Nintendo's next major 'Super Mario' game is a fresh take on a classic — here's what we know

It's the first major "Super Mario" game for the Switch, and it's a marquee title. As such, Nintendo is using this year's annual video game trade show, the Electronic Entertainment Expo, or E3, in mid-June as a means of blowing out its big new Mario game. And that means we're about to learn a ton more about "Super Mario Odyssey."

But we've already seen a ton of clues about what to expect from Nintendo's next major Mario game. Here's everything we know so far:

First things first: This is definitely a 3D Mario game, in the lineage of "Super Mario 64" and "Super Mario Galaxy." That means it's a sandbox-style game. The world is segmented into levels, but the levels are massive and open-ended.

"Super Mario 64" was both the first 3D Mario game and the first Mario game in which levels were open-ended. No flagpole, no definitive beginning and end. Instead, you collected stars in any order you wished.

In "Super Mario Odyssey," Mario explores a variety of real-world locations. He's got a flying ship for getting from place to place:

Off he goes!

He arrives in a fantastical place:

And immediately disembarks at high speed:

There's apparently a night-and-day concept in "Super Mario Odyssey," as this is the ice desert pictured at night. Mario's freezing!

Even during the day, you can see Mario shivering in the ice desert. And what's that behind him?

It appears to be a storefront of some form — hats figure in to "Super Mario Odyssey" as power-ups. Perhaps Mario gets new hats from the Crazy Cap store? We'll see!

Mario's hat seems to be outright alive in the new game. Here he is being a creep with it:

Hats are used to great effect in gameplay. In this instance, Mario throws his hat and it floats in mid-air — thus providing a platform from which Mario can bounce to more sturdy footing.

He can also throw it, boomerang-style, as a projectile.

Which he's gonna need, clearly. His ridiculously persistent foe, Bowser, returns once more in "Super Mario Odyssey."

It seems that he's marrying Princess Peach, and Princess Peach doesn't look too excited by the prospect.

Which Mario is clearly seething about:

Plenty of other staples of the Mario series are also seen in the debut trailer, such as these construction Goombas (and the question-mark block in the background):

And these Piranha Plants (and more question-mark blocks):

And this Bullet Bill:

And these guys:

There's a nice nod to "Super Mario Bros. 2" in here, with Mario carrying a radish above his head. Perhaps he'll throw it at a Spiny? Who can say.

One of the worlds in "Super Mario Odyssey" appears to be "Bizarro Earth." For some reason, people are dressed as if it's 1925, yet the cars are modern-ish. Also, Mario is a grown man who looks bizarre next to humanoid creatures.

This is most apparent in this shot, provided by Nintendo. Most alarmingly, neither Mario nor the "human" is freaked out by his counterpart. Meanwhile, here on Earth, we look on in horror.

But this isn't New York City (or even Liberty City), despite the decidedly "Grand Theft Auto" aesthetic here. It's "New Donk City," according to the signs you can see in the background. That's a reference to the one and only Donkey Kong, of course.

But it gets way weirder. One of the places Mario visits has mysterious robot plants and 1980s boomboxes. It's like something out of "ToeJam and Earl," honestly.

There are new types of enemies here as well, like these robot-like creatures that become super tall.

The concept of Mario being tiny in a massive world has been used in plenty of Super Mario games before, but never in such a realistic setting.

The different art styles lend a unique look to "Super Mario Odyssey." There are plenty of gorgeous moments in the first trailer, and we're seeing only a small fraction of the overall game.

Personally, "Space Egypt" is my favorite aesthetic. Look at this madness:

The coolest thing about Space Egypt (which isn't the official name but what I'm calling it) is the crazy lion thing Mario rides. No signs of Yoshi in "Super Mario Odyssey," but this sweet lion is a rideable character.

And finally, there's a food world. There's a character who appears to be a ... fork? Maybe?

But, as always, Mario takes it in stride. His whole life is a fever dream, basically.

At least one "boss" character is shown in the trailer — this giant robotic spider. Pretty menacing!

But let's not kid ourselves — it's all about Bowser. Outside the sweet pimp suit, which genuinely looks remarkable, he's clearly holding Peach against her will (literally in his hand).

You're probably ready to check out the full trailer, eh? Well here it is! Enjoy! "Super Mario Odyssey" is planned for launch in "holiday 2017" on the Nintendo Switch (which launched March 3 for $299). We'll have much more coverage of "Super Mario Odyssey" in a few weeks, live from the E3 2017 trade show in Los Angeles. Stay tuned!

Nintendo's next major 'Super Mario' game is a fresh take on a classic — here's what we know

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