We are just days away from the release of Super Mario Bros. Wonder on Switch and, as has become something of a tradition, Nintendo has today released the first two parts of an all-new 'Ask the Developer' interview series about the upcoming game.
The conversation covers a range of topics including how the team settled on the theme of 'wonder' and the changes that have been made to the game's visuals and sound design, but one section that immediately stood out to us was all about the influence that Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie had on the game. You might assume that the film's forecasted success (remember, both were in development around the same time) would have weighed heavily on the developer's minds, potentially even influencing the bros. new game designs; but, as it turns out, this was not the case.
When asked about the film's impact on Wonder's expressive character designs, the majority of the interview panel — which contains the likes of producer Takashi Tezuka, director Shiro Mouri and sound director Koji Kondo among others — answered in the negative. Art director Masanobu Sato explains that the team "didn't hear anything about the film's content during development", instead citing the ambition to exceed New Super Mario Bros.' 3D models as a more influential reason behind the fresh character designs.
In this game, Mario and his friends have richer facial expressions, and each character's movements are more animated. I can imagine The Super Mario Bros. Movie having had some influence on development. Was that the case?
Sato: We're often asked about the film's influence on the game, but we didn't hear anything about the film's content during development. I think Tezuka-san and Kondo-san were the only members here who knew the details.
I see. So the new elements are unrelated to the movie?
Sato: Yes. New Super Mario Bros. was the first 2D Mario game to use 3D models. The adoption of 3D models provided a natural change and was seen as a significant evolution in 2006 when it was released. In addition to the visual changes we incorporated back then, we wanted to implement more engaging and functional ways of using 3D models in this 2D platformer. Therefore, at an early stage of development, we set ourselves the goal of discovering how this could be achieved.
Tezuka builds on this response further, stating that while the new models were by no means influenced by the Mario Movie, the team was aware that the game would be receiving a new audience thanks to the film's success:
Tezuka: During development, we didn't know when the movie would be released, but we were sure some people would play the game because they watched the movie. This is why we were conscious of creating a game that wouldn't disappoint them. So for this game, we dedicated ample budget and time to create the characters with even more care and attention and in greater detail.
While the two may not have been reliant on each other, we are just pleased to see our favourite plumbing bros. looking that bit more expressive. It sure is a good year to be a Mario fan.
All told, the Ask the Developer interview is an interesting read, so we would recommend checking it out in full for a rundown of what went into many of the game's creative decisions. The first two parts of the interview are available to read on the official Nintendo site now and parts three and four will be going live tomorrow.