Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is a puzzle platform game for the Wii U. The game is based on The Adventures of Captain Toad stages from Super Mario 3D World but features extensive depth and variety. This is the second game to have a Toad as the main protagonist, with the first game being Wario's Woods, released twenty years prior.
Story
Captain Toad and Toadette are out treasure hunting, climbing a structure to get a Power Star. They soon after notice feathers falling from the sky when Wingo, a large bird who's described as "a lover of all things shiny", grabs the star. Toadette attempts to retrieve it while Captain Toad is temporarily knocked over. Wingo makes off with both the star and Toadette, leaving the Captain on his own. Captain Toad must then go through stages collecting Power Stars to reach Wingo and save Toadette.
Once Captain Toad reaches Wingo's fortress, they fight, and after Wingo is defeated, Toadette is rescued and they continue treasure hunting. However, Wingo returns to steal their treasure again and ends up capturing Captain Toad, allowing Toadette to journey on a solo adventure. After another long journey, Toadette saves him, although immediately afterward Wingo reappears, captures Toadette again and blows Captain Toad away.
The Captain awakes in a dark cave, where he finds another Power Star snatched away by Wingo. Toad pursues to a large mine. Meanwhile, Toadette escapes Wingo and goes off to reunite with Captain Toad, though is captured again soon after. Wingo then takes her to the same tower, while Captain Toad arrives. After a final fight, Wingo is truly defeated, and the two Toads ride off in a minecart as the credits play.
After the credits, Captain Toad notices a Green Star falling through the sky, and chases after it, leaving Toadette in the minecart. The opening scene of Super Mario 3D World plays, though after Mario and the others enter the Clear Pipe to chase Bowser, the Green Star falls in as well, with Captain Toad climbing into the Clear Pipe to chase after it.
Gameplay
Captain Toad controls similarly to The Adventures of Captain Toad, and is unable to jump. Instead, he can pull on Pluck Patches, patches of grass which can contain items such as coins, power-ups, or turnips, which can be thrown at enemies in a Super Mario Bros. 2 fashion. The camera can be rotated in any direction to view the stage at different angles.
The main goal of the game is to reach the one Power Star in each stage; the player must do so by navigating each stage and solving puzzles to reach them. Unlike The Adventures of Captain Toad, the levels have no time limit. Instead, the game keeps track of the highest number of coins earned in each level and the time taken to complete each level. Each stage also has 3 Super Gems (similar to the Green Stars of Super Mario 3D World) to collect, as well as a bonus objective that appears after beating the stage, in which the player must clear the stage while performing a certain task (collecting a certain mushroom, taking no damage, defeating certain enemies, etc.).
amiibo
The game received amiibo functionality in an update released in March 2015[1]. Scanning the Toad amiibo takes the player into a game of Hide and Seek on the current stage, in which the player must find a hidden 8-bit Toad (called "Pixel Toad") by tapping it on the Wii U GamePad.[2] The player can only play the hide and seek game on a given stage after clearing it.
Tapping any other amiibo gives the player 1-Up Mushrooms[2], though they can only give the player so many before they can no longer be used, and the player must wait to use them again.
Controls
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker can only be played using the Wii U GamePad.
- Move -
- Run/pluck/throw - / / /
- Spin - (rotate)
- Zoom in/out -
- Turn on/off headlamp -
- Camera:
- Tilt - / / (tilt)
- Move 45 degrees - /
- Center - (press)
- Move behind player -
- Use amiibo - (only on menu)
Characters
Playable
red | pink |
---|---|
Draggadon and Gold Draggadon are also playable in several cut-scenes, but due to the player having limited control, they are not directly considered playable characters.
Supporting
Other
Enemies and obstacles
New
Returning
Bosses
Items and objects
Power-ups
Power-ups | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Super Mushroom | Double Cherry | Super Pickax | Invincibility Mushroom | |
Turns the player into their Super form, else gives the user 10 coins | Creates a clone of the player that copies their movements. | Temporarily allows the player to defeat any enemy and break Brick Blocks. | Makes the player invincible for the entirety of a level. |
Other
Stages
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker features 79 stages (referred to as "mini-universes"[3]). The game is divided into various "episodes", with their own plots, as well as containing a number of different stages played as each character. Each stage also features a challenge that can be completed for an extra bonus.
Episode 1 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
The Secret Is in the Stars | The Chase to Pyropuff Peak | The Hunt for the Great Bird's Lair | Onward, Captain Toad! | Operation Rescue Toadette |
1. Plucky Pass Beginnings | 5. Double Cherry Palace | 11. Piranha Creeper Cove | 14. Pop-Up Prairie Town | 18. Wingo's Watchtower |
2. Walleye Tumble Temple | 6. Shy Guy Heights | 12. Briny Bowl Swimming Hole | 15. Drop-Road Dash | |
3. Touchstone Trouble | 7. Spinwheel Library | 13. Turnip Cannon Jungle | 16. Bizarre Doors of Boo Mansion | |
4. Mushroom Mesa | 8. Mine Cart Tunnel Throwdown | 17. Blizzard on the Star Express | ||
9. Spinwheel Bullet Bill Base | ||||
10. The King of Pyropuff Peak |
Episode 2 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
The Captain Gets Toadnapped | Onward, Toadette! | Farewell, Pyropuff Peak | On the Trail of the Great Bird | Operation Rescue Captain Toad |
1. Chute Scoot Slopes | 5. Floaty Fun Water Park | 10. Spinwheel Cog Ruins | 14. Midnight in the Wandering Woods | 18. Battle Tower Blitz |
2. Stumper Sneakaround | 6. Drift-Along Canyon | 11. Windup Stairs | 15. Double Cherry Spires | |
3. Mine Cart Sunset Rundown | 7. Sliding Slab Shuffle | 12. Up 'n' Down Terrace | 16. Bullet Bill's Touchy Trials | |
4. Sinister Street Signs | 8. Spooky Specters at Shadow Manor | 13. Clear Pipe Puzzleplex | 17. Spinwheel Sky Fort | |
9. Draggadon's Revenge |
Episode 3 | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Search for Toadette | The Search for Captain Toad | Captain Toad's Trials | Toadette's Tribulations | Reunited at Last? | The Ultimate Treasure | |
1. Rolling Inferno | 5. Stumpy Springs Sanctuary | 10. Multi-Vator Mayhem | 14.Shy Guy Shadow Den | 19. Retro Ramp-Up | 24. Trick Track Hall | 28. Wingo's Whackdown |
2. Seesaw Sizzle | 6. Biddybud Snow Stroll | 11. Flip Panel Footpath | 15. Razzle-Dazzle Slider | 20. Twisty-Turny Planet | 25. Deep-Space Gyromajig | |
3. Beep Block Sky Plaza | 7. Cagey Condor Caper | 12. Rock Block Badlands | 16. Poison Canal Cannon Run | 21. Ghost Gallery Gambit | 26. Magma Road Marathon | |
4. Pickax Cave Plummet | 8. Up 'n' Down Desert | 13. Secret of the Golden Realm | 17. Fright Train Fight | 22. Touchstone Turmoil | 27. Sinking Scaffold Sinkhole | |
9. Mine Cart Ruins Rumble | 18. No Sleep at Magikoopa Keep | 23. Color Crate Carousel |
Bonus Episode | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Expedition to the Sprixie Kingdom | Toad Brigade, Move Out! | Curse of the Mummy-Me! | Memories of Our Adventures | Keep On Tracking, Captain Toad! | Unlimited Coins Galore |
1. Super Bell Hill | 5. Toad Brigade to Mushroom Mesa! | 9. Mummy-Me on Flip Panel Footpath | 12. Episode 1 Prologue | 15. Mummy-Me Maze Forever | 16. Coins Galore |
2. Conkdor Canyon | 6. Toad Brigade to Trick-Track Hall! | 10. Mummy-Me on Drop-Road Dash | 13. Episode 2 Prologue | 17. More Coins Galore | |
3. Shadow-Play Alley | 7. Toad Brigade to Bullet Bill Base! | 11. Mummy-Me at Pyropuff Peak | 14. Episode 3 Prologue | 18. Even More Coins Galore | |
4. Clear Pipe Cruise | 8. Toad Brigade to Magikoopa Keep! |
Development
The idea of Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker came to director Shinya Hiratake as a dream.[4] It originally featured Link as the hero instead of Mario, as Mario not being able to jump would not make sense. Link would explore in a diorama-style in a tech demo presented to Shigeru Miyamoto. The idea was shot down, though Miyamoto realized a potential with the idea. It was included in Super Mario 3D World, where Hiratake chose Captain Toad from Super Mario Galaxy because the heavy backpack would have prevented him from jumping. After Super Mario 3D World came out, Miyamoto encouraged production of a full game around the concept.
Update
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker received an update on March 19, 2015, updating the game to version 1.1. The update adds amiibo support to the game. An amiibo prompt has been added to the menu screen by pressing , allowing players to scan the Toad amiibo to play Hide and Seek with Pixel Toad, while any other amiibo give the player 1-Up Mushrooms.[1]
References to other games
- Donkey Kong: The music that plays when using a Super Pickax is a remix of the theme that plays when Mario collects a Hammer in Donkey Kong; the way in which the pickaxe is swung is also a reference to the Hammer. Retro Ramp-Up is based upon this game.
- Super Mario Bros.: A cover of this game's underground theme is used in Mine Cart Tunnel Throwdown.
- Super Mario Bros. 2: Turnips and sprouts on the ground return, Shy Guys appear as basic enemies, and various buildings draw from the design of Wart's castle.
- Super Mario World: Wingo has a feather on his hat that resembles the Cape Feather. During the fights against Wingo, Toadette will throw Toad a Super Mushroom, similar to Peach in the final Bowser battle.
- Super Mario 64: When playing in a Coins Galore level, a remix of the slide theme of this game plays.
- New Super Mario Bros.: This game's lava level music is partially covered.
- Super Mario Galaxy: Captain Toad and the Toad Brigade return from their debut in this game, along with their iconic sound track. Also, the Starshroom appears in the ending credits if the game is beaten twice. The Starshroom appears secretly in Episode 1's Gold Galore if the player rotates the camera. It is seen in the distance.
- Super Mario 3D Land: A cover version of this game's beach level music appears.
- New Super Mario Bros. 2: The Gold Mushroom returns as an item.
- Super Mario 3D World: This game is based on The Adventures of Captain Toad, first featured in that game. Many mechanics from this game return, as well as cover versions of several tracks from this game. Super Bell Hill, Conkdor Canyon, Shadow-Play Alley, and Clear Pipe Cruise return as stages. Also, the intro from this game can be seen after the credits, revealing that Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker is, in fact, a prequel to Super Mario 3D World.[5]
Gallery
One of the bosses, Wingo.
Pre-release and unused content
Several of the stages shown off during E3 2014 had different names than in the final game. The boxart was also changed during development. Several enemies such as Flaptors seen in the final game do not appear in the E3 demo.
Names in other languages
External links
- E3 trailer
- Official Japanese Website
- Official North American Website
- Official United Kingdom Website
References
- ^ a b How to Update Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker on the Nintendo Support website. Retrieved March 20, 2015.
- ^ a b Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker on the official North American amiibo webpage
- ^ Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo Direct) Trailer
- ^ GoNintendo: Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker originally starred Link, idea was initially shot down. Retrieved at December 12, 2014
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CB-jj1Kx5UA&list=UUfAPTv1LgeEWevG8X_6PUOQ
Wii U games | |
---|---|
Super Mario franchise | New Super Mario Bros. U (2012) • New Super Luigi U (2013) • Super Mario 3D World (2013) • Mario Kart 8 (2014) • Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (2014) • Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars (2015) • Mario Party 10 (2015) • Super Mario Maker (2015) • Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash (2015) • Paper Mario: Color Splash (2016) |
Donkey Kong franchise | Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (2014) |
Yoshi franchise | Yoshi's Woolly World (2015) |
Wario franchise | Game & Wario (2013) |
Crossovers | Nintendo Land (2012) • Sonic Lost World (2013) • Mario & Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games (2013) • Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (2014) • Skylanders: SuperChargers (2015) • Minecraft: Wii U Edition (2015) • Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games (2016) |
Compilations | New Super Mario Bros. U + New Super Luigi U (2013) • NES Remix Pack (2014) |
Nintendo eShop | NES Remix (2013) • Dr. Luigi (2013) • NES Remix 2 (2014) • amiibo tap: Nintendo's Greatest Bits (2015) • Mini Mario & Friends: amiibo Challenge (2016) • Virtual Console games (2013-2016) |