Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (1999)

It's the first Super Mario Bros (NES), ported to the Game Boy Color. And also Lost Levels (AKA Mario 2 in Japan). And new challenge mode: find the five red rings, the hidden Yoshi egg, and beat a (very high) high score for every level. And also some new courses to race against a ghost in. And unlockable artwork, earned via hidden achievements. And other little goodies. It's quite the serious package, and I think it'd be very cool to see more old games with re-releases get this sort of treatment!

Unfortunately for this one, the resolution had to be adjusted for the Game Boy screen, so you get a very zoomed-in, cramped-feeling, limited viewing area to work with. That means enemies fall on you from off-screen, projectiles fly in from out of nowhere, and at times you'll end up taking leaps of faith, etc. It's just not the ideal way to play Mario 1 unfortunately. I would recommend playing through the NES version a few times before approaching this one, because then you'll be familiar with the levels and can enjoy the new modes and goodies better.

Played this on the 3DS virtual console. It is a solid port of the original Super Mario Bros. It updates the game to make it more accessible in a few ways including adding continues, saving, and a map, all allowing for the user to not have to play continuously. Furthermore, it adds a couple of extra challenge modes which definitely add for more replays.

One major downside to this edition of the game however is the zoomed camera. Unfortunately, I'm guessing due to the GBC's hardware limitations, the game is played at a smaller resolution. To combat this, they allowed the player to shift the perspective using the up and down buttons on the D-Pad.

Overall I can definitely recommend it, but I honestly think a better experience is buying the original Super Mario Bros. outright.

I've already played Super Mario Bros. in its original form, on my 3DS, and in the SNES All Stars remix. But nearly 20 years ago, this particular cartridge provided many hours of fun on a family vacation. I couldn't beat it back then, so I decided today I'd defeat Bowser once and for all.

I chuckled when I popped it into the RetroN 5 and saw I'd made it all the way to World 8-3! So after a very long wait, Mario finally completed his quest.

But I don't blame my past self for giving up: The lower visibility of this version really does make it significantly more challenging. Which is a shame, because every other aspect of Deluxe is really thoughtfully designed. I'd love to play a ROM hack or something that retains the resolution of the NES release while incorporating the world maps, red coins and other aspects of this version.

History:

I've played Super Mario Bros. Recently in fact! Never played Deluxe though, but it looks like the same game.

Expectations:

Make it to 8-3. Throw Gameboy in anger. Or maybe it'll surprise me and not be identical to the original game, who knows!

Day 1:

It's always the little things I end up loving about games, and in the case of Super Mario Bros. Deluxe, that thing would definitely be the "world map" in the primary game mode. It's purely for decoration, but it just adds that perfect little touch to add some context to where you are and what you're doing, and I love that.

If only I could say the same for the actual game...

So this game, at leas the main game mode, really is just Super Mario Bros, only on a much smaller screen. To "assist" with that, they kept the game sprites on the large side and zoomed in slightly on your character. This removed a decent portion of the field of view, and as a result you'll find yourself running into things, or off of things, far more often than you ever would in the original game.

Sure, you can slow down and use various pan controls to see further up and down, but that seriously breaks up the pacing of the game, and I really don't care for it at all.

Luckily Super Mario DX offers a couple additional game modes, which are actually pretty cool!

In Challenge mode you're running through the original stages searching for Red Coins, like in Super Mario 64. This adds a nice touch to established levels and gives you a reason to look at them in a way that you normally wouldn't.

The real highlight for me, though, was VS mode. I was only able to play the VS Mode against Boo, but even that was an absolute blast. You have new courses with various switching mechanisms that will either clear or impede your progress, depending on how you decide to handle any given course. Meanwhile, Boo is flying above you (and through everything else) trying to reach the flag before you do. It's frustrating and fun and rewarding and really a great time. The last VS stage in particular is a blast to play through.

Conclusion:

So it sounds like I'm hating on the Original mode in this game, and I should clarify. As someone who has access to the NES version, and as someone who likes to speed through their platformers, this game is not really an ideal way for me to play Super Mario Bros. In fact, I could argue that you'd be better off buying the NES game on the 3DS Virtual Console if all you want is a portable version of that game.

However, what really makes Super Mario Bros. Deluxe special is the Challenge and VS modes, which are both incredibly fun to play. Also, while the Original mode may not be ideal for me personally, there are some great touches to that as well. The map between stages, and above all the ability to save are some great additions to the classic game..

This is a game I'm happy to have in my collection, even if I don't see myself pulling it off the shelf all too often.

Liked:

- Small additions to the original game like graphical maps, and a major addition in being able to save.
- Same great Super Mario Bros. game, even if it feels a tad cramped.
- VS and Challenge modes are fantastic and add a lot of value to the game.

Disliked:

- Small field of view made playing through the Original mode much more challenging, or slow, than it needed to be.

Personal Score: