# Super Mario 3D World
**Super Mario 3D World** is a 3D platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the [Wii U](https://www.edgepedia.org/wii-u), first released on 22 November 2013 in North America and 29 November 2013 in Europe.[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) It blends 2D-style, goal-at-the-end level design with fully 3D movement, expanding on the approach of *Super Mario 3D Land* ([Nintendo 3DS](https://www.edgepedia.org/nintendo-3ds), 2011), and supports up to four players in cooperative play.[2](https://time.com/3545976/best-wii-u-games/) • [3](https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/super-mario-3d-world/0/0/) A revised Switch version packaged with a new adventure, *Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury*, followed on 12 February 2021.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original release | Wii U, 22 November 2013 (North America), 29 November 2013 (Europe)[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) |
| Wii U sales | 5.47 million units worldwide as of 31 December 2016; approximately 5.89 million lifetime by March 2026[6](https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/sale/software/wiiu.html) • [7](https://www.statista.com/statistics/516609/best-selling-video-game-wiiu-global-unit-sales/) |
| Playable characters | Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Toad, each with distinct abilities; Rosalina unlocks later[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) |
| Signature power-up | The Super Bell, which grants a cat suit with climbing and pouncing abilities[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) |
| Switch re-release | *Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury*, 12 February 2021, adding online play and the new Bowser's Fury adventure[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) • [8](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury/critic-reviews/) |
| Development team | About 100 people involved in development[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) |
## Gameplay and design
The game sends Mario and his companions through colorful courses to save the Sprixie Kingdom, with each stage ending at a goal rather than unfolding as an open world.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) Critics described the result as a hybrid of 2D and 3D perspectives that expands on the gameplay ideas of *Super Mario 3D Land*, with five playable characters (one unlockable) whose complementary special abilities nod to *Super Mario Bros. 2*.[2](https://time.com/3545976/best-wii-u-games/) Reviewers noted it is more similar to a 2D Mario game but done in 3D, feeling simultaneously fresh and nostalgic.[9](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/?jw_start=%7Bseek_to_second_number%7D&mobile-app=true&theme=falseCampfire)
**Multiplayer shaped the levels.** Four characters running on the same screen required wider levels than those of *3D Land* and a camera that could follow players focusing on different parts of the stage.[10](https://as.com/meristation/2021/02/10/analisis/1612958186_553486.html) Co-director Koichi Hayashida said the multiplayer was a remnant of a desire to include a multiplayer mode in *Super Mario 3D Land* that was never realized.[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) Scoring adds a competitive layer: the winner of a level is the player with the highest score, not the first to the goal, and Green Stars form a parallel, more demanding difficulty curve for players pursuing full completion.[10](https://as.com/meristation/2021/02/10/analisis/1612958186_553486.html)
The central power-up is the Super Bell, which grants a cat suit with a mid-air pounce and a quick scurry up vertical walls, letting designers hide secrets on almost any surface.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) • [11](https://www.engadget.com/2013-10-24-how-super-mario-3d-world-masks-co-op-in-chaos.html) Rosalina, added as a playable character shortly before launch, transforms into a black cat when wearing the cat suit, and any character performing a Ground Pound can steal another player's double powers.[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) Director Kenta Motokura said he included her to add another female character alongside Peach, noting her following among *Super Mario Galaxy* fans.[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) Diorama-style Captain Toad bonus stages within the game later spawned the standalone *Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker*.[12](https://www.gamesradar.com/games/the-legend-of-zelda/a-mario-dev-burned-the-handmade-diorama-he-used-to-pitch-a-zelda-game-because-shigeru-miyamoto-said-no-it-was-such-a-bad-memory-that-i-decided-to-let-it-die/)
## Development
The game was made by Nintendo's Tokyo Software Development Department, the team behind the 3D [Super Mario](https://www.edgepedia.org/super-mario) titles, which described it as a new form of 3D Super Mario.[3](https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/super-mario-3d-world/0/0/) In the Iwata Asks interview series, Nintendo president [Satoru Iwata](https://www.edgepedia.org/satoru-iwata) and producer [Shigeru Miyamoto](https://www.edgepedia.org/shigeru-miyamoto) questioned the developers about the project; co-director Hayashida described the game as feeling condensed and packed solid, and the team attributed that density partly to the roughly 100 people involved in development.[1](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world) Miyamoto considered the game a successor to *3D Land*, taking ideas from that game and raising them to the highest level imaginable.[11](https://www.engadget.com/2013-10-24-how-super-mario-3d-world-masks-co-op-in-chaos.html)
## Reception and sales
The Wii U original holds a Metacritic score of 93 based on 83 critic reviews, described as both gorgeous and about as enjoyable as a video game can be.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/?recent-sort=metascore) • [13](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/critic-reviews/) It ranked among the best-reviewed 3D platformers in history on Metacritic, behind *Super Mario Galaxy*, *Super Mario Galaxy 2*, *Super Mario Odyssey*, *ASTRO BOT*, and *Super Mario Sunshine*.[14](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/astro-bot-desafia-a-mario-estos-son-los-mejores-plataformas-3d-de-la-historia-segun-metacritic-n/) On a console with a small install base it still sold 5.47 million units worldwide by the end of 2016, making it one of the Wii U's best-selling titles behind *Mario Kart 8* and *New Super Mario Bros. U*.[6](https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/sale/software/wiiu.html)
## Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury
Nintendo re-released the game on Switch on 12 February 2021 as *Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury*, bundled with a new adventure.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) GamesRadar framed the port as a second chance for a game that never really got a fair shot on the poorly selling Wii U.[15](https://www.gamesradar.com/cheapest-nintendo-switch-game-sales-deals/) The Switch version adds online multiplayer, faster character movement, a quicker-charging dash, and Snapshot Mode for pausing and decorating screenshots; it supports up to four players locally or online.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) • [8](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury/critic-reviews/)
**Bowser's Fury** is a free-roaming adventure set on Lake Lapcat, an interconnected cat-themed world where a gargantuan, rampaging Bowser periodically attacks; Mario collects Cat Shines and teams with Bowser Jr., whom a second player can control, to calm him.[4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/)
The package has continued to receive support. Version 1.2.0 arrived on 3 June 2025, and a further update released around 30 September to 1 October 2025 optimized the game for [Nintendo Switch 2](https://www.edgepedia.org/nintendo-switch-2), improving image quality, frame rate, and adding HDR support in Bowser's Fury only, plus GameShare support for local or online sharing.[16](https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Support/Nintendo-Switch/Game-Updates/How-to-Update-Super-Mario-3D-World-Bowser-s-Fury-1920668.html) • [17](https://fr-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/70899/p/1095/c/120) • [4](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/) By 2024, Nintendo reported that the 3D Super Mario series on Switch, combining *Super Mario Odyssey* with *Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury*, had sold more than 42 million units.[18](https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2024/241106e.pdf)
## References
1. [Latest Iwata Asks Reveals More on Camera Angles, Rosalina and the Amount of Content in Super Mario 3D World, Nintendo Life](https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2013/11/latest_iwata_asks_reveals_more_on_camera_angles_rosalina_and_the_amount_of_content_in_super_mario_3d_world)
2. [The 5 Best Wii U Games Right Now, Time](https://time.com/3545976/best-wii-u-games/)
3. [Iwata Asks: Super Mario 3D World, Nintendo](https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/super-mario-3d-world/0/0/)
4. [Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Official Site](https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury-switch/)
5. [Super Mario 3D World Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/?recent-sort=metascore)
6. [IR Information: Top Selling Title Sales Units, Wii U Software, Nintendo](https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/sale/software/wiiu.html)
7. [Best-selling Wii U games by unit sales, Statista](https://www.statista.com/statistics/516609/best-selling-video-game-wiiu-global-unit-sales/)
8. [Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world-plus-bowsers-fury/critic-reviews/)
9. [Super Mario 3D World Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/?jw_start=%7Bseek_to_second_number%7D&mobile-app=true&theme=falseCampfire)
10. [Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, análisis, MeriStation](https://as.com/meristation/2021/02/10/analisis/1612958186_553486.html)
11. [How Super Mario 3D World masks co-op in chaos, Engadget](https://www.engadget.com/2013-10-24-how-super-mario-3d-world-masks-co-op-in-chaos.html)
12. [A Mario dev burned the handmade diorama he used to pitch a Zelda game, GamesRadar](https://www.gamesradar.com/games/the-legend-of-zelda/a-mario-dev-burned-the-handmade-diorama-he-used-to-pitch-a-zelda-game-because-shigeru-miyamoto-said-no-it-was-such-a-bad-memory-that-i-decided-to-let-it-die/)
13. [Super Mario 3D World critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/super-mario-3d-world/critic-reviews/)
14. [Los mejores plataformas 3D de la historia según Metacritic, AS MeriStation](https://as.com/meristation/noticias/astro-bot-desafia-a-mario-estos-son-los-mejores-plataformas-3d-de-la-historia-segun-metacritic-n/)
15. [Cheap Nintendo Switch game sales, GamesRadar](https://www.gamesradar.com/cheapest-nintendo-switch-game-sales-deals/)
16. [How to Update Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, Nintendo UK Support](https://www.nintendo.com/en-gb/Support/Nintendo-Switch/Game-Updates/How-to-Update-Super-Mario-3D-World-Bowser-s-Fury-1920668.html)
17. [Comment mettre à jour Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, Nintendo Support](https://fr-americas-support.nintendo.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/70899/p/1095/c/120)
18. [Sales Volumes for Mario Related Titles on Nintendo Switch, Nintendo IR](https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2024/241106e.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Video games and digital play › Games and gameplay › Franchises and series › Nintendo-owned franchises › Super Mario franchise*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 19, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license