'Super Mario All-Stars'

Super Mario is one of the most recognizable characters in gaming, first appearing on the gaming scene in the 1983 arcade hit Mario Bros. The character is still being put to good use today now appearing in various titles alongside the Sega mascot Sonic the Hedgehog.

Back in 1993, Nintendo got the wise idea to put three of their popular Mario titles on to one cartridge for their newest system the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.

These were the three titles for the NES which were Super Mario Bros (1985), Super Mario Bros 2 (1988), and Super Mario Bros 3 (1990.)

Also included was Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels which was originally released in Japan following the success of the first Mario game; but deemed too difficult for western gaming audiences. In 1993, the first taste the west got of The Lost Levels was in the compilation Super Mario All-Stars.

The Forgotten Title

I've got to say this is a fantastic compilation and although gamers may write this collection off as kid's games, they'd be missing out on some high-quality gaming. Super Mario Bros has often been dubbed 'the world's greatest platform game' and with good reason, the graphics have been enhanced for all four Mario titles, so they have a very neat cartoon look. With the likes of the first game and The Lost Levels, scenic backgrounds have been added. These are as simple as hills or tall stalk mushrooms to stars for the night time levels. Really basic but gives that game the bit of polish to repackage it for the fans. For those who haven't played Super Mario, the general synopsis for the game is usually that Princess Peach has been kidnapped by a dragon-like creature called 'Bowser.'

'Mam... I want to be... a frog man!'

Bowser has an army of 'Koopa troopers' and later in the sequel games, sons and daughters. It's up to Mario and his brother Luigi to rescue her from her captivity. In the first two games, this has Mario travel through various 2D levels of the Mushroom Kingdom. The first two games were quite challenging obviously made with older gamers in mind. Mario doesn't really have an arsenal of attacks, his main weapon is jumping on an enemy's head. The enemies range from 'Goombas' (as pictured above) to 'Koopa Troopers' (a turtle-like creature).

If Mario walks into one of these creatures then he dies, so one must take each level in his stride. The levels get more advance as the player proceeds and will have you exploring dungeons with traps and other various enemies such as 'Hammer throwers.'

A Bit More Polish...

What stops a player from dying on first contact with the enemy, is if Mario consumes a mushroom which makes him bigger. Mario is now able to bash blocks with his head and if he finds another power up this will now be a 'power plant.'

This allows Mario to shoot fireballs which is pretty useful against some enemies but there are those who will not take damage. The decrease in difficulty across the games is evident and it's obvious why developers thought The Lost Levels was too difficult for western audiences. That said, as you progress through the games, players will notice more variety and improvements to the gameplay.

Better with age?

In Super Mario 2, the physics of the game change completely, enemies are no longer defeated by bouncing on their head. This time players can 'unearth' vegetables as weapons as well as catch oncoming bullets from enemies. Players are free to backtrack through the level as well which was unavailable in Super Mario Bros, once an area had gone off screen, players were unable to go back to it. It gives the game a sense of freedom which I'm sure players of today will be able to appreciate. Super Mario Bros is good in that it gives the player a choice of four characters to choose from. These include Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Toad (a member of the Mushroom Kingdom.)

Each character has their own set of unique abilities; Mario is well rounder, Toad is quick, Luigi can jump really high, and Princess Peach can hover over large gaps. There are quite a few puzzles through the platforming levels but these require more timing than guesswork. The castle levels in Super Mario Bros sometimes had you guess a sequence to get to the main boss. Don't expect that here in the second game but it's still challenging enough to give gamers today a competitive experience.

Hammer Time!

As far as enjoyment and variety goes, I think Super Mario Bros 3 is probably the best. The player has a huge variety of power-ups which include a raccoon suit, a frog suit, fire powers, and some type of 'cat power.'

Some abilities allow Mario to fly when he has a cat/raccoon tail which unveils certain secrets. The levels are expansive and varied, each world has its own gimmick from plant life enemies to giants to an Egyptian type set of levels. The main boss battles have you face off with the various offspring of 'King Koopa' (Bowser), they have a variety of attacks and you have to use your brain to defeat them. The challenge varies and has you side-scrolling levels so you aren't always able to backtrack. The underwater levels return from the first game and it's where the frog suit is best used. Levels are entered through an overhead map screen which give players a sense of the world around them. The Mushroom Kingdom is a huge place with many hazards, additional mini levels lie in mini-games and power up locations which certainly mix the gameplay up. This is a huge game and it's hard to believe I first played it when I was seven years old. It's been made a bit easy as now progress is saved unlike the NES titles but there's still plenty of challenge there. This game is well worth picking up, I have to give it 5 out of 5 for enjoyment and sheer length. The challenge is there as well if adults are sick of all the shooting and killing of modern games.

Overall 5 out of 5.