There’s something to be said about the longevity of the Mario franchise, given it is still one of the main driving forces for Nintendo after 40-plus years. It first made an appearance as a quirky 2-D platformer and, while the essence of the series has very much remained the same, we’ve seen a plethora of upgrades over the years to coincide with technological advances that have made the original near-unrecognisable compared to today’s product. In their latest instalment of the iconic franchise, Mario v Donkey Kong, Nintendo go right back to their stylistic roots, but perhaps in a time that has outgrown the original.
Mario v Donkey Kong opens with a cutscene that tells the tale of the game, whereby a greedy and erratic DK can’t get his hands on one of the new trendy Mario toys. Naturally, as any reasonable person/primate would, he storms the factory where the toys are being made and steals all of them. Of course, Mario won’t stand for that and sets out to retrieve the toys and, I assume, save Christmas.
The gameplay is consistently structured to give you a very classic Mario feel that will almost take you back to the days of frequenting an arcade with a pocketful of coins. You’ll utilise a small number of abilities to climb, jump and crawl your way through an array of themed worlds as you hunt for the stolen toys. Of course, you’ll be met with plenty of enemies that you can jump on and even pick up, but, unfortunately, there won’t be any secret pipe levels this time around.
One facet of Mario v Donkey Kong that will really stand out to players is its accessibility. No matter your age, skill level, or gaming experience, you can pick up a Switch, boot up this game and have the controls downpat within minutes. The gameplay is very user friendly and the level structures are consistent enough to know what’s coming next. But for those die-hard fans pining for the next step in the evolution of the moustached man in red, this might fall a little short of expectations.
With that said, the ease with which you can master the controls of Mario v Donkey Kong lets you focus on what really matters - getting immersed in another Mario experience. The visuals, mechanics, and overall feel of the game just ooze that classic Mario charm. Every facet of the game combines like a well-balanced recipe, managing to delicately juggle those feelings of nostalgia that come with experiencing another 2-D platform instalment of the franchise while also giving it the modern feel we’ve grown to expect and love about the newer titles.
While the rigid structure might give Mario v Donkey Kong a cosy feel to it, I found the repetition to be a little irritating after the first few worlds. The game kicks you off with six two-stage levels where you collect Mario toys, followed by a seventh level where you lead the toys to a chest, and the eighth and final resulting in a battle with DK himself. While this is all well and good, seeing this structure repeated across the majority of the game got off-putting and I found it difficult to continue playing at times. Unfortunately, the differences between the worlds just weren’t enough to get me excited about the next stage in the game’s progression.
Perhaps the only other gripe I had with Mario v Donkey Kong was the difficulty settings. While I don’t fancy myself the supreme overlord of gaming, the “challenging” mode didn’t really pose much of a challenge. The casual gamer would breeze through the game and boss battles without breaking too much of a sweat, with the only real challenge being getting perfect results on all the levels. Which, aside from the DK boss fights, is pretty achievable for just about anyone.
Despite its shortcomings, Mario v Donkey Kong is still a decent addition to the franchise, as we all expected. The Mario series has always been good and rarely disappoints, however in this case the failure to innovate in the latest instalment does leave the experience feeling a little lacking. It’s not likely that this latest chapter will be a particularly memorable one in the fabled saga.
What you see is what you get in Mario v Donkey Kong, which is pretty consistent in what the franchise has offered to its adoring fans and their kids, and probably what they will offer their kids and grandkids too. Nintendo keeps it simple, maybe a little too much this time, but there’s no denying the immortality of this little platformer’s charm.
