Welcome to another edition of Playing With Power. The review article that looks at all things Nintendo Entertainment System. Well, there’s an old saying that goes “Save the best for last”. I’ve looked at a lot of great games on the great grey box. But I haven’t had the chance to truly say which one I think is the best of the best. So with one more game to look at, I can only think of one game to pick. My favorite NES game of all time, and the favorite of many others I can’t think of any better video game to end the regular Playing With Power game reviews on. So,I give you Super Mario Bros 3.
YEAR OF RELEASE: 1990
PUBLISHER: Nintendo
GENRE: Action Platformer
By 1988, Super Mario was becoming a household name. Not only in Japan, but around the world. And it’s not hard to see why, with the original Super Mario Bros becoming the best selling game of all time, and helping the NES bring the fledgling North American video game market back from the very brink of death.
Of course, by now it’s common knowledge about the two different Super Mario 2 games. In Japan, there was the one we know of as the Lost Levels, which was not sent to the US for fear of it being “too hard”. I personally think the bigger problem was the game was too much the same as the game that most got for free with their consoles, but that’s just me. The other Mario 2 that we all know is of course a re-skin of Doki Doki Panic. Since the game was considerably easier than the Japanese Mario 2, that’s the one we got.
For the third incarnation, Shigeru Miyamoto wanted to make a game that would appeal to fans of varying difficulty levels. A game that wasn’t too hard, but still a challenge, while also adding to the fun of the original Mario game with ideas like alternating turns between both players after every level, mini games, secrets, and more. He also wanted to expand the Mario universe with new enemies, lands to travel, and items to collect. The game would also give the Mario games a much needed graphical upgrade after the last two games looked pretty much the same.
Super Mario Bros 3 was released in Japan on October 23rd, 1988, and was a massive hit. The game was planned for an immediate release in North America. But a chip shortage caused Mario 3, and a few other Nintendo titles to be delayed. This however game Nintendo a lot of time to massively hype the game’s release in the West. And the biggest way was with the 1989 family film The Wizard. This tie-in with Nintendo and Universal Studios California was for the most part a pretty bland film. Even surprisingly dark with dealing with subjects like divorce, a dead twin sister, and other things. But of course, no kid cared about that stuff. They wanted Nintendo, and they got it in force. References to tons of the games, the infamously “so bad” Power Glove scene, and of course the film’s climax with “Video Armageddon”, featuring the American premiere of Super Mario Bros 3.
While The Wizard wasn’t a box office smash, the hype still helped. Not to mention Nintendo Power hyping it big, the epic commercial, and so much more. Finally in 1990, Super Mario Bros 3 was released in North America, and the game was a mega hit. Selling a whopping 40 million copies on the NES. The game was considered by many at the time to be the greatest game of all time. And to this day the game is beloved my millions. With all that hype for it, has the game held up above and beyond?
COVER STORY
Not much to really say about the cover for Mario 3. It’s a picture of Mario in his new Raccoon suit on a plain yellow border. The NES Mario covers were never all that detailed to begin with. But they never really had to be. They did what they were intended to do, and that’s show the star of the show front and center. And the bright yellow cover is easy to catch the eye of anyone. So in the end, the cover work for Mario 3 works wonders.
STORY
The Mushroom World is in a state of disarray. The seven lands are in peril as Bowser has returned, and with the help of his seven Koopa kids, he has stolen the scepters of the seven rulers of the Mushroom World, and changed them into different animals. Only Mario and Luigi can stop Bowser and his crew, and bring peace to the mushroom world.
GAMEPLAY
Super Mario Bros 3 is a 1-2 player action platformer. You control Mario or Luigi as you move through 8 worlds and defeat the many evil koopas as you save the mushroom lands and restore their rulers. You move Mario with the D-Pad, jump with the A button, and run/shoot/tail twirl with the B button. Mario has a ton of updated moves, and tricks, and a great jump with a good amount of length, and is very easy to get the hang of.
Each world is broken into multiple levels displayed on a map. You have, for the most part, freedom to choose what levels you want to enter. These levels for the most part are your basic left to right side scroller level You survive against the enemies and make it to the finish. At the end of the level, there’s a box that flashes one of three different icons. A mushroom, a flower, or a star. When you collect one, it shows on the bottom right of your screen. Collect three cards for an extra life. But matching card sets will give you more lives. Three mushrooms = 2 lives, 3 flowers = 3 lives, and 3 stars = 5 lives.
Levels are for the most part rather short, but with so many in the game, that’s not really a bad thing. The design of the stages is where they shine. You’ll always have something different to deal with in each level. Most filled with secrets to find, and shortcuts to use. Be i hidden pipes, or the ability to find coin heaven, which is in certain levels.
Aiding Mario in his quest is a plethora of new abilities. You have the staple mushroom, fire flower, and star. Each of which still do the same abilities as in Mario 1. The mushroom makes him grow, the fire flower lets him shoot fire balls, and the star grants invincibility for a short period of time. But now there are tons of new items. The most common to find is the leaf, which will give Mario the raccoon suit. This gives him a tail he can use to flick at enemies. But the main power is the ability to fly. By holding the B button and running, you’ll fill up the meter on the bottom hub, When filled up, and by tapping the A button, Mario can fly for a short period of time. This gives you the ability to bypass tough areas, or find hidden warp pipes and other areas.
Other new items include the frog suit. This suit will give Mario better swimming powers in underwater levels, but in turn makes Mario trickier to control on land. The hammer will break rocks on the map, and can help gain access to hidden areas. The P-Wing will give Mario unlimited flying power for one level, or until he gets hit. The tanooki suit is similar to the raccoon, only when pressing down+B, Mario will become a statue, which can help him avoid some attacks. The Hammer Brothers suit will give Mario the ability to throw powerful hammer shots. The anchor keeps the doom ships at the end of each level stationed in a particular area. The cloud will let Mario pass by any level. And finally the music box will put hammer brothers to sleep for a sort period of time.
These items can be held in the menu at the bottom of the map screen. You can hold seven in one row, with a total of four rows. This mechanic alone is pretty amazing for a game from the NES era. Just the ability to hold on to so many items for whenever you may need them is an awesome added feature, and one that I’m kinda sad has never been implemented in other Mario games to the level of this one.
On each map are other areas you can enter. These include mushroom houses. Inside you can choose from one of three item boxes for a random (sometimes set in certain houses) item. There are card houses, which when entered gives you a slot game. Press A at the moving pictures to try to line them up. Payout is the same as the cards in most levels. There are fortresses, which are the castle levels of the game. You’ll have to survive the tricky areas, and battle the boss at the end. It’s a boss named Boom Boom, who takes three jumps to kill, like most of the bosses in the game. Beating the fortress will open certain areas that were once locked. Get game over, and the lock will remain broken. Though everything else is restored.
Another common piece on the map is the hammer brother icon. By entering it, you’ll battle with one of the several different type of brothers in the game. Some are the basic hammer brothers, some have boomerang brothers, and others have giant hammer brothers. Beating them will earn you an item at the end of the level. There are other variations in other worlds as well. There are also pipe icons, which will move you from one area to another.
Finally, the last major one is the N-Card. These appear after the player has earned 80,000 points. It’s a match card game in which the player has three turns to match all of the cards on the board to earn items like coins, mushrooms, flowers, and extra lives. If you screw up without completing one, it will return again after another 80,000 points with your progress in the same area. There are two other major icons, but we’ll get to them in the power tips.
At the end of each world, you’ll enter the palace of the seven rulers. You’ll then be escorted to the doom ship, where you’ll have to deal with hazards like fire, cannonballs, Rocky Wrenches, and more as you make it to the end, where you’ll face one the seven Koopa Kids. Larry, Morton, Wendy, Iggy, Roy, Lemmy And Ludwig, each based on a musician’s name, and each a challenge if you aren’t prepared for them. Once you beat them all, and retrieve the scepters, restoring the rulers to normal, you learn that Bowser took the time to kidnap the princess, leading to your final battle in his Final Land.
The game is broken into eight different worlds, each with a unique gimmick to each one. The first is Grass Land, which is your basic levels that get you used to the feel of the game. Nothing else too major. Next is Desert Hill, which is filled with sandy areas, a pyramid to explore, and even an angry sun to outrun. Ocean Side is filled with underwater areas, and places where you have to avoid flying fish, and the deadly Big Bertha fish. Big Island is the one everyone remembers, as you’ll come face to face with giant versions of everything. Pipes, bricks, and enemies are larger, and far more dangerous.
The Sky starts with you on the ground levels, where you’ll battle enemies, and even hop around in a kuribo’s shoe for a little while. When you get to the twisting castle, you’ll be in the sky with clouds to jump, and enemies to dodge. Iced Land has slippery ground to deal with, which can lead to some of the most frustrating areas in the game. Pipe Maze is filled with… well, pipe mazes, and plenty of piranha plants. And finally there’s the final world, where you’ll battle on many of Bowser’s treacherous vehicles, and battle through tricky levels as you eventually make it to Bowser himself, and rescue the princess.
The game has plenty of new enemies to deal with. The Goombas, Piranha Plants,and Koopa Troopas are back, along with other classic enemies from the original Mario game. But now there are new versions of these classic enemies like Para Goombas, Ptooies, and Dry Bones. Other new enemies include Chain Chomps, Bob-Ombs (returning from Mario 2), Thwomps, Big Bertha, Boo, and Spike. Plenty of these enemies have since become beloved staples of the franchise, and are still used in games to this day.
Mario 3 isn’t too difficult, but the later levels can prove a challenge even if you have the game’s flawless controls perfected. You get unlimited continues if you get game over, but there are no saves or passwords in the NES version of the game. You should be able to beat this game with minimal practice, and it’s definitely a fun trip to do so.
POWER TIPS
There are so many tips, tricks, secrets, and cool things to find in Mario 3, that I may go forever on them. But I’ll share just a few of my favorites.
In the 2-player mode, if the player who isn’t in current control presses A when the other player is on top of their last position, it will pit both players in a battle mode similar to the original arcade Mario Brothers game. You can use this to steal the cards the other player has earned, as well as steal their turn if victorious.
The most infamous item in this game is the warp whistle. These secret flutes, when used on the map screen, can warp you to further worlds. There is one you can find in World 1-3, if you hold down on the white block for long enough, you’ll go behind the background. Run to the end before it wears off to earn whistle 1. In the first fortress, if you have the leaf, or a P-Wing, make it to the end of the first area, and fly over the top of the area. make it to as far as you can run and press up to enter a room with a whistle. The third on is in the 2nd world. Get a hammer, and at the far top right of the map, use it on the block. You’ll get a frog suit early, and a battle with a fire brother to earn your third and final official whistle.
Speaking of the whistles, use one on the regular map screen, then when in the world map, use another, and you can warp straight to world 8.
Remember earlier on that I said that there were two other areas you could access. Well, they were secret ones. The first is a special mushroom house you can enter by getting a certain coin amount in a certain level. These houses will give you either P-Wings or anchors. The official amount for each level needed is:
1-4 (44 coins)
2-2 (30 coins)
3-8 (42? coins)
4-2 (22 coins)
5-5 (28 coins)
6-7 (78 coins)
7-2 (42? coins)
The other area, the white coin ship, is a bit trickier to execute. In worlds 1, 3, 5, and 6, get a coin amount that is an estimate of 11, and end a level with a mutliple of 11. When you do it correctly, the hammer brother area will turn into a coin ship. Enter it, and you’ll be in a ship filled with coins. Collect as many as you can, beat the boomerang brothers at the end, and get the regular item you normally collect.
GRAPHICS
The graphics for the game are excellent. Sprites have all been given a much more dynamic facelift. From Mario and Luigi, to plenty of enemies. This is especially true when you make it to Big Island, where the sprites are enormous. But what really makes Mario 3 interesting is its backgrounds. The whole game is done in the style of a play. From the opening of the game, which is a curtain lifting up, to certain platforms looking nailed in place, and the end of the levels, which give the impression that Mario is running backstage after that particular act. It’s a neat way to go about things for the story, and it works impressively.
MUSIC
This is the best soundtrack of the original Mario games. I even prefer it over the Mario games that would follow like “Super Mario World”. Each of the eight worlds has their own unique map music, which really fits the motif for each stage. The level themes are peppy and full of energetic. They even bring back the underground music from Super Mario Bros 1. There honestly isn’t a bad song in the game, and it all has the ability to be stuck in your head for a long time.
OVERALL THOUGHTS
Super Mario Bros 3 is my favorite NES game. I know to many that comes off as an overrated choice, but it holds so many memories. I remember being amazed when I found the desert whistle for the first time. I remember finding Big Island to be absolutely amazing. I remember how every secret was awesome to find, and all the power ups so fun to use. It was a pinnacle of gaming for my childhood. And in many ways, I can guess it holds that same magic for the childhoods of so many others.
The game is perfection. The finest example of platforming, control, and fun in a video game of any era, let alone the 8-bit era. With great graphics and sound, it really comes off as an exciting experience for all to enjoy. If you haven’t had a chance to play this masterpiece, then give it a play. But considering the millions of copies sold, you already have, and chances are, you may agree with how I feel. In the end, this is the peak of greatness for the great grey box.
RATING: Thumbs Up