New Super Mario Bros. 2

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a 2012 platform game developed by Nintendo EAD Group No. 4 and published by Nintendo for its Nintendo 3DS handheld video game console, being first released in Japan on July 28. It is a direct sequel to the 2006 Nintendo DS game New Super Mario Bros. and is the first Nintendo-published game to be released simultaneously in both downloadable and physical forms.

New Super Mario Bros. 2’s plot is similar to its predecessors, focusing on Mario and Luigi’s efforts to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser and the Koopalings. It has a heavier emphasis on coin-collecting than other Super Mario games, with multiple unique items dedicated to producing large numbers of coins. The game features a specialized mode called “Coin Rush”, which focuses exclusively on quickly completing a series of stages while collecting as many coins as possible. Additional Coin Rush stages were made available for purchase as downloadable content shortly after the game’s release.

Like the previous games in the New Super Mario Bros. series, New Super Mario Bros. and New Super Mario Bros. Wii, New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a 2D platformer, and some of the characters and objects in the game are 3D polygonal renderings on 2D backgrounds. This results in a 2.5D effect (also seen previously in the first New Super Mario Bros. game) that visually simulates 3D computer graphics. New Super Mario Bros. 2 continues the style of gameplay from the first New Super Mario Bros. game, featuring side-scrolling platform action as Mario or Luigi attempts to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser and the Koopalings.

Power-ups include the Mini Mushroom and Mega Mushroom returning from the first game, and the Super Leaf from Super Mario Bros. 3, which allows the player to tail-whip enemies or to fly. Similarly to Super Mario 3D Land, an Invincibility Leaf will appear if the player loses at least five lives during any non-cannon levels. The Invincibility Leaf grants both raccoon abilities and invincibility until the end of the stage. The story has both single-player and multiplayer options: two players, each with their own Nintendo 3DS and copy of the game, play together simultaneously as Mario and Luigi. Like the previous games, players can collect Star Coins hidden throughout each level, which can be spent to unlock new areas on the overworld map.