


And I always felt motivated to pore over everything, thanks to some really great post-game secrets that can only be unlocked by discovering most of the gems. The stages are relatively simple to complete, but finding all of the secrets gets genuinely challenging.

Most stages only require you to find a star in order to move on, with optional feats that include grabbing a trio of gems, and a unique bonus objective for each level. Guiding the Toads through the stages and learning enemy patterns in order to sneak past them always felt great, and being able to make it through a level in what felt like the optimal manner was nice and satisfying. There’s a great sense of discovery in exploring every nook and cranny of a stage, poking around the GamePad and seeing what you can interact with, and observing your surroundings from every imaginable angle. Each of the 70-ish, bite-sized stages in Captain Toad are laid out like an MC Escher-designed diorama floating in space, and they’re all filled with great puzzles.
