by 
Update []:
It's here! The second chapter of the fan-made PC adventure Super Mario & The Rainbow Stars is officially out and ready to play.
Following the events of the first chapter, chapter 2 is "another love letter" to the Mario RPGs and platformers, with Mario arriving by boat in a strange new land populated by spooks, spectres, and spirits. Here our hero will team up with Ralle, an original character created for the game, whose powers will help guide Mario through the creepy cavalcade of levels, lighting lanterns and unlocking hidden passages for the Italian mascot to advance.
According to the FAQ on the game's website, the original idea for this fangame dates back to a bunch of level concepts created in 2018, but the first demo wasn't released until early 2023. At the time, this demo was created using the SMBX38a engine for PC, but the team then spent the next year rebuilding the game for "the newer and more advanced" SMBX2 engine, releasing an updated version of Chapter 1 in 2024. Those who have already played the first chapter can jump into the new levels right away, while those who haven't can still do so by selecting it from the main menu. Each chapter is meant to work as a standalone experience, and is set to feature a different setting and theme than its predecessor.
The first chapter, for instance, features mostly beach- and water-themed stages, giving it a lovely summer vibe, while this second chapter seems perfectly crafted for the Autumn/Fall. Both, however, are described on the website as "love letter[s] to the Mario RPGs," albeit filtered through a more traditional Mario platformer. The game is available to download from the Super Mario & The Rainbow Stars website (with or without the SMBX engine).
Original Story []: Starshi, the developer of the incredible Super Mario fangame 'Super Mario & The Rainbow Stars', has announced she will be releasing a second chapter of the game next year, in 2026.
Super Mario & The Rainbow Stars, in case you aren't familiar with it, is a popular Mario fangame for PC that has been in development for several years now.
It was built using Redigit's fan-made SMBX 2 engine and is inspired by the Mario & Luigi and Paper Mario games, featuring a brand-new story about Mario having to team up with a bunch of new characters to locate and rescue his missing friends after their hot air balloon crashed. Its story is set to be told across various chapters, with its creator having released the first of these back in August 2024 (an earlier version built in the SMBX38a engine was released in 2023, but is now outdated), which saw the moustachioed plumber partnering with a character named Starry to venture across various beach and water-themed levels.
Since the first chapter was released, Starshi has released several updates for it, focusing on fine-tuning this original chapter and adding in things like a new badge system and a bonus multiplayer mode. But that isn't all she has been focusing on behind the scenes, as she has also been hard at work on building the next chapter, releasing the occasional sneak peek over on their YouTube channel.
These sneak peeks give us our first look at Mario's next companion, Ralle, who is a ghostly flame spirit, capable of lighting ghostly lanterns to reveal hidden platforms, as well as some of the new forest-themed levels players will have to work through.
We'll keep an eye open for any updates as they arrive, but until then, you can follow Starshi on YouTube or Twitter/X to show your support.