Skip to main content

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate may bring back Home Run Contest, Stage Builder modes

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch is already an expansive game, but it appears that the multiplayer brawler will soon grow even bigger with the return of two popular modes.

Dataminers have discovered references to the Home Run Contest and Stage Builder, two fan-favorite modes in the Super Smash Bros. series, in the code of the latest installment in the franchise, YouTube channel Source Gaming reported.

RUMOR: New Smash Ultimate Modes Coming in a Later Update?

The code referencing the two game modes were discovered in the How to Play section of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which may be considered as evidence that Home Run Contest and Stage Builder are coming in a future update. Source Gaming speculated that the two modes will arrive in version 3.0, which was teased in the most recent Nintendo Direct.

Recommended Videos

The Home Run Contest, which has appeared in most Super Smash Bros. games, is a mode where players try to smash a bag over the longest distance that they can. Players fight for high scores, and in some instances, unlocked content upon hitting certain milestones.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

The Stage Builder, meanwhile, is as its name suggests, allowing players to create custom stages using a variety of tools. The mode has also appeared in several titles in the series, but is currently not available in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, though its absence is tempered by the fact that the game comes with over 100 stages to choose from.

There is also the possibility that the Home Run Contest and Stage Builder modes were initially supposed to be in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but were later removed to make sure that the game launched on time last December.

There is no confirmation yet that the Home Run Contest and Stage Builder are coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, so players who are fans of these two modes should wait for an official announcement from Nintendo before getting too excited.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate recently claimed the throne as the fastest-selling Nintendo game ever, with 12.08 million units sold in its first three weeks in the market. While the Home Run Contest and Stage Builder modes remain unconfirmed, players are looking forward to the arrival of Joker from Persona 5 as the game’s first DLC fighter.

Aaron Mamiit
Aaron received an NES and a copy of Super Mario Bros. for Christmas when he was four years old, and he has been fascinated…
Nintendo introduces a new Super Smash Bros. Switch OLED for Black Friday
Super Smash Bros. Nintendo Switch OLED.

Nintendo unveiled all of the Black Friday deals and bundles it plans to offer in the coming weeks. These offerings are headlined by a brand new Nintendo Switch bundle with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate that has never been available before.
The Nintendo Switch -- OLED Model: Super Smash Bros. Ulitmate Bundle costs $350 and comes with a code for the fantastic 2018 crossover fighting game as well as three months of a Nintendo Switch Online Membership. The bundle's Joy-Cons feature a design based on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Unfortunately, this deal includes neither Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's Fighter Passes nor the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. Nintendo says this bundle will be released on November 19, although they've already been spotted in some stores.
The other big new offering from Nintendo this holiday season is the Super Mario Party + Red & Blue Joy-Con Bundle. It costs $100 and includes a download code for Super Mario Party in addition to Red and Blue Joy-Con controllers. Keep in mind that this bundle includes 2018's Super Mario Party, not 2021's Mario Party Superstars, which remastered a lot of content from the series' older games.
https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1721527869355049300
Nintendo also plans to offer bundles that have been available before, like the Nintendo Switch Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Bundle and Animal Crossing: New Horizons Nintendo Switch Lite.
Various game discounts for Switch games will also go into effect on November 19. In terms of Nintendo-published games, people can expect Everybody 1-2-Switch! and Nintendo Switch Sports to be discounted by $10, titles like Luigi's Mansion 3, Super Mario Odyssey, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 to have $20 discounts, and for Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe, Donkey Kong Tropical Freeze, Mario Strikers: Battle League, and Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes to all be available $30 cheaper than usual. Sadly, it does not look like Nintendo itself will offer any major deals surrounding this year's The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
All of these bundles and deals will become available on November 19.

Read more
Our 10 favorite Wonder Effects in Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Wonder Flower in Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder's defining gimmick is its series of Wonder Effects. A Wonder Flower is hidden somewhere on almost every level and, once found, radically switches up what is going on within that stage. Some expand on ideas the stage was already exploring, while others are wildly unpredictable, giving players something they were not expecting at all.

There are over 69 stages with Wonder Effects that players can see while playing through the story of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, but 10 of those Wonder Effects effects stood out the most during my playthrough. By order of appearance, these are my 10 favorite Wonder Effects in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, which showcase just how inventive and unpredictable the platformer is.
Piranha Plants on Parade
Super Mario Bros Wonder – Piranha Plants on Parade - 100% All Wonder Seeds, Flower Coins & Flag

Read more
It’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s subtle changes that make it special
The flagpole is knocked away in Super Mario Bros. Wonder

While I’m only partway through Super Mario Bros. Wonder, I’m already utterly in love with the game.

As our glowing review outlined, it’s a highly polished 2D platformer that’s approachable for anyone to play and elicits a joyous and vibrant sense of wonder. But for me, what makes Super Mario Bros. Wonder special aren't so much the wild Wonder effects or elephant transformations. It's the subtle touches. These elements might not be immediately noticeable or relevant to most, but they all work together to create an experience that’s a step above most other platformers.
Changes enhance enjoyment
Super Mario Bros. Wonder isn’t afraid to show that it’s different from previous Mario games through small moments and changes. One instance that illustrates this early on is in one of the first Bowser Jr. fights. It starts like all his New Super Mario Bros. boss fights do, with him getting in his shell and spinning toward Mario. At first, I was disappointed that Nintendo was just doing the same thing again, but after the first hit, that changed. Bowser Jr. activates a Wonder effect and changes in size for the following two stages of his fight. It's a moment of surprise that subverts my expectations, which are based on decades of Mario games. This is a small moment and reference that many Super Mario Bros. Wonder players probably won’t even internalize. Still, it is a smart way to show how the platformer differs from what came before.

Read more