Ushering in the Online Service
One common hypothesis surrounding Super Smash Bros. Switch is that it'll launch in September alongside Nintendo's new Online Service. Now, in theory, I understand where this notion comes from. I too want to live in a world where Smash Bros. comes out in a mere three months. However, I don't think that this is the best, or most logical, game to release alongside this service. In my opinion, Super Mario Maker 2 is the perfect title to coincide with Nintendo's online foray. Now, we don't have any evidence as to the existence of a Super Mario Maker 2, but I've crafted a 100% iron-clad, irrefutable hypothesis. Well, perhaps I'm projecting a little. Yet, I do think there are some fairly good reasons to believe that we'll be constructing some Mario courses in just a few months. Pack a bag, because we're taking a road trip to the land of speculation.
On the other hand, Super Mario Maker is a game that lives or dies by its online presence. The ability to create, share, and play other people's levels is central to the Super Mario Maker experience, and online connectivity is central to that. It is this type of online game that Nintendo needs to bring alongside their service. This could also offer an opportunity to create nice synergy between the Online App and the Switch itself. Nintendo could build out a really solid online level hub on the Switch (ironing out the searchability issues from the Wii U version), but also mirror it on the app. So, in this hypothetical world, you could save levels to play later from your phone, and they'd appear on the Switch, ready for your next session. Perhaps Nintendo could further link Super Mario Maker 2 to the News tab on the Switch, similar to how items were distributed for Breath of the Wild, in order to dole out new amiibo costumes and building tiles.
There are other, practical reasons why Super Mario Maker 2 would make sense this September. Chiefly, it would sell undoubtedly well and would not require an overwhelming amount of development time. On Wii U, Super Mario Maker moved an impressive 3.43 million copies, and on the Switch, that number could be even higher. Since this is a game about community content and level creation, I think it would only make sense for Nintendo to port (shudder) over all the Wii U content and then develop new features on top of that. In this scenario, a purely additive sequel would be just fine due to the nature of the series, and not take that long to develop. There would be no need to rebuild the sequel from the ground up. It has also been three years since the Wii U version, and two since the lackluster 3DS version, so there has been plenty of time to work on a follow-up. Likewise, this game features no real-time multiplayer, which would make it the perfect game to release alongside the Online Service.
Now hear me out. Releasing a real-time multiplayer game with the Online Service would seem to make the most sense, in order to demonstrate the new features, but in Nintendo's case, this would be a bad idea. Nintendo's online has been notoriously hit or miss. Some games, like Splatoon, have very stable online multiplayer, but others like Mario Kart and Smash Bros. have historically faltered in this area. The worst headline Nintendo could have this September is that their servers are busted and the online isn't worth paying for. Unless Nintendo is funneling a significant amount of money into their servers, which I seriously doubt they are, we'd be running the risk of such press. But, a game like Super Mario Maker still utilizes online to the fullest extent, but in a way that is not nearly as strenuous as Smash Bros. There would be a very low chance that the Online Service would be broken or cumbersome at launch. Would this be a bit sneaky? Yes. But it would be very smart.
So, let's say that we do get Super Mario Maker 2 in 2018. There are a few things that I'd like to see. The biggest is split Joy-Con multiplayer. I'd love to see all of the creative ideas that could come out of Mario levels specifically designed for co-op, which is something we've never gotten before. Even with the New Super series of games, there were not any co-op specific challenges. I'd also love to see a brand-new art style. My dream would be to see a hand-drawn style in the vein of Wonderboy: The Dragon's Trap. I love the styles we have now, but seeing Nintendo branch out from the pre-established Mario art styles would be quite cool. Finally, I want to see Cappy make an appearance in Super Mario Maker. Sure, this would be rather unorthodox, but it would offer a new twist on the 2D Mario formula, and open up a ton of level possibilities unavailable in the Wii U version. Imagine how much fun it would be to take control of Hammer Bros, Bullet Bills, and Cheep Cheeps in two dimensions. I can just picture what skilled creators could do with all these different abilities.
There isn't any concrete proof that Super Mario Maker will be releasing this year, or even any time in the future. But, I do think there is reason to think that it might release rather soon. From a purely personal angle, I'd love to see this happen. 2018 is shaping up to be a somewhat light year first-party wise, so a sizable evergreen title like this would do wonders to the line-up. Super Mario Maker was a fantastic idea on Wii U, but it just didn't hold my attention as long as I thought it would. On the Switch though, the concept of an infinite number of Mario levels that I can take on the go sounds great (yes, I had the 3DS version, but it was a poor estimation of Mario Maker). With a few added features and an improved online hub, this could easily be one of my favorite Switch games when all is said and done.
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