Mario Maker 2 Brings Back An Obscure Power-Up

Super Mario Maker 2 has finally arrived on Nintendo Switch. Not only does the game feature nearly all of the tools available in its Wii U predecessor, it adds a ton of new features and items to tinker around with as well, including some more classic Mario enemies like the Angry Sun. But while the game makes most of its tools available from the outset this time around, there are still a couple of things to unlock, including an obscure power-up from the series' past.

Spoilers follow for Super Mario Maker 2's story mode.

Clearing Super Mario Maker 2's new story mode will unlock a handful of goodies, including Game Boy graphic items for your Mii. The best rewards, however, are two new power-ups, one of which is the Superball Flower from the original Super Mario Land. This item can only be used in the Super Mario Bros. style and looks and functions similarly to the standard Fire Flower, except it allows you to lob "Superballs," which will bounce around the level and ricochet off walls.

The other new power-up you receive for clearing story mode is the Super Hammer. This one can only be placed in the Super Mario 3D World game style, and it'll transform Mario into his Builder form. It works somewhat like the hammer from the original Donkey Kong arcade game, allowing you to smash enemies and even break through hard blocks. Builder Mario is also able to conjure up boxes that you can then stand on.

Story mode is one of the many new features in Super Mario Maker 2. In this mode, Mario is tasked with helping rebuild Princess Peach's castle. To do so, he'll need to earn coins by taking on jobs, which come in the form of 100 Nintendo-made levels to complete. Mario Maker 2 also introduces local and online multiplayer. At launch, you'll only be able to play online with strangers, but Nintendo will release an update that adds the option to play online with friends as well.

Super Mario Maker 2 has been received very positively by critics. GameSpot awarded it an 8/10 in our Super Mario Maker 2 review-in-progress. Critic Peter Brown wrote, "With the story mode and dozens of custom-built stages under my belt, I'm anxiously waiting for the floodgates to open upon Mario Maker's 2 release. What I've played so far has proven, once again, that the Mario series is worth all the admiration it gets, and Mario Maker 2 is an excellent tool for picking it apart by pushing its enemies, mechanisms, and Mario, to their limit."