Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
| Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker | |
|---|---|
| Developer | EAD Tokyo |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| System | Wii U, 3DS, Switch |
| Release Date | Wii U JP November 13, 2014 US December 5, 2014 PAL January 2/3, 2014 3DS, Switch July 13, 2018 |
| Rating | ESRB: E |
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is an action puzzle game that was originally released for the Wii U in 2014. It is a spin-off of the Mario series starring Captain Toad and based on his levels from Super Mario 3D World.
Development[edit]
The concept originally came to producer Shinya Haritake in a dream. He originally conceived it as a Zelda game starring Link, but Shigeru Miyamoto shot the idea down. They eventually settled on Captain Toad, as they reasoned that his heavy backpack could prevent him from jumping. While originally intended as a full game, the project initially resulted in bonus levels for Super Mario 3D World instead. But after that game was released. Miyamoto decided to let them make the concept into a full game.
Story[edit]
The story begins as Captain Toad and [[Toadette] were on an adventure to claim a Power Star. Their discovery was disrupted by an evil bird named Wingo, who stole both the Power Star and Toadette. Captain Toad embarks on a journey to stop Wingo and rescue them.
Gameplay[edit]
The game follows the gameplay model of Captain Toad's levels from Super Mario 3D World. Playing as Captain Toad, the player navigates levels without being able to jump. Toad can uproot vegetables and other items to throw at enemies, and there is also a power-up known as the Super Pickax which grants temporary invulnerability. The camera can also be rotated to reveal hidden areas within levels. Each stage has coins and three Power Gems to collect, and there is also a bonus objective available when replaying a stage.
Treasure Tracker also used some of the Gamepad's functions, as the touch screen, microphone and gyroscope functions could all be used at different points of the game. This game was also compatible with amiibo. Scanning one of Toad would make a pixel version of Toad appear hidden in a level, and scanning other characters would give the player extra lives.
Legacy[edit]
Ports/Remakes[edit]
- In 2018, Captain Toad was ported to both the 3DS and the Switch. Those versions featured a few gameplay changes and replaced most connections to Super Mario 3D World with connections to Super Mario Odyssey. This included replacing the original's Bonus Episode with four levels based on Odyssey, which were unlocked by scanning a Wedding Mario, Bowser or Peach amiibo. The Switch version also added a pair of two-player options: one in which the second player controlled a pointer, and a second one in which the second player controlled a copy of Captain Toad, with that latter one being added through an update. There was also a DLC episode available for the Switch version, known as the Special Episode.