Super Mario 3 - 20 Years Later
It seems hard to believe that 20 years has passed since I was introduced to this now classic game. Super Mario Bros 3 was released in 1990 in the US and went on to be one of the best selling video games of all time. This game changed the way video games are made. Let’s take a look back to remember why we fell in love with this game, and why it is still a lot of fun to play today.
Graphics
The first time I saw the graphics on SMB3 I was amazed! This game made the other 2 Mario games looks like they were made by children. The colors and the overall ambiance of the game is really impressive. This set the standard for many NES games to be released in the following years.
Gameplay
The massive worlds are incredibly diverse, and give you 8 unique themes as you move through the game. You also have a considerable amount of choice as to which path you will take, this was pretty unique at the time. It allowed you to play through the game more than once, while seeing different levels. The items were also a lot of fun, the super mushrooms, fire flower, super leaf, frog suit, and of course the ever-confusing bear costume (why does a bear turn into a statue?). Being able to save items between levels also gave the game a more tactical edge compared to most side-scrollers. Saving up those stars and p-wings for the hard levels is key!
Enemies
The diverse enemies in this game keep each new world interesting. This game was more than just goombas and koopas, there is a whole array of challenging enemies, including flying fire spitters, boomerang ground hogs, and the ever-frustrating attacking sun! Oh and let’s not forget a new koopa offspring at the end of each world.
Conclusion
It is hard to say too much about this game, except that it is incredible! 20 years later it still proves to be incredibly entertaining and creative game. If you played this game in the past, dig it up and give it another go, you will be surprised how fun it still is. And if you have never played this game, go and get it now! You have a lot of catching up to do.