Nintendo finally announced the next big Mario game as part of its Nintendo Direct in June 2023, after a long wait for a fully new game featuring its world-famous mascot.
The game is called Super Mario Bros. Wonder and is a return to side-scrolling with some fun new twists and inventive touches - here are all the key details on what's immediately one of our most-anticipated Switch games.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder release date
We don't have to wait too long at all for Super Mario Bros. Wonder - Nintendo announced it complete with a release date of 20 October 2023.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder pre-orders
You should be able to pre-order Wonder on the eShop very soon, so get going if you want to ensure you have it the second it releases!
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Super Mario Bros. Wonder can be pre-ordered now!
Super Mario Bros. Wonder platforms
Wonder is, unsurprisingly, going to be exclusive to the Nintendo Switch, and won't be coming to any other platforms at launch.
That said, with loads of rumours pointing to some sort of new hardware in 2024, and given how many Wii U games have made it onto the Switch, we would make a side bet that Wonder will also come to the next Nintendo console pretty quickly.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder gameplay
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is a side-scrolling Mario game in the old-school sense, so you'll almost always be moving from left to right through a series of levels that test your platforming abilities.
We know there will be an overworld set in the all-new Flower Kingdom that we can move around to enter those levels as well as start side activities, and the game will support up to four players in co-op.
There are plenty of characters to play, too - Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Yoshi, Mario, Luigi, Toad and Nabbit are all confirmed (with Yoshi and Nabbit offering easier difficulty features).
We also know about a few new powerups, from the Elephant Mode option to turn into a heavy elephant version of your character, to a bubble powerup that lets you blow bubbles at enemies and to jump off, and a drill hat that lets you drill through obstacles.
The game will see Mario investigating new Wonder Flowers that turn the world extremely weird and have unexpected effects, so we're hoping that there could be some seriously inventive new levels to explore as the game goes on.
We'll be hunting down Wonder Seeds during levels, instead of stars, gems or other rewards, and we're assuming there will be plenty of carefully hidden Seeds to sniff out in the many levels the game includes.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder trailers
The first trailer for Wonder came during a Nintendo Direct, and is a bit of a joyful thing to watch, as you can see below or in the embedded Tweet further up.
It might not be the longest trailer, but it's jam-packed with details and reveals - but not as many as were covered by a dedicated Nintendo Direct at the end of August 2023, which you can watch below (from the 29:30 mark).
It showcased a whole bunch of gameplay changes and interesting reveals that make Wonder look like a total must-have for Switch owners.