As close as we can get for now

After Super Mario Bros. 3 it took the Tanooki tail years to make a resurgence, appearing in both Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7, but it's not the only retro power-up from the game overdue a revival.

IGN recently spoke to Super Mario 3D Land director Koichi Hayashida about the game and asked about the legendary Kuribo's shoe, one of the oddest power-ups in Mario's history. It turns out Hayashida actually wanted to bring the boot back in a recent plumbing outing:

Our team always considers bringing back elements of past outings. I myself proposed bringing back Kuribo's Shoe for Super Mario Galaxy, but tragically, my idea was rejected by the director, Mr. Koizumi.

We would much rather have had Kuribo's shoe than spring Mario, but those dreams were tragically denied.

What other past power-ups are ripe for a return?

[source uk.ds.ign.com]