Honestly, it's been years since the Nintendo Switch launched, and we've seen dozens of "masterpieces" come and go, but Super Mario Odyssey still feels like it was released yesterday. It's weird. Usually, platformers have a shelf life where the gimmick wears off once you've seen the credits roll. Not this one. Bowser kidnaps Peach (again), tries to force a wedding, and Mario teams up with a sentient hat named Cappy. It sounds like the most basic Nintendo setup ever conceived, yet the execution is anything but basic.
The game is a fever dream.
You start in a monochrome world of hats and end up on the literal moon. In between, you're a T-Rex wearing a red cap. You're a flickering spark of electricity traveling through a wire. You're a Goomba stack trying to impress a lady Goomba. This isn't just a sequel to Mario 64 or Sunshine; it’s a total reimagination of what movement in a 3D space should feel like.
The Cappy Mechanic is the Secret Sauce
If you take Cappy out of Super Mario Odyssey, you’re left with a very polished, very pretty version of Galaxy. But Cappy changes the DNA of the franchise. It’s not just a weapon. It’s a literal bridge.
Expert players don't even touch the ground half the time. They throw the hat, dive, bounce off the hat, and reset their air momentum. It’s physics-defying stuff that Nintendo somehow made feel intuitive. You don't need to be a speedrunner to feel like a god, but if you want to be a speedrunner, the ceiling is basically non-existent.
The "Capture" system replaced the traditional power-ups. Instead of finding a Fire Flower, you just become the Fire Bro. It’s a brilliant solution to the "inventory" problem in platformers. Why give Mario a dozen gadgets when he can just inhabit the enemies that already have those powers? There are 52 unique captures in the game. Fifty-two. Most games don't have 52 enemy types, let alone 52 playable mechanics.
New Donk City and the Uncanny Valley
People freaked out when they first saw the trailer for New Donk City. Seeing Mario—this short, cartoonish plumber—running around next to realistically proportioned humans in suits was jarring. It looked like a mod. It looked wrong.
But then you play it.
You realize the city is a giant playground built for verticality. You’re jumping off taxis, swinging on poles, and listening to Pauline sing "Jump Up, Super Star!" It’s arguably the peak of the game’s design. It leans into the absurdity. It doesn't care that Mario looks out of place because, in the context of a "World Tour," he should look out of place. This is a game about being a tourist in a world that doesn't always make sense.
More Than Just Power Moons
Some people complain that there are too many Power Moons. There are 880 unique moons to collect (999 if you buy them from the shop). Sure, some are "filler." You ground pound a glowing spot, and boom, a moon.
But that's missing the point of the design philosophy.
Nintendo EPD didn't design Super Mario Odyssey to be a checklist. They designed it to reward curiosity. Every time you think, "I wonder if there's something behind that pillar," the game says "Yes, there is, and here is a shiny object to prove you're smart." It’s a constant dopamine drip.
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The real meat of the game is in the high-difficulty moons. The "Darker Side" of the moon is a marathon level that tests every single thing you've learned. No checkpoints. Just you, your hat, and a very long stretch of lava and lasers. It’s brutal. It’s also the most satisfying 15 minutes of platforming you'll ever experience.
The Nostalgia Trap Done Right
Nintendo is the king of nostalgia, but they usually wield it like a blunt instrument. In this game, it’s subtle. The 2D segments—where Mario enters a pipe on a 3D wall and becomes an 8-bit sprite—are genius. The music shifts to a chiptune version of the area’s theme. The physics change to match the NES era.
It reminds you where the series came from without feeling like a "Greatest Hits" album. It feels like a continuation.
Technical Wizardry on "Old" Hardware
Let's be real for a second: the Switch is basically a tablet from 2017. By all accounts, Super Mario Odyssey shouldn't look as good as it does. But Nintendo uses a dynamic resolution scaler that keeps the framerate at a locked 60 FPS.
In a platformer, 60 FPS isn't a luxury; it's a necessity.
The art direction carries the heavy lifting where the hardware can't. The textures on Mario’s denim overalls, the way the sand ripples in Tostarena, the food-themed world of Mount Volbono—it all pops. It’s a masterclass in "style over polygons." You don't need 4K ray-tracing when the world is this vibrant and the animation is this expressive. Mario actually reacts to the environment. He shivers in the cold, gets covered in soot if he's near an explosion, and dances when music plays.
Is it Better Than Breath of the Wild?
This is the big debate, right? Both games launched in 2017. Both reinvented their respective franchises.
Breath of the Wild changed how we think about open worlds. It was about silence, survival, and discovery. Super Mario Odyssey is about noise, joy, and density.
While Zelda is a vast ocean, Odyssey is a series of incredibly deep puddles. You can spend three hours in a single Kingdom and still not see everything. If you prefer a tight, focused experience where every square inch is packed with "content," Mario wins. If you want to get lost in the wilderness, Link wins. But the fact that we can even compare the two shows how high the bar was set that year.
Common Misconceptions and Frustrations
It's not perfect. Nothing is.
- Motion Controls: Nintendo really wanted you to shake the Joy-Cons. To do a homing throw or a circular throw, shaking is the "intended" way. It’s annoying if you’re playing in handheld mode. You can do most of it with buttons, but it’s not as fluid.
- The Difficulty: The main "story" is easy. Like, really easy. My five-year-old nephew beat Bowser. But the story is just the tutorial. The real game starts after the credits when the Mushroom Kingdom opens up and the "Post-Game" moons appear.
- Two-Player Mode: It’s... okay? One person plays as Mario, the other as Cappy. It’s great for playing with a younger kid, but it’s not a true co-op experience like Mario Wonder or 3D World.
Actionable Steps for New and Returning Players
If you're picking this up for the first time—or finally going back to finish that 100% save file—here is how you should actually approach it.
Master the Cappy Jump Early.
Don't just run and jump. Practice the "Cap Throw -> Dive -> Bounce" combo. Find a flat area in the Cascade Kingdom and do it until it’s muscle memory. It changes the entire game. Suddenly, you aren't looking for stairs; you're looking for gaps you can clear.
Ignore the "Main Path."
The game tries to guide you to the next story objective. Don't go. The moment you land in a new Kingdom, turn 180 degrees and walk the other way. The best Moons and the coolest secrets are always tucked away in the corners that the NPCs don't tell you about.
Check the Hint Toad and Uncle amiibo.
If you're stuck at 90% in a Kingdom and can't find those last few moons, use the in-game hints. There is no shame in it. Some moons are hidden behind "Talkatoo" clues that are basically riddles.
Buy the Outfits.
They aren't just cosmetic. Many moons are locked behind specific rooms that you can only enter if you're wearing the "local" outfit. Buy the sombrero in the desert. Buy the parka in the snow. Use your regional coins wisely because grinding for them later is a chore.
Talk to Everyone.
The NPC dialogue in this game is surprisingly funny and often contains clues about secret captures or hidden sub-areas. The world-building is actually quite dense for a Mario game.
Super Mario Odyssey remains the gold standard for 3D platforming. It manages to be a celebration of the past and a blueprint for the future all at once. Whether you're hunting for every last moon or just want to spend an afternoon as a tropical bird, it’s a game that respects your time and rewards your imagination. It’s pure, distilled fun. No battle passes, no microtransactions, just a plumber and his hat.