This game reminds me of LBP in the sense that SMM is a glimpse of what could be, but it's missing too many elements to really feel like a worthwhile editor. I am enjoying it. It's a good start, but Nintendo could've done so much more. DLC or SMM2, please.
Small stuff inexplicably missing from the game, or stuff that they overlooked:
- can't change color of pipes (no silver pipes in SMB; no red/green pipes in SMW nor NSMB)
- menus feel like they were designed for a different game in the "Wii ____" series, not a Mario game. For instance, the Uploading icon is a Wii Fit-looking dude doing situps. For a game that's supposed to be a celebration of all things Mario, the menus leave a lot to be desired.
- speech bubbles are from NSMB, even if you're playing one of the other palettes. Would it've been so hard to include the original text varieties of the original titles?
- the white "crouch to drop behind" panels from SMB3 are included...except you cannot fall behind them.
- end-of-level minigames in SMB3 and SMW mean nothing. I appreciate the touch but there's no real point.
- floating platforms are missing a few options. There are no perpetually-scrolling floating platforms (like in SMB3 1-4) nor can you have a platform that both moves and also falls down after you jump on it (unless I missed some menu option)
- sound effects included in the game don't mesh with the overall Mario theme and are pretty stupid. It's disappointing to have some disco party light effect instead of more items from the Mario games. Mario's content is legendary. It speaks for itself. We don't need to have ringing doorbells and laughter to make this a good game.
- Yoshi eating red shells has no effect in SMW (normally, it shot fireballs)
- Would've liked to see a few more powerups. Frog suit, colored Yoshi varieties, and ice flower are three that would've been so fun.
- no verticality. This mostly affects the SMW and NSMB palettes, but it's noticeable in those two games. Would've been nice to have vertical layout options.
- Amiibo integration is mediocre. It's just a palette swap. Instead, Nintendo could've knocked this out of the park by giving each character some power to use (like Samus shooting bullets plus being able to morph-ball).
- no option to pick which song you want to play in the background.
- Warp pipe is the very, very last thing they give you access to. I kinda understand why (it unlocks the second "zone" for you to warp to) but it's annoying to build levels and being unable to use this option from the start.
- no "item reserve" from SMW.
- Aesthetic options in general are pretty limited, which is disappointing. Would've been nice to have some basic color-swapping options.
Big stuff that really irks me:
- NO WORLD MAP? Instead we get a papercraft sort of generic map. I understand that this was never advertised, but the option to make your own "Rom hack" would've made this game so much better. I want to play so-and-so's Super Mario Bros 3 game, or maybe a mix of different game styles mashed into one world. Instead, levels are just disjointed experiments. A world map editor would be very ambitious but it's a necessary inclusion for this game (or the next) to be the "ultimate" editor. Let us make our own Mario games!
- Lives don't matter. Since there's no world map and no real progression, there's even less of a reason to grab 1ups.
- Fly Swatter minigame is a waste of time and is annoying. Yet another example (like the disco lights and sound effects) of Nintendo spending time on something that doesn't belong in this game. Were they trying to be funny? Creative? This doesn't belong in the game and only serves to interrupt my sessions.
- popular levels available online are of the typical "don't touch the controller" Rube Goldberg machines. Or pixel art. It's difficult to find or tag levels that are simply good MARIO levels. More menu options could've helped a lot here. I do appreciate looking at this OT to find some decent levels.
- the "timed delay" delivery of new items. Now that I've unlocked the full set of items, I can say with confidence that there really aren't such a huge wealth of items that would confuse you. Instead, the system penalizes new players who have access to a very limited set of items, and since you must build with what you have (or wait) you end up making a bunch of levels (or scribbling on the screen for 5m straight) to unlock the next batch. Typical Nintendo hand-holding.
- only 24 "themes" in total (ground, underground, ghost house, castle, airship, and underwater for each of the 4 game palettes). This isn't very many. No "icy" or "grassy" or "desert" themes in SMB3. No "jungle" or "underwater ghost ship" in SMW. Even if there were a few more backgrounds per "theme" with no gameplay functionality, I would've been happy.
- speaking of water....no water! And no lava! The only way to get these course elements is to use the underwater (in which case, it's the whole level) or castle (in which case, it's the floor) themes. There is no option to add pools of these into levels. It's all or nothing.
- no hills or sloped ground. Every palette except for SMB had hills in the original version. Would it have been so hard to include them in the game and maybe omit them from SMB? In combination with the "no lava blocks" limitation, this means no Blaarg's Bone Ride Never Ends levels like in SMW with upward- and downward-sloping lava hills.
- No multiplayer. It may have been a challenge to include it in the 2d games, but NSMBU had 4p multiplayer as a default.