People love to hate on the "New" era. You’ve probably heard it a thousand times: the music is repetitive, the art style is sterile, and Nintendo just played it too safe for over a decade. But honestly? That’s a pretty shallow way to look at a series that basically saved the 2D platformer from extinction. Before 2006, 2D Mario was a relic. If you wanted a side-scrolling adventure, you were mostly looking at the indie scene or dusty retro cartridges.
Then New Super Mario Bros. dropped on the DS. It didn’t just sell; it exploded.
We’re talking about a game that moved over 30 million copies. That’s not just "good for a handheld game." That’s a cultural shift. It proved that despite the industry's obsession with 3D open worlds and cinematic shooters, people still just wanted to run to the right and jump on some Goombas. But if you think it’s just a remake of the NES days, you’re missing the nuance that made these games actual masterclasses in level design.
The Secret Genius of the DS Original
When Shigeru Miyamoto and his team at Nintendo EAD started working on the first New Super Mario Bros., they weren't just trying to copy the 8-bit era. They were trying to modernize it. You can see this in the physics. It’s "floatier" than the NES games but tighter than the SNES ones.
It introduced the Mega Mushroom. Watching a screen-filling Mario literal-mindedly trample through the entire level, pipes and all, was a revelation in 2006. It felt rebellious. Most people forget that the DS version actually had a unique soundtrack composed by Koji Kondo and Asuka Ohta. It hadn't yet devolved into the "Bah! Bah!" vocal samples that would define the later sequels. The DS game had this weird, almost bouncy soul that felt fresh.
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And let’s talk about the Shell Mario power-up. It was tricky to use. You had to time your dashes perfectly to retreat into the shell and zip across gaps. It required more skill than the Cape or the Tail ever did. Sadly, Nintendo basically ditched it after this entry, which is a crime in my book.
Why the Wii Version Changed Everything
In 2009, Nintendo did something they’d never done before: four-player local co-op in a Mario platformer. New Super Mario Bros. Wii was absolute chaos.
It wasn't "cooperative" in the traditional sense. It was a friendship-ending simulator. You’d try to jump over a pit, and your "friend" playing Luigi would accidentally (or purposefully) bounce off your head, sending you screaming into the lava. It changed the geometry of the levels. To accommodate four players, the screens had to be wider, and the platforms had to be sturdier.
This is where the series started getting a reputation for being "samey." Because it sold like crazy—over 30 million units again—Nintendo found a formula that worked. They realized that casual families loved the predictable "Grass, Desert, Beach, Giant Forest" world progression. For the hardcore fans, it felt like a treadmill. For the 30 million people buying it, it felt like coming home.
The "New" Controversy: Art and Music
If there's one legitimate gripe, it’s the aesthetic. Starting with the Wii version and moving into New Super Mario Bros. 2 on the 3DS and New Super Mario Bros. U, the visual identity became incredibly rigid. Every background looked like it was rendered in the same clean, plastic-y 3D software.
The music is the real kicker.
- The Overworld theme.
- The Athletic theme.
- The "Bah" sounds synced to enemy animations.
By the time we got to the Wii U, fans were exhausted. Even though the level design in New Super Mario Bros. U is arguably some of the best in the entire franchise—seriously, the Star 9 levels are brutal—people couldn't look past the familiar wallpaper. It’s the "U Deluxe" problem on the Switch. It’s a brilliant game, but it looks so much like the ones before it that it’s hard to get excited.
New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe: Is It Actually Better?
When the Deluxe version hit the Switch in 2019, it was a weird moment. The Wii U was a flop, so for many, this was their first time playing the "U" entry. It’s basically two games in one because it includes New Super Luigi U.
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The Luigi expansion is the hidden gem here. It’s built for the speedrunners. Every level is short, usually under 100 seconds, and the physics are slippery. It’s stressful. It’s fast. It’s exactly what the "New" series needed to prove it wasn't just for kids.
The Switch version also added Toadette and Nabbit. Toadette's "Peachette" transformation was a massive deal at the time, mostly because it sparked the whole "Bowsette" internet phenomenon (which we won't go into here). Practically speaking, she made the game accessible for people who struggle with precision jumps. Nabbit is literally invincible to enemies.
It’s the ultimate "family" game because you can have a pro gamer playing as Luigi and a five-year-old playing as Nabbit, and both of them can actually reach the flagpole together.
Moving Toward Wonder
You can't talk about New Super Mario Bros. in 2026 without acknowledging how it led to Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Nintendo finally listened to the "bland" complaints. Wonder threw out the old art style and the old music.
But here’s the thing: Wonder wouldn’t exist without the foundation laid by the "New" series. The wall-jumping, the ground-pounding, the mid-air twirl—all of these "modern" Mario staples were perfected between 2006 and 2012.
If you go back and play New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe today, you might be surprised. The level design is tighter than Wonder in some ways. Wonder is about spectacle and surprises; New U is about pure, unfiltered platforming skill. It doesn't need a Wonder Flower to make a level interesting. The challenge comes from the placement of a single Koopa Troopa or a rotating platform.
Actionable Steps for Players
If you’ve skipped this era because you thought it was "just more of the same," you’re leaving some of the best levels in gaming history on the table.
- Start with the DS Original: Use an actual DS or 3DS if you can. The dual-screen layout for the map and the specific "crunchy" feel of the controls are unique to that hardware.
- Play New Super Luigi U: If you find the base games too easy, this is the corrective. It will force you to master the "slippery" physics and mid-air stalling.
- Ignore the "Bah": Yes, the music is repetitive. Turn it down and put on a podcast if you have to. The level layouts are what matter.
- Try the Challenge Mode in U Deluxe: Most people ignore this menu option. Don't. It features specific tasks like "Don't touch the ground" or "Collect 50 coins while dodging fireballs." It’s the most "hardcore" Mario has been in decades.
The New Super Mario Bros. series isn't a lack of creativity; it was a period of refinement. It was Nintendo perfecting the mechanics of a 2D character in a 3D-rendered world. Now that we've moved on to more "expressive" games, we can finally appreciate these titles for what they are: incredibly polished, rock-solid platformers that reminded the world why Mario was king in the first place.