Super Mario 3D Land

[Nisa]

Picked this up this afternoon and managed to a get through the first two worlds after an hour or so of playtime. I've been pretty impressed with it so far. The graphics are fairly close to those of Galaxy and the 3D effect works well. The music is also really good, there's remixes of tunes from SMB,SMB3 & SMW mixed in with new music. Gameplaywise it's similar to Mario 64 and the Galaxy titles but the levels aren't quite as expansive as other 3D Marios. There's definitely a strong connection to SMB3 as well with the return of the Tanooki suit and airship levels as well as the remixed music I mentioned before. The 3 large gold coins from the NSMB games make a return as well which I'm sure will become increasingly difficult to reach in later levels.

I'm definitely looking forward to putting more time in and seeing how challenging the later worlds get.

[teddymeow]

Don't you need to post a pic if the game isn't officially released?

Not trying to be picky but I wanna see the manual and stuff to properly set of my "can't wait" senses!!

[warlike92]

Played up to about world 6 and the game is laughably easy so far. The game itself is amazing and they definately throw in a lot of leveldesign that reminds of SMB3 with

->Open Spoiler<-

''gimmick'' levels like a one where blocks disintegrate based on a musical beat/cue, or the Zelda Alltp stage, it's almost like the desert temple of said game!

which I personally love.

Graphics and music are ofcourse great as you would expect, but this handeld Mario especially stands out for being beautifully vibrant and rich with color depth, good stuff.

[importaku]

Don't you need to post a pic if the game isn't officially released?

Not trying to be picky but I wanna see the manual and stuff to properly set of my "can't wait" senses!!

Your going to be pretty dissappointed then as there is no paper manual it's now built into the game, yes nintendo give me another reason to not like 3ds. To some people a manual isn't a big thing but for me it is as im used to having lovely illustrated full colour manuals in my jpn nintendo stuff. It's not like it's any cheaper too, wonder how many others will follow suit?

[tokyochojin]

This has been happening for a while now though. I think my copy of Fifa 12 that arrived recently didnt come with a manual. God bless the JP Saturn & Dreamcast, the manual was the cover!

[parkinho]

Played up to about world 6 and the game is laughably easy so far.

That's disappointing to hear, I like my platform games with a bit of challenge. As amazing as the Galaxy games were, the total lack of difficulty took the shine off a little. I hope the new Zelda isn't a walk in the park either.

[S_rank]

Im glad the 3 coin idea is back from nsmb brings an extra layer of challange does it still have to be done in one life to count.And the lack of manuals it pure cheapness im sure they will pedal out some tosh about how they want reduce there c02 and not make 5p less profit.

[Nisa]

Pic of the not so substantial manual and the snazzy inside cover of the game. Can't say the lack of a thick manual bothers me in the slightest, like the majority of folk I don't bother to flick through them more than once. Just seems like an unnecessary waste of paper to me unless it's full of nice artwork which is a rarity.

With this game out now and Mario Kart 7 out in few weeks alongside Monster Hunter, I'd say it's a great time to own a Japanese 3DS(the high software prices compared to back home sucks right enough).

As for the lack of challenge in this game

->Open Spoiler<-

There's more stuff to do after finishing World 8.

[warlike92]

The stuff

->Open Spoiler<-

after world 8, aka another 8 worlds with slightly different levels and pathways

is very nice, but I wish I did not have to play through 8 worlds before I actually died. I've read some people say that this mario lacks creativity but I cannot disagree more. The use of depth is quite amazing at times and is a lot cooler than I initially expected. Especially in some water stages it really shines.

[teddymeow]

That inner cover print is amazing! Do bits of it match up to the holes in the case like Star Fox?

[teddymeow]

Got my copy today. Very nice. So simple and enjoyable with a very subtle use of 3D.

No manual, just a folded piece of paper. Shame.

[Dogg Thang]

It's this Friday for the plebs among us, right? I want it now. Now! But Friday will do I guess.

[briareos_kerensky]

Got this today from VGP. Liking it, though I really don't understand why not giving the circle pad full walk-run capabilities instead of assigning X/Y to running.
There's no backcover and I really don't like the idea of having just a leaflet instead of a proper manual.

[teddymeow]

The lack of manual is annoying. Especially considering how good Nintendo manuals usually are.

I miss the triple jump but like the old school button-to-run as I feel it might be a bit too diddly having analogue controls on this. Don't know why.

[teddymeow]

It's this Friday for the plebs among us, right? I want it now. Now! But Friday will do I guess.

Yes, yes it is. Also got Skyward Sword today but refuse to play it until my next day off on Friday.