If you have not purchased Super Mario 64, Sunshine Super Mario, and Super Mario Galaxy from the Nintendo Switch eShop yet, you’re going to want to get that. Nintendo is taking off Super Mario 3D All-Stars – the bundle of these three games – on 31 March 2021. People who buy these games will still have a chance before then, but there will be no way for anyone else to buy them after that. Vendors may still be left with physical copies, but Nintendo said it will stop releasing new units.
Also, the multiplayer Mario royale battle Super Mario Bros. will disappear. 35 in total on 31 March.
Nintendo will provide, and Nintendo will take away.
But why? In an interview with Polygon, Nintendo America president Doug Bowser said it’s simple: These Mario games were added as part of a celebration. It was intended to be a special, special time for the 35th anniversary of Super Mario Bros..
“And with some of those titles, we felt it was an opportunity for a limited-time release,” Bowser said. “They did very well. Super Mario 3D All-Stars has sold more than 2.6 million units in the U.S. alone. And clearly, users are able to jump in and enjoy that. ”
What about players who buy Switch in, say, June 2021, though? When asked about that, Bowser said, “Yeah, at this point, the decision was made around that feature and the identifying side. I can’t speak to plans until the end of March. ”
Like the eShop games, the Game & Watch: Super Mario Bros. handset will have limited access. which was also released as part of the anniversary. Nintendo only sells a handful of these, and will stop shipping to retailers around March 31 as well.
Fans, in particular, still find it strange that Nintendo made the decision to sell these products – especially the games – for a limited time. But so far, Bowser has said that it is not a widely used strategy, just “one [Nintendo] this was very special for an anniversary. ”