Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

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JaySevenZero
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Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by JaySevenZero »

Here's where you can contribute your thoughts and opinions of Super Mario Maker/Super Mario Maker 2 for potential inclusion in the forthcoming podcast.

A friendly reminder to all that where feedback for the podcast is concerned, we love it - but self-editing (brevity) is appreciated. We do want to include a breadth of opinions where appropriate, but no-one wants a discussion podcast that’s mainly reading. Better to save yourself time and cut to the chase if you can.
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Suits
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Re: 426: Super Mario Maker/Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Suits »

Team,

Do you think there's a chance that the Pod will be pushed back due to this rather significant 3.0 update that lands tomorrow ?

The map building (whilst cool), simply adds a package in which peoples levels are delivered as it were.

But the SMB2 mechanics alone are going to mix things up tremendously, people have been asking for this since the first game.

There's new power-ups, enemies, well.... you've all seen the video I'm sure.

I'd been working on a piece that I thought represented my thoughts on this fantastic series but now, I'm not sure how this will shake things up on the scene and community.

Just a thought.
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ratsoalbion
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Re: 426: Super Mario Maker/Super Mario Maker 2

Post by ratsoalbion »

I don’t think so, we still have plenty of time to take the new features on board. Moving shows around is a fairly major undertaking.
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Suits
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Re: 426: Super Mario Maker/Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Suits »

ratsoalbion wrote: April 21st, 2020, 1:36 pm Moving shows around is a fairly major undertaking.
I can imagine dude.
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Toon Scottoon
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Re: 426: Super Mario Maker/Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Toon Scottoon »

Most of us have heard the nugget about the first rule of magic being that a magician never reveals how their tricks are done, and yet the Mario Maker series, of which I’ve played all three games, makes the act of revealing some of how Nintendo performs their most famous tricks its own sort of hocus pocus.

The first illusion they perform is to ensorcell the player into thinking anybody with any version of the game, some imagination, and a little help from a talking pigeon, can whip up a level that when squinted at while wearing sunglasses and standing on ones head after some edibles and a few days without sleep, looks just like the sort of thing Miyamoto and the EAD team would have crafted.

Another trick they pull in front of the player in both the 3DS and Switch versions of the game is to make it seem like an infinite amount of incredible Mario levels could be conceived by providing excellent one player campaigns.

Then there's the disappearing act Nintendo performs, pickpocketing the player’s time without them feeling like it's been wasted. It’s a trick I know is coming every time I flip on this game and say I’m going to mess about for an hour, only to find myself toggling around three hours later, trying to troubleshoot some design flaw I’ve picked up in my own level, or playing a track made by my kids, my friends, my fellow Cane and Rinse Forumites (I’m sure you’ll shout out Suits, but way to lead the charge man), or some famous or soon to be famous indie developer whose decided to try their hand Merlining about with Mario.

It’s all just so enchanting. I’ve done it, and I’ve watched it happen time and time again. That chubby little plumber points to the audience and asks for a volunteer to saw in half, and the hands just shoot up.

Three word review - Pipe dream machine
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TomRed
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by TomRed »

Not being particularly creatively-minded, I appreciate the versatility of Mario Maker's level editor. Granted, a large majority of my 1000-plus hours of gameplay across the Wii U and Switch has been focused solely on tackling an array of levels, from the challenging to the near-impossible to the creative to the downright silly. I love these games and have no intention to stop playing any time soon.

One might assume, due to the myriad of new features, that Mario Maker 2 is straight upgrade. However, the first game has a couple of features that aren't present in the sequel. Firstly, the 100 Mario Challenge is a mode with a goal - beat the required number of levels before you run out of lives. You either win or lose. Mario Maker 2's counterpart, the Endless Mode, is a similar construct but with one key difference - it inevitably always ends in a loss. I believe that this leaves the player with a feeling of failure, rather than triumph.

The second feature present in the first Mario Maker allows players to download any course and deconstruct it in the editor. This is quite useful for practising tougher segments of harder levels, figuring out how clever mechanics work or even finding that pesky hidden block in an annoying troll level. While you can download any course in Mario Maker 2, they are only available to play offline. I think the transparency of how levels work on a mechanical level encourages creativity, which is an integral part of Mario Maker.

In a lot of ways Mario Maker 2 improves on what the first Mario Maker had to offer, but I feel as if it's a couple of features short of the ultimate package.
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Stanshall
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Stanshall »

Ah, I totally missed this...This volume is absolutely chocker! Looking forward to the pod.
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Michiel K
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Michiel K »

Stanshall wrote: July 5th, 2020, 12:17 pm Ah, I totally missed this...This volume is absolutely chocker! Looking forward to the pod.
If you fancy writing something up, you still have until the late afternoon today!
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Stanshall
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Stanshall »

OK, cheers, Michiel. I'll see if I can squeeze a few thoughts in within the next hour or so before I head out.
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Stanshall »

I made only one level in Super Mario Maker 2. It was a very stressful ten-second sprint to the flag and it took me about ten hours to finally feel satisfied with it. It was called 'A Career In Logistics' and it was a satirical take on the inhumane pressure of working in the delivery industry. I tweaked the placement of every single falling box, conveyor belt and obstacle until I finally felt that it was the perfect balance of exciting, tense, challenging and exhilarating. I couldn't wait to share it. And of course, it was awful.

A few mates on various forums played it and generously slogged their way through but I quickly realised that it was a cruel, unpredictable, trial and error grind made even worse by an enemy at the very last millisecond which would often bump you over the top of the flagpole depending on RNG. At the time, I had thought this was a serendipitous touch of black magic but it was actually just annoying. As I listened to feedback and reactions, I realised how I'd misjudged it, and I started to understand how much skill, intelligence and experience are involved in good level design. Not only did it give me an even greater appreciation and respect for Nintendo's in-house teams, but also for the amateur Mario Maker enthusiasts out there who somehow manage to emulate them.
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Michiel K
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Re: Our next podcast recording (4.7.2020) - 426: Super Mario Maker and Super Mario Maker 2

Post by Michiel K »

Cheers, Stan!
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