The gameplay of New Super Mario Bros. U is very similar to that of past New Super Mario Bros. games, mostly similar to Super Mario World, with similar features and designs, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, with the return of the 4-player multiplayer. Though this time, players can play as their Miis, including the first player, who can also choose whoever to play as. A fifth player can join as well, though he/she will use the Wii U GamePad to assist the players, in a mode known as Boost Mode. This mode allows the fifth player to create temporarily blocks to either assist or annoy the other players, simply by touching the GamePad screen. The player operating Boost Mode can also stun enemies.
Power-ups, like the Fire Flower, Ice Flower, Penguin Suit and the Mini Mushroom, are returning. The game also features a new power-up, the Super Acorn, which gives Mario and co a Flying Squirrel Suit, which lets them glide and grab on to walls.
World Map SectionsUnlike previous New Super Mario Bros. titles, where the worlds were separated like in the NES and SNES versions of Super Mario Bros. 3, New Super Mario Bros. U has a seamless world map similar to that of Super Mario World and, to a lesser extent, the GBA version of Super Mario Bros. 3, and the names of most of the world map sections are food-related, which is also the case for the former. As New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the Worlds include Toad Houses and Enemy Courses that players will across in the game. The music changes instruments throughout the world map similar to Yoshi's Island. Though, like the previous games, there are Fortresses, Castles and Ghost House-related levels within each part of the world:
Acorn Plains: A grassy world with lots of shrubs, slanted mountains, like in Super Mario World and the Acorn Tree.
Layer-Cake Desert: A desert world with various desserts, such as melting ice creams, giant cakes, and a sea of sand with Moai statues.
Frosted Glacier: A snowy world that takes place at night filled with constellations. This world can be entirely skipped for Sparkling Waters.
Sparkling Waters: A tropical world with multiple islands, bubbling water geysers, and even a sunken ship. This world can be entirely skipped for Frosted Glacier.
Soda Jungle: A rainforest-esque world similar to the Forest of Illusion, with giant enemies and blocks, similar to Big Island.
Rock-Candy Mines: A mountainous world with tall, pillar like mountains. A cloud train seems to separate this world from the next world.
Meringue Clouds: A sky world resembling the foreground of levels in World 7 from New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Peach's Castle: A grassland area, similar to World 1 from the previous New Super Mario Bros. games, containing mushroom hills and Peach's Castle. It has been taken over by the Koopa Troop and is slowly transformed into Bowser's image until eventually being surrounded by a tornado.
Superstar Road: A secret world unlocked after beating Bowser's final battle. Its levels must be unlocked with Star Coins.
Looks like they finally did it. They finally made a new super mario bros game without having to recycle all the elements and music from new super mario bros wii. They made creative worlds, original music and don't even get me started on the final boss battle which is EPIC. They finally realized the error of their ways and didn't just recycle new super mario bros wii with some dumb coin gimmick, but made an original game. Best launch title ever.
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