Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker / YMMV

Alternative Character Interpretation:
- At some point during Episode 3, Wingo drops Toadette into Stumpy Springs Sanctuary. His shocked expression beforehand implies this was an accident, but he doesn't seem to bat an eye in the actual gameplay. Was it truly accidental, or was he planning to leave her to die there? Or was he somehow using/controlling Toadette to make her gather more treasure for him?
- There's also the giant bump on Draggadon's head, caused by Captain Toad at the end of his first fight and Toadette in his second. After Toadette defeats him, he gives her a ride on his head. Is he doing this for noble reasons, or has the bump on his head given him amnesia, allowing Toadette to take advantage of it by convincing Draggadon that he is on her side? Happens again with Gold Draggadon, this time by the hands of Captain Toad himself.
- Even Captain Toad gets hit with this. He leaves Toadette in the minecart to chase after the Green Star in the complete ending, all while ignoring Toadette's cries of "Hey! Wait!" While intended for humor, this can lead to some worrisome thoughts that he cared more about his treasure than Toadette. These fears are further supported by a certain promotional comic◊, where he watches in horror as Wingo takes away Toadette and the star, and only seems concerned about the latter. The Completionist also posits that Captain Toad is so addicted to treasure that he refuses to take off his backpack even though it hinders his travel and he'd save Toadette much easier without it.
- The Switch/3DS port sees the return of Cookatiel, one of the bosses fought in Super Mario Odyssey. This game's version of the Luncheon Kingdom has her acting as a stage hazard, attacking Captain Toad with the very same projectiles used in her boss fight. Cookatiel does bear a striking resemblance to Wingo, and since they're going the prequel route again, it's safe to assume she wants revenge for the defeat of her boyfriend. Or brother. Or whatever they are to each other. Maybe Wingo's defeat was what made her so insane in the first place, who knows?
Best Level Ever:
- The minecart stages are a welcome change of pace and a decent challenge to clear 100%.
- Razzle Dazzle Slider is a pinball-machine level with a jazzy casino aesthetic and soundtrack, making it a memorable setpiece.
- Double Cherry Spires is a laid-back and clever puzzle sequence that takes place in an absolutely magical Arabian Nights-style setpiece with soothing music, sparkles, and sitar stings when steps of the puzzle are solved.
Common Knowledge: Universally described as a Spin-Off of the Captain Toad levels in Super Mario 3D World even though its development started earlier than 3D World's before being shelved, with the Toad levels in 3D World being used to test whether it was a workable idea for its own game. So in some sense the Captain Toad levels are a spin-off from Treasure Tracker, rather than the other way round.
Creepy Cute:
- The Mummy-Mes. Mummy Toads that behave exactly like Mario's cosmic clones. They mimic your movements and follow you so you can't stay in one spot for too long. At the same time, they're sort of cute.
- The Mud Troopers are similarly creepy in that they lurch around like zombies and make zombie noises. But then again, considering what kind of game this is... They're adorable for zombies.
Ensemble Dark Horse: Draggadon because the E3 demo more or less hyped fans up for his boss battle. The scene in a trailer where he gives the good Captain a ride also hyped people up to a lesser degree.
Fridge Brilliance: On Wingo's last hit, he gives Captain Toad a Death Glare...that admittedly makes him look confused. It actually looks like he's wondering why Captain Toad won't go down and keeps persisting to save Toadette.
Fridge Horror: This may not be the last of Wingo. Not only does he seem to know a great exercise program (he gets fattened up by a giant turnip at the end of Episode 1, but shows up none the worse for wear in Episode 2), but a quote from Super Mario Odyssey implies he and Captain Toad are still going at it. Is there no stopping this magical crow?
It's Short, So It Sucks!: Probably the biggest complaint about this game is the fact that there isn't a lot of content. You might need to replay some levels to finish certain challenges, but this game is very short compared to Super Mario 3D World. However, this is alleviated by the game being sold at budget price; being 20 dollars less than a normal Wii U title, some consider Treasure Tracker a good value. Even the Switch/3DS version adding levels based on Super Mario Odyssey doesn't really help rectify the problem, since they're replacing the levels from 3D World instead. This is partially amended by 2019 DLC adding five levels and 18 challenges, but the fact that you have to pay for it, it's only five non-remix levels, and that the 3D World stages still aren't being put back in may not satisfy some people.
- Some fans think this problem would be non-existent if Nintendo had done with this game what they later did with Bowser's Fury and make it a Separate Mode/Expansion Pack for Super Mario 3D World instead of a separate game.
Nightmare Fuel: There are some easter eggs in certain levels that can be counted as Nightmare Fuel, such as ghostly (unusually humanoid) hand prints appearing on a wall in the "Bizarre Doors of Boo Mansion" level and a giant ghost hiding under the tracks in front of the train in the "Fright Train's Flight" level. The fact that you have to stay on the level for an extremely long time makes it even worse, since you either have to know about them beforehand or have gone idle in that specific location. Probably the biggest scare is why they're even there in the first place.
Rescued from the Scrappy Heap:
- A number of people find Toad annoying, but think this game looks neat enough that the character will become more enjoyable by association.
- The same thing happened to Toadette, normally considered a dull and lifeless Distaff Counterpart who only appears in the spinoff games. Here, she's made much tougher, even on equal footing with the Captain himself. The reason she was kidnapped? Wingo stole her Power Star, and she's not giving it up!
Scrappy Mechanic:
- Probably one of the most baffling design choices to this game is the fact that there's only one save file. Considering how short this game is, it doesn't leave much for replay-ability. If you wanted to start a new save file, you had to delete your progress manually. And no, the 3D/Switch port doesn't fix this.
- There's also the fact that the secondary objectives are not revealed until after the stages are completed. That, plus the fact that some stages have to be played twice in order to fully complete them. Fortunately, a 2019 patch for the Nintendo Switch game rectifies both of these.
- The bonus objectives will only be counted if you finish the level after completing them. Not (necessarily) an issue at first, but this mechanic ultimately becomes hated in "Mummy-Me Maze Forever" in the Bonus book, due to its considerable difficulty— it's not possible to go as far as you can to collect 5,000 coins and complete the objective without also completing the level. However, given that it's almost impossible to finish the level without collecting the target amount of coins, completing the level is sure to net you the bonus objective as well.
Suspiciously Similar Song: The lava theme sounds an awful lot like the Egypt theme from Tomodachi Life.
That One Level:
- Surprisingly, or not so considering who made this game, there is a level that might be the equivalent of Super Mario 3D World's Champion's Road. You unlock it after you've finished every other level before it, gotten all the Super Gems and completed all the challenges. This level is known as Mummy-Me Maze Forever. Unlike Champion's Road, which tests your reflexes, Mummy-Me Maze Forever tests your attrition: You have to navigate a maze filled with coins and enemies while you're being hounded by a Mummy-Me, an enemy that behaves like a cosmic Mario clone. The mazes themselves are randomly generated. There's 50 floors. You'll be gaining tons of lives as the challenge is to get 5000 coins, but lose, and you'll have to go the whole thing over again.
- Episode 3 Level 26, "Magma Road Marathon", is also a pain in the neck to get through, due to the dash panels, sharp turns, and distracting lava dragons. The bonus objectice to collect a large total of coins just adds another layer of difficulty.
- "Cookatiel's Sizzling Sprint" in the ports' bonus book has difficulty for both the regular stage and the bonus, as it's a hectic no-stopping dash across branching collapsing paths with Double Cherry clones while Cookatiel coughs up durians onto the paths. Finishing the course 100% requires incredible precision with Double Cherry clones to split across paths and hit switches for Super Gems, which may not be possible if enough clones are lost, while the bonus objective requires you to not lose a single clone, which, given the turning unstable paths and raining fruits, is very difficult.
They Changed It, Now It Sucks!: Many fans have questioned the fact that the 3DS and Switch ports outright replaced the Super Mario 3D World levels with the ones based on Super Mario Odyssey, many saying the two could have co-existed without hurting anything. Not even the ending escaped this fate, for what was a Stealth Prequel to 3D World became such for Odyssey instead. That being said, some fans are fine with the change, as the Odyssey ones were brand new levels based off certain kingdoms while the 3D World levels were actual levels ripped from the game (with level design not really suited for Captain Toad's movement), though it remains a weird removal all the same as even if it was with the intention of promoting Odyssey, 3D World (as many expected considering Nintendo's love of porting their Wii U games to the Switch) was eventually ported to the Switch and the Captain Toad levels remain unavailable on that platform unlike the parent game. Also the 3D World levels remain unused in the code, with nothing stopping Nintendo from adding them via Updates or DLC.
They Wasted a Perfectly Good Plot:
- Before the game was released, a couple of analysis videos from GameXplain have speculated that the reason Captain Toad and Toadette were riding Draggadon was because they have all agreed on a common goal to take down Wingo. That's...not what they're going for here. In fact, it's never even explained why Draggadon is giving them a ride, and furthermore, Wingo and Draggaddon never interact at all.
- The final battle with Wingo could have been something original and epic. But instead, it's a slightly-altered rehash of his first fight, right down to his defeat animation being entirely reused.
- The ending of the game shows Captain Toad going to the worlds from Super Mario 3D World, revealing that this game was a prequel to 3D World. Then, in the Bonus book, you can play levels from 3D World, with some ladders and pipes added to let Captain Toad progress. The problem? There were only four levels like this, and the rest of the Bonus book was just harder versions of past levels of this game, and the dreaded Mummy Me Maze Forever. One can't help but feel more 3D World levels should be added for Captain Toad. The same goes for the levels from Super Mario Odyssey in the Switch/3DS version.
- The Odyssey levels themselves, despite being tighter than the 3D World revisit levels because they were sized and designed for the Captain Toad gameplay, feel like a waste due to the fact that they're miniaturized versions of the Kingdom. Why not show Captain Toad doing things in areas of the Kingdom not visited by Mario, and affecting the plot of Odyssey because of it? Maybe there could have been a second Mechawiggler being prepared to attack New Donk City, but Captain Toad took it out with turnips, saving Mario the trouble. Maybe he could have fought Cookatiel in a separate part of the Luncheon Kingdom, and her defeat just made her move over to terrorize Mt. Volbono instead. But they're just the regular Kindgoms turned into Captain Toad levels and offer no semblance of Gameplay and Story Integration between games like the 3D World ones.
Ugly Cute: Piranha Sprouts are mostly pretty annoying and dangerous, but when plucked by Toad or Toadette, they begin flailing and babbling in a helpless panic that almost makes you feel sorry for them.
Unexpected Character:
- People weren't expecting a Toad to star in a Mario spin-off, much less Captain Toad.
- In case Captain Toad wasn't enough, Toadette is playable alongside him.
- People certainly weren't expecting the Mario Bros., Princess Peach, and Bowser to show up in the ending, with this game being a spin-off and all.

YMMV / Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

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