Super Mario Heroes

The air of this game is very "final battle for the fate of the universe" in nature, but its versatility would make it a great game for anyone to play if they love Super Mario games.

The format is in many ways similar to the New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and has an element of the rare demo game New Super Mario Bros. Mii. However, it is more serious and more diverse than that, as it allows someone to build their own Mario character, or "hero" for all intents and purposes.

The setting of the game is, of course the Mushroom Kingdom to start out with, in which Princess Peach has called all citizens together for a critical announcement. At the beginning of the game, Princess Peach has announced that Bowser, in conjunction with his son Bowser Jr., the crafty Koopalings, Wario, and Waluigi, is about to launch his fiercest, boldest, and most powerful attack ever.* Pursuant to this, Mario and Luigi have decided that an extreme plan is in order. Mario takes center stage and announces on behalf of himself and his friends that they are requesting help from all citizens who are brave and willing enough to fight the threat of Bowser. This population which he requests help from is very diverse; it includes minor princesses, toads, toadettes, plumbers, and the never-before-known-of female plumbers. Needless to say, there is at least one (up to four) person(s) who answer(s) the call, i.e., the player.


 * Note that no one is captured according to this plot, making this more of an action than an adventure game.

Main character(s)
This is the element of the game that sets it apart from other Mario games. The main character is not a main canon character whom you pick over all else, and is not even a Mii, which is the usual form of customized character in the Nintendo franchise. The game would have a hub within itself that would allow the player to create their own character with the attendant distinguishing features of the type of character they choose to play as. Up to four characters can customize heroes at the beginning of the game, who are then saved to the character roster. If four players indeed choose to play at the beginning, they settle the matter of their heroes and venture out into the first world. As for the number of heroes that can be saved, I would guess that either eight or twelve would be an appropriate number, depending on how advantageous each would be. However, the characters can be edited after creation, so that there is no anger-provoking limitations on the variety.

The four types of heroes, as noted, are princess, toad, toadette, plumber, and female plumber. Also as noted, the characters would be customized according to their distinguishing features, such as the hat on a toad character or the hat on a plumber character. The customization process would go into all available detail, including every factor of any hair, colors, color distribution, facial features, height, build, etc. These characteristics will also influence the gaming experience, such as greater speed for a toad character, ability of princesses to float, and a variety of speed and strength ratings for plumber characters dependent on how they are assembled. This harkens back to the idea of Super Mario Bros. 2, in which characters were different in nature depending on their phenotype (outward features).

Worlds
The game would be divided into ten worlds, with the fortress of each containing a sub-boss based on the nature of the world, and the final castle having a major boss. The first seven would have one of the Koopalings in each as the major boss, and the last three will have more powerful and well-known villains as sub-bosses in recognition of the final bosses' gravity concerning the plot, as the last bosses are Waluigi, Wario, Bowser Jr., and Bowser. The reason there are four major bosses and three final worlds is because the last stretch, where Bowser is the final boss, is smaller, with only two levels and no fortress, and is technically a return to the first world, meaning there are still only ten individual worlds. The worlds would be:
 * 1) Mushroom Kingdom
 * 2) Desert World
 * 3) Forest World
 * 4) Ocean World
 * 5) Mountain World
 * 6) Cloud World
 * 7) Ice World
 * 8) Storm World
 * 9) Cave World
 * 10) Fire World