Nintendo is definitely one of the most innovative video game developers in the history of video games. However, the company has also made some of the most baffling decisions in video game history as well.
This one might take the cake, though. As revealed by Nintendo World Report, it would appear that you can’t play with your friends online in Super Mario Maker 2. You read that right: a feature that has been available ever since the dawn of online multiplayer – the one that allows you to play with people you know – won’t be available for a video game made by one of the most innovative video game developers in history.
The news comes from a press event last week, where Nintendo World Report was present. As formerly revealed in the Super Mario Maker 2 Nintendo Direct, the game allows players to play with other people, either through co-operative means or competitive play. Nintendo Treehouse representative as the press event then clarified that while, yes, you can play online with other people, you will be restricted to playing with random players.
The Treehouse rep stated Nintendo’s reasoning for this move: with the inclusion of global leaderboards in Super Mario Maker 2, the matchmaking for competitive play would end up being compromised if you could play with your friends. What’s even weirder is that limitations extend to co-op as well, even though that’s not tied to a leaderboard. Essentially, the only way you can play with people you know is to have them over and be in the same room with them physically, through the use of one Switch system or local wireless play between multiple Switch consoles.
I have a hard time actually getting the reasoning for this move other than for competitive reasons. Sure, you can definitely state that having friends involved in competitive play may hurt the state of the leaderboard, but how much of a problem will it really be is the question. Was it considered disruptive enough to remove such a key aspect – and selling point, if we’re being honest – of a game just to kind of appease competitive players? Did competitive players even ask for this?
So many questions, so few answers. Whatever Nintendo’s thoughts on these are, it won’t be surprising to see a major blowback from this once it reaches more people. Either way, stay tuned for more of our coverage as it drops.
