Super Mario Bros. 3 review by Tyson
Overall
Buy
Super Mario 3 is definitely one of the best NES games out there. The game is jam packed with so many fun levels, secrets, and challenges that its easily worth getting an NES for.
Gameplay
Mario and Luigi are back to save Princess Peach and defeat Bowser and his 7 koopa kids. In order to do this
you will need to navigate through 8 worlds full of challenging and puzzle filled levels. The basic gameplay
is still the same from Super Mario Bros. but it is more enhanced from the previous games. You will be doing things like
making percise jumps, riding on platforms, and jumping on so many different types of enemies like you would in any Mario game.
I did like how some levels introduced some puzzle elements like finding the right pipe or door to go into so you could finish the level.
Also the airship battles are ones that you really need to play to see how challenging and unique they can be.
The biggest difference in the game is the inclusion of an overworld. Instead of going through level after level you now
enter them through an overworld. What I really liked about this was the overworld was chuck full of secrets
and branching paths. I also enjoyed how each overworld had its own theme to them as well. There is also things
like shops and minigames that you enter in the overworld as well. I liked this idea a lot since it was a good way
to get items or breakup the action with little minigames.
What has always been fun about the mario games has been the powerups and this game does such a good job with
them. I loved how you had so many useful and unique power ups. For example you can turn into Frog Mario to help
swim faster or jump higher, you can turn into Raccoon Mario to be able to fly or hit things with your tail, and you
have your traditional power ups like the Fire Flower or Super Mushroom. I really enjoyed how some items could
be used only on the overworld and those would help you unlock secrets. Items that you get from shops in the overworld
can be used to power you up before you enter a level which is pretty cool.
Control
I had no problems with the control. You have your standard NES setup that many games have. Mario seemed to control well and I didn't find any issues where the control caused me to have some cheap death or get hit.
Graphics
Man this game is a good showcase of the NES power. Many levels are filled with background objects and I didn't notice many of the NES problems like sprite flickering. Though I did notice some slowdown but that was very rare. I also liked the look of the overworld as well. Everything in the game just felt nicely done and colorful.
Sound
Well this is another area where the game doesn't disappoint. You have tons of sound effects from jumping or Mario using his raccoon tail. Each overworld had its own music to it too which I felt was a good move. Overall I liked the audio in the game.