Switch 2 should have been Mario's easiest setup in years, especially after Nintendo's latest Direct had fans waiting for the most famous mascot in gaming to finally take the spotlight again. Instead, Direct came and went without the announcement of a new standalone 3D Mario game or any indication that one even exists, leaving the Switch 2 with a strange distinction that no Nintendo console wants to associate with it. Specifically, Mario is now more than eight and a half years removed from his last original 3D platformer adventure, making it an all-time record drought for the iconic plumber.
Super Mario Odyssey launched on October 27, 2017, it still stands as the last full, standalone 3D Mario game Nintendo has released. Of course, Bowser's Fury deserves recognition, because it came in 2021 and experimented with a more open structure, but it was packed with Super Mario 3D World and was never built or sold as a fully standalone successor. It was also incredibly short, making it feel more like a loophole to count it as the end of the drought than a fair read of Marios current situation, where he seems to be avoiding the Switch 2 for now.
After Ocarina of Time and Star Fox, Switch 2's next N64 remake feels obvious
After Ocarina of Time and Star Fox, Switch 2 already has the perfect opening to give another classic N64 title the remake it deserves.
Mario has never gone this long between full 3D games
The frustrating part about MarioThe current absence on the Switch 2 is that long wait times between 3D entries is nothing new, but this one is clearly different. Nintendo has never dealt with 3D Mario as an annual franchise, but that's actually a good thing, as it's helped each new entry feel like a big event worth waiting for. Even so, the gap after Odyssey has now stretched far beyond any major expectation the series has seen since Super Mario 64.
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Every wipe between great 3D Mario games
- Super Mario 64 to Super Mario Sunshine: 5 years, 10 months, 28 days
- Super Mario Sunshine to Super Mario Galaxy: 5 years, 2 months, 17 days
- Super Mario Galaxy to Super Mario Galaxy 2: 2 years, 6 months, 11 days
- Super Mario Galaxy 2 to Super Mario 3D Land: 1 year, 5 months, 21 days
- Super Mario 3D Land to Super Mario 3D World: 2 years, 9 days
- Super Mario 3D World to Super Mario Odyssey: 3 years, 11 months, 5 days
- Super Mario Odyssey to date: 8 years, 7+ months
Considering the wait between Super Mario Odyssey and the next 3D Mario The game is now fast approaching 9 years, when the next entry finally arrives, it's likely the drought will have doubled some of the longest release gaps in the franchise's history. The previous longest distance came in between Super Mario 64— the original 3D Mario game — and Super Mario Sunshinewhich makes sense in light of the size of the leap from the Nintendo 64 to the GameCube era. But Odyssey has now waited nearly three years longer than that, with no confirmed successor on the Switch 2 calendar.
Bowser's Fury complicates things, but it still doesn't count
The Bowser's Fury debate is the only real complication, and even then it doesn't do enough to clear the record. Bowser's Fury was exciting because it felt like a glimpse of where 3D was Mario may go next, with a connected playground and a more experimental approach to structure. However, it was still an add-on paired with an enhanced Wii U port, meaning it served more as a proof of concept than Marionext flagship adventure.
The gap after Odyssey has now stretched far beyond any major expectation the series has seen since Super Mario 64.
Historically 3D Mario games have defined launches for Nintendo hardware. Super Mario 64 introduced players to the Nintendo 64 and its capabilities, Super Mario Galaxy became the Wii's great creative showpiece, and Super Mario Odyssey gave the original Nintendo Switch one of its most important early exclusives. Switch 2 has Mario Kart World is fine and all, but a racing game can't quite replace the sense of discovery that comes from a new 3D Mario built around new hardware.
Fans are not happy with 3D Mario's absence on Switch 2
The longer the wait, the more fans start talking about the missing 3D Mario as one of the Switch 2's most curious and defining absences. A Reddit post by user West-Exam-4136 pointed out that October 2026 would be nine years ago Odyssey and asked if Nintendo would show a new one Mario game this year or save it for Odyssey10th anniversary. The same post summed up the impatience bluntly by saying that 10 years is “way too long.”
Other comments show how the gap is starting to affect people's feelings about the Switch 2 itself. In the same post, user GOAt_tWO3 said Odyssey was the game that made them want a Switch in the first place, which is exactly the kind of statement that explains why the absence feels so glaring now. User OilMeUpStewart also wrote that Donkey Kong Banana looked good, but it wasn't enough to get them to buy a Switch 2, while a new one Mario the game would make them “pull the trigger”.
However, there are also more forgiving voices, and they are worth acknowledging because this is Nintendo after all. Some fans are still willing to accept a new 3D Mario is coming eventually, with user AttleesTears arguing in a Reddit post by user ChiTownDog that the problem isn't a lack of good games but the fact that the Switch 2's launch library and release schedule don't feel on par with what people expect from a brand new Nintendo console. And that's the crux of the matter, because the frustration isn't necessarily about Nintendo not having anything to play, but about Nintendo not having full 3D Mario when its new system feels complete to one.
Zelda keeps getting games, Mario doesn't
The comparison to the original Switch makes the Switch 2's situation even harder to ignore. In 2017, the first Switch was launched with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and then got Super Mario Odyssey less than eight months later. The first year gave Nintendo fans a new full 3D Mario and a new one Zelda games, which immediately made the Switch feel like a full-on generational reset rather than a simple but much-needed hardware upgrade.
Since then, Zelda has continued to receive that type of treatment Mario fans are still waiting. The tears of the kingdom came in 2023 as a massive sequel to Breath of the Wild, Echo of wisdom was launched just a year later, and now Ocarina of time remake is headed to Switch 2 in 2026. Zelda has received a new open-world entry, improved focus on Switch 2, a brand new episode with a new main character and now a remake of one of the most beloved games ever made, all in 3D Mario still lives on Odysseys legacy.
The frustration isn't necessarily that Nintendo has nothing to play but that Nintendo doesn't have full 3D Mario when its new system feels complete to one.
None of this means that Nintendo has just completely ignored it Mario as a whole though. Super Mario Bros. Wonder gave 2D Mario a great creative gain, Mario Kart World has already given the Switch 2 a great multiplayer game, and Mario brand in general is still healthier than almost any franchise in gaming. The problem is, none of these things answer the specific question fans have been asking ever since Odysseywhich revolves around the next 3D Mario game.
So the Switch 2 has now broken the wrong way Mario record because Nintendo let the wait outgrow any historical comparison. The company may eventually reveal a 3D Mario games that make silence feel justified, and history suggests that Nintendo is more than capable of turning patience into payoff. But until that revelation happens, Marios most important Switch 2 achievement is, unfortunately, the longest drought his 3D franchise has ever seen.
