I’m unsure if Mario Bros. Wonder’s Bellabel Park is what I wanted from a Switch 2 expansion
The Nintendo Switch 2 Edition adds a new multiplayer suite, but it’s unclear how deep its other content will go
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is one of my favourite Nintendo games of the past few years. Lovingly crafted and packed full of imagination and surprises, the Switch platformer is undoubtedly the plumber’s most memorable 2D outing since the 90s.
However, if I had one small complaint, it was that Wonder left me wanting more. Mario fans have been spoiled over the years by the generous Odyssey and 3D World, which spewed rewards long after their credits rolled. And in comparison, Wonder felt like it was missing its own gallant epilogue, which could take its deep toybox of Wonder effects and power-ups on a deserved victory lap.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Meetup in Bellabel Park, is, in theory, that epilogue. However, with its pre-release marketing focused entirely on multiplayer, and with little idea of how deep its single-player content or new additions will actually go, I feel less enthusiastic than I should about jumping back in.
Wonder’s expanded version comes with the usual Switch 2 Edition benefits, like 4K visuals, smoother frame rates, and GameShare support, but the bulk of its value appears to be found in Bellabel Park, a new area of the Flower Kingdom that features two large plazas filled with co-op and competitive attractions.
That includes the Local Multiplayer Plaza, which features 17 different types of attractions that can be played with up to three others on the same system. The second area is Game Room Plaza, which supports online and local wireless play, allowing up to 12 players to compete against one another in six additional attractions.
At a recent Nintendo event, we were able to try out the Local Multiplayer Plaza with three other players. Like the main Wonder levels, the attractions here are pleasingly inventive, like a level that requires players to pass around a Bob-omb towards a goal, or a course that has players split up and draw paths using Switch 2’s Mouse Mode for others to traverse.
We also tried competitive challenges, which you can see in our footage embedded at the top of this page, like race levels with Propeller Flowers, or aboard giant bouncing balls. Each attraction provided welcome, quickfire fun in an event setting, but I was again left curious if there’s enough content here to tempt those less interested in multiplayer to spend $20 on an upgrade.
A recent overview trailer, thankfully, suggests solo players could yet find value within Bellabel Park. In addition to Rosalina as a new character, plus a host of assist features for younger players, the expansion notably adds challenge levels, in the form of the Toad Brigade Training Camp.
These ‘training’ courses will have players revisiting existing levels with new objectives, like collecting coins or defeating enemies under a time limit. Based on the trailer, there appear to be at least 60 of these challenges, and hopefully they can add more of the harder content that the core game was broadly lacking.
Nintendo has also teased a selection of “boss courses” featuring the Koopalings, which, depending on how long they are, could be worth looking forward to, especially because they appear to introduce new items and power-ups, like Flower Mario. Whether that’s enough to give Wonder a worthy lap of honour, we’ll have to wait and see.
