Super Mario Odysseyis the most successful mainlineMariotitle sinceGalaxy, which was made a full decade earlier. After an era of repetitiveNew Super Mario Bros.sequels and safely designed games likeSuper Mario 3D LandandSuper Mario 3D World, Mario lived up to his reputation of being an innovator with his debut on the Switch. It captured the attention of fans and newcomers worldwide, and is arguably responsible for the mainSuper Marioseries not being overshadowed by spin-offssuch asMario Kartin the 2010s.
Super Mario Odysseyalready has a legacy for future titles to live up to. Pauline returned and became a regularMariocharacter in spin-offs, Cappy became one of the series’ most beloved companions, and the game’s soundtrack is up there with other 3D games likeSuper Mario 64and the aforementionedGalaxy. WithThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2on the way, a sequel toMario Odysseyis not an absurd possibility. If it were to happen, Nintendo should take a cue from other modern projects includingBreath of the Wild 2by makingMario Odyssey 2darker than its average fare.
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Mario Odyssey and Edgier Nintendo Games
The Switch represents a turning point for Nintendo. Nowadays, third-party games, including M-rated titles, are expected to come out on Nintendo consoles. While Nintendo has hosted such content for over two decades thanks to games likeConker’s Bad Fur Day,Eternal Darkness, andNo More Heroes, Nintendo’s own works are more lighthearted than most. This is fine as a part of the company’s identity, but a lot of Nintendo’s fanbase consists of adults who would enjoy a darker spin on an otherwise family friendly concept. The people working at Nintendo seems to have understood thatwithThe Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask.
However, there are no mainlineMariogames with dark content to compare. This can be seen as a positive. Due to the lack of blueprints, a hypothetical project likeSuper Mario Odyssey 2could show the world what a darkerMariois like. The Mushroom Kingdom is a colorful and friendly society on the outside, even ingames likePaper Mario, but its eccentricities provide developers with a lot of material to potentially twist.
There are some difficulties when tackling an idea like this. A darker version of theMariouniverse is not that original, as spin-offs -especially theMarioRPGs- explore familiarMariocharacters and species in a darker world. Some, likeSuper Paper Mario, were infamous for their more disturbing moments. Nintendo should not aim to replicate the success of its flagship series’ spin-offs, as they were a product of their times and mediums.
A darkerMarioOdyssey should instead take advantage of its locales. Being aMariogame, new worlds to explore will be inevitable. The game should reveal a different side to the main series staples. Power-ups like the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower,and even the companion Cappy; enemies like Boos and Lakitus; and even the typical grassy, desert-like, or aquatic levels could be given more somber characterizations.
If it even exists,Super Mario Odyssey 2may come outin a few years. This gives Nintendo more time to be experimental with heavier themes and content in its otherwise family friendly series. A darkerMarioplatformer does not need to take the same characters and world, make them gloomy, and strip them of their personalities. However, it should take what players are comfortable with and make said elements more sinister. It could be aMariospin on surprisingly freaky games, not an edgy romp withMarioaesthetics painted on.
