One of the most exciting tidbits from the recent Super Mario Maker 2 Direct was the inclusion of cooperative play, which is sure to add an extra element of chaotic fun in the game. While friend groups of four will be able to enjoy this feature sitting on a couch together or through local wireless, a Nintendo representative at a press event seemed to indicate to Nintendo World Report that friends could not party up online with each other, with only the option for online matchmaking with random people.

Of course, this bit of information may not be completely accurate, coming from only one such representative and not from any official announcement or Direct. But given Nintendo's history with online play, tied in with the representative adding justification to that decision, this scenario is still a concerning possibility. According to the spokesperson, Nintendo's concern is that being able to play with friends could potentially compromise global leaderboards.

It echos similar reasoning for why players cannot party up with each other in regular competitive multiplayer for Splatoon 2, and even recent multiplayer Super Mario platformers like New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe do not support any sort of cooperative online multiplayer. If true, this would be yet another entry in a bizarre series of decisions from Nintendo regarding multiplayer. Given that the Switch doesn't really have a good voice chat feature anyway, perhaps players are being spared of that inconvenience.

On social media, some observers pointed out that Nintendo press representatives at events have been known to be wrong before, with one such example being a claim that ARMS would only utilize motion controls—this did not turn out to be the case. And even if Super Mario Maker 2 were to not support online play with friends at launch, it could be a feature to be patched in post-release, fingers crossed.

Fans in the UK can look forward to three different special editions for Super Mario Maker 2, all including a nifty stylus. You can also read our editorial arguing for a Super Mario Bros. 2 tileset for the game here as we await the launch of Super Mario Maker 2 on June 28, with pre-orders on Amazon available through this link.