New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe: Hidden Bonuses, Characters & Unlockables

If you’re discovering New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe for the first time, you might not know about the many, many secrets hidden in this platformer throwback to Mario’s glory days on the NES and SNES. The game is packed with secret features, and we’re going to try listing them all for you. Most of these hidden features are impossible to discover on your own, so don’t feel too bad if you decide to keep scrolling down.

We’ll also cover a few of the more obvious bonuses you can unlock in the game. Just by completing the story, you’ll be able to access some special stuff — but what we’re really looking to cover are those super-weird secrets. For instance, did you know there are special bonuses you can earn with the end-of-the-level flagpole? Match the last two digits on your timer to earn bonus rewards. You can also earn extra stars next to your save file. We’ll explain how to get 5 stars (and much more) in the full guide below.

More New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe guides:

New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe: What’s New In The Switch Version? | Change List

Hidden Bonuses, Characters & Unlockables | Secrets Guide

Find secrets, cheats, bonus features and more here. Anything that can be unlocked, or isn’t entirely obvious, will be listed on this page.

Unlock World 9 – Superstar World / Secret Island

After completing World 8, you’ll unlock a bonus world with more difficult levels — you’ll also get the Secret Island, located between Acorn Plains and Sparkling Waters. You’ll need to collect Star Coins to unlock each individual level in Superstar World.

The Secret Island features the Records Toad House, where you can see how many coins you’ve collected, and other records.

How To Earn Save File Stars

By completing certain tasks, you’ll get stars on your save file. You can earn up to five stars. If you get all five stars, you’ll be able to revisit deactivated Toad Houses infinitely.

1 Star: Defeat the final boss, Bowser.
2 Stars: Beat every level. (Superstar Road not included.)
3 Stars: Find every star coin. (Superstar Road not included.)
4 Stars: Find every star coin in Superstar Road levels 1-8. Unlock Superstar Road Level 9.
5 Stars: Capture all 7 Nabbits, and get every star coin in Superstar Road Level 9.

Get Super Mario Jump Physics In Super Luigi U Mode

After beating the final stage in Super Luigi U, “M” blocks will appear at the start of every Luigi level. Hitting this block makes Luigi play exactly like Mario for the remainder of the stage.

This only works for Luigi. The “M” block doesn’t work for Nabbit or Toadette.

You can play as Nabbit or Toadette in Super Luigi U Mode, but Mario is still locked out. To “play” as Mario, you’ll have to hit that “M” block to transform Luigi into a Mario-duplicate.

Play As Nabbit

In the original version of Super Mario Bros. U, Nabbit was exclusive to Super Luigi Bros. U. — to play as him, you had to hold [ZL] when selecting a stage. Nabbit would replace Luigi for that stage, or until you were hit. Now you can play as Nabbit in both Super Mario Bros. U and Super Luigi Bros. U.

Flagpole Bonuses & Fireworks

When jumping on the flagpole to complete a level, you’ll earn special rewards if the last two digits on the timer match; 11, 22, 33, etc. For each number, you’ll get a unique item and a fireworks show. The amount of fireworks increases as the matching digits go higher, all the way up to 99.

Last Digits Equal 11 or 22: Get a Super Mushroom and 1 or 2 fireworks.
Last Digits Equal 33 or 44: Get a Fire Flower and 3 or 4 fireworks.
Last Digits Equal 55: Get an Ice Flower and 5 fireworks.
Last Digits Equal 66: Get a Tiny Mushroom and 6 fireworks.
Last Digits Equal 77: Get a Super Acorn and 7 fireworks.
Last Digits Equal 88 or 99: Get a Star and 8 or 9 fireworks.

If there are more secrets, we’ll add them to this list ASAP! Let us know.