Pros & Cons: Super Mario Bros.
- Frank Wak
- Jan 13, 2017
- 6 min read
Introduction:
I’ve been asked to do Reviews for a long time, and although I knew I wanted my reviews to be different than the normal point based scorecard system, I knew I also wanted to stay clear of a system that told you how to think. (I.E. You Should Buy/Rent/Play This Game) So Welcome to Pros and Cons; a Review where you decide if you buy! This Review isn’t limited to One Media, We will review Movies, Video Games, Anime, Cartoons, and More. So please enjoy the new series. I have been a gamer longer than I can remember. I mean I might have well been born with a controller in my hand. I love Video Games more than anything for a multitude of reasons. They give you a sense of immersion that no other media can allow for, They test your ability to defeat the computer opponent set before you giving you an obstacle to overcome, and they produce stories that you soon won’t forget. It seemed only fair that my first review be over a Video Game, and there was no better choice than the granddaddy of them all. Super Mario Bros.
Overview:
Super Mario Bros is a game that all of gaming owes it’s success to. Back in 1985 North America had moved on since the Crash of 83’ and had declared video game consoles to be a Fad that quickly faded. That was until Nintendo released the Nintendo Entertainment System, and the rest; as they say, is history. I didn’t have a Nintendo in my childhood however. I was Born in 1991 (The Year of the Hedgehog) and grew up playing the SEGA Genesis. So going back to play the game that breathed life back into the industry was exactly where I wanted to start this new series. So Without further adue, in light of Super Mario Odyssey coming out later this year on the Nintendo Switch. Here’s the Pros and Cons of Miyamoto’s Original Masterpiece Super Mario Bros, for the Nintendo NES.
Pros:
This game is fantastic in terms of game design and aesthetics; being easily one of the better games on the console, and the grandfather of modern gaming makes it a wonder of gaming. Truly a master-craft, leaps and bounds ahead of it’s time; the game begins with a simple enough challenge teaching you right away that you can’t just simply hold right and win the game; The first Goomba. The Opening to World 1-1 is a master work in design choice, giving the player all the information they need to understand how to play the rest of the game from the first 10 seconds of play time. I dare say no other video game after this one has been able to convey so much so quickly, though Mega Man X comes close.
With only two mechanics to focus on the game is focused on the application of running to the right and jumping your way through stages. Jumping past, or onto the first goomba conveys that jumping on most enemies heads will kill them. The First coin blocks tell the player that these blocks contain coins that in turn can give you extra lives if enough are collected, but they also teach you that Items might appear in them as you encounter the first Power up Mushroom. They make the mushroom hard to avoid so even if you think it’s an enemy and try to jump on it, or run from it you’re bound to hit it and see that it’s actually a good thing. In that first 10 seconds you were taught everything you need to know. Jumping on Enemies Kills them. Coin Blocks Contain collectables and Items that give you power ups. Move right to Progress. That’s all there is too it; seems simple enough right?
Super Mario Bros. also had a built in saving mechanic, without the need for save states. I’m of course referring to the Warp Pipes System of skipping levels. At first glance it seems like these secret area’s are designed to be a reward for exploration, and you would be right in thinking that but there’s another, and more important purpose for them. In the NES days Memory was limited and it was almost impossible to have games that saved your progress without passwords, or difficult to remember codes or secret button inputs that unlocked things for you. The Warp Pipes served as an easy method of “Saving” your game. Had to leave for School and you had just got to world 3? Well simply use the Bonus area in 1-1 to skip practically the whole level than take the warp pipe at the end of World 1-2 to get right back to where you left off. Truly a revolutionary idea that has been often duplicated but rarely replicated well.
As you progress through the worlds of the game you are faced with tasks that increase in difficulty. For a game so simple it definitely gets really hard toward the end with 8-3 being the most infuriating level of all. Though the game gets difficult it never begins to feel unfair. It does an amazing Job making sure that the difficulty doesn’t get overbearing or unfair. It’s actually a lot of fun to go through and take on all the tasks even 31 years after the game's original release. As I’ve already said, this game is a masterwork and always will be fun no matter how old you are, or how old the game has become.
Cons:
I will end up stretching just a bit as there’s not a lot to say negatively about this game. When you get hit in the air, losing your power ups, you also seem to lose all momentum in your jump usually leading to your death. It’s just a sign of the hardware limitations and something you have to adapt too. Additionally this also seems to happen when you jump in the air to pick up a Power up. Another small gripe I had with the game is the lack of display to tell me how many lives I had remaining in the middle of a level (I told you I’d be reaching.) I think it would have made the game just tad better to have that knowledge on hand. I know I tend to play a lot safer when I know I’m on my last life, and I often got distracted between levels where the game conveys that message to you.
In terms of the difficulty, it seems to take a steeper step than usual in world 8. Typically once you reach a certain area in non castle levels prior to world 8 you would be taken back to that invisible checkpoint. World 8, no checkpoints meaning if you misread your jump at the end of 8-1 you go all the way back to the beginning. And that begins to wear on you when you decide to sit down and beat the whole game in one play through, which all gamers at the time had to. It’s not like today with emulators and save states.
Lastly 8-3 crosses the line between difficult and unfair at random times due to the RNG (Or Random Number Generators) that decide when the hammer bros decide to jump up and down. It’s already hard enough going through that stage without a fire flower, but it’s twice as hard knowing that you could at any moment get trolled by the CPU and die because Hammer bro he decided he wanted to sit on your face. When you’ve been playing for hours and you just want to be done with the last few levels this literally feels like running head long into a brick wall. It takes time, courage and dedication but it is beatable. Just very mind numbing depending on your RNG Luck. You almost have to go through it chanting like Chirrut Imwe.
Conclusion:
All in all I had a lot of fun going back to the original adventure through the Mushroom Kingdom and Saving Princess Peach for the first time, again. You can own this game in a variety of ways. The Nintendo EShop has the game on sale for 5$ on Both 3DS and WiiU. Or you can buy the All-Stars Nintendo Select Package on the Wii for 20$ that comes with the original 3 Super Mario Bros. titles as well as the Lost Levels (Or Japan’s Super Mario Bros 2.) Lastly you can also find this game on the NES Classic Addition for 60$ along side 29 other fantastic NES Titles. Tell me what you guys think? Is the classic port of Super Mario Bros Worth your time? Do you already own this game? Let me know in the comments!! Til then guys!
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