventive ideas. Until now, the New Super Mario Bros. games have been a fun but mostly mindless reminder of how great Mario was back on the NES or SNES.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  VGChartz

  8.0

  I was worried for New Super Mario Bros. U. It looked and felt so much like the Wii version and launched so close to the 3DS edition that I really wondered whether it could stand out. Thankfully, for the most part, New Super Mario Bros. U manages to carve out its own distinct path, thanks to some fabulous level design, great new additions, and some design inspiration from a true classic. This certainly won't be the Wii U’s definitive Mario experience, but early adopters can't really go wrong with New Super Mario Bros. U.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  Game Reactor

  8.0

  It's as beautiful a game as its predecessors in the franchise, and offering some great level designs. But there does remain that itch - that the game repeats itself too much on past adventures. One easily scratched though, as this will easily eat up the time until the next Mario platformer.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  Euro Gamer

  9.0

  Is the plumber's Wii U debut as good as his recent 3D outings? Not quite, but for the New Super Mario Bros. series, it's a real step forward in detailing, imagination and character. There's always been a keen Mario brain working away inside these 2D design exercises. Now, it feels like there's a proper soul to go along with it.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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• 

  CGMagazine

  9.0

  This series really should have hit the skids by now, but good ol’ Nintendo keeps coming up with reasons to bring us back. Simply put, if you’re planning on buying a Wii U and don’t pick this title up along with it, you my friend are insane. This is Nintendo’s bread and butter. This is why they are icons of gaming. Recognize. Also, Wii U + New Super Mario Bros U + friends = a party. Just sayin’.

  Reviewed on Wii U

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Community Reviews

About the game