I never thought I’d see the day when arguing that Mario should win Game of the Year would be considered an uphill battle, but that’s what happens when you have a year as packed with killer titles as 2023. Every nominee at The Game Awards has swarms of fans fighting for their game to be crowned the year’s winner… except for Super Mario Bros. Wonder, which has already been counted out of the running by most.
That’s not too surprising considering the competition includes the biggest and most popular roleplaying game of the last decade, a remake of a revolutionary classic that pushes the definition of what a ‘remake’ can be, a big-budget fan-pleasing superhero epic, and the sequel to unarguably the most influential open-world game of all time.
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And yet, there’s no game I’d like to see take the Game of the Year victory more than Super Mario Bros. Wonder. When I look back at the many awesome games that have come out in 2023, there isn’t anything (aside from Hi-Fi Rush, of course) that has given me the same unbridled sense of, ugh, wonder that Super Mario Bros. Wonder has.
That joy jumps out just by looking at Super Mario Bros. Wonder, with all the charm, colour, and personality that puts the New Super Mario Bros. games to shame. From Elephant Mario struggling to fit through doors to the Talking Flower chatting nonsense whenever you run into him to everyone pulling off superhero poses when they transform, the new art direction is a huge step up for the series and what every game in the future should strive to match. If style counts for something, then Wonder is a mathematician.
Wonder isn’t just a looker, though – the platforming is a step above the competition, too. Some weird wall-jumping and a slow beginning aside, Mario and the gang have never felt better to control, something that’s especially noticeable with the excellent level design that’s full of surprises and secrets to find.
It’s just as good as you’d expect from a mainline Mario game, which has unfairly made it the more forgettable Game Awards nomination. The rest of the games on the list have surprised us with how great they are, but we demand perfection from Mario and Wonder damn near delivers it at every turn.
It might not be surprising to hear that Wonder is a great platformer, but it’s how it does it that stuck with me. Nintendo has pushed the Wonder Seeds and Elephant powerups the most in the game’s marketing, but the Badges, which let you choose between varied abilities like a grappling hook and invisibility, are the real ace up Wonder’s sleeve, adding a level of customisation and replayability that 2D Mario has never had before.
Like the other nominated games, Super Mario Bros. Wonder stumbles in some places, with its pointless multiplayer and lack of overall difficulty, but none of those issues take away from everything that it does right. Even if playing with a friend online is needlessly complicated, I still had a great time sprinting through levels and challenging some of TheGamer’s editors to races in some of the more difficult levels. Even when Wonder stumbles, it still does so with a flourish and a smile.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder stands alongside Odyssey and Galaxy and is one of the most fun games in 2023. And really, more than anything, isn’t having fun with a video game what it’s all about? In an age where every game is either trying to be a live service that sucks out your time and soul or a big-budget narrative-driven title about the cycle of violence, simply having a good time with friends in a colourful world is worth more than its weight in gold, no matter if you’re a hardcore gamer looking to collect everything or a casual gamer who just wants to smack Goombas around with Daisy’s trunk.
That should be enough of a reason for Wonder to be more in the conversation to win Game of the Year than it currently is. I’d also love for The Game Awards to go a step further and acknowledge a title that’s so focused on just delivering great gameplay and enjoyment over an epic 100-hour RPG or mind-bending story.
Even if games are about so much more than fun nowadays, that shouldn’t discount titles like Mario from winning when they do it so damn well. I have my doubts that Wonder can pull through and secure a victory, but it would be a moment for the industry to take a step back and recognise the power of delivering on gameplay and fun over everything else.
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