New Super Mario Bros. 2

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a 2D side-scrolling platform video game in the New Super Mario Bros. series developed by Nintendo for Nintendo 3DS. While being the third game in the series, it is a direct sequel to the 2006 Nintendo DS game New Super Mario Bros. and a follow-up to the 2009 Wii game New Super Mario Bros. Wii (which is a follow-up to the DS game), and it's also the first Nintendo-published game to be released simultaneously in both digital and physical forms. A follow-up to New Super Mario Bros. 2 (which also serves as a sequel to New Super Mario Bros. Wii), titled New Super Mario Bros. U, was released as a launch title for the Wii U on November 18, 2012, and later ported to the Nintendo Switch on January 11, 2019 as New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe.

New Super Mario Bros 2: Gold Edition, which contains both the base game, and all the DLC, released in 2014. This version of the game is only legally obtainable with specifically marked special edition Nintendo 3DS systems which have it pre-installed.

Good Qualities

 * 1) The graphics are amazing and appealing by 3DS standards for a game that was released in a year after its launch.
 * 2) The controls are great, and thanks to the inclusion of the circle pad on the 3DS, the characters are easier to control.
 * 3) It introduced the Gold Flower, which can turn Mario/Luigi into gold/silver and can turn anything into coins, as well as killing bosses in a few hits.
 * 4) Despite some of it being recycled from New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the soundtrack is still amazing, especially the title, staff roll and Flower, Mushroom and Star worlds themes.
 * 5) This is also the first game for the 3DS with multiplayer in Co-op mode by having two 3DSs and two copies of the same game.
 * 6) The level designs, ranging from simple to creative, are nicely designed and fun to explore around to the end of the stage.
 * 7) So many callbacks from the classic games, such as the colorful platforms from Super Mario Bros. 3
 * 8) * Some items from previous Mario games return, in which the most notable one to return is the raccoon leaf from Super Mario Bros. 3 (Not counting the tanooki leaf from Super Mario 3D Land.)
 * 9) ** The Mega Mushroom, which was absent in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, also returns in this game (despite only appearing in one or two levels).
 * 10) * The mini-bosses from Super Mario World named Reznors make a re-appearance as tower bosses again.
 * 11) The DLCs you purchase (or already included on certain 3DS systems with the game pre-installed) for Coin Rush Mode levels add more fun to it, despite them being paid DLCs, which cost half of the base game at launch when all of the bonus levels are bought together. However, as of late March of 2023, you can no longer purchase the DLC levels, and they will only be legally obtainable by purchasing the remaining New Super Mario Bros 2 edition 3DS units in the market that contain both the game and the DLC due to the eShop closure.
 * 12) This is the first 3DS game to be released simultaneously on both the Nintendo eShop and physical retail copies, and shortly after, all other Nintendo published physical games released before this game were re-released on digital.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The game is too easy, way easier than its predecessor. Since the game's objective is to collect coins, you get a lot of 1UPs and thus making the game harder to get a game over, or even die at all if you're really good at it.
 * 2) * The only thing harder in the game are the levels from the Impossible pack DLC which those levels are pretty challenging a la Mh:crappygames:Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels or troll user made levels created in Super Mario Maker or Super Mario Maker 2 as the name implies.
 * 3) Although the soundtrack is good, it re-hashed some of the soundtrack from New Super Mario Bros. Wii, except with different beats and "bah" sounds.
 * 4) The Toad houses are a downgrade compared to the last titles. There's no minigame: you simply walk in, get the power up you need laying in plain sight, then leave.
 * 5) Lackluster final boss against Bowser. Although the final battle is an improvement over that of New Super Mario Bros. DS (which is basically just the first boss with Bowser Jr. added in), it's literally a re-hash of New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
 * 6) * To add insult to injury, you have to fight this boss twice: once in World 6 as the final boss against normal Bowser, and again as the boss of the star world against Dry Bowser.
 * 7) ** Even worse, the fight with Dry Bowser is exactly the same as that against normal Bowser, with the only notable difference being the size of the platforms (they're much smaller in the Dry Bowser fight).
 * 8) In order to play as Luigi, you have to beat Bowser in World 6, rather than just simply playing as him in the beginning.
 * 9) Boss fights are hit-or-miss (such as the mentioned already Reznors (to add the salt on the wound, they appear six times with some minor changes (in the second and third fights, there are 4 of them, in the fourth and fifth there are two wheels (in the 4th time, Mario appears in the left, while in the 5th he is in the center) and in the last, there is a giant wheel with 8 platforms) and basically every Koopaling fight excluding Wendy and Ludwig).
 * 10) Collecting 1 million coins (the game's main goal) does nothing other than change the color of the title background to gold and a golden statue of Mario is added in the title screen.
 * 11) * Even worse, if you spend all that time collecting the maximum amount of coins (9,999,999), the statue simply changes to a golden Raccoon Mario.
 * 12) In multiplayer, the camera focuses on the same character for both players rather than having each player’s camera focusing on their own individual characters.
 * 13) * And to add an insult to injury in multiplayer, just as mentioned above, you cannot use Download Play unlike its predecessor if you don't own a copy of the game.
 * 14) The game's title is confusing to new players and it should have been "New Super Mario Bros. 3" because it is the third installment of the series. The second installment is in the Wii version of New Super Mario Bros. However, this makes a bit of sense, as this is supposed to serve as a direct sequel to the DS game.

Reception
New Super Mario Bros. 2 has received generally positive reviews. It holds an aggregated score of 78.40% on GameRankings and 78/100 on Metacritic. The game was given a 36/40 by Famitsu with 9s from all four reviewers. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game a 9/10, stating "This platforming perfection is what makes Mario games so fun, and in that regard, New Super Mario Bros. 2 definitely succeeds with its own share of secrets, collectibles, and branching pathways that can be unlocked depending on how you should advance through the game." NintendoLife gave the game 9 out of 10 stars, saying "It's immense fun, boasts brilliant level design and offers enough repeat play appeal to keep you glued to your 3DS system for weeks."