Super Mario All-Stars (1993)

This game bundle is a stellar compilation that brings together four classic NES Mario titles, Super Mario Bros 1, 2, 3, and The Lost Levels, with enhanced 16-bit graphics, updated music, and a save feature, which helped a lot on the more challenging Mario titles. The visual upgrade adds polish without losing the charm of the originals, and the inclusion of The Lost Levels (previously unreleased outside Japan) offers a fresh challenge. It’s both a nostalgic tribute and an excellent entry point for new players. Overall, it’s a definitive Mario package that stands as one of the best remakes/collections of its time.

Since this title has a lot of games inside it, I got to admit that I focused on the best ones, and these are the ones that I have the most to say, which is basically the third title haha not gonna lie it is way better than the other ones, at least in my opinion. So I mostly play this one in order to play SMB 3 on the SNES, because I never had the chance to do so on the NES, but I highly recommend checking the other titles out, since you can't go wrong with old 2D Mario, is just that this one offers a way better experience because of the modernized features such as being able to save your progress.

One thing that really stands out after spending time with the collection is how well the SNES presentation enhances the gameplay. The updated visuals make environments clearer and enemies more readable, which subtly improves precision without altering level design. The remixed OST is also a highlight, they stay faithful to the original melodies while giving them more depth, making long play sessions more enjoyable. These improvements feel respectful rather than excessive, striking a great balance between modernization and preservation.

Another aspect worth mentioning is how the save system completely changes the pacing and accessibility of these games. Being able to save progress removes a lot of the frustration that came with the original NES releases, especially in tougher sections and longer worlds. This makes experimentation more inviting and encourages you to push further more often than not. Because of that, this Mario entry doesn’t just preserve these classics, it arguably presents them in their most user-friendly form, making it easy to see why this collection remains so highly regarded even decades later.

Well, I changed my mind yet again. I will sum up the overall game as the re-release, noting some of the changes, rather than a game-by-game basis. I did keep the old SMB3 review though.

You can tell how loved these games were in that they were aware of glitches and kept some, getting rid of others, and enhanced things without fundamentally changing the games. They all feel so smooth and beloved. Unfortunately, Lost Levels is still not a favorite of mine, so this probly shouldn't be a Favorite Favorites. However, 1 2 and 3 are all absolutely amazing and nostalgic as all get-out, and this is my preferred version of each of them -- with saves!!! And the graphics I was most used to. So, yes, when I replay 1 2 or 3, and not for some sort of chronology thing, these will be the versions I play.

Look: 8.5/10

Sound: 9/10

Play: 8.5/10

Feel: 9/10

Attachment: 9/10

Overall: 8.8/10

Old Review Plan I guess I will slowly add a review over-time as I play the games. I happened to play SMB 3 first because I was streaming it. See its review here. From now on, I will write any reviews from the All-Stars versions here, while the original versions on their respective pages

Super Mario Bros 3 played Apr 17 - May 10, 2023

I streamed my most recent playthrough of this classic Nintendo game. Watch the playlist of the recordings here.

Look: 8/10 So many classic features, so much nostalgia. The Frog Suit, the Angry Sun, the Hammer Suit. That being said, there isn't much sentimentality or epicness in the look--I can't think of any backgrounds I really spend time looking at. Now that I think of it, some of the World Map themes such as water world did garner some of that vibe. But for the most part, an influential and classic and nostalgic Look to it, even if not spectacular or sentimental for me.

Sound: 9/10 Wow, I don't remember the music being so good in this. Especially some of the World Map themes, like World 3 Water World (and I know there were others but can't recall the specific ones... almost every World Map theme was excellent). Honestly, this could even move up to a Perfect Sound since it also has the classic Mario tunes I love from the others especially SMW. But most notable after this most recent playthrough--the World Map themes really stood out. Those songs helped me push through my frustrations with the difficulty and inability to return to levels (and no Top Secret Area type function, etc.). As I would die over and over, I'd wanna scream, but immediately hear a great sentimental jingle or funky pleasant tune.

Play: 8/10 This seems a lot harder than SMW, but maybe I just know this one less. But sheesh! The final level of World 3, the inability to replay levels to accumulate lives, the sharp difficulty spikes already in Worlds 2 and 3… it was a bit rough at first (I see why I always used the flute/whistle things to skip worlds). How brutal that when you die or turn off the console you restart the whole world, not just since you last Saved-and-Continued (barely even a function to that except saving the defeat of Fortresses… which yes I learned to understand the Pipe-unlocking that comes from Fortresses sorta like the saving after Ghost Castles and Fortresses/Castles in SMW... but having those levels reappear as necessary to complete was very frustrating, especially considering you can't even return to them normally anyway). In the end, I learned to remember my nostalgia for having to restart a world after losing all my lives, or having to turn the game off prematurely because my parents said it's time to go... Both frustrating and nostalgic I suppose heh. I suppose you could say it forces you to really learn the levels, maybe even stumbling upon the absurdly obscured secrets (but I can't judge it for that... SMW has some outlandish secret boxes and secret solutions to levels that I only see as being more reasonable because I know SMW inside and out... meanwhile, Super Mario 3 I knew well from childhood but not nearly to the extent of SMW).

Feel: 9/10 At any rate, I absolutely love the world map being so diverse and having vehicles like the boats. It just felt more like a Dragon Quest/Final Fantasy/RPG world map than a platformer world map, which was a nice touch. And Mario 3 took the secrets/world-skipping from the first Mario (which always allowed for approachability and replayability when I was young) and elaborated on it. The music also really adds a nice touch to this, pushing it past Mario 1 and 2's Feel. The final level (Bowser's Castle) was so epic and well-done and actually-doable-but-still-insanely-difficult, with well-balanced power-ups and secret 1-up mixed in to allow you to beat the game (even if just a little Mario) at last, albeit after trying again and again and again. If only I were a better gamer, this could be a Perfect Feel!

Attachment: 9/10 As I noted above, this game would be a lot better if you could replay levels/return to worlds. Then it’d be more enjoyable when there are levels like 6-5 where you need a certain power-up to complete it etc. But while that feeling of frustration lingered throughout the game, along with the sweaty palms and headaches, I have to admit I still loved the game nonetheless. It was my 2nd most played Mario back in childhood, even if I found SMW much more approachable and worthy of exploring every inch to know every secret. There was something really special about knowing the secrets of games when young, like knowing about the SMW Top Secret Area or the Zelda 2 secrets or the Mario 3 Whistles or ability to swim under the World 8 ship level. Tho I missed my opportunity to treat Mario 3 that way, getting to know every inch of it, the secrets I do know--and fact I replayed this so many times as a kid and now again as an adult--means it will stay attached to me no matter my frustrations with later replays.

Completion: Main Story (almost every level, even the unnecessary ones... started to skip some in the last 2 worlds) Playtime: ~5 hours

After dropping Mario 35 I was still in the mood for some classic Mario, and figured why not play through All-Stars on the Swatch. I've played through 1, 2, and 3 NES versions before, but had never played their SNES counterparts. I also decided to force myself through Lost Levels. (Yeah, I abused rewind for parts of that one, lol.)

First of all, I really dig the look of these games with their SNES-level graphics. I might like how they look even more than Super Mario World tbh. (With one exception -- the water levels in 3 were really friggin' dark for some reason???) Anyways here's my updated thoughts on the classic Marios.

• Mario 1 -- 3/5 -- it's fine. Think it took me like 1 hour to breeze through all the stages.
• Mario's Lost Levels -- 2/5 -- Nintendo of America was really smart to not bring this one over lol.
• Mario 2 -- 4/5 -- I was surprised how much fun I had here. I wish we could get another game with the whole "throwing turnips" gameplay... but that'll never happen, which is a damn shame! Also Mouser is the best Mario character to never come back in anything ever.
• Mario 3 -- 3/5 -- it's fine. Gotta be honest, I tend to get bored in Mario 3 after playing through a world's stages. What can I say, it's good and all, but the 3 I'd just rather be playing is Sonic 3! =P

“We buy things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like.” -Dave Ramsey

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Double dipping.

When it comes to the French onion dip at a party, double dipping is generally a grotesque gesture, unless of course you want to get back at the other partygoers for not talking to you. When it comes to Nintendo, double dipping is a way of life, a business model, a philosophy. Nintendo has built a 30 year career out of repackaging the same product across multiple systems, and of course it will always sell.

Everyone pushing the polemic that there was no reason to buy the NES Classic, and then the SNES Classic, specifically “because we’ve all played those games already” is completely missing the point. People spend their entire gaming lives playing old games, and that’s not a value statement. As far as Nintendo and the consumer demand for the Classics are concerned, that allegation is irrelevant. If anyone knows marketing in gaming, it is Nintendo in their own esoteric, off-the-beaten-path way, giving us the same lovable thing over and over again. Excepting the marketing fail that was the Wii U, of course.

Yell and complain all you want against Nintendo. It’s like screaming at a wall.

Now I recently double dipped by picking up Stardew Valley for the Nintendo Switch (which nobody stopped me from doing, so thanks a lot, all you enablers), but since Mario Odyssey has dropped I was reminded of another time I found an excuse to repurchase games I already had. I am speaking of course about Super Mario All-Stars. This was Nintendo’s revamped remake of three previously released Super Mario games, the first, second, and third titles that already saw a North American release, but it also included Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels which had never before appeared in the US.

A later version of All-Stars that hit the market in ’94 included Super Mario World. I’m excluding that edition of All-Stars, and the future Wii re-re-release from this review. This is just about the original SNES compilation from 1993, a little gray cart which evidently helped set an industry precedent for updating games that appeared on previous generation consoles for next gen hardware (Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes, Mega Man Legacy Collection, The Last of Us Remastered, Twilight Princess HD, pretty much anything with “HD” or “Remastered” in its title).

To be fair to the original value of this game, the inclusion of The Lost Levels was probably the perfect leverage I used in talks with my mother to try to get her to buy All-Stars for me. I surmise I could’ve got around the “but you already own those games” by mentioning this, but unfortunately any clever bit of matriarchal manipulation is lost to the sands of time. I don’t actually remember how I got the All-Stars cartridge.

Click here for the full review... https://thewellredmage.com/2017/10/26/super-mario-all-stars/

After beating Super Mario World for the first time, I realized it might have been presumptuous to call it the finest 2-D Mario until I actually beat Super Mario Bros. 3. I procured an All-Stars cart in the same set, and figured that would be a good way to experience it. Unlike SMW, I have many fond memories of playing SMB3 on NES as a kid, but I'm sure I came nowhere close to beating it (I'm still not great at video games, but it's amazing I even stuck with them as a child because I was awful at them then).

I was enjoying playing through until, just today, my Retron 5 stopped recognizing when SNES carts are inserted. (ಥ﹏ಥ)

(Quick aside: Pretty much everything good and bad you read about that system is true. I'll leave it at that.)

So in lieu of finishing the game, I thought I'd give an update summarizing my two main takeaways so far.

Takeaway 1: This game is great. It's really innovative (honestly kind of amazing how much DNA it shares in terms of design with SMW), super creative (those power-ups!) and it feels really big... honestly, its scope feels larger than Super Mario World to me.

Takeaway 2: This game is much more cruel than I remember it being. Some of the later levels have secrets that actually make the level more difficult for you. Some require a specific power-up in a way that seems closer to Lost Levels. If you recognize the above screenshot, then you'll know which level made me ragequit (before adopting an unnatural finger-placement to finally beat the darn thing).

All in all, I'm enjoying it a lot.

Or at least, I was... ಠ╭╮ಠ