There are games in this world that are really great. They’re so good, you wish they could come to other platforms, so you could enjoy them in as many places as possible. In theory, Super Mario Maker should be one of those games. It’s an engaging creator that lets you cobble together your own Super Mario levels with the included tools, share them online, and even put together “mashups” by adding in costumes with amiibos, so we can see Samus, Link, or Pikachu going through levels. When Super Mario Maker was announced for the Nintendo 3DS, it seemed like a great idea. However, the more information that comes out on it, the worse it seems.
Basically, Super Mario Maker’ s 3DS port is a stripped down version of the original. The basic framework is there, but many of the things that helped make it special are being torn away. It’s a crippled version of an otherwise wonderful game and so rudimentary that you have to wonder if this port was even worth it.
Part of the joy of Super Mario Maker is creating your levels and sharing them with strangers and friends. That’s essentially what the game is. It’s an extensive level editor. The fun part comes from looking for levels online and exploring what others have done. The 3DS version takes some of that away. You can’t upload levels you make on the 3DS to the online repository. You can only share them via StreetPass or local wireless. Think about how often you gather with 3DS friends for a local game or StreetPass. Uh huh. You’re not going to see many levels.
And you can’t rely on the Wii U-made levels to carry you through. The 3DS version of Super Mario Maker isn’t compatible with all of them. Some won’t work on the handheld. Plus, it isn’t like you can hunt down famous levels or ones from people you know via their IDs. The portable port doesn’t let you search via IDs for levels. Which means you should probably go in only expecting the 100 levels Nintendo built and included in the game and consider the online offerings a happy coincidence.
Forget about the comical costumes too. The Costume Mario feature, which let you scan in amiibos or earn costumes via 100-Mario challenge, will be absent in the 3DS version of Super Mario Maker . I love making and playing through levels with these other characters, pretending they’re starring in their own platformers with themed levels. The 3DS port is taking that away from us, even though it’s not like allowing it in would have pushed the technical limitations of the handheld.
The handheld port of Super Mario Maker doesn’t even offer a feature almost every 3DS game does. Nintendo’s confirmed it doesn’t support stereoscopic 3D. It’s only playable in 2D. As we’ve seen from the eShop’s 3D Classics line, 2D games really pop when displayed in 3D on the 3DS. This is one of the few edges this version of the game could have had, but instead of taking advantage of it, Nintendo’s ignoring it.
It makes you wonder if Super Mario Maker’ s portable port is even worth the effort. So many important features are being stripped away in this release. We can’t upload the levels we make. We can’t search for levels based on IDs. It won’t be compatible with all Wii U levels. The costumes are gone. It won’t even offer 3D support. It’s entirely disappointing.