It could have been so different

Super Mario 3D Land director Koichi Hayashida took to the stage at Game Developers Conference and revealed some of the stranger ideas Nintendo's EAD team cooked up but ultimately left out of last year's platformer.

Among the oddball ideas were a pro skater Mario, where the plumber rode a Koopa shell around a half pipe; an elongated Mario with bizarre long limbs; enemy cockroaches that could be killed by shutting the 3DS and the ability to snap your own photo for Princess Peach's face. You can imagine the possibilities.

Hayashida said not all these ideas were seriously considered but had come out of early brainstorming sessions for the creative team. He said:

It reminds me of something important. We must always consider ideas outside the normal range from what people expect from a Mario game. We must make others laugh with strange new ideas. We have to keep a feeling of joy in the development process.

Despite the obvious pressure on the team to 'save' the 3DS with a Mario platformer, Hayashida said development was light-hearted and enjoyable. He said the team's mantra was "enjoying making something leads to making something enjoyable."

Our Super Mario 3D Land review would agree.

[source eurogamer.net]