Super Mario 3D World on Wii U is one of the Mario games that really made me a Mario fan as a kid, and now after 9 years, the game has become one of my favorite games in the series to date. The game is filled with several unique levels with creative concepts, great level design, and fun platforming. There are 100 levels in Super Mario 3D World, so in honor of the Wii U’s tenth anniversary, let’s pick out my top 15 favorite levels. For this list, I’ll only be including main levels including the first 8 worlds and the 4 bonus worlds. I won’t be including Captain Toad levels or Mystery Houses either. So with that out of the way, let’s rank Super Mario 3D World’s fifteen best levels, in my opinion.
#15: World 1-1: Super Bell Hill
We’ll start this list with the game’s first level, Super Bell Hill. While the level is short and very easy, it’s a ton of fun to play and does a fantastic job introducing the new power-ups, controls, and enemies. This level is just a huge play-place for Cat Mario, and it’s a great introduction for this power-up. Tons of walls surrounding the level structure can be climbed to find secrets. There’s bell trees everywhere, and it’s just a very vibrant and exciting level. When you’re playing this level without a Super Bell, it’s honestly not as fun. It’s just a great level to start Super Mario 3D World, and one the best introductory levels in a Mario game.
#14: World Bowser-7: Grumblump Inferno
A few of my favorite levels in Super Mario 3D World aren’t loved by everyone, and this is one of them. Grumblump Inferno is one of the lead-up levels to the final castle in world 8, and it’s a really fun one. You’ll traverse through the level on these Grumblump creatures, which are basically diamond-looking cubes that flip across lava, and you’ll make sure you move to each side accordingly to prevent falling into the lava. If you’re someone who jumps each flip, this level can be a bit hard; but if you just run across, it’s pretty much a spring breeze. You can even get a tanooki suit, which does make the level significantly easier, but it’s still fun. The only thing I don’t like about the level is the stamp. Nintendo put it above a Fire Brother on the tiniest platform possible right above the lava. It’s super easy to mess up here. However, if you aren’t going for this stamp, this level is a cakewalk.
#13: World 1-Castle: Bowser’s Highway Showdown
The castles at the end of each world aren’t very difficult, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t fun. The World 1 castle is a prime example of this, since it’s pretty simple yet very exciting and intense. The first part of the level is short, but has neat level design. You’ll avoid a bunch of enemies and explosive soccer balls, while using a cat suit to climb walls to find secrets and escape the thwomps. Then the Bowser fight that follows sums up everything. Bowser rolls backwards in a striking car called the Bowsermobile as he throws soccer balls that you need to kick back at him to attack. Plus, you need to hit him 9 times and the design of the path is a bit different. Bowser also spits fire and throws soccer balls you can’t touch. While the cat suit makes this level easy, it’s still a really fun boss fight to start the game.
#12: World Crown-Crown: Champion’s Road
While it’s the most devious Mario level ever created, it’s still fun and exhilarating to play (not that you’ll want to replay it after you complete it once). What I liked about Champion’s Road compared to Special 8-Crown from Super Mario 3D Land is that the level design uses concepts from the levels and makes them much more difficult, not just making new concepts. You’ll go from jumping across moving platforms avoiding octo-goombas, to running across small platforms avoiding Chargin-Chucks, to jumping on half-a-second beep blocks, to fighting three magikoopas on falling platforms, to running around rolling spikes, to jumping up walls of spiny ants and piranha creepers, to traversing through moving water around spikes, to running around tons of dash panels avoiding billions of shockwaves, to going through a thank you pipe, to finishing the level — oh god. No checkpoints on top of that makes this level an absolute madhouse, and while it is fun, it can get annoying, especially without power-ups; then it’s practically impossible.
#11: World 1-3: Mount Beanpole
World 1 really does have a great lineup of levels to start Super Mario 3D World. If you like the cat suit, Mount Beanpole is for you. This vertically-based level has you climbing up a giant mountain full of secrets, cat goombas, and other typical enemies. If you have the cat suit (which there are a bunch to get here if needed) you’ll be able to uncover secret pipes and hidden areas to proceed differently. While the level is very simple, it’s a ton of fun to play; especially the ending, where a giant piranha plant awaits you. It’s easy to take out, but still satisfying.
#10: World Star-1: Rainbow Run
The first level in the Star World is probably the most unique, fun, and vibrant. The whole level is made up of colored tiles, lights, and more. It’s basically Rainbow Road from the Mario Kart series, but you run through it instead of race in a go-kart. There are rolling platforms, trapezes, a Plessie section, I mean you can’t go wrong with Rainbow Run. Swinging along trapezes is a ton of fun and Plessie is just Plessie, enough said. I also appreciate the difficulty, since this level isn’t very easy, which makes it a great introduction to the bonus worlds since they up the difficulty significantly. Plus, one of the green stars has you running across tiles that shape 8-bit Link, which is awesome. This level is just a ton of fun, and one of the best in Super Mario 3D World.
#9: World 3-1: Snowball Park
One of the best music pieces in Super Mario 3D World: the snow theme. Snowball Park is fun and perfect all the way throughout. It’s simple yet fun. That feeling when you swipe the Snow Pokeys with your tanooki suit, kicking the snow out of the trees, and skating around the ice in the awesome goomba ice skate. It’s like the goomba shoe, but way better. You can move quickly and fluently across the ice, kicking goombas in your path, and racing on the snow to catch the annoying rabbit. This is also the level I usually play to get quick access to a tanooki suit while playing Champion’s Road, so I go from rrrrrrrr! to ahhh. It’s a nice, calm atmosphere of a level that can put anyone in a good mood.
#8: World 5-5: Bob-ombs Below
If you want to play Super Mario 3D Land on Wii U, this level is the closest you’ll get. Bob-ombs Below is basically a copy of 3D Land’s 1-2. I mean there’s even a spinning circle at one point that looks just like 1-2 in 3D Land. Anyway, this level is another simple one but still incredibly fun. You’ll traverse mostly left and right while throwing bombs into brick and POW! blocks to find secrets, uncover hidden passageways, and discover green stars. It really feels like a level from 3D Land, even being a nice, short-and-sweet level. If you have a short time to play, this level is the way to go.
#7: World Star-5: Super Block Land
Nope, scratch that, this is the closest to 3D Land on Wii U. You’ve got the music and everything. It also uses that big-everything concept from Super Mario Bros. 3, and it’s a blast. The main theme of Super Mario 3D Land is so exciting, and it fits in almost perfectly with this level. You’ll throw bombs at blocks, attack Chargin’ Chucks, and find 5 key coins hidden around the area. The level has that exciting tone, which is exemplified to a tee with great level design to fit the mood. The left feels like a level from one of the NES Mario games — but in 3D. And that is why this level is awesome.
#6: World 6-3: Hands-On Hall
Hands-On Hall is such a strange but unique 3D World level, since it takes the form of a Japanese temple infested with goombas and boomerang bros. The level looks really cool, and it’s fun to head through. Occasionally, you’ll find Bowser gongs that you can tap with the touchscreen to cause something to happen or change. For example, a bunch of coins could fall or enemies could appear. You’ll also use the touchscreen to open doors, which can expose a pipe or goombas. The music also lends to the experience with a mysterious, confusing sound that also sounds inviting at the same time. You can also use the boomerang suit which is pretty fun. The next part takes you on the roof with a propeller box as you take flight to find 5 key coins before beating the level. It’s a really fun level.
#5: World 4-5: Spike’s Lost City
This is another level that most people forget about that I think is very fun. Spike’s Lost City is basically just the title: it’s a lost civilization with a punch on Spikes. The colors and slight fog make structures and the environment look old and abandoned. The Spike enemies throw spikes at you to attack, and the narrow pathways make the level a bit hard to get through. By the end, you’ll head across tilting and moving platforms with spike rolls on them, which makes for fun platforming. I also always loved the *st/nd/rd green star, since you’ll walk forward into the deep fog along a structure to find it, and nothing of the level is visible as the foggy atmosphere takes it over. Spike’s Lost City is a pretty great level most people overlook, and you even get a Super Bell, so it’s just that much better.
#4: World Star-2: Super Galaxy
Do you like Super Mario Galaxy? Then this is your level. Super Galaxy is a neat level because it mixes the concepts and gimmicks from the Wii title into a unique level that feels like a galaxy in Super Mario Galaxy. Platforms rotate accordingly and it acts like the gravity changes from Galaxy. Mario will avoid octo-goombas, time the platforms correctly to not fall, and the stamp is even atop a set of rotating platforms that you need the cat suit to reach. On top of that, you unlock Rosalina as a playable character once you beat the level, which is just awesome since she’s one of the best players in the game. You’ll even spot Lumas and the Comet Observatory in the background, which is just great. If only you fell into a black hole. Anyway, Super Galaxy is a stellar level in Super Mario 3D World, and my favorite in all of the bonus worlds.
#3: World 5-4: Sprawling Savanna
Super Mario 3D World isn’t an open-world game, but this level definitely cuts it close. You’ll explore an open grassland catching rabbits, flinging through pipe cannons, and finding the many, many secrets around the space. Sprawling Savanna is another level that’s just so calming and relaxing that it’s one that can make you happy when you’re sad. Past the grassland are clear pipes against a wall you’ll use to reach the time and hit the flagpole. There’s not really any hazards here, just simple, laid-back gaming, which every once in a while is a great way to design a Mario game if you ask me.
#2: World 3-6: Mount Must Dash
Mount Must Dash is Mario Kart plus 3D World. The classic Super Mario Kart music playing as you slide down colorful slides that represent roads. It feels like a Mario Kart track, but you’re running around instead. There’s just a sense of excitement and urgency that makes this level stand out. You don’t need to have a short time limit to make players feel inclined to move quickly in a level. Take that Pretty Plaza Panic. Anyway, Mount Must Dash is one of 3D World’s stand-out levels, even if it makes no sense to be in an ice world. Just the definition of fun and exciting.
#1: World Bowser-Castle: The Great Tower of Bowser Land
The final level of World 8 in Super Mario 3D World is arguably one of the most ambitious Bowser battles we’ve seen, and in my opinion, more ambitious than Super Mario Galaxy. I’m not kidding. This boss fight is the definition of epic. First, you’ll progress through falling fireballs to a giant ferris wheel with Bully enemies before taking a zipline to Bowser. You’ll land in front of a tower right as Bowser drops down. Then, he takes his cat bell and turns into Meowser. Cat. Bowser. You’ll climb up the tower with clouds and clear pipes as Bowser tries to swipe at you from the wall before going through a clear pipe watching Meowser use the double cherry. Then, you’ll progress through an even taller tower with a ton of Meowser clones breaking through the wall to swipe at you. After that, you’ll climb up the stairs around a tower with even more Meowsers clawing at you before hitting a giant POW! block several times to kill the Meowsers and save the Sprixies. This level is just an epic and incredible way to end Super Mario 3D World, and probably my favorite level in Mario. Therefore, it has to be my favorite level in Super Mario 3D World.
Check out our other posts and videos for Wii U Day, including a post on Nintendo Land, Mario Kart 8, and Super Mario Maker!