Analyzing each level of Mario 3D Land

[Koopalmier]

NOTE: I'm going with the idea West = Left in this game.

WORLD 1
Plains with hills, nearby Peach's Castle. The NSMBW hills are seen far away, but are nowhere to be seen in the levels, leading to think this world is at the south of NSMBW World 1, likely behind the lake that was seen at the south edge of the map in NSMB and NSMBW (read below). The usual pipes and blocks are seen too, so this world is likelyy not far away from the usual plains we see in the series.

1-1
A location miles away from Peach's Castle. Because there's a lake separating it from the castle, one could assume this level is located further away from the castle than NSMB and NSMBW's World 1. There's also sand at the south of the level, leading to think the sea isn't too far away. The place has bridges, that were broken by Bowser's army likely, and a building that doesn't seem to be quite complete yet (also, what seems to be an unfinished metallic structure). I'll theorize this place is right next to Toad Town and Pleasant Path, and is a construction site (is Toad Town being expanded ?) but the construction was stopped because the Koopa army is there. The level takes place at noon.

1-2
An underground level. Nothing special. Could be a part of the sewers used for travel (note that a Warp Pipe directly leads to World 2). The exit Warp Pipe leads to the top of a white tower. The level takes place at noon.

1-3
This level starts in altitude, so it was likely directly accessed from the end of the previous level. Wood stairs between two cliffs and waterfalls. These lead to the bottom of the waterfalls. These stairs are definitely artifical and were made to get to the bottom of the waterfall, so this is likely a public path. The level takes place at noon.

1-4
Rails and platforms over a lake on top of a rocky structure. Seems very much like it's over the crater of a sleeping volcano. So it may be next to the mountain-like cliffs from the previous level. It ends on what may be the side of said volcano.

1-Toad House
It's in plains. Note the hills, and the lack of pits or any dangers. The house looks very lonely too. Every following Toad House is like this, except World 3's which is in a forest. Noon.

1-Castle
A simple building, with nothing but lava pools and dangerous platforms. It was obviously constructed just for the sake of stopping Mario. Makes you wonder why is the Koopa tribe not stopped from constructing such castles.


Mario goes on to the East, as night time is there and gone.

[Koopalmier]

yeah, um, lacking time to do this. will do it later.

[Koopalmier]

oops, i'm kinda late i guess.

WORLD 2
Yellow plains with flowers. Flower petals are being blown away easily, so the area may be qutie windy. The silhouette of a SMB-like level is seen in the background, is the world located nearby the same area as SMB's or TLL's ?

World 2-1
The garden and wall of a castle located on top of very high hills (over clouds actually). Some green hills are seen around too, leading to think the area on the ground is generic plains. The castle seems to be abandoned. It has a garden on its roof. The paint is very white and new, so the caslte must not be old, or must be restorated frequently. The level takes place at noon.

World 2-2
Underground sewers with extremely polluted water. Nothing too special, but, such a high level of pollution (the water is so acid it's lethal) may lead to think... does Mario's world actually have the same ecologist issues as us, if not worse ? The purple water is strangely similar to NSMB and NSMBW's purple water found in the forest too. Would these actually be extremely polluted forest where creatures like Wigglers found home ? Anyway, the level ends up on a path similar to the previous level's castle, but with different walls and an inside area made out of wood. Maybe the castle's undergrounds used to be part of the kingdom's sewer system (well, still is) ? The level takes place at noon.

World 2-3
Floating platforms shaped like familiar sprites, in the sky, either very high (high enough for the ground to be difficult to see) or over an ocean ; the ground isn't seen either way. Maybe these platforms originate from Toy Time Galaxy and ended up there because of the universe being "remixed" at the end of SMG ? Just a personal theory. The level ends directly in an area out of Super Mario Bros., proving that world isn't far away from where SMB happened. Oh, and the high altitude of the level may come from the fact the castle seen two levels ago was also high in the sky ; Mario could've accessed this level from the other. The level takes place at noon.

World 2-4
Platforms from SMG2 are in there, maybe these exist all around the universe. The level itself is also high in the sky, with giant wooden blocks seen around. Maybe these come from Toy Time Galaxy too. Clouds are seen around the level, and are carried by the wind, which seems to be strong. Nothing special here, but note how all levels in this world thus far have been high in the sky. The level takes place at noon.

Toad House
I guess Mario has found a way back to the ground. It's still noon.

Airship
Nothing spectacular here, but Mario is on a cliff before getting on the ships. Still fits with the "high over the sea level" trope seen in this world. The level takes place at noon, and the Airships travel to the West.

Night time follows as Mario advances to the East.


WORLD 3
Light blue plains with flowers, nothing special. But the wind in the background does look kinda strong.

World 3-1
Top of a mountain in the desert. It has an ancient building in the center, but it lacks any sort of symbols and is pretty much empty... In the background, you can see other mountains, and some green areas on the ground. It's probably not Dry Dry Desert, there are no pyramids around and green areas aren't extremely rare. No idea if this area follows World 1 and 2, considering the Airships did move while Mario was on them. The level takes place in the morning.

World 3-2
An area nearby the ocean. Starts at a lagoon, but Mario takes a Warp Pipe and goes directly near the ocean, in a thin but long lake with walls making it like a long hallway (... must feel claustrophobic to be there). Some parts are strictly underwater. Mario ends up on a little island in the sea. The level takes place in the morning.

Toad House
A Toad House in a forest. Mario likely swam back to the continent, where he ends up in this forest. It lacks anything special, no toxic water or anything. Noon.

World 3-3
A bunch of floating... soap things, floating high in the sky. "Mountains" of similar objects are seen around, as the area is located high above the sky. This is pretty weird... Maybe other bizarre objects from space ? And how did Mario end up here ? Maybe he climbed one of these "soap mountains" near the forest... The level takes place at noon.

World 3-4
A bunch of thin but close mountains, covered in snow. Exactly the same as in the background. Nothing special, it snows, it's high in the sky... Maybe Mario got there from the previous area. Only notable thing is that, as I said, it's the same thing as in the background, which is just a simplified version. It's pretty great to see that. Oh, and there are wooden constructions for climbers. Maybe this was a famous climbing location before Bowser's army came in. Also, you get closer to the background's mountain as you advance, which is nice too. The level takes place at noon.

World 3-5
Platforms nearby (and at a point, over) a cookie-like mountain range. With cake platforms and all. Maybe those are natural objects looking like food, or these are actual food (to be ready if there's hunger in the kingdom maybe ? Some parts are pretty poor in comparison to, say, Mushroom City, after all). Maybe there is a relation to Sweet Sweet Galaxy or Toy Time Galaxy. Oh, and Mario going from high mountains to lower mountains makes sense. The level takes place at sunset.

Airship
Again, Mario starts on a cliff. May be related to the two previous levels' mountains. The level takes place at night, and the Airships are going South.

[Indigo]

Wow, great job you're doing so far! 3D Land's worlds weren't given themes per se, but your descriptions of them and of the levels within them make them feel like cohesive regions. Still, the sheer amount of diversity within a single world makes this really hard to do; heck, World 3 alone has desert sands, tropical shoals, and snowy peaks all at the same time. To me, it seems like the worlds with the most amount of cohesion would be World 1 (grassy, rocky, mountainous areas), World 5 (arid desert areas), and World 8 (volcanic highlands).

[Koopalmier]

Yes, there's diversity, but it's like if, say, Mario crossed multiple areas in NSMB instead of doing everything in a location before going to the neightboring one. The Mushroom Kingdom isn't a series of straight lines after all.

Actually, once I'll be done, it could help for making a better MK map.

[Sarisa]

Tropical beaches, desert sands, and snowy peaks together is actually realistic; all three can be found in Peru (some distance apart), and reasonable approximations thereof in California. It's an area on a west coast (assuming the Mushroom sun rises in the east) influenced by a cold current at a latitude below 35 degrees. The Mario version, with less gravity and a thinner atmosphere than Earth, can have snowy mountains at a lower altitude than their Earthly equivalents.

[Koopalmier]

WORLD 4
Yellow plains with a lot of giant Mushrooms. Nothing special, we know from SMB, NSMB and Superstar Saga that there exist areas in or nearby the kingdom where giant mushrooms are prolifering.

World 4-1
Again, the latest world's Airships did move. Assuming left = west in this game (Peach's Castle is pointing to the front of the screen, and it's a fact it points to the south, after all, so...), the latest world's Airships moved south (while World 2's Airships moved west).
Anyway, this is a forest located a bit over the cloud level. The very start of the level leads to think it's actually a forest on a mountain, maybe explaining why the trees are so high. Some have been carved to make this place a public path I guess, but the trampolines that are needed also leads to think it's only for climbers (proving again it's on a mountain). The level takes place in the morning.

World 4-2
What seems to be a very vertical cave in a moutain, likely the same mountain as in the previous level. The way it is leads to think it may have been carved (by Monty Moles ?), but the people who carved it abandoned the area for any reason. The exist pipe leads to a bit of grass between two yellow hills, with other yellow hills in the background. It's still over the cloud level, and because of the verticality of the level I'd guess it's some hills near the top of the mountain. The level takes place at sunrise.

World 4-3
A bunch of platforms high in the sky. May have been acceeded from the last area of 4-2. It also goes alongside what seems to be the side of a bridge castle (a castle constructed over a river to act as a bridge), which somehow ended up much higher than it should have been (earthquake = magic that kept it in the air ?). Or it's something else, but it's a castle-related structure anyway. The level takes place at noon.

World 4-4
A Ghost House. It's pretty obvious its sole point is to kill people who dare adventuring inside. The world select view of it leads to think a Ghost House's door is actually the gate to another world, which would explain the weirdness in these levels: they are in another world, with different laws of physics. The exit door leads to a backyard (on top of a wall though), while a forest of dead trees can be seen next to the house (with purple smoke, to simulate night-time maybe). Note that, inside a Ghost House, the windows look like there's purple curtains hiding what's outside, but from the outside the windows look like there's just a lot of light inside the house (probably to make travelers lost in the smoke attracted by the house, thinking it's inhabited, and ending up trapped inside). Nothing proves it's at ground level, considering how high the backyard is - it could be on another mountain Mairo got to by crossing the platforms in the previous level. No idea about when it takes place, as the area is too foggy.

World 4-5
Another very high location, this time a bunch of platforms with very thin and high blue hills under. Further proves the Ghost House and forest of the previous level were on a high location actually. The level takes place at sunset.

Airship
Cliff, proving the high altitude, again. The ships are moving to the west. The level takes place at sunset.

Night follows.


WORLD 5
A great desert with cacti, and steep mountains in the background. It COULD be Dry Dry Desert, but nothing proves it, and green levels in that world even do the opposite. This world could be linked to World 3-1.

World 5-1
A high mountain, with the top being a bit above cloud level. The sand, and the look of it, lead to believe it's one of the mountains seen in 3-1's desert and World 5's background, except much higher. There's a hole through the mountain, with traps, so it was likely made by Bowser's troops. The level takes place at noon.

World 5-2
A dungeon building located above the cloud level. It was very likely constructed by Bowser's army, because of the lava traps. It leads to a side of the building with a bit of grass. The level takes place at night.

World 5-3
A bunch of floating platforms above cloud level. However, the structures look very artificial and it really seems like they aren't supposed to be here - could it be because of the SMG universe mix too ? Again, the high altitude means Mario could've jumped from the previous level to this one. Also, the clouds under are going REALLY fast - it must be really windy under there. The level takes place at noon.

World 5-4
An underground series of Monty Mole tunnels. Seems to be a Monty Mole village, something we haven't seen yet with that species. The exit pipe leads to a bit of land over a great gape - probably the village itself - with some blue hills. No idea on how Mario got there though - did he simply jump from the sky and ended up there ? Him falling from a hole at the start of the level may lead to think so. The level takes place at noon.

Toad House
Mario's indeed back to the ground. It's sunset.

World 5-5
A bunch of platforms in the sky leading to a lake with wind turbines. Maybe he climbed something again and ended up there. Anyway, there are just green plains around the lake, and the wind turbines just prove again that the Mushroom Kingdom is far from lacking in technology. There's also a OMFG TRIPLE RAINBOW. That's quite unusual. Any idea, guys ? The level takes place at noon.

Castle
Another base made just for the sake of stopping Mario.

Night follows.

[rhinotaur]

I don't think the purple ooze in the 2-2 is the result of pollution. It's just a sewer full of sewage, and having dull-colored water that gives Mario salmonella and cholera if he swims around in it too long would be too gross for a Mario game, so they made it toxic glowing goop that causes instant death instead.

[Koopalmier]

It's not just "goop". It looks very acid, even generating some smoke (likely burning air around, or even random garbage that is inside the water). So I think it IS polluted, or isn't water.

Also Sarisa's post x1000. Can I hug you ?

[Sarisa]

Thanks.

Unfortunately, it's also less helpful than it sounds, since cold currents on west coasts typically flow north to south (or the reverse in the southern hemisphere, but we're pretty sure the MK is in the northern one) and one of the few things we know about MK geography is that the MK has a land border to the southwest. So this coastal area would have to be north of the Beanbean border, but still in the south (35 N is the latitude of Tokyo, Memphis, the northern edge of Southern California, and Tangier). 35 N is a quick approximation not a rule, but zones north of these desert coasts are typically very wet and too cold to have tropical lagoons. There's nowhere to fit a cold current on the coast near Toad Town; that area would be exposed to warm equatorial currents from the South Mushroom Sea. The only good way out of the mess I can think of is to place the Beanbean Kingdom further south than I'd thought.

[Indigo]

Something sort of bothers me about World 4-5: exactly what is that weird pink haze in the background? I mean, the environment is already odd enough with those cube-shaped, check-patterned, mint-green hills, but that pinkish fog absolutely baffles me as to where this area could be located. It's a really cool-looking level in-game, but geographically it doesn't seem to make much sense.

[Sarisa]

Off topic, but I'll ask it here anyway:

How did Bowser get all those fortresses and castles that appear in SMB3, SMW, NSMB, NSMBW, and SM3DL? In SMB3 you could argue that he had lots of time to establish fortifications before Mario found out what was going on, or that he took over existing fortresses. For SMW that's a harder argument to sustain, since Dinosaur Land would be off the vacation list if it were known that Bowser had taken it over. SM3DL starts, as far as I can tell, an indefinite distance from Peach's Castle that could be the beginning of Koopa Troop territory. But NSMB and NSMBW appear to start at Peach's doorstep, and Bowser still has 7 fortresses and 7 castles deployed by the time Mario gets there.

Does the Koopa Troop actually make its money from being world-beaters at rapid, technically advanced construction projects? That would explain how Bowser can afford to remodel his castle into a different race track every season.

[Koopalmier]

I know right.
The troop seems to lack an advanced way to construct buildings - hell, they have nothing more than hammers and sheets to fix back Bowser's Castle in SMRPG and BIS.

However...
I think the fortresses and all in NSMB, NSMBW and SM3DL are officialy military bases. After all, Bowser's tribe now being part of the Mushroom Kingdom, the Koopa army is technically part of the kingdom's official army. One could assume Bowser got somehow allowed to construct military bases for his troops in the kingdom, and constructed them during a period of peace (Luigi's Mansion happens in Winter, and Superstar Saga happens after Mario's back from summer vacations. Considering how big Bowser's army is - I would assume we don't see the whole army in RPGs, the rest must be in military bases - it doesn't sound too farfetched that the army could have constructed fortresses around the kingdom at this point).

After all, if Bowser was allowed to found Neo Bowser City, I don't see why he would not be authorized to also make military bases for his army.


Well, here's what I think.
Super Mario Bros.: Constructed after the Koopa Kingdom took over the Mushroom Kingdom.
The Lost Levels: Also constructed after the Koopa Kingdom took over the Mushroom Kingdom (weren't destroyed after the Koopa Kingdom's defeat because of their dangerous locations).
Super Mario Bros. 3: Constructed in secret in several kingdoms, while the last castle is where Bowser thrones (or used to) in the Koopa Kingdom.
Super Mario World: Constructed after Bowser's army crashed on Dino Land and captured the Yoshis. It is possible Dino Land isn't watched over, and obviously couldn't communicate with other nations to tell them what's happening.
New Super Mario Bros.: Military bases.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii: Military bases.
Super Mario 3D Land: So-called military bases (they're way too small, and only filled with traps).

[Sarisa]

I excluded SMB and SMB2j because the Koopa Troop has had an indefinite period to build fortresses.

Another explanation for SMB3 is that they are fortresses built by each kingdom and taken over by the Koopa Troop, parallel to your explanation for NSMB*. It helps explain why mostly flat Grass Land has just one, sprawling Ice Land has three, Sky Land has one blocking a route you don't need to take...

Rationalizing the NSMB* fortresses as permitted Koopa Troop fortresses meshes well with the hypothesis that the Koopa Troop is now, de jure, Peach's army or a major branch of the MK army in exchange for their land grant. IIRC the late Roman empire tried a similar system to integrate migrating Germanic tribes; it didn't work very well. However, we've already established that Peach's long-term thinking and strategic skills make Bowser look like Tsar Peter the Great, so it doesn't strain disbelief. And, to be fair, the Koopa Troop does fight against invaders of the Mushroom Kingdom, when they're not the invaders (rebels?) themselves.

[Koopalmier]

Personally, because the Koopa Troop is much more skilled than the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom (much bigger communities, can construct a lot of things in a short span of time, have already taken over the kingdom itself by the past), and Bowser's tensions with the kingdom have gotten MUCH less intense between Paper Mario and Bowser's Inside Story, I believe Bowser's tribe is now officialy part of the kingdom's residents, and the Koopa Troop itself is part of the kingdom's (non-existant) army.
Bowser Jr. owns a casino in Mushroom City, while his and Shy Guy's symbols can be seen in Moonview Highway, so I'd assume the Koopa Clan plays a big part in funding Mushroom City (and Bowser's symbol isn't used because he has too much pride and won't accept to aknowledge Mushroom City as not being the Koopa Tribe's property, or he knows everyone fears him and things would be heavily debated if he was aknowledged as one of the kingdom's most important people.

[Sarisa]

SMB alone would make Bowser the most hated being in the entire Mushroom Kingdom for the rest of his life and most likely beyond. He does have his good points, although I'm drawing a blank on just what they are right now (being a better person than other Mario villains doesn't quite cut it), but letting him and his minions settle in the kingdom is like giving Mussolini and the Blackshirts a province of their very own to rule to keep them from conquering the whole place.

Anyhow, thoughts on world 6?

[Koopalmier]

WORLD 6
A sky blue area, located at cloud level it seems. Rainbows and sky blue mountains can be seen. Nothing special otherwise.

World 6-1
A couple bridges linking three islets, with some reef around, in the sea. Like in every sea level, the sea seems to be on a north coast. The level happens at noon.

World 6-2
The inside of a pyramid, in which Bowser's troops installed many traps. But it seems that they only took over a couple corridors. The level ends on a side of the pyramid, where you can see it's actually pretty high, and there are a couple ruined towers beside. It seems like it was made by the same people of NSMB and NSMBW's World 2 (Dry Dry Desert pyramids have a different structure).

World 6-3
Another ghost house, with strange physics and all. Similarly to other houses, the level ends up on top of a wall, with a forest beside. The "pop-up wall" thing that was seen in Boo Moon Galaxy is back: would it mean Boo Moon Galaxy (and probably other ghastly planets) are directly related to Ghost Houses ? Hell, maybe they even ARE the realm of the Ghost Houses (after all you never get to see what's on the planet in the background in these levels). The level takes place at night.

World 6-4
Floating platforms and blocks in the sky. Honestly, I think that the many floating objects in the sky are the reason we rarely see planes over the Mushroom Kingdom. Some of these platforms disappear in rythm, and the point of it is unknown, beside "annoy anyone who'd get there". Seems like the pyramid we saw previously was pretty high indeed. The level takes place at noon.

World 6-5
A series of blue platforms above a blue mountain range. It looks like these are made of blue-colored rock. It snows a lot, and it's likely this place isn't supposed to be acceeded by people. Mh, so Mario went up a pyramid, then to a Ghost House on a high place, then went above the cloud level, and now aboe mountains... Why is he going so high ? Don't tell me he's going after an Airship ? This level takes place at noon.

Airship
Well, yes he is. Again, there's a cliff. The Airships go to the West. The level takes place at night.

During the night, Mario runs to the East.

WORLD 7
A purple forest, with mushroom spores floating around.

World 7-1
An underwater cave, in an island. Again, the sea is on a North coast. Also, the end of the level is a couple feet away from the start. This level happens at noon.

World 7-2
An abandoned fortress of some sort, with a forest on a side. Because of the inside structures, it may have been an ancient prison, or maybe a guard fortress. This level takes place at noon.

Toad House
Again, plain plains. Still happens at noon.

World 7-3
Happens over a forest, in which trees are either VERY tall (over cloud level), or the forest is just foggy. Either way, Mario goes through a couple trees that have been sculpted, possibly by Bowser's troops to make Mario's life harder. It's possible Mario climbed a tree to get there. This level takes place at night.

World 7-4
A very wide clock tower. Maybe there is a village nearby, but the area is too rugged to install a clock tower there, so it was installed much farther and was made very big to be seen from far ? This level takes place in the morning, at exactly 10.10 am (10h10).

World 7-5
A cardboard castle, on a miles-wide cardboard... board. It's extremely strange, and it's not impossible it may originate from Puzzple Plank or Rightside Down Galaxy (going with the theory the world was "mixed" at the end of SMG, yadda yadda). It's high in the sky, so it's possible Mario jumped off the top of the clock tower to get there. This level takes place at sunset.

Airship
Much more modern Airships, made out of metal mostly. And yeah, Mario "cannon"ed from a cliff to get on them. They go to the West again, at higher speed this time. This level takes place at night.

Mario drops off the Airships and lands on a volcanic area where Draglets live and possibly originate from. He then advances to the East.


WORLD 8
Red, foggy plains nearby a volcanic zone. A castle wall is seen, starting from World 8-3, probably meaning this is where Bowser's domain starts. In the second half of the world, with is dark red, there is a thunderstorm.

World 8-1
A military zone, possibly where a part of Bowser's army trains. The first part is constructed on a mountain side, while the rest is floating platforms. Mountains, in which many constructions have been made, can be seen to the north. The ground under the area is too foggy to be seen. This level takes place at sunrise.

World 8-2
The mountains that were seen in the previous level. They have many constructions indeed, and it would seem that the area is exploited (probably by the Koopa Troop). The ground can finally be seen: it's a forest. But behind the level, a HUGE cliff is seen... This level takes place at noon.

World 8-3
Floating platforms over clouds, as cardboard mountains can be seen and... soap bubbles are floating in the air. It is actually possible these "mountains" are particular volcanoes that are constantly erupting and spitting a soap-like matter. Maybe that there are high reserves of such a matter underground, and these "volcanoes" were naturally formed with a matter that would support this "soap" the best. Sounds weird, but you might want to remember Mario's planet is not Earth, or at least not as we know it. Anyway, Mario probably found his way there by going by the previous level's cliff, meaning he is traveling to the North-East (with the following levels, it's basically confirmed). This level takes place at sunset.

World 8-4
Another Ghost House, probably on a mountain, again. The time of the day is unknow, as there is a heavy green fog bothering the view.

World 8-5
A valley-like building, with a lava river going through it. Volcanoes are seen far away to the North, but the river is actually going in that direction, leading to think it comes from another volcano and is being brought to somewhere where these volcanoes are... Bowser's Castle, anyone ? This building seems to be made to control the way the river is going. Also, the ground is black, and likely made out of a rock strong enough to resist lava. As for the building itself, it is kinda crumbling, but nothing big enough to make Bowser worry, probably. The level takes place at night, and so do the following ones until the ending.

Castle
What is supposed to be Bowser's base, but really, it's nothing more than a bunch of anti-plumber traps. At the end of the level, Bowser confronts you, and falls into lava. But Mario can't find where Peach is held, and Bowser, desesperately, runs away with her to another castle.

World 8-6
The entrance to the final castle. It has many corkscrews, and something seems to be constructed here (Airships ?). But the actual entry door to the castle is at the end.

Bowser's Castle
What seems to be a big factory, with lots of rails, lava, and vapor-evacuating towers. However, it would seem that many walls have been destroyed on purpose, and a fireball-throwing security system has been added urgently (it is also possible everyone has been evacuated, as the whole level only contains two Tanuki Goombas and one Dry Bones). The fireballs themselves break up some pillars. Apparently, Bowser is at the end of the rope, and is using his factory as an unexpected plan B castle. Indeed, that area likely wasn't made with "destroying Mario" in mind. At the end of the level, Mario finds Peach on top of the highest tower, but Bowser drops in... and accidentaly destroys the tower, making the rest of the castle collapse in turn. As Mario and Bowser climb the collapsing ruins, you can witness that many parts of it aren't falling, and there are even big grapes of blocks staying afloat near the top: apparently, a big part of the castle was made with Brick Blocks, and the stones were just put to cover that. Anyway, Bowser falls in lava again (makes you wonder why are there switches to make the bridges collapse too, further considering Mario wasn't supposed to go there in the first place. Maybe it was part of the original draft of Bowser's plan ? I mean, maybe that factory WAS supposed to be the "final castle", but Bowser changed his plan to something else...), and, as the factory stops all activity and the sky becomes clear (showing it is now daytime), Mario, Peach and three Toads who assisted Mario in his adventure go back to Mushroom Castle (even though Bowser tries kidnapping Peach again), and are finally back home at night.

But it is not over. The next day, Mario learns Luigi's been kidnapped...

I must go away, but I'll finish when I can.