Super Mario Run | Cheerful Ghost

New Game Mode, Levels, and Daisy As a Playable Character Coming to Super Mario Run September 29

A couple weeks back, Super Mario Run dropped off of the App Store, leading to speculation as to why. It came back with an update for "bug fixes" a little while later. In that time, one player claimed to have received an update with a new game mode. Presumably, the update was released earlier, was taken down to prevent more people playing it, and the bug fix update was to get the few people who got it back to the pre-update state.

The big news from that rumor was a new mode. Here's what the source said at the time:
When starting up X 10 Run for the first time, players are told that Princess Daisy is in trouble, and it’s up to the player to rescue her. X 10 Run asks for... Read All A couple weeks back, Super Mario Run dropped off of the App Store, leading to speculation as to why. It came back with an update for "bug fixes" a little while later. In that time, one player claimed to have received an update with a new game mode. Presumably, the update was released earlier, was taken down to prevent more people playing it, and the bug fix update was to get the few people who got it back to the pre-update state.

The big news from that rumor was a new mode. Here's what the source said at the time:
When starting up X 10 Run for the first time, players are told that Princess Daisy is in trouble, and it’s up to the player to rescue her. X 10 Run asks for Toad Rally Tickets to allow you to play, and consists of 10 quick, 10-second levels where the player collects three rainbow coins before reaching the Goal Pole. The more rainbow coins collected, the closer the player gets to a chance to hit a giant Rainbow ? Block that gives bigger items to be used in Kingdom Builder, such as Toad Houses. As far as our source could tell, there was no penalty for not collecting all three coins — you were rewarded just for completing the levels.

Up until now, this was just rumor, and I didn't want to write about it and get people's hopes up. But now, let me proceed to get your hopes up! It appears that the rumors were true. Apple dropped some news today about the new update, coming September 29.

Amongst the new features:

A new game mode (Remix 10) in which you go through quick mini-levels in order to save Daisy.

Daisy as a playable character, once you save her in the aforementioned mode.

A new world with nine more levels to explore.

New items to build in your world.

Other neat stuff.

Since the news is only available on the App Store in iOS 11, someone was kind enough to screencap the full announcement:
https://imgur.com/a/Db6fw

And since that rumor is confirmed, here's the original report about what the one player who has played it experienced. Since this was released earlier than planned, things may be different from what this person experienced, but it should give you a good idea:
https://nintendowire.com/news/2017/09/05/rumor-new-mode-coming-super-mario-run/

Also, if you've been holding off on unlocking the full game, wait until September 29. There's a 50% off sale starting then, and lasting for two weeks!

Super Mario Run Coming To Android In March

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C2fUhy8UcAAwEYR.jpg

If you are waiting for Super Mario Run to drop on Android soon you might be a bit disappointed to hear it's coming in March. You can pre-register for it on the Google Play store now to get notified when the game finally ships if you are eager to be notified the moment it is available. The Android launch is somewhat odd timing as March is also the month the Switch launches. I'm curious if Nintendo's mobile apps will come to Switch at some point like Pokemon Go, Super Mario Run and Miitomo? Since the Switch has a touch screen it seem technically possible so it's just a matter of porting.

https://twitter.com/Nintendo/status/821859181435027461

My Review of The First Level of Super Mario Run

https://s.aolcdn.com/dims5/amp:5f65771cd0296d459c776b1a57480ab3f7690509/q:100/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fo.aolcdn.com%2Fhss%2Fstorage%2Fmidas%2F3db5f3a48488accac1d993d05a5f2669%2F204297987%2Fmarior4un3.jpg

Nintendo dropped it's second mobile offering on iOS last week and it's great. Super Mario Run is just the right amount of Nintendo polish and classic Mario game play feel to make it a near home run. It suffers from a few things I don't love though like it's always on DRM and in game store. I don't mind DLC or buying things in game for the most part, but it seems the Toad Rally being ticket gated and the only way to unlock tickets is limited in game to completing levels seems a bit strange. That said, if you focus on the core game, it's fantastic and so far I've only played the first level.

Super Mario Run is a free to download game that comes with the first three... Read All

scrypt Supporter wrote on 12/19/2016 at 07:05pm

One of the biggest problems I have with Super Mario Run is the perpetual downloading of game data. The game size listed on it's App Store page is 173mb. I've played through the entire demo, and have since run into two instances where game data was being downloaded, increasing the games size (so far) to just over 345mb. That's just the demo levels. It's not the size, but the multiple instances of waiting for the game to... I don't even know what it's doing. Updating? I've already played through all the levels, so it can't be downloading any new textures or sounds. Whatever it is, it's weird and annoying. Nintendo is really good at weird and annoying. But they're also good at cute and nostalgic. It's Mario, for better or worse. Once you pass the first couple levels, play the Rally, and see the loop that their driving toward, then it all just feels like a really lazy way for Nintendo to make another small fortune. A mobile experience worthy of a $10 price tag, this is not. At least not by what's on show in the demo (I didn't fork out the money, so I'm only speaking relative to the demo). It's not boring, but I also found it to be uninteresting. Or at least, not as interesting as I was hoping it would be, for a Mario game.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 12/19/2016 at 08:49pm

I'm in agreement with scrypt. I don't have an iphone myself, but I went into an Apple store and tried out the demo. It was fun, but I can't see it being $10 worth of fun.

I wonder if the extra downloads were simply more levels to play, to have ready if you did buy the game?

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 12/19/2016 at 09:26pm

I bought the whole game and have already gotten $10 of enjoyment out of it.

I have only had to do the extra data download once, when the game started. I have not seen it since, and I have played all 24 levels.

Jon, there are multiple ways to get more tickets. There are a few bonus games that unlock every 8 hours that can get you more tickets. Also, you get tickets when you finish a level (like you said) and collect all 5 of the special color coins for a level. Right now I am sitting at 51 tickets and have already done 66 Rallies.

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 12/19/2016 at 10:09pm

Value is an interesting proposition. Someone may buy a game bundle for $10 and spend no time playing the games and think it was a good purchase, whereas someone else may not. Based on what I've played of the game so far(1 level) I think the $10 would be worth it but I've dropped a couple hours on that one level.

Bonus games that unlock every 8 hours for more tickets? Huh, well that's something but I still think the ticket thing is strange.

Travis Admin wrote on 12/19/2016 at 10:51pm

I really dislike how building your kingdom is dependent on the rallies, which are competitive, REpetetive, and can result in losing resources if you lose the rally. Toads from your kingdom come to cheer you on, but if you lose they'll leave. It's the kind of thing that you'd expect to see in a free-to-play game to encourage you to spend money on microtransactions, but there are no microtransactions here. I wish the rallies weren't required to get access to extra levels. You can build pipes and rainbow roads to take you to other levels but that requires a lot of grinding.

Plus on a few occasions I've been unable to play at all because of the online requirement, and I've even lost progress a couple of times. The rallies obviously need a connection, but there's no reason to lock out the main game. There are some cases when I'd normally play mobile games that I'm unable to, because the reception is hit-or-miss in those areas.

But the "Journey" mode where you play through six worlds of four levels is really fun. For an endless runner it's solid, probably the best I've played. I don't love re-grinding the levels to collect different colors of coins, but it does add replay. But more levels would also provide replay value and be far more interesting.

I'm not sure it was worth the $10, but at the same time I don't have any regrets for spending that money. I will say that the first three levels in the demo are not representative. A better representation would have been 1-1, 2-1, and 3-1. Things get more complex and interesting after the demo.

Also yeah, I've played the whole thing and I only got the extra download the first time I launched it. Scrypt I imagine you might have some other issue there.

Travis Admin wrote on 12/19/2016 at 11:18pm

Couple corrections:

1. It's called "Tour" not "Journey."

2. I was wrong about the pipes-- those don't require rallies, just pink/purple/black coins. The rainbow roads do require rallies.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 12/19/2016 at 11:37pm

Strange that I've experienced two distinct "data downloading" sequences. Maybe it was my connection?

I do like the Tour mode. That's enjoyable enough. All the other stuff reminds me too much of the Miitomo experience of playing mini-games to unlock cosmetics (which, for me, got boring after a while).

One of the reviewers in the App Store mentioned disappointment in the Rally mode, and said that it would have been cool if it was instead a challenge mode where you play other players created maps (similar to Super Mario Maker), and I totally agree. I'd pay $10 for that.

Travis Admin wrote on 12/20/2016 at 04:04am

Damn: http://www.wsj.com/articles/nintendo-shares-fall-after-super-mario-run-disappoints-1482142448

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 12/20/2016 at 05:03am

Huh. I didn't really look at the app store reviews but it's sitting at a 2 1/2 stars. That does seem quite low for a Nintendo game. Mobile is a tough crowd.

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 12/22/2016 at 07:40pm

I have been playing a shit ton of rally. It is probably my favorite part of the game at this time.

Travis Admin wrote on 12/22/2016 at 08:25pm

The problem I have with rally is that your progress can be entirely halted by how well other people have played the levels in what amounts to single player. You're competing against the "ghost" of runs past. So I'll play and do really well and get 50 or so new toads then do less well or get outplayed by the ghosts of other players and lose nearly all of them. It's just frustrating. Halting progress is commonplace in video games, but *losing* progress, in a world building segment of a game, because you did poorly in a faux-multiplayer segment, just seems weird.

So since the game stops showing you players who are less than a few toads lower than you, we'll play up to a point where we can't progress, because everyone above us is better than we are.

I wanted to see what the princess cake unlockable was all about so I watched a youtube video. A guy with almost perfect runs was having a little trouble gaining the toads he needed because everyone with more toads was so damn good.

But I keep playing it because I have so many tickets. Your max is 99 and I've hit that a couple times. And with those bonus games that are easy to unlock you basically have infinite tickets. So why have tickets at all?

And plus I'd like to unlock the remaining two characters.

I guess the one thing I don't dislike about the rally is the actual gameplay-- the randomized chunks of levels makes for good replay, but the fact that you're playing against someone is a frustration for the above reasons.

scrypt Supporter wrote on 12/22/2016 at 09:11pm

Funny. I was just reading about a similar situation, in a completely different game. Certain elements of the game are trapped behind a skill-wall. Some players are obviously better than others, or become so over time, but to the point that those rewards are all but unattainable to the average player. The average player will eventually stop playing, because the only alternative is constant defeat and frustration. Half the people say that this is ultimately a design flaw, while the other half simply say "Get good." I'm in the "design-flaw" category, especially if the mechanic is in anything other than an e-sports game. Achievements/Trophies are the exception, because the accumulation (or futility) of these types of rewards has no bearing on the in-game experience.

Racing against someones ghost in Super Mario Run can be fun, but with in-game currency on the line, it becomes more like gambling, except that you have no say in the stakes. What would be a better solution for this problem? Maybe allowing you to wage a certain number of Toads before the race?

Travis Admin wrote on 12/22/2016 at 09:15pm

I'd say something even as simple as only losing half as many from a loss would give you the opportunity to progress a little further but the problems still persist.

Combine that with total random opponents instead of those ranked higher with you, and your chances of advancing go up while your losses are minimized.

You still have risk, you still have reward.

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 12/22/2016 at 09:22pm

I love racing against the ghost. I also don't mind losing toads. It knocks you back so you can win again! It all works for me. :)

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Super Mario Run Drops December 15th for $9.99 on iOS

Sorry Android friends, Super Mario Run is coming out on iOS exclusively(for now) on December 15th. Super Mario Run should eventually come out on Android but for now it seems to be exclusively iOS. Originally Nintendo said the game would cost money and not be free to play and today they let us know that Super Mario Run will debut for $9.99. You will be able to download the game at no cost and try it out but if you want the full meal deal you will have to pay a full meal price. I have seen some people complain that $9.99 is too much for a phone game and if Super Mario Run was as bad as most mobile games i've played then it really wouldn't be. That said, if the game... Read All

Travis Admin wrote on 11/16/2016 at 06:51pm

It depends. An endless runner for $9.99? It'll have to do something really unique or provide a lot of value for $9.99. If it's just Temple Run without the microtransactions it's definitely not worth $9.99.

Travis Admin wrote on 11/16/2016 at 06:52pm

Also, Nintendo's VP of Marketing is named Doug Bowser? I guess he had to go to work for Nintendo.

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 11/16/2016 at 07:33pm

I will buy it.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 11/17/2016 at 08:44pm

Wow, that looks great! I'm jealous it's not on Android. I'd consider picking it up for $10

jdodson Admin Post Author wrote on 11/18/2016 at 03:23pm

I hear you Travis. If the game is throw away then it won't be worth it. That said, it doesn't look like it will be and I don't mind $10 for an app if it provides about that in terms of hours played. Bonus if my wife likes it.

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Travis Admin Post Author wrote on 09/24/2017 at 05:51am

Any new players who want to add some friends to compare scores with, I'm 4331-3123-1872

Will_Ball Game Mod Super Member wrote on 09/24/2017 at 01:36pm

I will have to dust it off and give the new content a try.

jdodson Admin wrote on 09/24/2017 at 04:53pm

Thinking of picking it up for half off. But I still haven't completed the demo yet.

AdamPFarnsworth wrote on 09/25/2017 at 06:29pm

This is cool news. I look forward to checking it out again!

Travis Admin wrote on 01/19/2017 at 04:11pm

Pokemon go, probably not. Unless the Switch gets LTE and GPS, and a rear facing camera, and a gyro. At minimum, LTE and GPS.

The other two, it's a no brainer! I'd be shocked if they don't show up.