New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe

New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe is a Switch compilation of the 2012 Wii U game along with its expansion New Super Luigi U, offering shorter and harder versions of the same levels with Luigi as the playable character. The base game sticks to the tried-and-tested formula of classic 2D Mario platformers -- Bowser has once again kidnapped Princess Peach, and Mario and friends make their way through a series of themed worlds ranging from grassy plains through deserts to icy kingdoms, collecting coins, star coins, and bonus items like the Super Acorn, which grants a brief flight.

The Switch version added the new playable Toadette, who transforms into the powerful Peachette after collecting a Super Crown and gains her own abilities, and offers a slightly gentler difficulty for newer players thanks to Nabbit, a damage-immune companion. The game's structure rests on a connected world map with branching paths, hidden exits, and towers, so even a linear progression leaves room to search for secret routes. The game supports up to four players locally in a chaotic cooperative mode, where cooperation easily tips into comic frustration as characters collide with or knock each other off the screen; the Deluxe version, however, keeps groups with children together more easily thanks to damage-immune characters and bubble revival.

Although it is more of a solid, competently crafted platformer without major innovations over earlier entries in the series, its accessibility, compact length, and affordable price made it a popular choice for families with children and for players seeking an undemanding yet well-crafted platforming experience both on the go and on the TV. The included New Super Luigi U also offers more experienced players a considerably steeper challenge thanks to Luigi's higher jump and the shortened time limits on individual levels, turning each of them into a brief, intense test of precision. In hindsight, Deluxe closes out the New Super Mario Bros. era -- cleanly, reliably, and without any ambition to surprise, something only Super Mario Bros. Wonder would remedy a few years later.