Nintendo announced a staggering Super Mario Maker 2 statistic via Twitter on Friday. Since the game's global release on the Nintendo Switch in June 2019, players have uploaded over 20 million levels (or "courses," as they are known in Mario games) to the game's Course World online community.
Like its Wii U predecessor, Super Mario Maker 2 provides players with the tools needed to handcraft their own side-scrolling Mario levels in a range of graphical styles. The sequel added a huge number of enhancements and quality-of-life improvements that encourage creativity. Noteworthy additions include online multiplayer and a singleplayer story mode filled with dozens of Nintendo-designed levels.
Super Mario Maker 2 became a major sales success after its June 2019 release, ultimately claiming the #12 spot on the 2019 list of most-downloaded Switch games. Nintendo sustained the game's momentum by adding additional content over the next year, most notably the Master Sword power-up that turns Mario into Link. By January 2020, Nintendo reported that the game had sold over 5 million units worldwide.
The Mario fanbase is extremely creative when finding clever ways to reinvent Mario gameplay, but Super Mario Maker 2 takes it to a new level. 20 million uploads is a huge number, and suggests that Super Mario Maker 2 captivated players outside the hardcore fanbase. Assuming that somewhere between 5 and 7 million Switch owners own the game, 20 million uploads would require an average of between 3 and 4 uploads per player. This doesn't even include creations by players who lack Nintendo Switch Online memberships, who cannot upload their courses for others to try.
Mario Maker 2 received rave reviews at launch. The original Super Mario Maker Wii U game included a drawn-out tutorial that gradually unlocked components for players over the course of several real-life days. Super Mario Maker 2 instead provides access to most course materials right away. Whether players want to try pre-made levels or make their own, Super Mario Maker 2 lets players jump into the game.
Of course, some player-created Super Mario Maker 2 courses are poorly-designed, or intentionally made to frustrate fellow players. Additionally, although Nintendo still releases special themed speed-run levels for the game (such as the upcoming 35th-anniversary course), the company stopped adding new course elements midway through 2020
. Now, the player base must find ways to creatively use what is already present, and this may eventually cause players to lose interest. Given that fellow Switch game New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe also offers side-scrolling action, fewer and fewer fans may contribute to Super Mario Maker 2's community over time.
Super Mario Maker 2 is available now for the Nintendo Switch.