Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury is an expanded port of Super Mario 3D World for the Nintendo Switch, released on February 12, 2021, as part of the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. The Super Mario 3D World campaign now supports local wireless and online play with up to four players, both of which were absent from the original version. There is also a standalone campaign named Bowser’s Fury, which takes place in an open-world area called Lake Lapcat. After Bowser Jr. paints Bowser with black goop, the latter turns into Fury Bowser. Mario must cooperate with Bowser Jr. to collect Cat Shines and use their power to activate lighthouses and Giga Bells, both of which enable them to gradually rid Fury Bowser and Lake Lapcat of goop.

This game was involved in two My Nintendo missions related to the Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary, both of which were necessary to complete to enter the My Nintendo Super Mario Bros. Sweepstakes: Wave 2; the first involved purchasing the game itself (physically or digitally), and the second involved finding five hidden stickers on the official website for the game. Four of these stickers were the main playable characters in Cat Suits, and the fifth was a Super Bell.

Super Mario 3D World

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Controls

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Action

Dual Joy-Con or Pro Controller Controls

Single Joy-Con Controls

Stage controls

Move

Look around

Tilt
N/A

Dash


Jump


Crouch


Item storage

Open amiibo prompt

Hold
N/A

Snapshot Mode

N/A

Use touch cursor

Reset camera / touch cursor

N/A

Menu

World Screen controls

Move

Look around

Tilt
N/A

Dash

Jump

Menu

Open map

N/A

Menu controls

Select option

Confirm

Cancel

Action Guide

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New playable characters

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New power-up

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Changes

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Gameplay

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Several enhancements are made to the overall gameplay compared to the original Wii U release. For example, all characters except Captain Toad move approximately 40% faster than in the original game, in both levels and the world map. Cutscenes that serve as the intermissions between gameplay are now able to be skipped. Various basic character movements and abilities have been enhanced: for example, characters bouncing off of an enemy while Long Jumping now automatically perform another Long Jump, rather than a standard jump, and characters jumping while facing a wall with no directional input now slide against the wall, enabling them to Wall Jump. Additionally, Side Somersaults are now able to be performed while walking. When carrying objects or other characters, players no longer are required to hold ; pressing the button again is instead required to throw the object or character. Due to this change, Rosalina can no longer spin while holding an object or character. Throwing distance for objects and characters has also been increased. Performing handstands atop trees has varying distances with directional inputs. When handstanding, characters turn clockwise if the player holds right, and counterclockwise if they hold left, which is reversed compared to the original version. When crouched on a slope, characters remain crouched for about one second before beginning to slide down it, rather than sliding the moment they touch the slope. When jumping while crouched and sliding down a slope, characters now perform a Long Jump instead of a regular jump. Rosalina has some tweaks to her gameplay: her jump is slightly less floaty and she lands slightly faster.

Gameplay improvements inspired from Super Mario Odyssey are implemented in the game. In addition to four save files now being present instead of three, they are saved, loaded, and copied in the same manner as in Super Mario Odyssey. Characters can now roll in midair, similar to the dive, and they can perform a roll or Ground Pound Jump immediately after landing from a Ground Pound. Characters can also fall through upright Warp Pipes when performing a Ground Pound through the center from above. Similarly, characters now enter sideways Warp Pipes immediately when rolling through the center without their momentum being interrupted. The sped-up variant of the Warp Pipe sound effect from Super Mario Odyssey is reused upon entering Warp Pipes in either of these ways.

To accommodate for the change in character speed, some levels, such as Conkdor Canyon, have had minor alterations to the objects within them. Some general improvements include changing behaviors and properties of various objects and camera controls. Rows of coins triggered to appear by collecting certain lone coins finish appearing faster than in the original game. The camera no longer zooms if the player remains idle in some areas, such as the beginning of Piranha Creeper Creek, and the idle zoom does not reset if the player presses as it does in the original release. If players lose a life after collecting a Green Star or a Stamp, they keep it instead of having to collect it again; this does not apply to Captain Toad’s levels, however. The Goal Pole can no longer be jumped over, as characters now snap to the top if they attempt to pass it.

The Propeller Platforms from the Wii U version (top) have been replaced with standard Lifts in the Nintendo Switch version (bottom).

Power-ups have also received improvements and alterations to their functionality. Green Shells can no longer be occupied idly; the shell always slides in the direction the user is facing when entered, but it can be stopped by the touch cursor. They also move faster than in the original game. Fireballs move faster and cover a longer distance. They also have a slightly different angle when thrown. The Cat forms now allow characters to climb higher. Additionally, the form’s claw dive continuously dives until the character touches the ground, similarly to Super Mario Maker 2, though it does stop eventually at extremely long distances. For characters in the Tanooki Suit, the window to perform a charge jump while crouched during a tail spin is now much smaller, and most attempts are cancelled out by a normal charged jump instead. It is also more difficult to perform a Long Jump while using a tail spin, as it is usually cancelled with a normal Long Jump.

In the world map, the yellow path that connects levels is created more quickly when a new level is unlocked. After exiting a level, the player regains control of the characters quicker, as the game now saves in the background. Switching between the map, course list, and Stamp chart is now done by pressing the and buttons, rather than buttons on the screen.

Multiplayer mode now supports both local wireless and Nintendo Switch Online connections. Up to two players can play on a single system in local wireless mode. In these modes, entering a bubble to rendezvous with other players can now only be performed by pressing and together instead of either one alone. Captain Toad’s Adventures can now be played with up to four players, unlike in the original release where these levels were single-player only. For these levels, additional players play as the Toad Brigade members, with all players being able to select one to play as before a level begins. Similarly to normal levels, the game ranks each player’s points in multiplayer in the Captain Toad levels as well, though the winning player does not get a crown.

Improvements and alterations introduced in Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker are retained in the Captain Toad levels for this game. Captain Toad’s headlamp can now defeat Boos and Peepas, similarly to the Light Box. The pause menu now features the ability to retry a course, rather than having to return to the world map to do so. In TV mode, gyroscopic pointer controls replace the touchscreen controls of the Wii U version, which are activated by pressing , and an emblem of the character controlling the pointer is present. Due to the lack of a microphone on the Nintendo Switch console, Propeller Platforms have been replaced in every level where they appeared; they are replaced by Lifts in Captain Toad Goes Forth and Puffprod Peaks, invisible clouds in Blast Block Skyway, and Touchstones in Captain Toad’s Fiery Finale.

Luigi Bros. can now only be unlocked by defeating Meowser in The Great Tower of Bowser Land; having New Super Luigi U save data on the system through ownership of New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe no longer unlocks it from the beginning. There is also now an option to quickly exit to the title screen from Luigi Bros., as opposed to being forced to exit to the Home Menu.

Functionality for amiibo has been added. A complete list of functionalities for them can be found in the corresponding section.

Due to the lack of Miiverse on the Nintendo Switch, Miis no longer appear on the overworld nor when revisiting a cleared stage, and Stamps are now used as decorations for the new Snapshot Mode, which is similar to the one seen in Super Mario Odyssey.

Aesthetic

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The graphics and user interface in the Wii U version (top) and the Nintendo Switch version (bottom)

The user interface has received minor changes. The item storage has been revamped with a dark translucent circle and new button icons. The interior shadows and the “×” icon between the images and numbers in the UI for lives and coins have also been removed. The pause menus have a different interface, with the UI being smaller than in the original Super Mario 3D World.

Some of the visual effects have changed in terms of character movement. In some shallow pools of water, such as the beginning area of Pipeline Lagoon, characters now walk on the seafloor instead of floating on the surface of the water, and the camera stops following their movement while they are doing so. Another change to the underwater movement is that the cat scratch attack has a new animation when used underwater. All characters now have a brief start-up animation when beginning to walk that was not present in the original Super Mario 3D World. If a Captain Toad’s Adventures level is completed as a character in their small form, their victory pose is with their mouth open, instead of closed as in the original game.

Some of the colors have been changed compared to the original game. Button prompts are red with white characters, as opposed to white with red characters and outlines. When entering a Captain Toad’s Adventures level, the loading screen is red with dark red spots instead of white with red spots. The images of Stamps are now colored, rather than being black and white, and they are more spread out on the Stamps page.

A few visibility effects have been changed. A light source on top of the broken Koopa Chase in The Great Tower of Bowser Land has been removed, and the rain particle effect in said level is now slightly more visible. At the end of the swimming section in Champion’s Road, the Clear Pipe becomes invisible within the moving body of water.

Changes have been made to how text and icons are presented. The typeface used for menus and general text has changed from Seurat to Rodin NTLG, which belongs to the same font family as the typeface used in Super Mario Odyssey and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.[9] On the world map, the Sprixie Princess’ “Help!” text before a world’s castle is completed has been changed to “HELP!” During gameplay, touch input prompts now show only a hand, instead of a hand with the Wii U GamePad. The English version of the game always shows the American spellings and namings for all subjects, rather than having different spellings and namings for certain subjects depending on the game’s or console’s region.

In the original version, jingles in the following pitches play after collecting each Red Coin in a group of eight: C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G. This has been changed to a more natural progression: C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G.

Bowser’s Fury

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As a bonus addition to the port, Bowser’s Fury was added as a new campaign, starring as its own standalone adventure.

Story

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Mario investigating the trail of black goop

During a bright and clear day, Mario walks down a path in front of Peach’s Castle, near the same location where he found the broken Clear Pipe at the beginning of the main campaign. He notices small puddles of black goop on the path and follows them, eventually stopping at a mass of black graffiti shaped like Shadow Mario’s logo from Super Mario Sunshine. The graffiti expands to create a portal that Mario falls through, transporting him to Lake Lapcat, where a rainstorm is occurring.

Shortly after Mario lands, he encounters Bowser, who has become a larger and more powerful form known as Fury Bowser. Mario finds a Cat Shine in the surrounding area, which clears the goop off of a nearby lighthouse. Fury Bowser is blinded by the beam of light that shines from the lighthouse, and retreats into the Fury Sun in the middle of Lake Lapcat. Immediately afterward, several islands emerge from the water.

Mario falling into the portal

After Fury Bowser retreats, the storm clears and Mario finds a panicking Bowser Jr., who explains why Bowser transformed. He shows Mario a picture he painted of his father and paints it black with his Magic Paintbrush, showing that Bowser Jr. was the one who corrupted Bowser. He realizes that both he and his father are in trouble, reluctantly asking Mario to help him. The latter agrees to do so, with Bowser Jr. joining him for the rest of the adventure.

Mario and the kittens striking victory poses

Using the power of Cat Shines located throughout Lake Lapcat, Mario can make the Giga Bells active, which allow him to transform into Giga Cat Mario and fight Fury Bowser directly. After several battles, Fury Bowser expels all the black paint inside of and on him before being launched out of the water of the lake, but upon landing he transforms into Giant Bowser, summoning all three Giga Bells and trapping them in a crystal ball to keep for himself. With the help of Plessie, Mario rams into this ball to weaken and eventually break it, allowing both Mario and Plessie to collect all three Giga Bells at once. In this gargantuan form, they easily launch Giant Bowser into the sky by coming in contact with him.

Finally back to normal, Bowser falls from the sky and lands near Bowser Jr. and a few colorful kittens. The former two both become excited; however, after Bowser notices Mario, now in his normal-sized Cat Mario form, he becomes angered and attempts to attack him as Bowser Jr. holds him back. Once Bowser is dragged away, Bowser Jr. pauses and threatens Mario himself before leaving. Mario shrugs before being nuzzled by the kittens. As they jump in the air and freeze, the camera zooms out, revealing that the ground on which the scene took place was the back of Giga Cat Plessie, the form Plessie took after collecting all three Giga Bells simultaneously. The credits then roll, featuring various paintings by Bowser Jr. that depict the story from his perspective.

Gameplay

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The objective of the campaign is to free every island from the black goop that Fury Bowser is covered in by collecting Cat Shines across Lake Lapcat. However, at slightly varying intervals of several minutes, Fury Bowser emerges from the Fury Sun and begins to rampage. When this occurs, a rainstorm begins throughout the area, Disaster Spikes fall from the sky, and Fury Bowser attacks the entire lake with large beams of fire and fireballs. All kittens and Neko Parents on Lake Lapcat also become corrupted, and attack Mario if he approaches them. Fury Bowser returns to the Fury Sun either after a brief time or if a Cat Shine is collected, as the Cat Shine powers a nearby lighthouse, and the brightness of this light forces Fury Bowser to retreat.

Mario and Bowser Jr. collecting a Cat Shine

Extending the sandbox concept of Super Mario Odyssey, Lake Lapcat is a vast open-world setting, with more islands being gradually unlocked as Fury Bowser is defeated by Giga Cat Mario. Mario can run around the island, climb up lighthouses, and go between islands quickly by riding Plessie, who teleports around the water to stay close to Mario. Every island makes usage of Mario’s different power-ups and abilities. Throughout all islands, there are a variety of gameplay concepts, objects, and enemies from the main Super Mario 3D World campaign.

Giga Bells are situated in three different areas of Lake Lapcat, denoted according to the three major regions: the Lakeside, Ruins, and Wasteland. Each region contains four major islands, each with five Cat Shines, with various other Cat Shines located between major islands. The Giga Bells are corrupted due to the black goop, and can only be activated by collecting a certain amount of Cat Shines. When this happens, they will awaken during Fury Bowser’s rampages and can be collected by Mario to become Giga Cat Mario, who is then able to fight and damage Fury Bowser directly.

A minimum of 40 Cat Shines is required to finish the campaign. However, to complete it this way, Fury Bowser’s health must be lowered to less than 50% of its full value through collecting Cat Shines. If this is done before starting the fourth battle against him, it enables the player to defeat him during it. If Fury Bowser retreats during the fourth battle, the player must instead collect 50 Cat Shines to initiate the fifth battle.[10] If 47 Cat Shines are collected, Fury Bowser begins a rampage that does not end until the player collects 50 Cat Shines, awakens the Giga Bells, and defeats Fury Bowser for the final time. If he is defeated during his fourth or fifth battles, Bowser then transforms into Giant Bowser, and Mario must ride Plessie across the entire lake to chase him down. While avoiding Giant Bowser’s attacks, Mario can launch off of ramps with Dash Panels on them to hit and break the crystal ball protecting the three Giga Bells.

Giga Cat Mario claw swiping at Fury Bowser

After Giant Bowser is defeated and the credits are viewed, the game returns to the Bowser’s Fury title screen. The first time it is resumed after this, Bowser Jr. tells Mario that he was relaxing with Bowser on the lake until the latter turned back into Fury Bowser, requesting that Mario collect more Cat Shines to help restore peace. To thank Mario for helping, he then grants the ability to warp to islands he has already visited and marks the locations of new Cat Shines on the map. After this, Plessie permanently remains as Cat Plessie and gains the ability to carry kittens on its back.

If all one hundred Cat Shines are collected and Giant Bowser is defeated again, an additional painting by Bowser Jr. is shown after the credits; following this, Mario’s Cat Suit changes to look like a much smaller version of Giga Cat Mario, and Bowser Jr. and his Junior Clown Car become cat versions of themselves. Fury Bowser’s appearance also changes, as the orange sections of his spikes, belly, and eyebrows all turn white. However, all of these changes are purely visual.

Controls

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Mario controls identically to how he does in the Super Mario 3D World campaign. However, Bowser Jr. can also be controlled by a second player. His controls are shown in the table below.

Action

Dual Joy-Con or Pro Controller Controls

Single Joy-Con Controls

Move

Look around

Tilt

Reset camera

Press
Press

Attack; investigate graffiti spot

Fly up

Warp to Mario’s location

Playable characters

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Character

Description

Mario

The main playable character in Bowser’s Fury, and the only one to return from the playable cast in Super Mario 3D World. He controls identically to how he does in the main campaign, and can utilize power-ups to traverse Lake Lapcat and collect Cat Shines.

Bowser Jr.

The deuteragonist of the game, Bowser Jr. reluctantly helps Mario collect Cat Shines in an attempt to save his father from corruption. In single-player, he is an AI-controlled helper; the player can choose to have him help a little, a lot, or not at all. Alternatively, he can be controlled by a second player in two-player mode.

Unlike Mario, Bowser Jr. cannot use power-ups, but instead can fly freely in his Junior Clown Car, and use his Magic Paintbrush to attack enemies or reveal items from special graffiti spots on walls. Additionally, he can use a Ground Pound attack to defeat enemies from above, and he produces items the player selects from the item storage. Mario is able to jump on him up to two times after leaving the ground; attempting to do so a third time before touching the ground again will fail, however.

In single-player, the player can use the cursor (with touch or gyro controls) to send Bowser Jr. to any location on the screen by selecting it. He then swings his paintbrush once he reaches his destination. By doing this, the player can have Bowser Jr. collect items such as Cat Shine Shards and coins for them, as he collects these items on contact. Certain locations have a yellow glow while Fury Bowser is active, and Bowser Jr. points at them while they glow; the player can send him to these spots at any time to make him investigate, usually producing a small number of coins. The only item Bowser Jr. cannot interact with that Mario can are Cat Shines, which must be contacted by Mario to register as collected. If Bowser Jr. moves too far away from Mario in single-player, he automatically teleports back to Mario; in multiplayer, the second player can do this manually.

When all 100 Cat Shines are collected, Bowser Jr. gains a cat form and his Junior Clown Car gains whiskers, although both of these changes are cosmetic.

Supporting cast

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Enemies

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New

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Image

Description

Disaster Neko

All kittens and Neko Parents become corrupted when Fury Bowser begins rampaging. They chase Mario upon sight and can damage him upon contact. They can be stunned if Mario or Bowser Jr. attack them, and revert to normal when Fury Bowser stops rampaging.

Fury Shadows

Dark, goop-covered enemies resembling Luigi that Mario must chase to get a Cat Shine, much like Shadow Mario in Super Mario Sunshine. They must be hit three times to defeat them, and every time they are hit, they transform into a spiky black goop ball and dash away.

Cat variations

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While Bowser’s Fury does not introduce many new enemies, many of those that come from the Super Mario 3D World campaign are seen as cat versions of themselves. While they possess cat-like features, such as cat ears, fur, and tails, their behavior is identical to that of their normal counterparts, with the one exception being Cat Bullet Bills, which still home in on Mario. As such, Cat Goombas in Lake Lapcat do not have the abilities of Cat Goombas from Super Mario 3D World, and have their standard brown color.

Bosses

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Locations

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Lake Lapcat is split into three main regions, each represented by a Giga Bell. Each region contains four major islands, and each island has a lighthouse covered in black goop. By collecting a Cat Shine on any island, its power removes this goop. If Mario collects a Cat Shine, leaves the island, and returns at a later point, the layout of platforms and enemies will often be slightly changed to accommodate a newly available mission. However, upon returning, the goop on that island’s lighthouse also returns, and does not permanently disappear from a lighthouse until all five Cat Shines have been collected on its island. When this occurs, a Fling Pole appears atop that island’s lighthouse, with a cat variation of Mario’s Goal Pole flag attached to it.

There are a total of one hundred Cat Shines in the campaign, some of which can only be collected after completing the main story. Sixty Cat Shines are earned from the five different missions on each of the twelve major islands. Each island always contains a mission where five Cat Shine Shards must be collected, and a mission where Fury Bowser must break Fury Blocks with a fury blast. Other missions reappear throughout multiple islands, such as collecting Blue Coins from a P Switch, or using a key to open a Neko Kago. Thirty-five Cat Shines are earned throughout Lake Lapcat, which contains many individual Cat Shines not based in any island. Five Cat Shines are earned from a special golden island called the Lucky Isle, which only begins to appear after the main story is completed. It appears in one of five set locations during Fury Bowser’s rampages, and disappears when he stops rampaging. Mario must visit each of the five locations to obtain one Cat Shine each time.

Fury Bowser must be battled a total of five times to complete the story. To do so, Mario must collect enough Cat Shines to activate the Giga Bells he currently has access to. Each time Fury Bowser is defeated, the number of Cat Shines needed to activate the Giga Bells increases, from 5 initially to 15 to 20 to 40 and finally to 50 Cat Shines. However, to make collecting more Cat Shines easier, more islands rise out of the water and become available to explore upon defeating Fury Bowser for the first and third times.

While Fur Step Island is the first location visited in the campaign, only the first Cat Shine can be obtained before completing the main story. A large amount of black goop surrounds the area before this point, and an invisible barrier is present to prevent any attempt to bypass the goop. After the main story is completed and the player opens the save file again from the title screen, gameplay resumes on Fur Step Island, which is now clear of goop.

Table of locations

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* indicates that a Cat Shine is only available after seeing the credits once.

Items

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Support items

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Collectibles

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Objects

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Differences from Super Mario 3D World

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• Bowser’s Fury runs at a variable resolution in TV mode, which can drop to as low as 1280×720.
  • In handheld mode, gameplay runs at 30 frames per second.
• There are no lives in this campaign. Instead, a random power-up is given for every 100 coins collected. Mario loses up to 50 coins if he is defeated, similarly to Super Mario Odyssey.
• The HUD for the coin count is placed in the bottom-left corner of the screen rather than the top-left.
• Instead of the item storage holding a number of items corresponding to the number of players, the player can store a maximum of five of each item: Super Mushrooms, Super Bells, Fire Flowers, Super Leaves, Boomerang Flowers, and Lucky Bells. The Lucky Bell icon does not appear in the item storage until the player has stored at least one.
• The camera is fully controllable by the player.
• Only one or two players are supported instead of up to four players, and it does not support online or local wireless play.
• Mario is the only playable character in single-player. In multiplayer, the first player must play as Mario and the second must play as Bowser Jr., who appears exclusively in the Bowser’s Fury campaign.
• Mario has full 360-degree movement, instead of being restricted to eight directions.
• Plessie can turn around or stop moving and can be dismounted at any time. Plessie has the ability to dive underwater before jumping. There are also new visual effects for its high jump, which can be performed in single-player instead of requiring multiple players to jump simultaneously.

amiibo

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Cat Mario and Cat Peach amiibo

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury features amiibo support for all amiibo figures, with Cat Mario and Cat Peach amiibo figures launching alongside the game. Notably, it is the first Mario game that originated on the Wii U to have amiibo support exclusively for a Nintendo Switch port.

The player is granted a different item depending on which amiibo is scanned:

In Bowser’s Fury, amiibo cannot be scanned at any point before leaving Fur Step Island and teaming up with Bowser Jr.

Promotion

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Various pre-order bonuses, promotional merchandise, and special events became available with the game’s worldwide release. More images of them can be viewed in the game’s gallery.

The reusable water bottle promotion at Target

Both promotional GameStop posters

Pre-release and unused content

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Initial box art

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The pre-release version of the North American boxart

Because Bowser Jr. and Fury Bowser had not yet been confirmed to appear in Bowser’s Fury, the Bowser’s Fury section of the box art initially only contained the logo, while the section also took up a smaller portion of the box. Because of that, Cat Luigi appears on the pre-release box, but not on the final box.

Giga Mushroom

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The Giga Mushroom’s model

An unused power-up can be found in the game’s data, named KinokoGiga, which translates to Giga Mushroom. It is an angry and larger variation of the Mega Mushroom, with a color-inverted cap. As no major changes or new power-ups were added to Super Mario 3D World alone, the Giga Mushroom was most likely intended for Bowser’s Fury.[36]

Though its specific purpose is not clear, it transforms Mario into a gigantic version of Super Mario, an identical state to when Giga Cat Mario takes damage. However, the Giga Mushroom’s effect is under a time limit. While it may appear to be a more extreme version of the Mega Mushroom, one key difference is that Mario can still use other power-ups while in this form. Also, the camera does not zoom out when Mario obtains the Giga Mushroom, so only his legs can be seen and not his full body.[37]

Version 1.1.0

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Release date: February 11, 2021

• Fixed various issues to improve the overall gameplay experience.

Specific/unlisted changes

• Collecting 100 coins before leaving Fur Step Island only awards Super Mushrooms rather than any item.
• The shell duplication glitch has been patched.

Glitches

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In Bowser’s Fury, some Fling Poles allow Mario to handstand on them from far below their actual model.

Staff

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Although the credits list the staff in alphabetical order without specifying their roles, as in Super Mario 3D Land and Super Mario 3D World, the list includes several staff members from Nintendo Software Technology Corporation, the developer of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series.

Reception

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Critical response

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Critical reception of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury was mostly positive, with praise for the gameplay and creativity of both the original campaign and Bowser’s Fury, but criticism towards the stability of online multiplayer, the repetition of Fury Bowser’s appearances and battles, and the performance of Bowser’s Fury in handheld mode.

Cam Shea of IGN rated the game 7/10, noting that Super Mario 3D World retained “the entertainment value from the fact that each level is typically built around a unique gameplay twist”, but said that “the gameplay actually feels like a bit of an awkward fit for the presentation”. They also called multiplayer “chaotic and fun, but also haphazard”, and said that “3D World‘s levels feel much more appropriate for one – or possibly two – players”. When discussing Bowser’s Fury, they stated it was “quite cool seeing how the world is reinvented whenever Bowser blows his top”, but they “did get a little tired of the constant interruptions”, saying that “it quickly becomes apparent that fighting Bowser is an extremely repetitive way to restore the world”.

Chris Scullion of Nintendo Life gave it a 10/10, saying the main campaign was “absolutely packed with ideas”, but had issues with online multiplayer, explaining that “at the best of times there was some subtle lag (nothing major but enough to mess up the timing of some jumps) and at the worst of times there was more stuttering”. They described Bowser’s Fury as “sort of like what you’d get if you took a Super Mario 64 or Odyssey, shrunk its worlds down to tiny islands and put them all in a single large area, with no loading times or ‘hub world’ to separate them”. They called the addition a “fun little side adventure”, but noted that “there isn’t enough variety in the Shine missions”and that “the performance… also leaves a bit to be desired”.

Steve Watts of GameSpot rated the game 9/10, calling both campaigns “a candy confection of fine-tuned platforming that marries some of the best elements of 2D and 3D Mario in two very different ways”. They stated that online multiplayer was “a nice but not strictly necessary addition to the core game” that had “only the occasional moment of stutter”. They called Bowser’s Fury “the [Mario] series at its most experimental”, but questioned “if this is the kind of experiment that would work outside the narrow parameters of Bowser’s Fury and live on in other Mario games”. Despite “occasional frustrations”, they concluded that it was “a short-but-sweet and extremely zany curiosity”.

Reviews

Release

Reviewer, Publication

Score

Comment

Nintendo Switch

Cam Shea, IGN

7/10

“Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury packs a tonne of engaging gameplay, but neither component comes together as elegantly as it might have done. This is a solid option if you’re craving more Super Mario for your Switch, but it’s not the moustachioed must-play I was hoping for.”

Nintendo Switch

Chris Scullion, Nintendo Life

10/10

“Super Mario 3D World remains one of the better linear Mario games, and anyone playing it for the first time is in for an absolute treat. Add to that the curious bonus adventure that is Bowser’s Fury and you’ve got a package that provides great value for money. It isn’t without its flaws, but most of these (online multiplayer, repetitive missions in Bowser’s Fury) relate to the new additions; the main game itself remains as pure and perfect as it was seven years ago. Had it just been Super Mario 3D World on its own, we’d be thoroughly recommending it anyway; Bowser’s Fury is just the cherry on top.”

Nintendo Switch

Steve Watts, GameSpot

9/10

“Put together, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury is a spectacular package. Super Mario 3D World is an absolute joy of classic platforming excellence, and this is the best version of it thanks to some well-calibrated improvements. Bowser’s Fury is peculiar and less polished, but it dares to poke fun at its own oddities and it has a wild creative streak. The two share thematic similarities, but more importantly, they work hand-in-hand to show the full extent of versatility in what a Mario game can be.”

Aggregators

Compiler

Score

Metacritic

89

Awards and acknowledgements

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Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury was nominated for Best Family game at The Game Awards 2021, though it lost to It Takes Two.[38]

Sales

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In the United Kingdom, the launch sales of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury were more than three times the size of the Wii U version’s launch.[39] In the United States, physical sales alone made it the best-selling game of February 2021.[40] In Japan, the game sold more than 250,000 copies in its opening week.[41] The game sold over 4 million units worldwide in the first 6 weeks of its release. By March 31, 2021, it had sold 5.59 million units worldwide, nearly exceeding the original version’s lifetime sales.[42] By December 31, 2022, it had sold 10.82 million units worldwide.[43]

Gallery

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For this subject’s image gallery, see Gallery:Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury.

Media

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For a complete list of media for this subject, see List of Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury media.

References to other games

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References in other games

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• Mario Kart Tour: The Calico Parafoil’s design is a reference to the calico kittens in Bowser’s Fury.
• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: Giga Cat Mario, Fury Bowser and kittens appear as spirits, first becoming available during a Spirit Board event themed after Bowser’s Fury.

Names in other languages

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Language

Name

Meaning

Japanese
スーパーマリオ ３Ｄワールド ＋ フューリーワールド
Sūpā Mario 3D Wārudo + Fyūrī Wārudo
Super Mario 3D World + Fury World

Chinese (Simplified)
超级马力欧 ３Ｄ世界 ＋ 狂怒世界
Chāojí Mǎlì’ōu 3D Shìjiè + Kuángnù Shìjiè
Super Mario 3D World + Fury World

Chinese (Traditional)
超級瑪利歐 ３Ｄ世界 ＋ 狂怒世界
Chāojí Mǎlì’ōu 3D Shìjiè + Kuángnù Shìjiè
Super Mario 3D World + Fury World

Korean
슈퍼 마리오 3D 월드 + 퓨리 월드
Syupeo Mario 3D Woldeu + Pyuri Woldeu
Super Mario 3D World + Fury World

References

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