Super Mario World
Super Nintendo
Nostalgia Factor:
One of the toughest things about being a kid with a Sega Genesis rather than a Super Nintendo was that I never had the opportunity to play Super Mario World. I was a HUGE Mario fan on the NES. I had all three games and I played them religiously. To this day they are still three of my favorite video games of all time.
I begged and pleaded for a Super Nintendo for Christmas, just because of Mario World. My parents, however, decided on getting me a Genesis instead. Not only did they get me a Genesis, they got my brother one too. I have no idea why they got us both the same system rather than getting us one of each, and to this day I still have no idea why they did that. Maybe they got some kind of deal for buying two?
Anyway, while I was devastated at first, it did give me the opportunity to check out Sonic the Hedgehog and a couple of other franchises I wouldn’t have been able to check out otherwise, so I quickly got over it. Still, though, the fact that Super Mario World was out there and I wasn’t able to play it was killing me on the inside. I knew a few kids in school who had the game, but being a weirdo outcast I was never invited over to come check it out. My only hope was playing it whenever I’d see it on display at places like Target or Best Buy. But still, those little five minute bursts of playing were nowhere near enough to satisfy my curiosity.
Years and years passed before I decided to buy a secondhand Super Nintendo in the mid-2000s. I quickly ran out to fill up my library with all the games I never had the chance to play as a kid. Super Mario World was at the top of that list.
Although I’d played bits and pieces of the game over the years, I FINALLY had the chance to sit down and play the thing from start to finish, over 15 years after its initial release date. Did I discover that I’d been seriously missing out as a kid? Yes…. and no.
Story:
This is a Mario game, so you should know the drill by now. The Princess has been kidnapped by Bowser, and it is up to you to rescue her. Gasp! I didn’t see that coming at all.
A little wrinkle thrown into this game is that the entire thing takes place on Dinosaur Island, which is inhabited by several different species of Yoshis. Bowser, being an equal opportunity dickwad, has imprisoned many of these Yoshis inside of eggs. As you play, you free these Yoshis from captivity, rescuing them and also recruiting them to your side at the same time.
Gameplay:
No one plays Mario games for their storyline. This is what we should all be here for: the gameplay.
Super Mario World is a direct sequel to Super Mario Bros. 3. Within moments it becomes obvious that its gameplay is inspired by its predecessor. The game handles almost exactly the same as Mario 3. The jumping, the running, just the overall look and feel of the game. It’s all very Mario 3-ish. And that’s a good thing.
Mario World’s gameplay isn’t the only thing inspired by Mario 3. This game also features an overworld map that allows you to choose your own path. At the beginning of the game, you are given the choice of going left or right. Go left, and after a few levels you will encounter a Switch Palace. These Switch Palaces turn invisible blocks into solid blocks. These blocks allow you access to secrets and also make certain stages of the game easier to play. Let’s say you had gone right at the beginning of the game instead of left. You probably would have encountered areas with large gaps or chasms, with the outlines of invisible blocks covering the chasms. Some of these chasms are probably difficult to pass. If you activate the Switch Palace first, however, all the invisible blocks would be filled in and all you’d have to do is run across the blocks and over the chasm, no problem.
Mario World’s overworld map is a lot deeper than Mario 3’s. All of the stages have “regular” exits that unlock the next area on the map. Several stages, however, have multiple alternate exits that allow you to unlock hidden areas on the map that contain power ups and secrets. This gives the game a lot of replayability and depth. You could ignore all the secrets and just make your way to the end of the game, but where would the fun be in that? One simply does not play Super Mario World without trying to uncover all of the secrets on its map.
Basic gameplay is very similar to that found in Mario 3. The main changes involve the power ups you collect. Returning from Mario 3 are the mushroom, the star, and the fire flower. New to the series is the cape. The cape acts in a similar fashion to the raccoon outfit in Mario 3. After getting a running start, you can take off flying into the air. Actual flight doesn’t last very long, but the cape does give you the added ability to glide on your way down. It also brings with it a pretty sweet spinning attack. Another added feature is that Mario World allows you to stash power ups at the top of the screen. For example, if you are a little Mario and you collect a mushroom, it changes you into big Mario. Collect another mushroom while you are big Mario, and it appears in the box at the top of the screen. If you get hit and revert to little Mario, the extra power up will fall from the box for you to collect. Conversely, you can stash things like fire flowers and capes up there as insurance policies for particularly difficult stages.
The biggest new power up, if you want to call it that, is Yoshi. Yoshi is a green dinosaur that hatches from the various eggs you find throughout the game. Hopping on Yoshi’s back gives you a ton of benefits. If you get hit while riding Yoshi, you simply fall off of him without actually taking any damage yourself. Yoshi does run off, but he can be chased down and recovered. Yoshi also can devour his enemies, which comes in great handy. A bunch of creatures blocking your way and you don’t want to risk jumping on them and getting damaged? Just eat them. Most enemies give you a coin as a reward, but Koopa Troopas give you a little bit of an added reward. If you eat a green one, you can spit its shell out at other enemies to kill them. Eating a red shell gives you fire breath. Eating a blue one gives you the power of flight. So on and so forth. I’ll admit, of all the differences between this game and Mario 3, the addition of Yoshi has to be the best one. I always get super excited whenever I uncover Yoshi and hop on his back. There’s just something special about it. It’s like having a pet to look after while you play. It also raises the stakes while you’re playing, since you’re not just looking out for yourself anymore, you are looking out for Yoshi too.
The overworld map for the main quest is composed of seven areas, each filled with multiple stages and secrets. At the end of each area is a boss that you have to fight in order to advance to the next part of the game. Returning from Mario 3 are the Koopalings, who you have to defeat all over again. I will admit that these boss characters are a little disappointing after playing Mario 3. They had such unique personalities in that game. None of the battles in this one, however, feel very distinctive. You’re either playing whack-a-mole with them, knocking them off ledges, or letting them attack you and then jumping on their head immediately after they finish with their attack. There is little to no creative or challenging strategies at play here. A lot of the side bosses are pretty boring or repetitive too. Why on earth do we have to fight those damn triceratops on the rotating platforms so many times in this game?
Graphics:
This game is clearly a step up visually from Super Mario Bros. 3. It's bright, it's colorful, the characters are big and cartoony. The backgrounds are lush and detailed. Maybe this game won't blow anyone away by today's standards, but stacked up against the Mario titles for the NES, this game's visuals took an undeniably massive leap.
Sound:
This game has really good music too. I like how they didn't just port over a bunch of tracks from old Mario games. This game has its own fun and unique soundtrack that is undeniably Super Mario World. When you hear the overworld theme or the song that plays in the haunted houses, you aren't going to mistake those songs as being from any other game. Those songs are this game's and this game's alone.
The sound effects are also excellent. I love the jumping sound, the sound when you collect a coin, and the noises that Yoshi makes. Again, they could have done the easy thing and just recycled the same sound effects from the NES games, but they didn't. Major props for that. It truly does give this game character, and a reason to stand out from the crowd.
You could blindfold almost any hardcore gamer and start playing this game and they should easily be able to tell you what you are playing within a few seconds. I think that's wonderful.
Overall:
I've been really, really kind to this game so far but I am afraid that's about to stop for a moment.
All my adult life I've been reading online debates about what the best 2D Mario game is. No one really gives Mario 1 or 2 much credit, and that's fair. I can see why. They are good games and all but they were made when Nintendo was still figuring things out with the Mario formula. Mario 3 is where the series really came into its own, and Mario World was able to build on the Mario 3 formula.
Mario 3 gets a lot of credit for being a terrific video game, as it should. But looking around online, the majority of people out there seem to think that Mario World is the better game. Not only do they think it is the better game, they consider it one of the best video games made of all time. That is where I have to say "hold up."
Maybe I am biased because I grew up playing Mario 3, and I wasn't able to truly dive into Mario World until I was in my 20s. The game doesn't carry the same kind of nostalgic weight with me, and I can fully admit that. But even trying to be as objective as humanly possible, I still can't help but come to the conclusion that Mario 3 is the better game, and it isn't even close.
Yeah sure this game has better graphics. Yoshi is cool too. Also, the overworld map is a lot more detailed and there seems to be a lot more secrets you can uncover. That's all fine and dandy. But the game itself isn't as fun as Mario 3. I could even make an argument that Mario 2 is more fun to play, but I'll save that for another day.
First of all, the game is short. For some reason I came into this thinking it would take me about a week to complete. Instead, after my first few hours of playing I found myself approaching Bowser's castle. I mean, Mario 3 is about the same length as this game, but when you factor in all the secrets and alternate routes that Mario World contains, it should be a lot longer. Mario 3 seems to be packed with more actual 2D side-scrolling Mario content.
Also, I didn't find the game very challenging. There were a few tough platforming stages where I found myself falling to my death quite often, but outside of those I beat the game with relative ease. Short + not challenging = not good.
Also, where is the level variety? Most levels seem to be either a forest, an open outside area, or a cave. Remember the themed stages in Mario 3? The desert, the water world, the big world, the pipe maze, the ice world, the sky world.... all of these stages gave Mario 3 character and personality. None of that is present here. Mario World lacks that certain special charm, that little wink to the player that they are on a truly fantastic journey. Instead it's like - here ya go here's another forest ya dumb fuck.
This game has castle stages, but Mario 3 had castle stages too. "But what about the haunted mansions?????" you may ask. What about them? I honestly thought these stages were the worst thing about the game. They're not fun. They're not visually appealing. They're frakkin' annoying and I think this game would be a lot better without them.
I also think the game took a major step back in the power up department. Mario 3 had all kinds of different outfits you could wear. The fire flower, the raccoon suit, the frog suit, the Hammer Bros. suit, the Tanooki suit, the P-Wing. You could even collect items and use them on the overworld map. In this game, you have the fire flower and the cape. And Yoshi, if you count him as an item. That definitely seems like a step back to me.
I think I'm done complaining now. After all that you probably think I hate the game. I really don't. I had an enjoyable time playing Super Mario World. I just wanted to point out the fact that I think it is ludicrous that people consider this to be better than Mario 3. I've even seen this in people's top ten of all times lists.
No. Just no.
That said, this is still a very enjoyable game. Good graphics, great sound quality, rock-solid gameplay. responsive controls, a fun mix of new enemies and old ones, tons of secrets and unlockables everywhere. This is a fun game and definitely a worthy Mario title.
If you're feeling nostalgic and looking for a fun game to spend a day or two on, you can't go wrong with Super Mario World. I may think that it is a bit overrated, but that doesn't mean it's not a really good game.
Overall:
B+
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