Super Mario Bros. 3 Review
Platforms: NES(original), SNES(Super Mario Allstars), GBA, Wii(VC)
Players: 1-2
Original Release Date(s):Feb 12 1990(US), Aug 29 1991(Europe), Oct 23 1988 (Jap)
If Super Mario Bros. 2 was the black sheep of the family then the third in the series is really the true sequel that every one wanted and then some there were many who may have been disappointed with Nintendo's choice to release a game that started life as something that was never a Mario game but what came next while not just an evolution of the original it was a revolution and pretty much finely tuned everything and threw in countless ideas of its own and went down as not only the greatest platformer of its generation but one of the greatest of all time and one that most games are still compared to today.
Presentation
Right from the start this game shows what the NES is really truly capable of just through the navigation of the map screen and how items are stored that you collect through the levels for use later, these world maps really set the staple for ever Mario platform game to come too as each one would use some form of over world map screen or hub world to navigate or a variation of them.
Everything really is just tied together nicely and just works well really the compete NES game at the end of the day.
Graphics
If the second game looked nothing like a Mario game because of its origins aside from the main characters this looks like a Mario game should have looked not only does it go from the building blocks of the original game but expands on them in every single way, by giving everything much more detail and making them all look like the comic style characters and enemies they should do, each level is also full of life and unique with plenty to look for and explore pushing the hardware to the limits with so much on screen.
The main highlight of the look of this game is certainly the individual look of the levels whether ut be a stand pipe infested level in the green Mushroom Kingdom, one of the ever scrolling levels on floating platforms with fish waiting to eat you, the giant world where all the enemies and near enough everything else is three times you size or the huge wooden battle ships that house Bowser and his Koopalings each world and level feels unique and memorable for it, every one normally has a favourite world that they like to go back and play because of how different they all look, and each one of the map over worlds reflect that unique look too.
Sound
Much like you would have expected this is a great sounding game to go with the look and borrows from the original but vastly improves with just better sounding tunes and much more variety to go with all of the different sounding worlds and levels within them. Much like the original these tunes are hard to get out your head after you have heard them for a while.
Gameplay
The ultimate revolution of the Mario formula not only does it go back to the original for the basic concept but it adds new powerups that change the way you play the game from the Raccoon suit which help you both attack enemies with you tail and break blocks with it as well as give you the ability to fly once you have built up enough speed, the Frog suit which on land was slow and cumbersome but in the water gave you a great speed boost and allowed you to manoeuvre much quicker, the hammer Bros. suit that turned you into one of the enemies and allowed you to throw hammers at opponents and the Tanooki suit that further turned you into a raccoon by fully furring you body up with the same abilities as the regular suit as well and the ability to turn into a statue to make you immune to fireballs and other such projectiles for a short period of time.
Of course none of this would matter if it all didn’t play well and it just expands on the original but has much more fluid controls, and a very good difficulty curve raging from the relatively easy levels to the levels where you have enemies and bullets flying at you from all angles and your best bet is to learn how to perfectly time jumping from each one to the next, it can also be a joy to watch some one who knows how to get through some of those levels, in particular those on the final world leading up to Bowser as there can be many Bullet Bills and cannon balls flying your way on them.
Lasting Appeal
Once you get playing you will really be hooked and want to explore each world to see what they can offer, and to find each secret, just to say you know how to get them. There is also the challenge of learning the layout of the later levels and trust me you will have to to that to be able to beat them quick enough to have enough items and life's left to be in with a comfortable chance of beating Bowser the first time.
Then like many great games you will simple come back to replay your favourite parts and worlds over and over again, and to truly master certain levels as it can be a real joy to blast through those later levels that you once found challenging.
Overall
This really is the benchmark platform game that every one will always need to attempt to measure up to, and one of those games that really does stand the test of time and never gets old no matter how many times you play it.
Recommended for anyone who has never played it before and really shame on you if you haven’t as it is pretty much a testament to gameplay above everything else as that hasn't aged a day, the hardware that powered it may have, and may look slightly primitive by today’s standards, and I do mean slightly as many 8-bit games really were as detailed as any 16-bit ones at this point if they new what they were doing, but as a whole it really sets the building blocks for what games should be like great looking, well animated, a good music score, simple yet deep gameplay once mastered and a decent challenge.
Scores
Players: 1-2
Original Release Date(s):Feb 12 1990(US), Aug 29 1991(Europe), Oct 23 1988 (Jap)
If Super Mario Bros. 2 was the black sheep of the family then the third in the series is really the true sequel that every one wanted and then some there were many who may have been disappointed with Nintendo's choice to release a game that started life as something that was never a Mario game but what came next while not just an evolution of the original it was a revolution and pretty much finely tuned everything and threw in countless ideas of its own and went down as not only the greatest platformer of its generation but one of the greatest of all time and one that most games are still compared to today.
Presentation
Right from the start this game shows what the NES is really truly capable of just through the navigation of the map screen and how items are stored that you collect through the levels for use later, these world maps really set the staple for ever Mario platform game to come too as each one would use some form of over world map screen or hub world to navigate or a variation of them.
Everything really is just tied together nicely and just works well really the compete NES game at the end of the day.
Graphics
If the second game looked nothing like a Mario game because of its origins aside from the main characters this looks like a Mario game should have looked not only does it go from the building blocks of the original game but expands on them in every single way, by giving everything much more detail and making them all look like the comic style characters and enemies they should do, each level is also full of life and unique with plenty to look for and explore pushing the hardware to the limits with so much on screen.
The main highlight of the look of this game is certainly the individual look of the levels whether ut be a stand pipe infested level in the green Mushroom Kingdom, one of the ever scrolling levels on floating platforms with fish waiting to eat you, the giant world where all the enemies and near enough everything else is three times you size or the huge wooden battle ships that house Bowser and his Koopalings each world and level feels unique and memorable for it, every one normally has a favourite world that they like to go back and play because of how different they all look, and each one of the map over worlds reflect that unique look too.
Sound
Much like you would have expected this is a great sounding game to go with the look and borrows from the original but vastly improves with just better sounding tunes and much more variety to go with all of the different sounding worlds and levels within them. Much like the original these tunes are hard to get out your head after you have heard them for a while.
Gameplay
The ultimate revolution of the Mario formula not only does it go back to the original for the basic concept but it adds new powerups that change the way you play the game from the Raccoon suit which help you both attack enemies with you tail and break blocks with it as well as give you the ability to fly once you have built up enough speed, the Frog suit which on land was slow and cumbersome but in the water gave you a great speed boost and allowed you to manoeuvre much quicker, the hammer Bros. suit that turned you into one of the enemies and allowed you to throw hammers at opponents and the Tanooki suit that further turned you into a raccoon by fully furring you body up with the same abilities as the regular suit as well and the ability to turn into a statue to make you immune to fireballs and other such projectiles for a short period of time.
Of course none of this would matter if it all didn’t play well and it just expands on the original but has much more fluid controls, and a very good difficulty curve raging from the relatively easy levels to the levels where you have enemies and bullets flying at you from all angles and your best bet is to learn how to perfectly time jumping from each one to the next, it can also be a joy to watch some one who knows how to get through some of those levels, in particular those on the final world leading up to Bowser as there can be many Bullet Bills and cannon balls flying your way on them.
Lasting Appeal
Once you get playing you will really be hooked and want to explore each world to see what they can offer, and to find each secret, just to say you know how to get them. There is also the challenge of learning the layout of the later levels and trust me you will have to to that to be able to beat them quick enough to have enough items and life's left to be in with a comfortable chance of beating Bowser the first time.
Then like many great games you will simple come back to replay your favourite parts and worlds over and over again, and to truly master certain levels as it can be a real joy to blast through those later levels that you once found challenging.
Overall
This really is the benchmark platform game that every one will always need to attempt to measure up to, and one of those games that really does stand the test of time and never gets old no matter how many times you play it.
Recommended for anyone who has never played it before and really shame on you if you haven’t as it is pretty much a testament to gameplay above everything else as that hasn't aged a day, the hardware that powered it may have, and may look slightly primitive by today’s standards, and I do mean slightly as many 8-bit games really were as detailed as any 16-bit ones at this point if they new what they were doing, but as a whole it really sets the building blocks for what games should be like great looking, well animated, a good music score, simple yet deep gameplay once mastered and a decent challenge.
Scores
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