Game Info
Game Name: New Super Mario Bros.
Developer(s): Nintendo EAD
Publisher(s): Nintendo
Platform(s): DS/3DS
Genre(s): Platformer/Action/Adventure
Release Date(s): May 15, 2006 (US)/May 25, 2006 (Japan)
ESRB Rating: E
Looks like I’m not the only one with a Mega Mushroom
Bowser Jr. is up to his father’s old tricks. Kidnapping Princess Peach, Bowser Jr. has escaped into the Mushroom Kingdom and sent his minions to deal with Mario. Mario is faced with horrible odds as Koopa Troopas, Goombas, and Bullet Bills come at him from all directions, but fortunately he has his own bag of trips. With Super Mushrooms, Fire Flowers, and Starman, Mario is back in his normal form…but he might have some new tricks up his sleeve as well. Save the Princess!
New Super Mario Bros. is a sidescrolling platformer for the Nintendo DS. It follows the release of the N64 port game Super Mario 64 DS in 2004 and was the first original Super Mario Bros. game since Super Mario Sunshine in 2002. The game was the best-selling game for the DS and received strong reviews from critics.
The original Super Mario Bros. was a game that really ignited my gaming again. I had an Intellivision (no Atari) and gaming was fun…but then I was able to play Super Mario Bros. at home on the NES. Super Mario Bros. 2 changed up the format but Super Mario Bros. 3 returned to glory. Mario went 3D after that, and I didn’t’ know if I’d get another 2D Mario…then New Super Mario Bros. was born!
I’m starting to wonder if this lady’s worth it…
The game is a great coming together of a lot of other Super Mario Bros. games. The plot of the games is always incidental in a Mario Bros. game (aka get the Princess) and the game doesn’t even try to change the format in that sense. What is nice about the game is that it harkens back to Super Mario Bros. 3 with worlds that can be unlocked, multiple playthroughs, and some really tough worlds that can leave you screaming (I don’t love how you can only save after certain levels until you complete the game…but it does create a bit of strategy).
The controls for the game also translate well to the DS (or 3DS where I played it). The character is quite responsive and as the years have progressed the timing of the Mario games have gotten trickier…this game gives you a bit more leeway on jumping and targeting than later Super Mario Bros. games, but it still is challenging. The game also introduced the Blue Koopa Shell (which was pretty pointless), but the fun Mega Mushroom and Mini-Mushroom do really change up gameplay.
Wait…Bowser’s back!!! Shock & Awe…
The graphics are also solid and demonstrate how far video games have come over the years (and rather quickly at that). If you look at New Super Mario Bros. side-by-side with the original game, the game is insanely improved. It also slightly incorporated 3D aspects into the game which aid in the gameplay. The bottom screen is a bit useful for judging your location in a level, and I like that you don’t have to try to utilize both the top and bottom screen together like some games.
While the game is primarily a one-player game, there is some multiplay gaming and more minigames available to players, but playing the “real” game is much more fun and time consuming (so mostly stick with that). New Super Mario Bros. is worth going back to if you missed it on its first outing and if you played it when it was released, it is definitely worth revisiting. As mentioned, later New Super Mario games got increasingly difficult (almost unenjoyable at points), but this New Super Mario Bros. gets it right. Mario went 3D again with the great Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii in 2007 but then returned to the New Super Mario Bros. format for the Wii in 2009. A true sequel to New Super Mario Bros. was released for the 3DS in 2012.
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