New Super Luigi U Beginner’s Tips (Wii U)

Nintendo’s year of Luigi continues with the release of New Super Luigi U, a $19.99 piece of downloadable content for New Super Mario Bros. U that’ll also debut on disc August 25. Mario’s green-clad bro explores 82 brand-new levels, adding tremendous value to an already feature-packed Wii U experience.

That said, while the basic premise of collecting gold coins and gathering power-ups remains intact, New Super Luigi U doesn’t necessarily play like New Super Mario Bros. U.  With this in mind, newcomers should follow these life-saving tips.

-Manage the clock.  Each level in New Super Luigi U lasts 100 seconds.  That doesn’t give you much time to explore.  Keep a close eye on the timer to avoid a surprise death.

-Reach the goal with seconds to spare? Now’s the time to quickly go back and gather collectibles you may have missed.

-Remember that Luigi jumps higher than Mario, and you should take full advantage of this ability to reach platforms.  

-Luigi slides just before he stops.  This is something to be mindful of when approaching platform edges.

-Collect 1-up mushrooms as quickly as possible and memorize their locations when revisiting levels.  So long as you collect them just before Luigi dies, there’s nothing lost, nothing gained.

-Replay courses to locate hidden items and the best path to the flagpole.

-Although the levels are much shorter than Mario’s, you can still find three Star Coins per stage.

-You’ll receive another 100 seconds once you reach a boss.

-View MiiVerse comment balloons by pressing the Map View button on the lower left portion of the game pad.  A fellow player may have provided a helpful tip.

-It’s a good idea to stockpile items and save these power-ups for the trickiest stages.  Press the Items button on the lower right while on the world map, then tap the desired item.

-Play as Nabbit in multiplayer mode.  He’s invincible to enemies and objects like projectiles.

-As usual, collecting 100 gold coins earns an extra life.

New Super Luigi U is available for Wii U as a digital download for $19.99, and you must own a copy of New Super Mario Bros. U to purchase it.  Nintendo will release a standalone copy August 25 that will sell for $29.99.

Read Prima’s New Super Mario Bros. U eGuide.