With Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury now available on Nintendo Switch, many new players are enjoying the Wii U classic for the first time. The title is known for its mix of 2D and 3D Mario platforms, cats, and a four-player squad consisting of Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Toad, but it looks like things could have been quite different.
According to @Nickoloxx, claiming to have done “some digging” in Super Mario 3D World’s files, it appears Toadette was once planned to become a playable character. Nickoloxx says, “So far I’ve found a few traces of her in the player files. She has a voice line to be selected and I’ve also found 214 player animations.”
That speech line can be heard in the post shared below; Nickoloxx notes that while they are able to load the file into the game at the character selection screen, they cannot rip it directly.
So, was Toadette ever planned as a bonus player option? Could players perhaps have been able to choose between the two Toads, or would she have been added to the Captain Toad levels – just like in the full Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker game?
Intriguing stuff.