Super Mario 3D Land is the first proper Mario platform game to be released on Nintendo's 3DS portable platform. It started off as a two-man project, and eventually there were no more than 30 people working on it at any one time, according to Shigeru Miyamoto. After only two years in development, has Super Mario 3D Land turned into the sort of adventure that can stand proud alongside the superb Super Mario Galaxy 2? Cubed3's UK review gives the answer.

Last year saw Nintendo celebrate 25 years of Mario’s existence. The company milked the birthday event by pushing its back catalogue of Nintendo DS Mario-related releases, unleashing a port of Super Mario All-Stars on Wii, as well as launching a sequel to Super Mario Galaxy. Super Mario Galaxy 2 was by far one of the greatest products of 2010, yet unfortunately 3D Mario does not quite have the same mass-market appeal as traditional, old school 2D side-scrolling Mario. Therefore, despite focus being placed on its 2D elements, Super Mario Galaxy 2 was not a patch on New Super Mario Bros. Wii in the sales stakes. With this in mind, Nintendo has gone back to the drawing board for its first Mario outing on 3DS, incorporating as many heritage platform antics as possible, whilst giving the whole package a lick of three-dimensional paint and hoping to draw both groups of fans towards the one game, Super Mario 3D Land. Quite how well the amalgamation of styles works is a key question, though...

jesusraz via cubed3.com »