New Super Mario Bros. 2 Gold Edition

So, New Super Mario Bros. 2 is basically Mario doing what he does best: running, jumping, and stomping on Goombas. But this time, Nintendo cranked up the bling factor. The whole game revolves around collecting coins, like, a ridiculous amount of coins. We’re talking millions here. The story? Classic Mario. Bowser kidnaps Princess Peach again, and it’s up to Mario (and Luigi if you’re co-oping) to save her. The levels are your standard 2D side-scrolling fare, but with a twist: golden flowers, golden blocks, and even golden enemies.

GAME DATASHEET
Name	New Super Mario Bros. 2 Gold Edition
Genre	Side-scrolling platformer
Console	3DS
Released	2012
Developer	Nintendo
Publisher	Nintendo
Language	Japanese | English | German | Italian | French | Spanish

The Gold Edition is kinda like those Day 1 Limited Editions you see for today games, where they throw in all the DLCs upfront to make it feel like a "complete package". But unlike some Day 1 Collector's Editions that come with exclusive skins, artbooks, or other flashy extras, this one keeps it simple: just the game, the DLCs, and that gold flex.

Let's keep it real, this game is fun, but it’s not exactly groundbreaking. If you’ve played any of the other New Super Mario Bros. games, you know what to expect. The gameplay is tight, the controls are smooth, and the levels are well-designed. But here’s the thing: the whole coin-collecting gimmick feels a bit… forced. Like, yeah, it’s cool to see your coin counter go up, but it doesn’t really add much to the experience. It’s more of a “look how many coins you got!” flex than anything else.

The graphics are solid, but they’re not pushing the 3DS to its limits, but that's okay. They're colorful and charming, like, Nintendo wasn’t trying to reinvent the wheel here. The music? Eh, it’s fine. You’ve got some Mario tunes remixed and… that's it.