Every New Power-Up In Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Ranked (2024)

Super Mario Bros. Wonder introduces Mario and friends to enchanting possibilities with the addition of silly and exciting new magical power-ups that provide some creative abilities and transformations. Naturally, the Mario games are known for having fun gimmicks, such as the tanooki and cat suits of previous games. This time around there are also special Badges that can give characters new abilities, like being able to float or stick to walls. While being similar in giving a new way to play for a limited time, the Badges are not considered power-ups due to the differences in how they are handled.

Mario has seen his fair share of strange power-ups over the years, giving him unique abilities to help him conquer the challenges he faces in saving the Mushroom Kingdom or even winning a race in Mario Kart. The mystical wonderment of Super Mario Bros. Wonder seems to take some of these power-ups on a different, more magical, approach. For example, rather than using a Cat Bell to give him the capabilities of a cat, the Elephant Fruit will actually transform Mario into an elephant. Here are each of the power-ups introduced in the wondrous world of Mario Wonder. It is important to note, however, that Yoshi and Nabbit are unable to use these power-ups, yet they possess their own special invincibility to make them an option for "easy mode" in the game instead.

4 Bubble Flower

The new Bubble Flower power-up looks like the Fire Flower, but with a new color scheme of purple and cyan. This flower turns a character into a special bubble form that allows them to shoot out bubbles. This makes new use of the over-sized bubbles first introduced in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, allowing the character to blow them without the use of a wand. These bubbles drift toward nearby enemies to encompass and defeat them very satisfyingly. The most exciting feature of bubbles is the ability to use them as midair platforms, adding a mobility feature reminiscent of Super Mario Odyssey's Cappy and opening up exciting new possibilities for movement tech. As the bubbles aren't stationary, however, it will take some skill to master this aspect of the power-up.

3 Drill Mushroom

Wearing a drill hat may not make the most coherent fashion statement, but it does prove to be a useful tool in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Once a character obtains a Drill Mushroom, they then have a drill appear on their head like a hat. Jumping with the drill hat sets it immediately spinning, giving the destructive powers of Mario's jump attacks a little extra oomph. Spiky and hard enemies that would usually be impervious to attacks from below can be taken down with ease by Drill Mario, making it the perfect fit for cave levels.

The drill hat can also be flipped around while ground-pounding, making it possible to break through hard surfaces beneath to find rewards. Both directions allow for burrowing into surfaces and traveling beneath the ground or ceiling, which can make it easy to bypass difficult enemies or reach isolated platforms. Like the Bubble Flower power-up, the Drill Mushroom establishes a pattern of new power-ups in Super Mario Bros. Wonder providing both combat abilities and movement possibilities.

2 Elephant Fruit

The power-up for Elephant Mario quickly took the internet by storm after the first reveal trailer from Nintendo of America on YouTube showed Mario transform into a cartoon elephant wearing Mario's clothes and hat, complete with a mustache under his trunk. The Elephant Fruit looks like a strange red and white apple-type fruit with ears and an elephant-like face on it, complete with a green stalk and leaf sticking out of the top. Once a character such as Mario uses this Elephant Fruit, they transform into an elephant version of themselves.

In this form, Mario can swing his trunk to attack enemies, destroy blocks, and bounce projectiles back at foes. Mario's extra size with the elephant power-up lets him break more blocks at once and dash across larger gaps. When swimming, Elephant Mario can suck water into his trunk that can be used to water plants. Luigi, Peach, Daisy, the Toads, and Toadette can all take on elephant forms in Super Mario Bros. Wonder as well. Sadly, though it would have been fun to see what a Yoshi elephant would look like, neither Yoshi nor Nabbit can utilize these power-ups.

1 Wonder Flower

The Wonder Flower is an item that can shake up gameplay in clever ways. It looks similar to a Fire Flower or Bubble Flower, but with a fluid look to its pedals and a magical aura. Touching a Wonder Flower changes the level around it, which can have useful benefits in the vein of a power-up, such as making pipes move like worms or bubbles rising up from the bottom of the screen for extra vertical possibilities. The idea that it could also call hordes of enemies to charge at Mario sounds much less helpful, however, so the Wonder Flower could be both good and bad depending on its use in Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube