After months of rumors and speculation, Nintendo finally dropped its latest Nintendo Direct presentation, which focused entirely on the Super Mario franchise in recognition of its 35th anniversary. Nintendo made a number of blockbuster Super Mario-related announcements, but the biggest reveal was definitely Super Mario 3D All-Stars for the Nintendo Switch. While many fans have expressed excitement for Super Mario 3D All-Stars, the hype has been muddied somewhat by some bizarre decisions Nintendo has made about the game.
As revealed during the Super Mario Bros.-themed Nintendo Direct presentation, Super Mario 3D All-Stars is going to be a limited-time release. It will launch September 18 with both a digital version and a physical retail version, itself available in limited quantities. Then on March 31, 2021, Nintendo will stop selling Super Mario 3D All-Stars at both retail and digital storefronts, essentially giving players a time limit if they want to buy the game.
This bizarre move has left some fans scratching their heads. After all, Nintendo games have been shown to have serious staying power, and it’s safe to say that Super Mario 3D All-Stars will likely sell well for months if not years to come. But while Nintendo has not given any official reasoning for why it has decided to release Super Mario 3D All-Stars for a limited time, the decision may actually reveal some of the company’s future plans.
Nintendo has long been accused of creating artificial shortages for its products in order to instill a “fear of missing out” in consumers, making it more likely that they purchase its products right away. The most notorious example of this is likely the Nintendo Wii, which was incredibly hard to find long after its initial launch in 2006. Similar situations have happened in recent years with things like the NES and SNES Classics, and scalpers have only exacerbated the issue.
Regardless of whether or not Nintendo is creating shortages on purpose, it outright stating that Super Mario 3D All-Stars will only be available for a limited time definitely seems like the company is trying to get people to buy it right away through the “fear of missing out.” Because come March 31, 2021, Super Mario 3D All-Stars will simply be unavailable for purchase unless fans buy it from third-party sellers.
Unsurprisingly, this decision has been met with widespread criticism from fans online. Even those who were initially excited about the prospect of playing Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy on their Switch have turned on the game, with some comparisons made to the controversial Disney Vault practice. For the uninitiated, prior to the launch of the Disney+ streaming service, Disney had a habit of putting its animated features back in the “vault,” which would encourage people to purchase the movies whenever they were available at retail.
Besides simply wanting to sell a lot of copies of Super Mario 3D All-Stars in a short amount of time, Nintendo could be using this strategy to sell more Nintendo Switch consoles as well. After all, there may be some people who want Super Mario 3D All-Stars, but don’t currently have a Switch for themselves. The fear of missing out could convince them to purchase a Switch earlier than they anticipated.
As it so happens, reports from credible industry insiders have stated that a 4K Nintendo Switch console revision is actually in development for release in 2021. It’s possible that Nintendo is trying to use the Super Mario 3D World limited-time release to drive up sales of its current Switch console, as it plans on phasing it out in favor of the upgraded version next year. However, that’s just speculation at this time, and while the new Switch was leaked by credible sources, fans should still wait for an official announcement from Nintendo to be sure.
While Nintendo may be releasing Super Mario 3D All-Stars as a limited-time release in an effort to sell more Switch consoles, it’s also possible that the company is doing it because it has future plans for the games in the collection individually. Nintendo 64 games have been rumored to be coming to the Switch Online service, and if that ever happens, having a major N64 game like Super Mario 64 readily available in a collection makes the prospect much less appealing.
In the meantime, it’s entirely possible that Nintendo plans on re-releasing Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy as standalone titles through the eShop at some point after March 31, 2021. Again, this is just speculation, but it would make sense, and could go a long way in explaining why the company has decided to only sell Super Mario 3D All-Stars for a limited time.
When the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection first leaked, the rumors indicated that the collection would consist of Super Mario Galaxy 2 as well as Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and the first Super Mario Galaxy. However, it’s since been confirmed that Super Mario Galaxy 2 is not part of the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection, and in fact, Nintendo completely ignored the game’s existence during the Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary Direct.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 stands as one of the highest-rated video games of all time, so it’s not like Nintendo is embarrassed by it or anything. But its absence from the collection could be even more evidence that standalone releases for these 3D Super Mario titles on Switch are being planned. Alternatively, it’s possible Nintendo is looking at another collection of 3D Super Mario games that it plans to release down the line, which could include Galaxy 2, 3D Land, and maybe even Super Mario 3D World. But since the latter is coming to the Switch as a standalone release in 2021, fans shouldn’t get their hopes up.
Something that is harder to explain is Nintendo’s decision to only make Super Mario Bros. 35 available for a limited-time. Essentially a Super Mario Bros. battle royale game, Super Mario Bros. 35 will be available from October 1 until March 31, 2021 for Switch Online subscribers. Since the game’s inclusion would only boost Switch Online’s value and potentially convince more people to sign up for the service, it’s bizarre that Nintendo is only making the game available for less than a year’s time.
However, there are some possible explanations for this. Again, the “fear of missing out” strategy could be playing a role. Nintendo may be hoping to substantially increase its Switch Online subscribers in the short-term, as anyone that’s not subscribed between now and when the game goes offline on March 31, 2021 will simply never get to play it. Alternatively, maybe Nintendo is planning to sell the game as a standalone product at some point after March 31, 2021. It’s really unclear, so hopefully Nintendo shares more reasoning behind its thought process.
Of course, the alternative to all these explanations is that Nintendo is choosing to put these limits on the games arbitrarily. Maybe it has no future plans to release standalone versions of the titles in the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection, and maybe it’s not trying to instill the “fear of missing out” effect in its consumers. That seems unlikely, though, and it’s far more likely that these decisions are part of Nintendo’s strategy to ensure that it not only sells as many copies of Super Mario 3D All-Stars as possible within a short timeframe, but that it gets more people to go out and buy Switch consoles as well.
It’s unclear why Nintendo would need to be this aggressive, though. Recent reports have indicated that Nintendo is the richest company in Japan, so it’s not like it’s really hurting for the money. Unfortunately, it’s unlikely that Nintendo will ever reveal its reasoning behind these controversial decisions, so fans will just have to keep guessing for the time being. And anyone that wants to make sure they have Super Mario 3D All-Stars for their collection may want to consider pre-ordering it as soon as possible.
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