Super Mario Land

The Good
Being one of the first games released on the 'Brick' as I like to call it, Super Mario Land isn't a bad shot by Nintendo to re-create Super Mario Bros. At least here they've added a new story line and some updated characters to the mix.

The game plays fairly neat, although compared to nearly every modern platform game it doesn't fair well, so I won't start with that. Controlling Mario is a breeze, and some of the later levels include a few things the rest of the Mario series has never really gone into since, vehicles. Underwater or in space, it's all here, which is a nice diversion from the same old platform environment.

The Bad
The graphics are the real down side here. Everything seems so small, which can at times make it difficult to see what's going on. The only character that seems well done is Bowser, who you only see every once in a while.

And, as is usually the case with a majority of the original Game Boy titles, the music doesn't hold much either. There are a few harkbacks to the original Mario Bros score, but it's all just beeps and a little noise here and there, nothing much to shout home about.

The Bottom Line
Even to this day, I get this out for a quick game or two. It's a nice, simple and addictive little platformer, and although the graphics and sound are far from brilliant, it doesn't really matter.

The Good
The all time favorite NES classic comes to the gameboy with even more wonderful surprises. The sound is platform game traditional. Like most Super Mario games the gameplay comes to us in the best form. You can't exactly say that the graphics are good, but for some reason I like them very much. The game provides endless hours of entertainment ( that is if you can survive that long :-) ), everything about this game is classical, I think that this kind of platform is way better than apogee style platformers (I have nothing against apogee.)

The Bad
You can't save the game.

The Bottom Line
Mario, our favorite superhero/plumber has again delivered the best of action, and platform gaming with an adventurous storyline. 5 out of 5 and 3 cheers for Nintendo.

The Good
The levels in this game are pretty well designed. There are memorable moments like the submarine level (think Mario meets R-Type) and the boulder jumping in kingdom 3. The music is pretty memorable albeit a bit repetitive. Another nice thing about Super Mario Land is since it takes place outside the mushroom kingdom, the enemies are a bit different than your normal fare. The Koopa Trooper-esque enemies turn into time bombs after you squash them. There are also some interesting bosses here such as a seahorse and a sphinx.

The Bad
The controls are NOT like the console Mario games of the same era. It will take players a while to get used to the controls. Jumps need to be very precise and, often times, you'll wonder why you couldn't make it to a platform that seemed relatively easy to reach.

Also, the length of the game is unacceptable. Coming in at a mere 12 levels, this game will not last long once it is mastered. Granted this is a first generation title for Nintendo's first cartridge-based handheld, but it just seems like the game could've had a few more levels.

The Bottom Line
A nice start for the Mario Land franchise, but it has not aged well whereas the console titles have. Try it for the historical significance more than the game itself.