Nintendo is making 3D Mario remasters for his 35th anniversary

The Super Mario series is turning 35 this year, and Nintendo has big plans for the plumber’s birthday. That includes updating and bringing back most of his games for Nintendo Switch, according to a report from Video Games Chronicle. Eurogamer is backing up that report, and GamesBeat can as well.

The core of the report is that Nintendo originally planned to focus on Mario’s 35th anniversary at E3 (the Electronic Entertainment Expo) in Los Angeles in June. But organizers canceled that event due to the spread of the coronavirus. Nintendo is going ahead with that promotion, and it will likely hold a Direct-style event to provide all of the details. That includes info on remasters, a Paper Mario game, the upcoming Mario film, and Universal Studios’ Super Nintendo World theme park.

I reached out to Nintendo for a comment, but it told VGC that it does not comment on rumors and speculation.

3D Mario Remasters, Paper Mario, and more

For the remasters, our source is telling us that Nintendo is pursuing something like a Super Mario All-Stars 2 for the 3D Mario games. This would include Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and then Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2. It’s likely that 3D World may get its own, separate Deluxe-style release. While it’s possible the older 3D Mario games could come in a single compilation, it’s also likely that Nintendo will release them individually as it did with its Zelda remasters.

I reached out to Nintendo and will update if the publisher responds.

The Paper Mario game, meanwhile, represents a return to that franchise’s roots. This means something closer to the Nintendo 64 and Gamecube games, which are beloved. And leaving behind the baggage of the more forgettable entries on 3DS and Wii U.

Finally, expect Nintendo to fill out the Mario celebrations in other ways as well. This could mean even more Mario games on the Nintendo Switch Online subscription service, for example.

Nintendo wants to make the Switch a great system for Mario fans, and we should start to see that soon.