Goombuigi Ranks 30 Mario Games

[Goombungee]

I've seen other people rank videogames, so I figured I might give it a shot too. Please note that I don't have all the Mario games, therefore I will only rank the 30 games I have played through. I'll try to reveal the next rank every day at around the same time, but I might be inconsistent, depending on my schedule. Anyway, here's number 30!

Spoiler: #30

Super Mario Run

Maybe I'm missing out because I don't have the full game, but when I play Super Mario Run, no matter how long or how far I played through, I'm just not satisfied with it. It's essentially a boiled-down version of the New Super Mario Bros. games, with Mario automatically running. The gameplay is heavily simplified, with the only power-ups being the Super Mushroom and the Super Star, only 24 base levels, and the life system being stripped down to bubbles. On the other hand, there are a lot of characters, each with their own unique abilities. but where's Wario and Waluigi

There are a variety of modes. World Tour is basically "the main mode", in which Mario has to save Peach. Again. Toad Rally has the player race against another player's ghost, and while I do wish that it would feature a physical human player, the mode isn't half bad. Remix 10, added on September 2017, has Mario saving Daisy this time (a throwback to Super Mario Land), and Mario has to traverse through bite-sized levels. One criticism I have, and seems to be quite popular in mobile games, is a currency which you need to play certain modes, and if you run out, you have to wait a certain time, in this case it's the Rally Tickets. The last mode is Kingdom Builder, and this one is probably my favorite, because the player is free to design their own "kingdom". There are limitations, but for what it's worth, it's a pretty neat package.

While it may have some fans, Super Mario Run just didn't do it for me. I didn't invest a lot of time in it, and it didn't keep me motivated. Also, this game requires constant internet connection, even though there's no online mode. Why?

Pros	Cons
- variety of modes - many characters to pick from	- World Tour is very short - Rally Tickets are a nuisance - requires internet connection

 

[Bob Craples]

Yeah, I played Mario Run about 3 times when it came out and never touched it again. There were to many things wrong with the game. And besides, I guess Mario Kart Tour is the new Mario mobile game in town.

 

[Blue]

I still like it ti be honest

 

[YoshiFlutterJump]

I bought the full game, and I agree it's not nearly as gripping as the console platformers. But it's still easily the best of the three Mario mobile games.

 

[Bob Craples]

I bought the full game, and I agree it's not nearly as gripping as the console platformers. But it's still easily the best of the three Mario mobile games.

Three?

 

[Goombungee]

Three?

Super Mario Run, Dr. Mario World, and Mario Kart Tour

 

[Goombungee]

Number 29 is here!

Spoiler: #29

Mario Kart Tour

When I first heard that Mario Kart was coming to phones, I was pretty excited. So when it finally did come out ... I wasn't sure what to think. Mario Kart Tour is drastically different compared to the older, more traditional Mario games. As it's name implies, the main feature of the game is to race around the world, and all of the new courses are based off of real life cities. Instead of the four standard cups like in other Mario games, the cups are named after the playable characters in the game, and they are set up in a tour, which rotates every other week. Every tour has slightly different courses, although most courses appear in multiple tours.

And this is where my first problem lies. Due to tour rotation, I don't have as much time as I would want to play the nitro courses, since all of them are locked behind tours. And most of the time, I end up waiting for the next tour once I unlock all of the cups. Speaking of unlocking cups, instead of simply being first in every race, you have to get stars to unlock more cups. Or I should say, had to, because that system sort of stopped ... the stars are still there, but now only gifts are unlocked with them. To get stars from races, you have to get points, which can be obtained from tricks, item uses, and frenzies. Frenzies are when the player gets three of the same item. That's right, there are multiple item boxes, but the amount you get depends on the character and course selected. So to get the right combination, you need a good character, kart, and glider. Yup, no tires here for some reason. And not only that, all of the characters and vehicle parts are unlocked via a gacha system, meaning that it's complete luck who you get! And get this: Mario is not even a default character!

As for the game modes, there are four default ones in the Mario Kart series - Grand Prix, VS mode, Time Trials, and Battle, and Mario Kart Tour dumps all of these in the trash. Instead, Grand Prix and VS mode all mashed together to make the aforementioned tour system, Time Trials are locked behind challenges, and there is absolutely no Battle mode. Online multiplayer is here, but was added half a year after the game launched. Seriously? There is one new mode, challenges. Instead of four courses in each cup, we get three and a challenge. It can range from - get __ item boxes to smash __ small Dry Bones to race against a big enemy. I suppose the challenges are OK, but it's still not a full-fledged Mission mode.

As for the controls, I'm not a fan of them. Automatic acceleration I can accept, bit automatic steering? At least the game would have more skill, but no, there's just automatic steering and less automatic steering, but still automatic steering. Also, when I played Mario Kart 8 after this, I had to get used to those controls because I was thrown off by these controls. That never happened with other Mario Kart games. Also, why do courses only have two laps here? They're too short.

I could ramble on about this game and all it's issues, and there still many that come to mind, but in short, I don't like Mario Kart Tour. The only reason why it's placed higher than Super Mario Run is because I play Mario Kart Tour more, but may only be because I don't want to miss out on tours. Or maybe because I have more to say about it. Or maybe because I like Mario Kart more than Super Mario 2D platformers.

Pros	Cons
- many characters and parts - unique theme - special items - mission mode is back ... sort of - R, T, R/T variants of courses	- the gacha system is terrible - the way the tours and cups are set up is weird - too many costumes - luck is way more prominent - weird controls - overall lack of modes - internet ... again

 

[Bob Craples]

Never thought I would see a well done top 30 on a message board. Anyway, Mario Kart Tour is better than Mario Run, but I don't like how you can't just flip the phone over and play it that way. It would just make so much more sense.

 

[Goombungee]

Time to reveal the next one!

Spoiler: #28

Mini Mario & Friends: amiibo Challenge

I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't heard about this one. Mini Mario & Friends is a rather obscure title, a loose follow-up to Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars would be the best way to put it. The only reason why I got this game in the first place is because it's free and I have an amiibo. Yes amiibo are required for this game, but I suppose the "free" tag makes up for it in a way.

If you're unfamiliar with the gameplay of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, here's a short description: the MvDK games are puzzle-platformers starring mini toy-like robo versions of Mario characters. They need to get from point A to B, like in regular Mario games, but instead of controlling the Minis directly, the player needs to manipulate the environment to achieve the goal, and this is where the "puzzle" element comes in. You can place blocks, springs, and other elements to navigate the Mini toys to their destination.

There are a record-breaking 11 Mini toys, each with their own special abilities. But there's a catch - to unlock a Mini, you must own the respective amiibo, for example, to play as Mini Mario, you must have the Mario amiibo, which is a bit of nuisance, because if you want to have all of the Minis, you have to buy 11 amiibo, which is a lot of money. Not only that, most of the levels are locked behind amiibo as well - there are 63 stages in total, but 40 require a certain amiibo to unlock, so if you don't have more than one amiibo (like me), than 36 stages will be inaccessible.

Mini Mario & Friends is an OK game at best. As a free game, it's worth trying, but amiibo are required, and multiple of them are needed to enjoy the full game, so you'll probably end up spending more than you would on a normal Mario vs. Donkey Kong game. Compared to previous entries, this one is weak and forgettable.

Pros	Cons
- free package - nice combination of puzzle and platformer genres - many characters to play with	- many amiibo required to unlock all of the content - most levels are bland and forgettable - most levels are locked behind certain amiibo

 

[Goombungee]

Here's number 27!

Spoiler: #27

Mario Party 10

Mario Party 10 is a dissapointment, and it's the primary reason why I haven't gotten a Mario Party game since. For my first MP game, it's ... fine, but it could've been so much more. Instead, the Wii U got probably the weakest console entry in the franchise. In short, this game is a watered-down version of Mario Party 9, which isn't a very good game to begin with. The fact that in ways, there's even less content than in 9 (I'm thinking boards and shop items) is especially saddening, considerimg that it's running on superior software.

The main "gimmick" of Mario Party 10 is that it has three game modes - Mario Party, Bowser Party, and amiibo Party. Mario Party is just like Mario Party 9, with players restricted to the same vehicle. This meand that most of the time you are moving, it isn't even your turn, making the game more about luck than ever before. The boards themselves are not very interesting, although there are a few gimmicks thrown in which I would like to see more of. The goal is to collect the most Mini Stars, which need I point out, is also luck-based, considering that they are located on random parts of the board, it's just luck whether you get them or not. And I should probably mention my view towards luck-based games in general - I'm not a fan of them. When I play a game, I expect to win if I'm good at it, and lose if I'm not. In Mario Party, the probability that I win is completely random! Sure, there are minigames, but they are few and far-between, and even then, they might be luck-based.

Next is Bowser Party, a new mode revolving around the Wii U GamePad. The person with the GamePad plays as Bowser, while the other players use the other characters from Mario Party. The idea is that the players, strapped in one car (again!) need to escape Bowser and get hold of the Star at the end of the board. While that might seem like a good idea on paper, there are a lot of flaws to it. First off, Bowser has four dice blocks, which makes sense considering that he plays after the four players. But, he can get more if the other players are too far ahead, meaning that he can catch up to them more easily. And when Bowser does catch up, you play a special Bowser minigame - All vs Bowser. In these minigames, Bowser tries to rid you of hearts. If you lose your hearts, you die and can't play anymore, but you provide special dice blocks to "make up for it". How does that make up for it? If you lose a player, expect a game over soon if you don't get any extra hearts for the dead player. Also, one more nitpick - why do the players share special dice blocks? Probably to support teamwork or whatever, but do you know how frustrating it is to get a dice blocks, only for it to be used by another player?

The final mode is amiibo Party, which I couldn't even play at first because I didn't have any amiibo. Now that I do, here's a description: This mode is like the classic Mario Parries, but extremely miniscule. The only board is a square board, and although there are character-specific boards with unique gimmicks, it doesn't make up for multiple boards. The goal is also the same as classic games - get coins to buy Stars, whoever has the most, wins. To be honest, this is my favorite mode, but it would be better to have a more grand experience similar to the older games.

My opinion on this game: I don't really care for it. I enjoyed it at first, but the experience was nowhere near that of, say, Mario Kart or Super Mario games. It's also extremely dissapointing that they didn't learn their lesson from Mario Party 9, but instead made it even worse. This is probably one of the worst Mario Party games, period (although I haven't played through many of them, so don't trust me on that).

Pros	Cons
- graphics, I suppose - amiibo Party is like the classic games	- less boards and bonus content - all of the modes are mediocre - heavily reliant on luck

 

[YoshiFlutterJump]

I respect your opinion but I think MP9 and MP10 are good in their own right, even if they're inferior to the other console Mario Parties. (I also think MP10 > MP9 which is apparently unpopular)

At any rate you probably haven't played The Top 100 but that game is seriously one of the biggest disappointments in the entire Mario franchise.

 

[Goombungee]

Looks like the next one is here!

Spoiler: #26

Mario vs. Donkey Kong

A game that I got quite recently, but never got around to completing. Mario vs. Donkey Kong is the first game in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, and it's gameplay is a bit different from its successors. Instead of navigating Mini-Marios, you move as Mario himself, inheriting some moves from the platformer games while also introducing some new ones, such as handstands.

The game is a loose follow-up from Donkey Kong '94 for the Game Boy and the classic DK games in general, in which Mario has to use his moveset and the environment around him to get to a goal. At first, that may sound similar to the Super Mario platformers, but since Mario's speed and jump height are way more limited here, he needs to interact with the environment a lot more. This, at least in my opinion, makes the game a lot more challenging, especially under a time limit. Since Mario can't jump as high as in the platformers, there's less room to mess up.

The story is a bit different than what you'd expect - Mario launches a toy company that sells Mini-Marios, and Donkey Kong wants to set his hands on them. When he finds out that they're all sold out, he storms in the toy factory and steals all of the toys that he can find, and so Mario has to stop him and retrieve the toys back. It's certainly a waits, yet unique story. There are eight main worlds in the game, each with eight levels. The first six levels are normal levels, the seventh one is a Lemmings-type of level where you need to guide all of the Minis to their toy box, and the eighth, final level is a boss fight against Donkey Kind, taking place immediately after the seventh level.

The graphics are actually quite complex for the Game Boy Advance, with fairly smooth animations and detailed, 3-Dish graphics. The music goes well with the game, and the level design is well-thought out and puzzling at times. I especially like the distinction between the different worlds, with different elements in each world (such as ladders in the factory theme and vines in the jungle theme). On the other hand, I think that the restricted movement makes the game more tedious to play through, especially if you want to get a high score. At the end, I prefer the gameplay of the future entries.

Pros	Cons
- distinct themes - unique puzzle-platformer based off of the old DK games - advanced graphics	- restricted moveset, leading to more difficult gameplay - I prefer the gameplay of the future entries

 

[Goombungee]

Number 25 stopped by!

Spoiler: #25

Mario Golf (N64)

Forgive me for not really being into sports titles. Not that they're bad, far from it, they're just not the most ideal way for me to spend my time. And unfortunately, I haven't spent a whole lot of time in Mario Golf. It's a golf game, but with Mario, but despite that, it manages to bring a lot of features and establish its own series.

The gameplay of Mario Golf is very simple. Once you enter the golf field, you are presented with your own golf ball and clubs to choose from. Each golf club has a different strength and distance, so you better choose wisely if you want to succeed. Once you are ready to hit the ball (what is the golf term for that?) you proceed to the slide meter, apparently typical for most golf videogames, at least until motion control days. To be honest, I actually prefer the motion controls for golf, not that there's anything wrong with the slide meter, but, having played Wii Sports in the past (who hasn't?), the motion controls feel more natural to me, and I had to get used to the slide meter a bit.

One thing that truly overwhelmed me, and I mean that in a good way, are the amount of modes presented in the game. Ten modes is nothing to scoff about, I mean, ten modes! Tournament is obviously the main mode, with traditional 9- or 18-hole golf games being present here. However, you compete against 29 other CPU players for first place. To unlock other characters, you must face a match against them in the Get Character mode. In Ring Shot, you must play through golf courses while also getting the ball through rings in the air. Speed Golf is the Time Trials of Mario Golf, which the player attempts to complete the game as quickly as possible. Stroke play is like Tournament, but without the opponents, in other words, a standard game of golf. Mini-Golf is self-explanatory, as is Training. Match Play features a 1v1 game of golf, and in Skins Match, the winner of the hole gets a point instead of the traditional golf scoring. The final mode, Club Slots, has randomized clubs instead of the player picking them.

The graphics are pretty good, the character selection is great (besides the normal humans, bit that was a standard for Mario sports games at the time), and there is some truly fantastic music in there (like the flyover). The gameplay is quite solid as well, but despite all of that, I never really got into the game. Maybe I'm not a golf person.

Pros	Cons
- a ton of game modes - great visuals and catchy music	- the slide meter requires precise timing

 

[Goombungee]

Time for the next game!

Spoiler: #24

Paper Mario: Color Splash

Paper Mario: Color Splash is my first Paper Mario game, and I had a good time with it. It is one of the most controversial Mario games out there, considered by many the doom of the Paper Mario series. And while I haven't played many others for comparison, I think that the reputation that the game is currently getting is a bit over-exaggerated, if not undeserved.

Color Splash is the latest Paper Mario entry, being the final Mario game to be released on the Wii U. It is a spiritual successor to Paper Mario: Sticker Star, another game that is hated on for removing basically everything that made the Paper Mario games good. I don't think Color Splash and Sticker Star could be even considered RPGs, and are commonly referred to as puzzle-platformers instead. Sure, there are no partners, no EXP points, and no leveling up, but that doesn't mean that the game is absolute trash. It still has a good amount of potential going for it. For example, the graphics. Beautiful, delicately crafted graphics - speaking of which, the environment looks like it is straight out of an arts and crafts set! I can dig that style, and the characters look pretty shiny too. However, I would like to see more of a variety. With 99% of the NPCs being Toads, they can sure get repetitive. The music and cutscenes are also fun to listen to and watch, and I appreciate the option of a music and art gallery as well to further appreciate the visuals and sound of the game.

The gameplay is more of a mixed bag. As I mentioned earlier, the gameplay is not like an RPG game. For some understanding of the gameplay, here's a quick description of the story (spoilers!): Mario, Peach and Toad go to Prism Island to figure out the secret of the color-drained area. After Mario meets Huey, a paint bucket, and after Peach is kidnapped by Bowser (how original), it becomes clear that Mario and Huey need to bring the color back and stop Bowser and his minions from further damaging the island. And that's it. Yeah fact that I could fit the story into two sentences is a sign of how deep it is. Anyway, using his trusty hammer, Mario needs to repaint the island. Keep in mind that painting the place 100% isn't mandatory, but it is encouraged in the form of rewards, and sometimes it is required to solve puzzles. Like in RPGs, you can battle enemies, but since you don't gain EXP or any special rewards, it ends up being a waste of time and players have little motivation of entering the battle at all. In fact, later in the game, you will end up being strong enough that in some cases, you can destroy weaker enemies right away, a sign that battles are kind of pointless. Boss battles are even worse, because instead of requiring actual skill to defeat the bosses, you need to obtain a Thing card beforehand, and those are a pain to get. Usually, I just talk to the Toad at the harbor and he'll tell me where to go. Also, the actions are lengthy and a bit frustrating - the player's inputs are one-time use cards, and need to chosen, painted, and flicked, all with GamePad inputs, and it gets old real fast. Honestly, battles are probably the biggest letdown here.

So, Paper Mario: Color Splash isn't necessarily a bad game, just a dissapointing one. I'm sure you'll still have a fun time with it, but I can't guarantee that you'll have more than that.

Pros	Cons
- eye-catching graphics and brilliant music - great use of the paper environment	- battles are worthless - the story and NPCs aren't super creative - removal of a lot of elements that RPGs are known for

 

[Goombungee]

I completely forgot about number 23, but like I always say, better late than never!

Spoiler: #23

Super Mario Land

The second mainstream Mario game on the list, Super Mario Land is the offered the first handheld Mario platforming experience. Unfortunately, that came at a price, because the game had to go through many compromises to make it to the market. Nonetheless, it's a fun game that still has its place in Mario's history.

To start off, the game is primarily based off of the original Super Mario Bros. (since SMB2 and SMB3 might have been to advanced for the Game Boy), but instead of 32 levels, the game only has 12 levels arranged into four worlds. While most of the gameplay stays the same, there are some new ideas and characters. Instead of saving Princess Peach, Mario has to save Princess Daisy, instead of travelling through the Mushroom Kingdom, he has to explore Sarasaland, instead of Goombas and Koopa Troopas, Mario encounters Goombos and Bombshell Koopas, instead of collecting Fire Flowers, Mario gets Superball Flowers, and instead of defeating Bowser, he needs to defeat the alien Tatanga. Besides the massive character and setting overhaul, most of the gameplay remains the same.

While 12 levels is a bit underwhelming, especially for veterans, they are mostly longer than the original Super Mario Bros., but nonetheless, the game takes about an hour for an average person to beat, making it one of the shortest Super Mario games. The Superball Flower is a bit janky to use, since the projectile ricochets every which way, but it's something different and can be useful sometimes, unless it's to defeat enemies. The Marine Pop and Sky Pop levels are fun levels to play as well, with a unique feel reminiscent of shooters. They would be a welcome addition in future Mario games, but maybe the only reason why they exist in the first place is to make up for limitations. Either way, they're a good thing.

Thr graphics are not the best, to say the least. I understand that the developers wanted to avoid screen crunch, but the sprites are so small (only about 10 pixels wide compared to 16 in NES games) that sometimes killing an enemy requires precision. For me, Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins handled the graphics much better. As for the music, that's a whole different league. The game has some of the catchiest chiptunes I have ever heard. The Muda Kingdom especially has a place stuck in my head. As for the controls, they're OK for the most part, although they could be a bit smoother, especially since Mario falls like a brick.

While Super Mario Land might be underwhelming, at the end, it's the first Mario handheld game, and it deserves recognition for that. The Super Mario Land games are neglected a lot by Nintendo, and while they might not be as revolutionary as the console games, they are worth a try as well.

Pros	Cons
- Marine and Sky Pop sections - superb music - the gameplay we all know and love	- 12 isn't a lot - slightly weird controls - miniature sized sprites

 

[Goombungee]

Sorry I haven't been up to date with this, here's the next one!

Spoiler: #22

New Super Luigi U

Stylized as New Super Luigi Bros. U, this game is a big chunk of DLC/indirect sequel/expansion that was released in 2013 to commemorate the Year of Luigi, which, by the way, was objectively the best year ever. Anyway, although this game can be purchased as DLC for New Super Mario Bros. U, I'm including it as a separate game since it was released in a separate package as well.

New Super Luigi U is what you'd expect - New Super Mario Bros. U, but with Luigi. With Blue Toad and Yellow Toad returning, and Mario absent (although interestingly enough, his hat is still here), the fourth playable character is ... Nabbit. That's right, the mischievous rabbit from New Super Mario Bros. U joins the cast. Now that I think about it, nowadays, Nintendo would probably just shove Toadette in there (after all, that's what they did in New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe), but this pick was definitely out there, to say the least. Nabbit can take run into enemies without taking damage, but on the other hand, he can't use power-ups, therefore, he's a solid pick for new, inexperienced players.

The next gimmick of the game is more challenging levels than New Super Mario Bros. U. Each level only starts with 100 seconds, meaning that although the levels are shorter, they are also more stressful. Nabbit is definitely helpful for these levels, and although he is primarily playable in multiplayer, there is a secret that makes him playable in single-player.

And that's about all I have to say for New Super Luigi U. The characters are the same, the story is the same, the world map is the same, the power-ups are the same, the only differences are the ones I outlined above. Overall, the game doesn't do much to stand out from it's predecessor, and although it's a nice change of pace, it's not the best out there.

Pros	Cons
- more challenging gameplay - Nabbit	- too similar to NSMBU

 

[YoshiFlutterJump]

Tbh I really don't think Luigi U should be judged as its own game. People complain that it's too similar to NSMBU, that it's essentially an expansion pack...well it is an expansion pack. How different can it be?

 

[Goombungee]

Back with another one!

Spoiler: #21

Super Mario Bros. Deluxe

This is certainly one obscure game, although it is, in fact, the only main Super Mario game released on the Game Boy Color. It's none other than a remake of the classic 1985 game Super Mario Bros., and I must say, it's a decent version. Not only does it include Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, but it also has collectibles for extra replayability.

Super Mario Bros. Deluxe has several modes, the first is the original Super Mario Bros. It was fairly well, like you'd expect, however, the colors are slightly altered to fit the Game Boy Color's color scheme. The worst hindrance is screen crunch, since I can only see roughly 70% of the original levels now. It's not that bad, but it's a nuisance nonetheless, as you might get startled with what's behind the corner, so to speak. Outside of the Original 1985 mode, there's also a mode where you get collectibles. To 100% each level, you need to collect 5 red coins, a single Yoshi egg, and beat the high score. It adds a lot of replayability to what were previously one-time-play levels. If you get a score of 300,000 in the Original 1985 mode, you unlock The Lost Levels mode, titled "For Super Players". Either I'm not a super player, or the game is outrageously difficult, but I can't even get past the first world without using restore points. I guess that's expected, considering the game's reputation. Also World 9, A, B, C and D are nowhere to be found, so I suppose that to complete The Lost Levels, I'll have to buy the full game.

We still have a few side modes, one of which is You vs. Boo, in which the player races against a Boo. They're pretty quick and can slip through walls, but if you super skilled, you can beat him to the finish. There's also a two-player mode, but I have the 3DS Virtual Console version, so nothing for me here. I honestly wish Nintendo would've just implemented wireless friend connection here. I mean, I'm not a professional programmer, but it doesn't sound too hard to do and plus they did it with Pokemon. The next mode is a Fortune Cookie thing, which is random, but cool. I like when I get Lucky Luigi. The last thing in the game is the Album. You unlock pictures for the album by progressing though the game, which is honestly a nice way to reward you for your efforts. The only problem is that I can't complete the album because of multiplayer.

So, Super Mario Bros. Deluxe is a great port to the original, adding a lot of content and replayability. Ignoring the handheld limitations, it's a faithful port that is quite underrated. Also you can play as Luigi in single-player! Yay!

Pros	Cons
- ton of game modes - adds a lot of replayability - faithful port	- screen crunch - no multiplayer in the VC version

 

[Goombungee]

Here's the next one!

Spoiler: #20

New Super Mario Bros. U

New Super Mario Bros. U came out at a very unfortunate time, when New Super Mario Bros. 2 was only a couple months old and when the Wii U launched. Couple that with the fact that it takes almost everything off of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, and the lack of new ideas, and I can see why people don't really care about this one much. It's also one of the most underwhelming launch titles out there.

To start off, the story isn't very original. Of course, I wouldn't expect much out of a story in a Super Mario game, more so a 2D one. But now that I look back on it, it's the same thing as any other 2D Mario game, the only exception being that instead of taking Peach away, Bowser kicks Mario and co. out of her castle. It's an interesting plot twist that creates interesting story progression, but that's the best I can say about it.

The gameplay is 90% New Super Mario Bros. Wii. There's only ONE new power-up this time around, the Super Acorn the P-Acorn doesn't count, and it's another flying power-up. I mean, come on, I've seen flying power-ups in a million games already, and to make matters worse, the Super Leaf is in NSMB2 AND the Propeller Mushroom is in NSMBWii! Other than that, not a whole lot to say. Nabbit was introduced, which was cool, I guess. The biggest addition are probably Boost Blocks. If you have a friend, he can place Boost Blocks for you go step on. Cool, but unnecessary, in my opinion, unless you want to mess around. Also, Miis are playable, but not in the main game. Why?

The graphics are in HD, and for the first Mario HD game, it could be a whole lot better, look at Mario Kart 8! The music is basically the same thing, with "bahs" and stuff, and the controls work like you'd expect them to. Not much to mention here either.

And then there are the game modes. Besides the main game, there are a few extra modes. In Challenges, you need to complete a challenge, such as getting to the goal in a certain time or collecting a certain amount of coins. It's actually surprisingly challenging, considering how easy the main game is. Then there's Boost Rush, in which you need to get through an autoscrolling level to get the goal as fast as you can, but the plot twist is, when you get coins, the screen scrolls faster. The last mode is Coin Battle, a multiplayer-exclusive mode, in which two or more players compete to see who gets the most coins. It's a lot of fun and can be quite hectic.

New Super Mario Bros. U is a great game for newcomers, but for series veterans, it feels like "been there, done that". To be honest, I care about the remake even less, because it felt lazy, added almost nothing, and it introduced the biggest abomination that humanity has ever faced.

Pros	Cons
- many extra modes - OK graphics and controls	- same old - released at a bad time - very few new ideas

 

[YoshiFlutterJump]

I definitely agree that the original Wii U version is better than the Deluxe version on Switch. Boost Mode, the biggest innovation of the game, done away with, as was an entire fifth of the challenges. And for what? An easy mode. And a very easy mode. Neither of which was necessary because Super Guide already exists. Balanced co-op is out of the question too, because with four players one of them is forced to use one of the easy characters, and this is even worse in Luigi U because both easy mode characters are required due to lack of Mario.

Best thing I can say about Deluxe is that Toadette is a much better fourth player than a lame palette swap Toad, or at least would be if not for Forced Easy Mode.

 

[Goombungee]

Moving on to number 19!

Spoiler: #19

Super Mario Kart

Look, I like Super Mario Kart and I acknowledge the fact that it's the first in the series. It just hasn't aged as well as the other Mario Kart games. The graphics are 2D, which was spectacular at the time, but now, in the age of VR...

Super Mario Kart is like your normal Mario Kart game, you have eight characters to choose from (speaking of which, why the heck is Donkey Kong Jr. here?) and you make your way through four cups - the Mushroom Cup, Flower Cup, Star Cup, and Special Cup. Each cup has five courses instead of four, which is fine and all, but there are only eight distinct themes, which make the courses somewhat repetitive. Furthermore, due to the lack of 3D graphics, the courses don't really have any jumping-related obstacles (besides that jump in Mario Circuit 2).

The controls are ... slippery, but can be used to. Drifting, on the other hand, is very hard for me to perform, and more often not, it does more harm than good. There is one mechanic that frustrates me - the lives system. If you end up worse than fourth place, you are forced to restart the race, which is fine and all, but if you get less the fourth place three times, you have to restart the cup, which is just unfair to me, and I'm glad that the system was knocked out several installments later. As for the music, it's cool and catchy, although it definitely has been overshadowed by the future entries. Another thing that I don't like is that battle is exclusive to multiplayer, because usually, I play by myself.

Super Mario Kart suffers from being the first in the series, but despite that and all of its shortcomings, it's still a fun game to play, perhaps as good as future entries.

Pros	Cons
- Mario Kart at heart - twenty courses - established the series	- aged poorly - the lives system - somewhat bland courses

 

[Goombungee]

Time for the next one!

Spoiler: #18

Super Mario Bros. 2

After Super Mario Bros. released, Nintendo made a sequel, but since it was deemed "too hard" for Western players, it was a Japan-exclusive. Instead, Westerners got a version of a Japanese game called Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic with Mario slapped on it. Despite the gameplay being entirely different, it's still a fun and interesting game.

The main difference in the game is that instead of defeating enemies by stomping on them, you need to grab them and throw them into another enemy or down a pit. The game has seven worlds, each with three levels (besides the last world, which has only two), and although there are less of them than in the original Super Mario Bros., they are longer. I like that the game in general is more vertical than the original, but sometimes the levels feel frustrating to me due to their length.

Although multiplayer was removed this time around, there are four characters to choose from - Mario, Luigi, Peach (at the time, known as Princess Toadstool, or just Princess), and Toad. Each of them have different strengths and weaknesses, and they add depth to the game. However, they are somewhat imbalanced, for example, Princess Peach can hover in the air for quite a while, being an extremely useful character, while Toad runs fast and makes the game more challenging than it should be.

Overall, while Super Mario Bros. 2 was a great game, it felt out of place for a Mario title. It did bring some enemies (such as Shy Guys and Pokeys) to the Mario series, and it gave the main characters their iconic abilities.

Pros	Cons
- verticality was introduced - character variety	- too different to the original SMB - levels are too long

 

[Goombungee]

Oh boy, I really should catch up on this. Here's number 17.

Spoiler: #17

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

The successor to Super Mario Land, this game improved in almost every way. Graphics, controls, gameplay, etc. It even introduced a fan favorite, Wario, so of course the game is important.

To start off, the story is actually cool this time! During the events of Super Mario Land, Wario took over Mario's castle (wait, Mario has a castle?) and cursed the inhabitants of Mario Land (Mario is quite self-centered, isn't he?), and Mario has to save the kingdom. The land is home to six worlds, or I should say zones - Tree Zone, Turtle Zone, Macro Zone, Space Zone, Pumpkin Zone, and Mario Zone (did I mention that Mario is self-centered?), in no particular order. Speaking of no particular order, the player can traverse the worlds in any particular order, meaning that this is the first open-world Mario game. Impressive for a Game Boy game, if you ask me.

At the end of each zone is a Golden Coin (hence the title), and upon collecting all of them, Mario will face the final boss, Wario, in his own castle. The Golden Coins are a great way of ensuring that all of the zones will be traversed. But there is one problem with this open-world gimmick - the difficulty. All of the six zones are the same difficulty, which is fairly easy. But Mario's castle presents probably the steepest difficulty spike in the series, as it is quite hard.

The graphics resemble that of Super Mario World, which is nice to see. The Fire Flower makes a proper appearance instead of the bootleg Superball Flower, and the Carrot makes its first and only appearance, and I gotta say, it is a mighty good power-up that feels great to use. I'll admit, it's a bit overpowered, but it's a good kind of over-powered.

Another interesting mechanic that the game presents is its use of coins. For 100 coins, the player doesn't get a 1-Up, but instead, you can buy minigames for a varying price of coins that can be used to obtain 1-Ups. This is something that I would really like to see in other Mario games, New Super Mario Bros. 2 in particular.

The only downgrade from the first game in my opinion is the music. I know, music is subjective, but for me, nothing matched the catchy and cheery music from the first game. This music isn't bad by any means, don't get me wrong, it's just not as good as the first, in my opinion.

So that's Super Mario Land 2, a truly underrated game that brought us Wario and introduced an open-world style that never returned in future 2D Mario games. As a matter of fact, many stuff from here didn't return in future games, and that's a shame.

Pros	Cons
- unique open-world style - memorable worlds - clever use of coin collecting	- steep difficulty spike - music is not as memorable as SML1

 

[Goombungee]

Spoiler: #16

Mario Kart 64

I'm very passionate about the Mario Kart series, and seeing as Mario Kart 64 was my second entry to the series, there is some nostalgia from it (especially when racing on the tracks in Time Trials for no reason other than it was fun). However, I think that it hasn't aged particularly well, and hence why it's placed a bit lower on the list than it could have been.

For the first fully 3D Mario Kart game, it did a fairly good job. The tracks are much more memorable and feel more "real" than the ones in Super Mario Kart, but what I find interesting and a bit lazy is the fact that the sprites for the characters and items are 2D. Sure, they aren't blocky like the Mario Kart DS characters, but they still feel off compared to the environment.

The character cast is largely the same, with DK Jr. replaced with DK (not a surprise), and Koopa Troopa replaced with Wario (not that big of a surprise either). There are several new items, such as the Fake Item Box, Golden Mushroom, and, of course, the dreaded Spiny Shell. These items change the gameplay for better and for worse. Rubberbanding is still a thing, although it's not as extreme as in Super Mario Kart. The CPUs don't get exclusive items anymore, now that's what I call an improvement. And as for the music, it's OK. Better than SMK's, in my opinion. The controls are quite slippery, but I guess that's to be expected from a 24-year old game.

Mario Kart 64 might not be as popular as it was in the good old days, but I think that it still holds up pretty well, especially compared to Super Mario Kart. The courses are far more interesting, and new characters and items make their triumphant debut. A ton of great additions here.

Pros	Cons
- many stellar additions - great course design - better music than SMK	- slippery controls - most objects are 2D sprites

 

[Goombungee]

Ok, here it is.

Spoiler: #15

Super Paper Mario

I already mentioned Paper Mario: Color Splash, but the other Paper Mario game that I've played is Super Paper Mario. The best way to describe it is that ... It's all over the place, in terms of story, gameplay, and characters.

The first thing I'll say is that the game has an amazing story. I don't know how the first two Paper Mario games compare, but the story here is actually quite deep. Already at the very beginning, it starts off with a fake wedding between Peach and Bowser, and Luigi attempts to save the day, only to fall flat (get it?), and at the end only Mario and a geometrical butterfly are left, and they have to figure out how to stop the main villain, Count Bleck, from destroying the world. The way the story unravels from there is quite thrilling and it creates a lot of tension as well. Some of the characters actually gave me Harry Potter vibes (Merlon --> Dumbledore, Count Bleck --> Voldemort), by their character and the way that they talk. The characters also have a lot of charm, and even the villains are quite funny to watch. I also enjoy how the game portrays and emphasizes Luigi, and the fact that he's such a central part of the game, with Mr. L and all, it makes me wish that he had a role like this in more Mario games.

As for the gameplay, that's a mixed bag for me. I like the 2D to 3D mechanic, but the amount of characters and Pixls you end up having makes them feel less special, since they are mostly used as a gimmick for puzzles. The only mechanic that I would say is truly integrated into the game well is the 3D ability, which is why the for majority of the game, you'll find yourself playing as Mario. The level design is a bit questionable. The farther you get into the game, and the further the story develops, the more sluggish the levels become. It's as if the developers were out of ideas, so they threw stuff around to see what fits. It's hit and miss really. The graphics are alright, as is the music. Besides the final boss and Mr. L music, there's not a whole lot for me here.

Super Paper Mario is all over the place. With elements of an RPG, platformer, shooter, and dating sim thrown into one, it feels like a lot of the elements were hit or miss. It was a wacky and interesting game to play through.

Pros	Cons
- amazing story - 3D flipping is fun	- weird level design - too many Pixls --> too many puzzle gimmicks