Nintendo is having a great time at E3 2017 with Super Mario Odyssey, the latest game in the series available as a playable demo at the Los Angeles event. The Nintendo Switch title comes out this October 27, and it is a fresh take on traditional platformers.
The Nintendo Spotlight briefing saved Odyssey for last, and with good reason. The new installment of the iconic franchise is set to be a zany adventure that pumps up the Switch’s sales just in time for the Holiday season.
Other titles from signature Nintendo games are coming to the console soon as well, including Pokémon, Yoshi, Kirby, and even Metroid. Third parties are not too far behind, with Rocket League and Skyrim also debuting later this year.
Super Mario Odyssey will be a non-linear, open-world adventure
Nintendo had a lot to tell its fans at E3 2017, and a lot of that info was focused on clarifying notions about the next big Nintendo Switch hit. For starters, it will be up to players to decide in which order they explore the open world of Super Mario Odyssey.
The game does have a plot and an ultimate goal, but the immediate alternative is just exploring and unlocking the many worlds or Kingdoms, as they are referred to in Odyssey, to give players a great experience at home or on the go.
Super Mario Odyssey’s story is one you might be familiar with. Bowser has kidnapped Princess Peach and plotted a forceful marriage far, far away from the Mushroom Kingdom.
As you might expect, it is up to Mario and the Odyssey, his Victorian-style ship in this installment of the series, to track down Peach and save her from Bowser’s claws. The aircraft runs on Power Moons, which are found all over the Kingdoms and need to be collected to unlock new areas.
Mario’s Cappy is a weapon, a tool, and a protagonist
Nintendo’s twist on the franchise this time over focuses on newly-given functionality to an element that has always been a part of Super Mario games: Mario’s cap. Called Cappy, it now serves more purposes than just covering the plumber’s head.
Cappy is a weapon that Mario can throw at enemies to defeat them. Mario can also use Cappy as a platform that stays in place for him to jump on and reach higher, farther places. Moreover, Cappy is sentient, and it is rumored it plays a bigger role in the story of Odyssey (the ship is shaped like a top hat, after all).
But by far the most interesting thing Cappy can do is possess inanimate objects, foes, and random people in the street. Mario can turn into spark that travels up through an electrical line, into a businessman to take a cab, or into a giant dinosaur just for the sake of it.
Clothing is also a dynamic element in Super Mario Odyssey, which is why there are several Crazy Cap shops spread across the Kingdoms. There, Mario can use coins to purchase outfits he might need to explore certain areas, as they will give them different abilities that the plumber suit doesn’t have.
Producer Yoshiaki Koizumi and director Kenta Motokura have said that there are multiplayer elements included in the game, but that they are not ready to talk about that yet. Furthermore, they have confirmed that different Amiibo will unlock new suits and powers for Mario in the upcoming title.
Super Mario Odyssey launches this October 27 for the Nintendo Switch along with three new Amiibo figures: Mario, Peach, and Bowser, all in their white wedding attires.
Source: Nintendo