Guide to Unlockables in New Super Mario Bros Wii: World 9, Hatless mario, Mushroom Houses, Secret Endings, and More

Guide to Unlockables in New Super Mario Bros Wii: World 9, Hatless mario, Mushroom Houses, Secret Endings, and More
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Like the multitude of Mario games before it, New Super Mario Bros Wii is chock full of unlockables. How could it hope to be a true successor to Super Mario World without a bevy of unlockable levels, items, and secrets?

Check out all the great stuff we’ve discovered so far.

Super Guide Mode

Desert Level

This is in the manual, but for those of you like me who never read them, you can unlock the super guide mode by dying in a level eight times in a row. On your ninth try, a large green box will appear. Hit it with your head to have Luigi complete the level for you on autopilot.

This feature is available in all levels except those in the super-secret World 9.

Hatless Mario

Have you ever wondered what kind of hairstyle Mario is rocking under his signature red hat? Well now you can find out. Simply get your total life count up to 99, and Mario will make his way through levels sans chapeau.

A good place to rack up 99 lives is the ending of Level 2-3. Here, you’ll find a Koopa making his way down a set of stairs. Jump on his head, then bounce off the constantly-rebounding shell to rack up as many lives as you wish. Mario veterans will recognize the technique.

Star Coins

Star Coin

You know those Star Coins hidden throughout each level? Turns out they’re more than just a difficult to obtain annoyance. You probably already know that you can view hint movies by returning to the Princess’s castle at the beginning of world one, but did you know that to unlock the hint movie for a particular level you must first find all three coins?

Also, finding all the star coins in a world unlocks the corresponding level in the hidden World 9, which opens after you beat the game. Collecting all the Star Coins in World 1 opens up level 9-1, get all the coins in World 2 for 9-2, and so on.

Check out page two for more on how to unlock stars at the title screen, choose which Mushroom House you get for rescuing Toad, and how to get the game’s alternate endings.

Title Screen Stars

Completing certain in-game tasks will award you stars at the title screen. You can earn stars by:

  • Tricky Level

    Successfully completing the game.

  • Completing all normal levels in the game (excluding those in World 9).

  • Collecting all 207 Star Coins in Worlds 1 through 8.

  • Completing World 9 and collecting all 24 Star Coins.

  • Completing all levels and unlocking all alternate paths in the game (Warp Cannons, Shortcuts, and Mushroom Houses).

You can also give your stars a sparkling sheen by completing all in-game levels without activating Super Guide Mode.

Mushroom Houses

Green Mushroom House

When you’re in single-player mode, you’ll occasionally run across a Toad stranded in a level you’ve already completed. Rescuing him and carrying him to the end of the level will cause him to reopen a Mushroom House on the world map. You can choose which type of house it will be by watching the digits on the clock.

To get a green Mushroom House (with the 1up Cannon mini game), make sure the last digit of the timer is a 0, 1, 2, or 3. For a red Mushroom House (match mini-game), ensure the last digit is a 4, 5, or 6. Finally, to get a gold Mushroom House (a single chest inside containing a Power Star) hit the flag pole when the last digit is a 7, 9, or 9.

Save Anywhere

Beating the game by finishing the final castle of World 8 unlocks the ability to save anywhere on the map, rather than after completing a castle.

This will replace the “quick save” option.

Alternate Endings

After you beat the game, the Princess will offer up different comments depending on the number of Star Coins you’ve picked up along the way.

If you get to the finish without collecting more than 100 Star Coins, she will ask, “Did I ever tell you about the Secret World?”

Complete the game with all 207 Star Coins from the first eight worlds and she will say, “Oh Mario, tell me about your adventure again!”

New Super Mario Bros Wii is one of the most entertaining and addictive Wii games to hit the market in quite some time. Now that you know all the great rewards that you can unlock in the game, you should be even more motivated to go after those hard to find Star Coins.