Happy MeMario Day / No. 8 Mario Game All Time
Happy MeMario Day Gamers and Retrogamers and to any other Steemians reading this as well. Before I get to No. 8, here are the Mario Games I've ranked so far:
I started this list list because there were 10 weeks left until the release of Super Mario Odyssey. I wanted to countdown my 10 favorite Mario games, once a week leading up to the release of Odyssey.
No. 8 New Super Mario Bros. For Nintendo DS
Mario DS for the DS handheld is my No. 8 Mario game of all time. I never owned Nintendo DS. I’m not much of a handheld player. The last handheld I owned was a Gameboy color. I will buy a Switch as soon as I can, but I will pretty much always leaved it docked.
I played this game on the Wii U Virtual Console. Playing retrogames on an HD Machine is a compromise. Any video game that was coded for a non-HD TV contains an inherent HD-Lag when playing it on an HD TV. It's very slight and only noticable when you need high precision. But I don't like it. This game was still fun for me. Fun enough to be ranked No. 8.
The Good
There are few new moves Mario can do. I would imagine most reading this have played New Super Mario Bros. Wii or New Super Mario Bros. Wii U. If you have then you already know what I'm talking about because this game is the prequel to those and is same engine.
If you press down, while in mid air, you can smash a bad guy with more power or break brick. You can wall jump as well. Other than that, it handles similar to Super Mario 3.
There are also star coins that you can now collect. In DS, there is no Star World, but the coins do give you access to new levels on each map. They are also needed to unlock Mushroom houses.
What I really loved about this game was the variety of power ups. There is a new Super Mushroom that makes Mario become big King Kong. There is a tiny mushroom that makes Mario shrink to go to hidden areas. And there is a blue shell that Mario can wear like a Koopa. If you get a running start you can slide and kill enemies and break blocks with it.
This all made for a fun Mario experience.
What I Would Improve
The boss battles were too easy. I found it easy to get to Baby Bowser often with fire power which makes it way to easy. I so often had fire power going into a boss battle that I found myself taking it easy on Baby Bowser so I could see what he could do before I killed him. Most of the time Baby Bowswer throws green shells as you. You have to jump on the shell and throw it back. The timing is difficult but only because I was playing with HD-Lag.
I also felt like the game suffered from power up inflation. This criticism basically is for every 2d Mario Game from this game forward. I love the variety of power ups, but the amount of power ups makes the game too easy. Every time I’m in a bind and I get hit, it seems there is a power up to bail me out right away. Plus you can store a power up and use it at any time as well. Less would be more. In the original Super Mario Bros. I felt like they got the distribution perfect.
These Mario games need a easy, normal, and difficult option setting. Slight adjustments could make a huge difference in improving the game.
If you just zone out while playing this game, when you snap out of it, you'll notice you have about 40 lives because it is so easy to get extra lives.
Anyone who is old to remember playing Super Mario Bros. when they were younger knows that you never passed up on coins. Lives were at a premium. I don't think it's possible to recapture that fully. But coins are too undervalued because there are so many of them in these games.
The difficult setting could have much less coins and extra lives and force you back to the beginning of the map if you have to use a continue. There needs to be a certain amount of anxiety about dying to make the game dramatic and fun.
Also, keep the variety of power ups and all the new power ups, but provide less of them. In the NES Mario games, when I was powered up, I did not want to get hit at all. I wanted to protect my power up at all cost. Now, I'm not even worried because there is always one shortly ahead. Make Power Ups Matter Again.
I think the death rate of the game is about right for a Mario game, it's just the amount lives makes dying not matter. There is one giant fish boss that gave me problems. Also, Map 8 is pretty difficult and fun.
Mario should be for young children and I would make the Easy and Normal difficulty settings for them.
The Great
The level design was 10/10 as it should be for a Mario Game. But I really love, is making the old new again. This game featured levels inspired by old Mario Games with completely new twists. Here are some of my favorite levels.
Level 8-6
This level pays homage to the original Mario Bros. No, not the original Super Mario Bros. I mean the ORIGINAL Mario. Bros. This one:
In level 8-6, when go all the way left, you end up on the right. When you go all the way to the right, you end up on the left. And there is a part of the level where you hit platform above to flip over enemies. You then have to jump up and kill them. See it here.
Level 4-5
Level 4-5 played homage to the Super Mario Bros. 2. I'm talking about the American Version.
In this level you have to use bo-bombs to break through brick walls to advance, just like in Super Mario Bros. 2.
Level 6-A
Level 6-A is a desert level. I found a hidden area by letting myself sink in quick sand (you'll know where to try this when you are playing). This is no doubt another homage to Mario 2. And I'm especially fond of Mario 2 tributes because it solidifies that game's status as a true Mario game.
Wrapping It Up
Most of the game feels like Mario 3. Unfortunately, there is no Yoshi appearance. But for Mario fans that never were into handhelds, this a gem you can play on your console now.