The palaces and boats in Super Mario Bros. Wonder keep the proud practice of being hard but memorable stages alive.
Anyone who has played a 2D Mario game knows that the palace and flying battleship stages are often the hardest ones to get through. The palaces and boats in Super Mario Bros. Wonder are some of the most artistically rich in the whole series, which holds a great tradition.
As usual for this series, these levels are some of the most remembered in the whole game. Mario grows tall and stretchy, and time itself changes. You know you’re in for a treat when you see a palace looming over the landscape or a flying battleship appear out of nowhere.
Pipe-Rock Plateau Palace
There’s no need to be hard or creative with Pipe-Rock Plateau Palace because it’s the first palace in the game. In the end, the creators wouldn’t have wanted to give away all the cards this early in the game. Still, after everything else you’ve seen so far in the game, this palace raises the stakes even more. But there’s still a lot more to see from here.
The Wonder Effect for Pipe-Rock Plateau Palace makes all the pipes on the stage move even more. There are a lot of pipes. The pipes move up and down, side to side, and in patterns that don’t make sense. This makes you wonder if Bowser is prejudiced against all plumbers or just Mario and Luigi.
Fluff-Puff Peaks Flying Battleship
This is similar to how the worst thing about Fluff-Puff Peaks Flying Battleship is that it’s the first game of its kind and everything else is already better. The monsters that shoot flames are a really cool thing about this level. It’s always fun to use these little bomb bugs to blow up boxes and other threats.
Along with the other flying battleship stages in Super Mario Wonder, Fluff-Puff Peaks Flying Battleship has a big Bowser who hits Mario with something that looks like a sniper rifle. When you have to beat this obstacle and the fireworks enemies that are in the way, you have a scene that is both exciting and tense.
Deep Magma Bog Palace
The lava-filled obstacle course at Deep Magma Bog Palace really heats things up and keeps you on your toes. At this point in the game, it’s not afraid to make things harder by adding some tight platforming parts and a constant buildup of pressure.
Because its Wonder Effect isn’t that special, Deep Magma Bog Palace isn’t as good as it could be. Making yourself into a blob that can stick to walls and ceilings is fun, and the levels are made to work with your sticky skills. However, the blob form had already been used a few times in World 6, which made its use in the world’s final stage a bit lackluster.
Fluff-Puff Peaks Palace
Fluff-Puff Peaks Palace makes things harder by suddenly adding fireballs and living piranha plants wherever it wants. You have to be more careful as you move through the stage because you might have to duck for cover at any time.
One of the coolest Wonder Effects in all the palaces is becoming a very tall, stretchy, orb-like version of your character. It’s also one of the roughest parts of Drift Boss because you can easily bump into something with every move and jump. A lot more so when those annoying hammer brothers show up…
Deep Magma Bog Flying Battleship
The idea of making an auto-scrolling level with hurdles that make you stand still is evilly brilliant. This is the case with the Deep Magma Bog Flying Battleship, which is full of Bowser figures that are on fire and can only be put out by pulling on a rope for a short time.
When Bowser sends his scope after you, this rope-pulling trick gets even harder. Try to put out a fire for too long, and you’ll be as safe as a sitting duck.
Petal Islands Flying Battleship
Petal Islands Flying Battleship makes the most of the fact that it is a Mario sky level by letting you spend most of the stage riding on clouds. If the bullet bills that are always trying to knock you down weren’t there, jumping from cloud to cloud as you fly through the air would be so fun.
What makes this stage tougher is when Bowser tries to shoot you out of the sky. It’s one thing to avoid his attacks; it’s quite another to do so while weaving through barriers that get smaller and smaller.
Sunbaked Desert Palace
Sunbaked Desert Palace is a palace level with thwomps, firebars, deep pits, and lots of sand for good measure. In case that wasn’t enough, there’s also the spiked ball that just comes out of nowhere, sometimes. Have fun.
Every few seconds, the Wonder Effect in this palace speeds up or slows down the whole stage, which messes with the flow of time. This means that you have to keep changing the speed at which you move to account for the changing time jumps. There’s nothing wrong with this process, no matter how fast you’re going or how slowly you’re moving.
The Final Battle! Bowser’s Rage Stage
That being said, Bowser’s Rage Stage doesn’t actually have the word “palace” in its name, but it still belongs on this list. All of what you’ve learned up to this point is put to the test in this last level of the main game, which leads to one of the most exciting endings in any Mario game.
This level has a lot of Wonder Effects going on. Everyone loves Bowser’s Rage Stage. From riding on a dragon to the stage moving left to right, each moment is really exciting. There is no better way to end the main story of Super Mario Wonder.
