Review: Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park

When I reviewed Super Mario Bros. Wonder over two years ago, I shared that it stands as “a testament to the enduring brilliance of the Mario franchise.

Its ability to surprise, innovate, and deliver an unparalleled platforming experience makes it a must-play for both long-time fans and newcomers.” It was the kind of 2D Mario that respected its roots but still found room to experiment and remains the only 10 I’ve given on Recharged.

Now we have Super Mario Bros. Wonder – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Meetup in Bellabel Park. This is not just a visual upgrade and an extremely long name that i won’t be typing again, it’s also effectively a content expansion layered onto an already complete game, with a strong focus on multiplayer and replayability. The question is, is it worth coming back?

Gameplay

Bellabel Park is the headline addition, and it shifts the structure of the experience quite a bit. Instead of traditional level progression, you get two central hubs packed with activities.

The first area has over 70 Toad Brigade challenges which are essentially shorter levels with specific win criteria like ‘collect all coins’ or ‘defeat all enemies. It starts off easy enough and gets progressively difficult.

It’s not Super Meat Boy tough but there were a few times I had to walk away for a bit. There’s also several multiplayer focused games for up to 12 players. I don’t have 11 friends let alone 11 with Switch 2’s and this game so I played through these with my wife and kid.

Rosalina as a playable character is a welcome inclusion. She fits naturally into the roster, and co-star Luma introduces an assist-style co-op layer that lowers the barrier for younger or less experienced players. Assist Mode goes even further, removing damage and fall penalties entirely. It is clearly designed for accessibility, and it works.

Because of Rosalina, we were able to recreate a pseudo powerpuff vibe with Rosalina Peach and Daisy, ideally with the elephant power-up, a sort of Mushroom Kingdom Powerpuff girls vibe.

The original game flirted a bit with co-op, but this doubles down on it. Modes like coin collection challenges and survival-based arenas feel closer to Mario Party than classic Mario. It works, mostly because the underlying movement and physics are still as sharp as before.

The Toad Brigade Training Camp is another smart addition. It repurposes existing mechanics into structured challenges, giving players a reason to master movement rather than just complete levels. There is a progression loop here, with ranks and unlockables, that adds longevity just question how much replay value it has. Sure, for a lot of levels I could best my score, but I never had desire to repeat these levels.

Boss encounters with the Koopalings add some light narrative flavour, and help address the only issue I had with the original, which was uninspiring and unimaginative boss levels. And just so we clarify a common misunderstanding, these are not Bowser’s kids, they are more like his generals.

Graphics and Presentation

On Nintendo Switch 2, the upgrade is noticeable but not transformative. The game can scale up to higher resolutions, and everything looks cleaner and sharper.

That said, Wonder was already a great-looking game. The expressive animations and art direction still carry the experience so the upgrade is more about polish than reinvention.

The real presentation shift comes from how the game feels socially. Larger multiplayer lobbies, GameShare functionality, and expanded co-op design give it more of a “party game” identity than before.

Value for Money

Here is where things get interesting.

At home in South Africa, the full package is retailing between roughly R1,370 and R1,499 depending on the store. That places it firmly in premium territory, even by Nintendo standards.

If you are buying this as a first-time player, the value is strong. You are getting one of the best 2D platformers ever made plus a substantial amount of additional content.

If you already own the original, the decision hinges on the upgrade pack. Nintendo has positioned this as paid DLC rather than a free update and while the added content is meaningful, especially if you play locally with friends or family, it is not essential.

In practical terms, if your experience with Wonder was largely single-player, this will feel like an optional extra. If you played it with others, this becomes far more compelling.

I wouldn’t have spent so much time agonising over this if the upgrade was a little cheaper and this speaks very much to my own sense of value. Had it been a 10-dollar upgrade like Breath of The Wild or Metroid 4 it would have been a no-brainer and I would have happily recommended it.

The 20 dollar upgrade, which was around R419 or so just felt a little harder to swallow and I felt similar for Kirby and Jamboree (especially Jamboree).

Again, this is my bias and subjectivity as I had no issue paying for the GTA 5 PS5 upgrade in spite paying for the PS4 version a few years before, after first buying the Xbox 360 version in 2013. Ok, GTA 5 is a bad example as it’s one of the best games ever made, but I guess that’s the point, we pay for what we perceive as value and perhaps I need to start accepting that this is the nature of Nintendo’s pricing strategy and that they are offering actual meaningful content and not just a few lazy cosmetics.

Final Verdict

The core gameplay in Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park is still excellent and the new content is well-designed and adds a meaningful multiplayer seasoning to tide you over while waiting for the next 2D Mario.

If you want more Wonder, you will get it. Just not in the way you might expect.