Toad Debt

I don't know how Toadette can stand having her plaits pinging around all day long, but she is certainly focused on rescuing Captain Toad. No sooner are the two united at The End than Toad gets snatched away by that pesky, over-sized crow.

There are no new moves here; even though Toadette has no super-heavy backpack to prevent her from jumping, she still clings to the ground.

The difficultly is ramped up at the start of book 2, and that's encouraging because the simplicity of the opening book was worrying me. There's reaching the star and then there's completing the level. Sometimes that distinction is enough to save this game from being thought of as a bad purchase.

Each level requires Toad or Toadette to complete a hidden task. This task is sometimes as simple as "don't take damage" but usually they ask you to "find the hidden golden mushroom" that seems to have no place on the level to hide!

Occasionally they want you to throw turnips at all the Mud Troopers. On rare occasions they require you to take no damage. As it's hard to know what the hidden task is, more often than not the level requires a second visit.

The size of the levels is increased so rather than cube after cube, there are some lovely large places to explore:
Spinwheel Sky Fort has a certain "Crystal Maze" appeal.
Double Cherry Spires has a lovely spire design.
Shadow Manor has plenty of effective dark bits.

However, my favourite level from Book 2:
Sinister Street Signs has the light-activated shiny blue floor. It's one of my favourite features from Super Mario 3D World.