Gameplay and design
The core gameplay of "New Super Mario Bros." is classic 2D side-scrolling, but the presentation is a different matter. Characters and most objects are rendered as 3D polygons, while backgrounds are 2D, giving the scenes a sense of depth and dynamism through this 2.5D visual style. Players control Mario or Luigi across eight worlds and over 80 levels, aiming to rescue Princess Peach, who has been kidnapped by Bowser Jr. The level design continues the series' tradition of clever construction, featuring both traditional platform jumping and areas filled with mechanisms and secrets.
The game introduces several new moves to 2D Mario. The Ground Pound, Triple Jump, and Wall Jump all appear for the first time in a 2D Mario game. The Ground Pound can smash bricks below or defeat enemies, the Triple Jump allows players to reach higher platforms, and the Wall Jump provides a new way to climb up narrow shafts. These new moves not only enrich the controls but also open up new possibilities in level design, such as vertical passages designed specifically for Wall Jumps or hidden areas that require a Triple Jump to reach.
The power-up system is a highlight of the game. In addition to returning items like the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, and Starman, the game introduces three new power-ups: the Blue Shell, the Mega Mushroom, and the Mini Mushroom. The Blue Shell lets Mario retract into his shell and charge at enemies and obstacles at high speed; the Mega Mushroom makes Mario gigantic, allowing him to stomp everything and destroy most objects in the environment; the Mini Mushroom shrinks Mario, enabling him to enter narrow passages and walk on water, but also making him more vulnerable to enemies. These additions provide multiple strategies for completing each level.
The game also offers a two-player competitive mode, where two players control Mario and Luigi respectively, racing to collect stars in specific levels. This mode emphasizes competition rather than cooperation, allowing players to interfere with each other, such as stomping on the opponent's head or stealing stars. Additionally, the game includes minigames from "Super Mario 64 DS" and adds new multiplayer options, letting players enjoy fun with friends beyond the single-player adventure.
Music plays an important role in the game, not just as background but directly affecting the gameplay rhythm. Enemies jump and move to the beat of the music, and players need to observe and adapt to this rhythm to avoid attacks or find opportunities to strike. This design tightly integrates music and gameplay, making each level feel like a rhythmic dance, showcasing the development team's ingenuity in audiovisual synchronization.
Background and release
The inception of "New Super Mario Bros." can be traced back to late 2003, shortly after the release of "Super Mario Advance 4." Nintendo internally conceived the idea of creating a brand-new 2D Mario game, nearly a decade after the last original 2D Mario title, "Yoshi's Island." The development team was led by series veteran producer Takashi Tezuka and director Hiroyuki Kimura, with Shigeru Miyamoto serving as supervisor. This combination ensured that the game retained the classic 2D Mario charm while incorporating new ideas.
The game made its first appearance at E3 2004, coinciding with the announcement of the Nintendo DS. As one of the showcase titles for the DS, it attracted significant attention. However, at that time, it was only a technical demonstration and not playable. Despite this, the brief demo sent a clear signal to the world: Nintendo had not abandoned 2D Mario but was preparing to bring it back in a new way.
The release dates varied slightly by region. North America was the earliest, launching on May 15, 2006; Japan followed ten days later on May 25; Europe and Australia released on June 30 and June 8, respectively. Nintendo did not explain the reason for the delayed Japanese release, but it did not affect the game's popularity. On its first day in Japan, the game sold over 480,000 copies, and within four days, sales reached 900,000, setting a record for the fastest-selling DS game at the time.
In North America, the game sold 500,000 copies within 35 days and surpassed one million after 12 weeks. As of March 2016, cumulative global sales reached 30.8 million copies, making it the best-selling game on the Nintendo DS and one of the highest-selling games in history. This achievement not only proved the enduring appeal of 2D Mario but also contributed significantly to the DS's popularity.
From a broader perspective, the game's release was timely. At the time, the industry was focused on 3D, and 2D platformers were considered outdated. However, "New Super Mario Bros." demonstrated that with excellent design, 2D platformers could still attract a large audience. Its success laid the foundation for the revival of 2D platformers and prompted Nintendo to release more titles in the "New Super Mario Bros." series.
Development
In the early stages of development, the team initially planned not to use voice acting, but later changed their minds and decided to add voices to the characters. This made the game the first original 2D Mario game to feature voice acting. Mario and Luigi were voiced by Charles Martinet, whose voice had already become iconic for these characters. This decision made the characters more lively and added to the game's charm.
For the music, the game was composed by Yasushi Asada and Kiyoshi Wakai, with Koji Kondo serving as music director. Koji Kondo, the founder of Mario series music, ensured that the musical style remained consistent with the series' tradition. Notably, enemies jump and move to the beat of the music, a design choice made intentionally by the team to allow players to feel the synchronization between music and action, providing a more immersive experience.
In terms of visual technology, the development team chose to render characters and objects with 3D models, but the gameplay remained 2D side-scrolling. This 2.5D approach was quite novel at the time, allowing for smoother and more detailed character animations and enabling dynamic camera zoom in certain situations, such as when Mario becomes gigantic with the Mega Mushroom, the camera pulls back to show his massive size. This technical choice preserved the precise controls of 2D platformers while offering a fresh visual experience.
The game's physics engine was also carefully tuned to support new moves and mechanics. For example, players can swing on ropes and walk on wires, requiring precise collision detection and physics simulation. The development team paid great attention to detail, such as subtle differences in jump height and falling speed depending on Mario's state, and this polish in feel was crucial to the game's quality.
During development, the team also focused on the pacing of level design. Each world has a different theme, from grasslands and deserts to ice and volcanoes, with varied scenery. Levels are filled with secrets, such as hidden passages, coins, and power-ups, encouraging repeated exploration. This design philosophy continued the series' tradition while incorporating new ideas, ensuring the game maintained a classic feel yet offered freshness.
Reception and legacy
Upon release, "New Super Mario Bros." received unanimous praise from both media and players. Critics lauded its excellent gameplay, clever level design, beautiful graphics, and catchy music, while also noting that the difficulty was low and the game was similar to previous entries. Despite these minor criticisms, they did not affect the overall positive reception, with many outlets giving near-perfect scores. The game also won several awards, including Game of the Month from Game Informer and Electronic Gaming Monthly, and Best Handheld Game at the 2006 Spike Video Game Awards.
Commercially, the game was a massive success. As mentioned, it set impressive sales records in Japan and North America, eventually surpassing 30 million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling game on the DS. This achievement not only brought substantial profits to Nintendo but also proved the market potential of 2D platformers. Many players purchased a DS specifically for this game, making it a key driver of the DS's adoption.
More importantly, the game's success spawned the "New Super Mario Bros." sub-series. In 2009, Nintendo released "New Super Mario Bros. Wii," which introduced cooperative multiplayer for the first time; later, "New Super Mario Bros. 2" for the 3DS and "New Super Mario Bros. U" for the Wii U followed. These titles continued the core gameplay of the original and innovated upon it, forming a large series.
At the industry level, the game is regarded as a significant force in the revival of 2D platformers. Before it, 2D platformers were considered a dying genre, with the mainstream favoring 3D action games. But its success made developers realize that with good design, 2D platformers could still attract a large audience. Subsequently, many indie developers and major companies returned to developing 2D platformers, fueling the genre's resurgence.
Even years later, media and players continue to reflect on the game's impact. In 2026, some gaming outlets noted in retrospective articles that the game not only made side-scrolling games a viable genre again but also paved the way for modern classics. It proved that classic game design never goes out of style and can be revitalized with careful craftsmanship. For many players, this game is part of their childhood memories and a reason they fell in love with the Mario series.
