New Super Mario Bros. 2 is a classic two-dimensional platformer set in the Mushroom Kingdom. It's a typical old-school platformer starring the mustachioed plumber Mario.

New Super Mario Bros. 2 is an indirect sequel to the first Nintendo DS game, and like any good successor, it brings a number of new features. The key one is that in addition to completing the main story, the player will also have to collect one million gold coins. This increases the replay value, which is already traditionally high in Mario games.

Levels:
There will be gold coins to be obtained everywhere in the levels. Some opportunities cannot be missed and others you have to summon with a little skill first. With that in mind, the levels are full of enemies, shortcuts, opportunities for breakneck jumps and power-ups. Moreover, they literally encourage you to try speed running. The emphasis on hard-core gameplay is felt in every inch.

Power-Ups:
New Super Mario Bros. 2 features a whole host of new Power-Ups. In some levels you'll encounter gold-plated enemies, but in others you'll become gold yourself. You might come across a power-up in the form of a golden flower, which when caught by Mario, will turn into gold! Gold Mario then spits golden fireballs that turn everything it hits into gold coins. Another power-up turns Mario's head into a brick box and when he starts running, he leaves a long trail of gold coins behind him. To top it all off, there's a raccoon suit available that lets you soar into the clouds. Thanks to this, you can get to platforms high in the clouds or to the top of rocks, where more bonuses await you.

Multiplayer:
In addition to classic multiplayer, the new Mario also features cooperative multiplayer for two players playing on two Nintendo 3DS consoles. One player plays as Mario and the other as his brother Luigi. Together, they progress through levels, and it is up to them whether they help each other or go it alone to get a higher score than their opponent.

Graphic arts:
The graphic design of New Super Mario Bros. 2 shows the same love for detail as other Nintendo games.

The stereoscopic 3D effect in this game doesn't make the game world protrude from the screen. In this title, the screen is a window into the Mushroom Kingdom, through which you can see into the depths. Moreover, with interesting elements. For example, when you adjust the depth of the 3D effect, the background not only moves away, but also becomes increasingly blurry.

StreetPass:
New Super Mario Bros. 2 also supports StreetPass. However, you won't be sending each other power-ups like you did in Super Mario 3D Land, but rather your high scores. To help you find as many coins as possible in each level, you'll be collecting data from each player you encounter about their high scores and how many coins to collect in each level. This might help you find out if there are still some coins in a level you thought was empty.