Super Mario Bros. 3 was released in North America in 1990.
The game was a critical and commercial success, becoming one of the best selling games on
the original NES.
It was also released in 1993 for the Super Nintendo, as part of the All-Stars game pak.
Returning to its roots, Super Mario Bros. 3 has us piloting Mario through the Mushroom
World on a quest to take down Bowser and rescue the princess.
One of the great things about playing Mario 3 as a kid was how new gameplay mechanics
were introduced naturally, and almost right away.
For example, the first koopa you jump on will naturally get kicked to the right, hitting
an intentionally placed block, revealing a leaf.
This teaches you a new gameplay element, hitting blocks with shells.
After collecting the leaf, Mario turns into a racoon.
While this is interesting, what happens next is even better.
Veterans of the Mario series were used to holding down the run button at nearly all
times.
So, like always, you run along.
At the end of this section is a mandatory jump.
Upon jumping, you’ll notice both the meter at the bottom of the screen is blinking, and
a series of coins leading up.
Instinctively, you discover how to fly, so you follow the rings to a secret area in the
sky.
I love how the flying mechanic is introduced organically, rather than some help bubble
explaining what to do.
The ability to have turtles break blocks is a continuing theme throughout the adventure.
Sometimes it reveals bonuses, other times, it’s mandatory for progression, but because
the game guided you through the process of kicking a shell, you won’t get stuck or
confused.
Later on, you have to combine both flying, and block breaking, to get through this level.
One of the best things about Mario 3 is the progression.
The early worlds are fairly easy and straightforward, but the game has a wonderful difficulty curve,
with tough levels in the later worlds.
Super Mario Bros. 3 doesn’t stop with the leaf however, there are a massive amount of
new power-ups to play around with.
The frog suit is one of my favorites.
While it doesn’t seem terribly useful at first, upon entering a water level, you’ll
find it’s true power.
I hate water levels in platformers, but with the frog suit, these are actually tolerable.
The Tanooki suit is also awesome, letting Mario turn into a statue, immune to damage.
What really blew my mind as a kid however, was the map screen.
Each world has it’s very own.
Early on in the first world, Mario 3 gives you a choice, between level 3 or level 4.
If one level is giving you problems, you can just skip it and try the other instead.
While it doesn’t seem like a big deal, having a choice like this was a bit unprecedented.
The maps also have bonus stages, letting you collect power-ups that can be stored and used
at any time.
Some of the items you collect can actually be used on the map screen.
The cloud lets you skip past a level.
The pick axe can break down a rock, leading to a secret area.
Again, I can’t begin to describe how amazing this was back in 1990, but little touches
like this really set Super Mario Bros. 3 above just about everything else at the time.
After making your way through the first world, you move onto a brand new map.
Here, a desert theme is presented, new enemy types are introduced, the levels add some
misdirection, and Mario 3 gets a little more challenging.
With each new world, the task of slogging through another dozen levels isn’t daunting,
but exciting.
Every new world is like this, from the water slogged World 3, the skies of World 5, and
the ice of World 6, progression is always rewarded with a great new theme to play through.
My personal favorite, is of course, World 4.
Everything here is giant-sized.
I can’t quite explain why this is cool, but seeing goombas and koopas with twice the
fidelity is awesome.
Now is probably a good time to talk about how terrific this Super Nintendo port looks.
First, the game is just dripping with color, like a Saturday morning cartoon.
The detail is excellent, with every sprite being a nice upgrade over it’s 8-bit counter-part.
Backgrounds look excellent, with a layer or two of parallax scrolling really upping the
ante.
There are also plenty of transparencies, especially in the battleship levels.
It’s clear the designers put a lot of attention into this port, while also respecting the
original.
The All-Stars version of Mario 3 really defines what a remake should be.
Super Mario Bros. 3 also has a nice soundtrack, with plenty of classic tunes capturing the
spirit of Mario.
They have a bouncy, happy quality to them that are a joy to listen to.
The essence of these is recreated expertly here on the Super Nintendo, and I love the
choice of instruments selected for this remake.
The drum notes in particular are fantastic, and there is a Caribbean style vibe I just
can’t help but enjoy.
For all of the technical things Super Mario Bros. 3 does well, it does an even better
job at feeling right.
Super Mario Bros. 3 just might be the best controlling platformer of all time.
The momentum is absolutely perfect, whether it’s how quickly Mario get’s up to speed,
or the arc of his jump, there just hasn’t been a game that has felt the smooth and intuitive
since.
The flawless controls blend perfectly with the level design.
Super Mario Bros. 3 gets quite challenging towards the end, but the controls are always
up to the task.
The challenge of the title comes from clever levels, rather than frustrating controls.
The icing on the cake is the sheer amount of bonuses and secrets the game has to offer.
25 years later, I’m still discovering secret extra lives, and I still feel a sense of satisfaction
when I get 3 star cards and am rewarded with 5 extra lives.
Despite Super Mario Bros. 3 being a huge adventure with around 90 levels, the game never feels
overwhelming, and it never overstays it’s welcome.
When I sit down to play Mario 3, I set aside 4 hours and just blast through the game, enjoying
every single minute of it.
There just aren’t many, if any, levels that aren’t fun to play through.
Considering the sheer volume of content here, that’s quite the achievement.
For those with less free time, the All-Stars version does include a save feature, which
probably should have been in the NES original.
About the only nitpick I have are the bosses.
These have simple patterns and go down in just three hits.
They are an absolute breeze to take out, and a slight letdown compared to the journey it
took to reach them.
Now, I’ve reviewed almost 200 games so far, and I can say without a doubt Super Mario
Bros. 3 is better than all of them, no question.
From the wonderful art direction, the catchy soundtrack, amazing controls, clever level
design, great power-ups, and perfect length, Super Mario Bros. 3 fires on all cylinders
and never runs out of steam.
I’m still blown away a platformer of this caliber, and a scope this huge, was released
25 years ago.
It’s simply astounding.
Super Mario Bros. 3 is groundbreaking title, and without a doubt, one of the best games
ever created.