Today’sSuper Mario35th anniversary-themed Nintendo Direct featured a bevy of announcements, the biggest one easily being the confirmation of thelong-rumoredSuper Mario 3D All-Starscompilation.Another major announcement, however, was that another Wii U exclusive will be coming to Switch:Super Mario 3D World. Or, to use its full title,Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury.
What exactly theBowser’s Furyaddition is remains unknown, as it was only teased vaguely in the announcement trailer, but there has been some additional news that wasn’t mentioned in the Direct. Firstly,Super Mario 3D Worldon Switch will receive online multiplayer (the original game only had local multiplayer) and two new amiibos will also release alongside it.
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SinceSuper Mario 3D Worldis responsible for introducing the Cat Bell power-up, which puts Mario in a cat suit and was a major aspect of the game’s marketing, the two amiibos are fittingly of Cat Mario and Cat Peach, who also appeared as playable characters inMario Kart 8.
While these will no doubt be snapped up to fill out some fans' amiibo collections, Nintendo very rarely releases new figures that don’t have some kind of compatibility or function with one of its games. We can probably expect these two to have a general function with some titles. For example, they could serve as alternatives to the Mario and Peach amiibos used forSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate.
However, it would be a bit weird for them to not be compatible with the very game they’re releasing alongside. But the original release didn’t feature any sort of amiibo support. So, does this mean that Nintendo is adding amiibo support to the3D Worldre-release? And if so, what is it?
It may not necessarily be anything major. Perhaps tapping one of these amiibos will grant the player a Cat Bell power-up to instantly use, much like how the Wedding Peach amiibo forSuper Mario Odysseygives the player a Life-Up Heart. It may make the game easier, but struggling players may appreciate the helping hand.
Or maybe it’s something unique to theBowser’s Furyaddition? Whatever it is, it likely has something to do with the Cat Bell, as the brief teaser we saw has Mario in the Cat Suit sitting in front of a black, spiky, possibly corrupted Super Bell. The area also has cat-themed architecture, with gates, lighthouses, and even the trees having cat ears.
This is all speculation, of course, and we can expect to hear more details about the game within the next few months.
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Furywill release on February 12th, 2021 for Switch.
