Game Tech: Super Mario plumbs new heights

NINTENDO, we take our hats off to you. You won E3 and made Mario look exciting again. Hats are flying everywhere, in fact, as Super Mario Odyssey introduces a cool new mechanic to the series.

In Super Mario Odyssey, our favourite plumber doesn’t just doff his cap at enemies – he throws it at them. The new headwear is actually Mario’s faithful companion in the game, called Cappy, and it allows him to ‘possess’ enemies and objects. If you need to travel across a chasm too wide to jump, just throw Cappy at a Bullet Bill and Mario will become that Bullet Bill, flying across the gap.

Cappy’s powers don’t stop there, however, as Mario can become all manners of things in the environment, even electricity. The idea behind this new mechanic is based around the Japanese gardening concept of ‘hakoniwa’, the goal of which is to create miniature scenes or landscapes in a small space. By allowing Mario to ‘possess’ enemies and objects in his environment, the development team can create lots of surprises and cool gameplay ideas in contained areas. The cities and landscapes of Super Mario Odyssey become a collection of nooks and crannies, each one waiting to be discovered and deciphered.