Nintendo gave us a review code for one of our writers to test out. Read on for the full take.

The Nintendo Switch's popularity has made it a new home for some of the Wii U's best games, and while it might not seem like a huge deal to port a bunch of games from one console to another, it's a chance to appreciate great games that were overlooked on Nintendo's mediocre previous-generation platform. Nintendo has arguably saved one of the best for last: Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury.

Originally released in 2013, Super Mario 3D World was a hugely enjoyable addition to the platform-hopping series that combined 3D navigation with compact level designs, plus the ability to play with up to four people simultaneously. It's a lively adventure with a lot of variety packed into it, and this Switch re-release has something new up its sleeve: a small, standalone game called Bowser's Fury that offers a different take on the 3D Mario experience. All in all, it's an essential package for Mario fans, even if most of it ends up being repackaged.

The story is usually little more than a springboard and window dressing for Mario’s platforming adventures, and so it is with Super Mario 3D World. Mario and friends discover a little fairy princess who says her counterparts have been kidnapped by Bowser, so you jump into a glass pipe and travel through a series of interconnected worlds – each filled with compact levels to complete – to try to free them from the villain’s grasp. It’s all very typical Mario fare.