Bowser's Fury Needs a Standalone Release
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There was much fanfare when we first heard about Bowser's Fury, it was a bit of a curiosity at first as there was very little information at first.
At first, I thought that the game meant that Bowser would be the protagonist against Mario given the game's namesake. Now that would've been one interesting concept, turning the tables around. An actual Bowser game has not actually been created yet, but this is something that Nintendo should definitely explore in the future.
Considering that Bowser's Fury is an open-world 3D Mario game, it is unfortunate that it is only available as a bundle with the re-release of Super Mario 3D World from the Wii U.
Super Mario 3D World, despite the 3D billing, isn't exactly a true 3D Mario game. The focus is on reaching the end of the stages with a flagpole at the end. It plays more like a 2D-style Mario game, but in a 3D space. Heck, there is even a timer for crying out loud.
Bowser's Fury isn't a very long game, it takes around 10 hours to complete for the typical gamer, it feels like it is worth more than just a throw-in to a rehash of Super Mario 3D World. It may not be worth the price of a full-priced title, but at a lower price point it can be great value for gamers.
The game engine seems to be heavily based on Super Mario Odyssey - and it feels like it too. The UI presentation and even the snapshot feature and map come directly from Odyssey. Oh and not only that, no "lives" as well.
Bowser's Fury also includes a fairly solid co-op feature where the second player can control Bowser Jr. to try to save his dad.
Besides the cat theme and common power-ups to get transformations like Cat Mario or Tanooki Mario, there is almost nothing similar between Super Mario 3D World and Bowser's Fury. There's absolutely no reason to force players to buy both of these titles together.
It's a shame that Nintendo decided to go this route, if Bowser's Fury was released standalone at a lower price point, or as an eShop download, it could have certainly capitalized on the initial hype.
Super Mario 3D World originally sold almost 6 million copies on the Wii U. Many of Nintendo's loyal fans may not want to buy the game again just to get Bowser's Fury, and because of this limitation, this game is underrated and isn't getting the accolades that it deserves.
Nintendo needs to right this wrong and make Bowser's Fury a standalone title at a lower price point.