Honestly, I still remember the first time I threw Cappy at a frog in the Lake Kingdom. It was weird. You’re suddenly a frog with a mustache, jumping hundreds of feet into the air, and the game just expects you to roll with it. That’s the thing about Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch gamers have come to love—it never tries to be "realistic" or grounded. It just tries to be a toy box. A massive, globetrotting, slightly trippy toy box.
When Nintendo launched the Switch back in 2017, they needed a heavy hitter. We had Breath of the Wild for the "I want to get lost in a forest for eighty hours" crowd, but Odyssey was the real homecoming. It was the return to that sandbox style we hadn’t seen since Super Mario Sunshine or the legendary Mario 64.
But here’s a hot take: Odyssey is actually better than both of them.
The "Capture" Mechanic Is What Makes Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch Special
Let’s talk about the hat. Cappy isn't just a gimmick or a cute sidekick with eyes. He is the fundamental rewrite of how Mario moves. In previous games, Mario's moveset was fixed. You could triple jump, wall kick, and maybe ground pound. In Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch, your moveset is basically "whatever is standing in front of you."
You see a T-Rex? You’re the T-Rex. You see a flickering electrical wire? You’re a bolt of lightning. You see a tiny piece of meat? Yeah, you can be that too.
It sounds chaotic. It is chaotic.
The brilliance lies in how Nintendo designer Koichi Hayashida and the team at EPD integrated these captures into the level design. You aren't just possessing enemies for the sake of a laugh; you're doing it because the environment demands a specific tool that Mario, as a human(ish) plumber, doesn't possess.
Take the Wooded Kingdom. It’s this strange, mechanical forest filled with "Steam Gardeners." You capture an Uproot—a weird onion-looking thing on stilts—and suddenly the game becomes about vertical stretching. You aren't platforming with your feet anymore; you’re platforming with your height. It’s a complete shift in perspective that happens every five minutes.
Forget the Story, Look at the Movement
The plot is the same as always. Bowser kidnaps Peach. Bowser wants a wedding. Mario says no.
But nobody plays a 3D Mario for the Shakespearean drama. You play it because of how it feels to move. Pro players like DGR or SmallAnt have shown us that the skill ceiling in this game is somewhere in the stratosphere. By combining a cap throw, a dive, a bounce off Cappy, and another dive, you can skip entire sections of the map.
It feels fluid. It’s "sticky" in the best way possible.
I’ve spent hours just in the Metro Kingdom (New Donk City), jumping off taxi cabs and swinging from poles, never once touching a mission objective. If a game can make the act of simply moving from point A to point B feel like a reward, it has succeeded. Most modern games focus so much on "content" and "map markers" that they forget to make the basic character controls fun. Odyssey didn't forget.
The Moon Problem: Quantity vs. Quality?
If there is one thing people complain about with Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch, it’s the Power Moons. There are 880 of them. Well, 999 if you buy the ones in the shops.
That’s a lot of shiny crescents.
Critics like Joseph Anderson have pointed out that some moons feel "cheap." You might find a moon just by ground-pounding a glowing spot in the dirt or sitting on a bench next to an NPC. It’s a valid criticism. When a game has nearly a thousand collectibles, they can't all be epic boss fights or complex puzzles.
However, there’s a psychological layer here. The "saturation" of moons means that the game is constantly rewarding curiosity. Did you see a weird pipe behind a building? There’s a moon. Did you climb to the very top of a spire just because you could? Moon.
It turns the world into a giant "Yes."
Instead of the game telling you "No, don't go there, that's the edge of the map," Odyssey says "Oh, you found our secret corner? Here is a prize." It’s a different philosophy than Super Mario Galaxy, which was very much a curated, linear experience. Odyssey is about the joy of being distracted. You start out headed toward the boss, see a bird with a glowing beak, chase it across a desert, fall into a hidden cave, solve a 2D 8-bit mural puzzle, and suddenly it’s three in the morning.
🔗 Read more: AC Shadows Legendary Sumi e: What Most People Get Wrong
The 2D Nostalgia Hits Just Right
Speaking of 8-bit murals, can we talk about how good those sections are?
Walking into a pixelated pipe and seeing Mario flatten against the wall into his 1985 NES sprite is a masterstroke. The physics change instantly. You’re playing Super Mario Bros., but the music is a 8-bit chiptune remix of whatever 3D world theme was playing.
It’s a love letter to the history of the franchise. It reminds you that while Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch is a cutting-edge 3D title, its DNA is built on blocks and mushrooms.
Is New Donk City Actually... Weird?
When the first trailers dropped, New Donk City was all anyone could talk about. Seeing Mario—a short, round, cartoon man—standing next to "realistic" humans in suits was jarring. It looked like a mod. It looked like something that shouldn't exist.
But in context? It works perfectly.
The Mayor is Pauline, the original damsel from the 1981 Donkey Kong arcade game. The city is full of references to DK lore (Diddy's Mart, Dixie Street). The "Festival" sequence in this kingdom is arguably the peak of the entire game. "Jump Up, Super Star!" starts playing, the world turns into a 2D platforming gauntlet, and for five minutes, you are experiencing pure, unadulterated joy.
It’s the moment where the game stops being a product and starts being a celebration.
The Technical Wizardry of Nintendo EPD
We have to remember that the Switch is basically a handheld tablet from 2017. It’s not a powerhouse. Yet, Odyssey runs at a locked 60 frames per second.
How?
🔗 Read more: God of War Book: Why Kratos Hits Different on the Page
Nintendo uses a dynamic resolution scaler. When things get hectic, the resolution drops slightly to keep the motion smooth. In handheld mode, it’s even more impressive. You’re holding a world that looks better than most PS3 games in the palm of your hand.
The art direction carries the heavy lifting. The "Luncheon Kingdom" uses low-poly, crystalline food aesthetics that don't require high-end textures to look amazing. The "Ruined Kingdom," which looks like something out of Dark Souls, uses lighting and fog to hide the hardware's limitations.
It’s a masterclass in working within constraints.
The End-Game: Why You Shouldn't Stop at the Credits
Most people beat Bowser, watch the credits, and put the game away. If you do that with Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch, you are missing about 40% of the game.
The post-game content is where the real challenge lies.
- The Mushroom Kingdom opens up, filled with references to Mario 64.
- The "Dark Side" and "Darker Side" of the Moon offer platforming challenges that will make you want to throw your Joy-Cons across the room.
- Hint Toad and Uncle Amiibo help you track down the remaining moons, but the "Long Journey's End" level is the ultimate test.
There are no checkpoints in the final level. It’s a ten-minute marathon of every mechanic you've learned. It’s brutal, it’s fair, and it’s the perfect "final exam."
Is It Still Worth Buying in 2026?
People ask if they should wait for a sequel or if the game is dated.
First off, Nintendo doesn't really do "dated." Mario’s physics are timeless. Second, while rumors of a "Switch 2" or a new Mario title are always circulating, Odyssey remains a standalone masterpiece.
💡 You might also like: Pick 3 New Jersey Today: What Most People Get Wrong
There are no microtransactions. There is no "Battle Pass." There is no "Always Online" requirement. It is a complete, finished piece of software that respects your time.
If you just got a Switch or you're looking through the library of "must-plays," this is it. It’s the gold standard.
What You Should Do Next
If you’re just starting your journey or looking to jump back in, here is how to get the most out of your time in the Odyssey:
- Turn off the HUD: Once you know what you’re doing, go into the settings and minimize the UI. The game world is gorgeous; don't let icons distract you.
- Master the Roll: Shaking the controller (or pressing the Y button while crouching) makes Mario roll. It is the fastest way to travel and can be chained into a long jump.
- Talk to the NPCs: Most of the charm is in the dialogue. The Tostarenans in the Sand Kingdom are hilarious.
- Try "Snapshot Mode": Seriously. The photo mode in this game is surprisingly deep. You can change filters, tilt the camera, and create some genuine art.
Super Mario Odyssey Nintendo Switch isn't just a game about a plumber. It's a game about the spirit of discovery. It’s about looking at a manhole cover and wondering if you can fit inside it. It’s about the fact that no matter how old we get, there’s still a part of us that wants to see what’s on top of that mountain.
Go find out. The Odyssey is waiting.