Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park Review – Koopalings Steal the Show

Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park is a top-notch upgrade to Super Mario Bros. Wonder, adding neat multiplayer distractions and fantastic boss fights alongside its new characters and snazzy visual upgrade. Without a doubt, this is now the ideal way to play Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

It’s hard to believe it’s been about two and a half years since Super Mario Bros. Wonder first hit the Switch. In that time, Nintendo’s newest console dropped, bringing plenty of fantastic new games and upgrade packs for existing ones, both paid and unpaid. Now, as we enter the second quarter of 2026 (and non-coincidentally, the release period of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie), Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park aims to bring both boosted visuals and colorful new content to Mario’s most recent 2D platforming excursion. I’d say it succeeds, too, as I’ve been having a real blast with these tasty new Mario morsels.

As the name implies, most of the new content in Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park occurs in Bellabel Park. There’s a plethora of co-op minigames to enjoy with friends in Attraction Central, with most of them feeling like a mix of Mario Party minigames with the platforming of Wonder. They’re definitely enjoyable, but you can only play them in online or local multiplayer, so singleplayer-focused fans really won’t get anything out of this part of the package. 

You can decorate the titular park by collecting water droplets from skill-testing mini-levels that focus on short challenges. You can use these water droplets to water plants that give you items and decorations, allowing you to adorn all sorts of park areas with different flowers. It’s not a huge addition or anything, but it’s a cute little bit of side content, and the smaller levels are a good deal of fun.

Battling the Koopalings in Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park is probably the highlight of the new content, as their short stages and boss battles offer consistently creative, unique challenges that feel totally fresh. The battles, in particular, see the Koopalings get powered up into “Mighty” forms of themselves, who do everything from turning into giant fish to seed-shooting plants, which all make for rather exciting fights. I think it was an excellent idea to cast the Koopalings as the main baddies in the new stages, as it feels like a natural and exciting addition to the game.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park brings Rosalina and a Luma into the fray.

Outside of the Bellabel Park stuff, Rosalina has been added as a new playable character alongside the multiplayer-exclusive Co-Star Luma. I think Rosalina and a Luma make a lot of sense, given the release of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, and they offer different experiences that are equally useful depending on who’s playing. Co-Star Luma is another solid character choice for younger and less experienced players, as they can’t really lose, and Rosalina’s enduring popularity honestly had me surprised she wasn’t part of the base game. I would’ve loved to see Wario drop in, but Rosalina’s a satisfying enough pick.

As for the visuals, the 4K upgrade in Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup in Bellabel Park is certainly noticeable. Everything looks wonderfully sharp and vivid when the game is docked, and it looks pretty great in handheld mode as well. Given that this is an immensely colorful and stylish game, this is a noticeable upgrade that does a lot for the title. That said, I think it’s fair to be frustrated that the visual upgrade is only available in this paid bundle, as those who simply want the base game to look better on the Nintendo Switch 2 will have to shell out some cash for something other games often offer for free.