August 13, 2006 - You can bash, argue, scream, moan, and complain about Super Mario, but there is absolutely no denying his appeal and impact on the gaming world. No other franchise out there is even close in terms of the amount of quality games released over the years. Mario has been in side-scrollers, adventure games, fighting games, puzzle games, and even educational games. But, one genre he hasn't been very present in lately, it has been the rapidly dying genre of 2-D sides-scrollers, which is responsible for cranking out some of the better games to ever come out; including Super Mario World, Sonic the Hedgehog, Donkey Kong Country, among others. Nintendo decided to trace back to its roots (what a surprise) by re-introducing Super Mario to the 2-D world again, a new, fresh, original game with the typical gameplay we grew up with and loved during the 80s, when Nintendo ruled the world. The end result is yet another great Super Mario game worthy of purchase, but do not expect it to be among the all-time platforming greats.
Like all Mario plots, this one is predictable, and very straightforward. Princess Peach is kidnapped and Mario must once again come to the rescue. Shows you what a man will do for some-anyways, moving on. If you want an overwhelming plot full of plot twists, surprises, and a fulfilling ending, go get a Mario RPG, because that kind of storyline usually does not exist in the Super Mario storyline. New Super Mario Bros actually is supposed to be a totally revamped version of the original hit; containing 8 worlds, not containing any flying abilities, and also featuring a flag at the end of the level. Sorry guys, no Raccoon suit or feather. Lack of Yoshi might be a bit upsetting as well.
The game itself is pretty lengthy; full of average levels and then topped with a few fortresses, castles, and ghost houses. While going through only six worlds can complete the game, there are two hidden worlds to attempt to find. Another little addition to completing the levels; there are huge coins located in every level, three of them to be exact. Finding them all unleashes hidden goodies. Sorry guys, no Warp Zone, and sorry, no Minus World either. There are warp cannons, does that help at all?
Super Mario Brothers was way ahead of its time in terms of graphics and animation. While New Super Mario Brothers fails to do this, it still remains one of the prettier games for the Nintendo DS. Using 3-D sprites in a 2-D game may look a bit bizarre if done incorrectly, but this game handles it well. There are some very nice effects in some of the levels, especially in the snow and fire levels. The game never suffers from slowing down or freezing up, whether it¿s the original quest or when playing the mini-games. In terms of graphics, one should not be as picky as in other categories, and Nintendo knows how graphics really doesn't factor much into the quality of a game; among the best games of all-time look like doo-doo when compared to some of the Xbox 360 disappointments. The Nintendo DS is the choice system for this title, not because of the second screen, but because of the technical abilities. The 3-D sprites that are all over the place could never be placed in a GBA cartridge. The second screen for the most part is useless, only with some importance when playing the mini-games.
New Super Mario Brothers plays like¿Super Mario Brothers. Quite frankly, it is easy to learn, and a breeze to master. NSMB becomes ones of those games in which you can pick up at any given moment and you won't have to remember what you did the last time you played. Part of the reason why it's a great fix for car rides or long waits is that you do not have to remember anything complicated about the game; you can swim, run, jump, and more or less that is about it. Keeping true to the original gem, there is no flying, and no Yoshi. While yes it's maintaining its roots, it would have been great to be able to soar above the clouds and to eat enemies with Yoshi himself. It also could not have hurt the game to add a little variety to the playcontrol to give new-school gamers something to cheer about. Can you imagine if some of the abilities in Yoshi¿s Island (egg throwing especially) and the abilities in regular Mario platform games intertwine in one production? The possibilities would have been practically endless.
One of the more recognizable soundtracks in gaming history and perhaps in all of pop culture is that of Super Mario. Whether it's the happy-go-lucky tunes of the regular levels to the gloomy and melancholy songs of the castle/fortress levels, the average gamer can recognize when a song is from a Super Mario level. That being said, they once again stuck to its roots in the audio department in this game. Nintendo took some classic songs and for the most part, remixed them all. While the original songs remain the most catchy and most memorable, NSMB doesn't sound bad at all. As a matter of fact, you can ever hear some vocals, as they hum and chant along with the beat on certain moments. Mario's voice was lent to him in the 1996 masterpiece Super Mario 64, and sounds relatively the same 10 years later. No complaining here.
Over 20 years ago, Super Mario Brothers finally gave hardcore gamers of the old-old school a challenge by providing over 20 levels without a save feature, and rarely ever had repetitive challenges. While at one point you are running in the grass, in the later levels you have to deal with different terrain, different enemies, and different obstacles. None of the games back then could offer that, Ms. Pac-Man had pretty much the same design from level 1 to level 99, and the same would go with Galaga. This was just one of the tons of revolutionary achievements of SMB. New Super Mario Brothers is not that difficult, but you will die many, many times.
There are 80 levels in the game, and pretty much half of them you do not even have to touch in order to beat the whole game. Aside from the regular levels, you also have ghost houses, fortresses, and castles. The fortresses lead to an easy showdown against Bowser Jr., and the castles leads to a battle against a gigantic boss. There are two main reasons why this game is a lot simpler than the average Mario game: tons of opportunities to get extra lives, and because of the items you can use. The mega mushroom can be saved for boss battles, and that makes the typically-already-easy fights even shorter into a point in which you laugh at its simplicity. There are mushroom houses in every world, and not just one or two of them either. All these houses leads to extra lives and access to power-ups like the mega mushroom and the fireflower (Yes, the fireflower is back!!). The levels themselves are much, much tougher than the boss battles, even if that is not saying much.
But, just because it may be a bit of a breeze to go through, doesn¿t mean the quest is over. There are two hidden worlds, over 200 special coins to collect, and a challenge mode to play after beating Bowser in the final stage. Might require four to five hours to beat the game without finding anything extra, it will take twice as much to find everything, guaranteed. What gave Super Mario World its lasting power is apparent here too, the desire to find all the extra levels. Sadly though, we do not have 96 of them like the SNES classic. Ah well, 80 is much more than what the average game offers, right?
Super Mario fans might be torn at this game for mostly minor reasons. For starters, the lack of several characters hinders the Mario look; the Koopa kids remain missing, as previously mentioned Yoshi is gone; Luigi has to be unlocked for some reason. Where is the love for Luigi? Wario hasn't been bugging Mario in a platform game since Super Mario Land 2, I think its due, he needs to wreck some havoc again, like in the good ol¿ days. Bowser Jr. just doesn¿t cut it, he really does not. While nostalgia does hit for the most part, a few more fun r eferences to past Mario games would have been nice, something that the Mario RPG series has been so good as doing. A lot has happened since 1992, the last time Mario starred in an original platform game (Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins) and it would have been good to see more of these changes happen in the NEW version of an older game.
Don¿t let the minor grudges fool you, this game is totally worth the money and remains one of the best platform games of this decade. Nonetheless, if you are expecting an instant classic, you might have to wait a bit longer. The bosses weren't tough at all, there were not that many hidden exits, and the lack of flying hurts a bit, after all these years of flying all over the place whether with a wing cap or a feather. Moving past all that, we are talking about 80 levels of fun gameplay full of obstacles and multiple ways of overcoming them. Unlike Mario Kart DS, the franchise doesn't take a step forward, but also unlike Madden, the franchise doesn't shift gears and runs totally backwards either.
Bottom Line: Don't expect a classic; just expect a very fun game with plenty to do after the original quest is over. Two hidden worlds, plenty of mini-games, a decent multi-player mode, and a grand total of 80 levels makes up for a few of the minor problems this game faces. But, when dealing with such a diverse and long-lasting franchise like Super Mario, there is bound to be complaints from all ends of the spectrum. What Nintendo, Miyamoto and the gang have to do is stop looking into the past and move on. Mix Yoshi's Island gameplay with Super Mario World gameplay, add tons and tons of levels, and right then and there we have an amazing game.
With the DS becoming a rising force, a sequel is apparent. Let Mario fly, give Luigi a chance, and for God's sakes, bring back the Koopa Kids and Wario. The Mario franchise does not always have to be just a goose chase after a mad turtle with a princess in distress; there can be so much more done. Either way though, New Super Mario Brothers is an experience matched by very few in the handheld department. While Mario Kart DS remains the cream of the crop in the handheld world, NSMB quenches our thirst of an original Mario game for at least some time. Do not just beat the game and quit, because you'll be missing out on a lot. Ladies and gentlemen; Super Mario is back.
P.S. We need a sequel!
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