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New Super Mario Bros. Review
Overview
New Super Mario Bros. is a return to the older two dimensional style of Mario games that I always preferred. The game is for the Nintendo DS, though it uses traditional control methods.
Art
For a DS game, New Super Mario Bros. looks brilliant. The 3-D look and effects in the game are used extremely well and never detract from the "2-D-ness" of the game. Additionally, many of the backgrounds are gorgeous and perfectly Mario-esque. As well, the coins and other items in the game have that certain look that makes you desperate to attain them. The music is extremely solid as well, with plenty of the classic Mario music redone for the game.
Innovation Factor
This is a 2-D Mario game utilizing the traditional Mario controls, certainly not the realm of innovation. Having said that, much creativity is shown within the scope of the game, with regards to level design in particular.
Gameplay
Certainly the backbone of the Mario franchise is gameplay. This game offers the same traditional controls of all the previous 2-D Mario games, and incorporates some of the moves from the 3-D Mario games, such as wall jumping and ground pounding, as well. While the extra moves work well and are great additions to gameplay, the new power-ups in the game are not particularly exciting. The new mushrooms which make Mario super small and super large have their moments, but can be frustrating or useless just as easily. The shell power-up is useless as far as I can tell, it's difficult to control, and usually ends up killing me in game. I really regard these issues with the power-ups as minor, however, because the core gameplay mechanic remains strong and is greatly expanded. The level design is amazingly creative, especially considering how many games have been made in the series. The levels all feel unique, and have really managed to surprise me with their new ideas.
An additional, almost non-issue I had with the gameplay is the physics. The game is just a bit too “slippery.” This was surely intentional, an effort to recapture the slippery physics from the original Super Mario Bros., but I would have appreciated the more precise physics found in Super Mario World.
Lastability and Re-playability
A single play through of New Super Mario Bros. is quite short, and can probably be blown through in a couple of hours. However, as is the case with all the 2-D Mario games, the game is extremely re-playable, and I can certainly imagine playing through it many times again. There is also a huge amount to unlock in this game; fully two of the worlds in the game are only accessible through special routes, and there are many other unlockable levels. Probably the most exciting advancement this game makes from previous Mario games is that it offers three coins to be found in each level which can be used to open up new pathways. Finding the coins provides a great excuse to replay and explore all of the levels after beating the game, and is something I now really wish had been implemented in Super Mario World with the Yoshi coins.
Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Played
During your playthrough of the game, you can only save after beating a castle or unlocking a path with coins. After you beat the game, you can go back into your file and keep playing, what I didn't figure out right away is that when you do this you can actually save at any time by hitting Start when you're on the map screen.
Overall
This was a difficult game for me to review objectively simply because it is so tied up with the games I grew up with. In my opinion the game is better than the three NES Mario games, but not as good as the SNES' Super Mario World, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. However, if I set aside the previous Mario titles and ask myself "how does this game measure up to modern handheld games?" I can confidently answer that it measures up spectacularly, that this is an extremely solid game, a must have for DS owners, and really has me hoping that New Super Mario Bros. 2 and 3 show up.
Screenshot source: Rotten Tomatoes
New Super Mario Bros. is a return to the older two dimensional style of Mario games that I always preferred. The game is for the Nintendo DS, though it uses traditional control methods.
Art
For a DS game, New Super Mario Bros. looks brilliant. The 3-D look and effects in the game are used extremely well and never detract from the "2-D-ness" of the game. Additionally, many of the backgrounds are gorgeous and perfectly Mario-esque. As well, the coins and other items in the game have that certain look that makes you desperate to attain them. The music is extremely solid as well, with plenty of the classic Mario music redone for the game.
Innovation Factor
This is a 2-D Mario game utilizing the traditional Mario controls, certainly not the realm of innovation. Having said that, much creativity is shown within the scope of the game, with regards to level design in particular.
Gameplay
Certainly the backbone of the Mario franchise is gameplay. This game offers the same traditional controls of all the previous 2-D Mario games, and incorporates some of the moves from the 3-D Mario games, such as wall jumping and ground pounding, as well. While the extra moves work well and are great additions to gameplay, the new power-ups in the game are not particularly exciting. The new mushrooms which make Mario super small and super large have their moments, but can be frustrating or useless just as easily. The shell power-up is useless as far as I can tell, it's difficult to control, and usually ends up killing me in game. I really regard these issues with the power-ups as minor, however, because the core gameplay mechanic remains strong and is greatly expanded. The level design is amazingly creative, especially considering how many games have been made in the series. The levels all feel unique, and have really managed to surprise me with their new ideas.
An additional, almost non-issue I had with the gameplay is the physics. The game is just a bit too “slippery.” This was surely intentional, an effort to recapture the slippery physics from the original Super Mario Bros., but I would have appreciated the more precise physics found in Super Mario World.
Lastability and Re-playability
A single play through of New Super Mario Bros. is quite short, and can probably be blown through in a couple of hours. However, as is the case with all the 2-D Mario games, the game is extremely re-playable, and I can certainly imagine playing through it many times again. There is also a huge amount to unlock in this game; fully two of the worlds in the game are only accessible through special routes, and there are many other unlockable levels. Probably the most exciting advancement this game makes from previous Mario games is that it offers three coins to be found in each level which can be used to open up new pathways. Finding the coins provides a great excuse to replay and explore all of the levels after beating the game, and is something I now really wish had been implemented in Super Mario World with the Yoshi coins.
Things I Wish I Had Known Before I Played
During your playthrough of the game, you can only save after beating a castle or unlocking a path with coins. After you beat the game, you can go back into your file and keep playing, what I didn't figure out right away is that when you do this you can actually save at any time by hitting Start when you're on the map screen.
Overall
This was a difficult game for me to review objectively simply because it is so tied up with the games I grew up with. In my opinion the game is better than the three NES Mario games, but not as good as the SNES' Super Mario World, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. However, if I set aside the previous Mario titles and ask myself "how does this game measure up to modern handheld games?" I can confidently answer that it measures up spectacularly, that this is an extremely solid game, a must have for DS owners, and really has me hoping that New Super Mario Bros. 2 and 3 show up.
Final Score: 85/100
Where does this game rank on my All Time Reviewed Games List?
Screenshot source: Rotten Tomatoes