Super Mario World
System: SNES
Release Date: August 23rd, 1991
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Genre: Action
We’re launching a new system, so bring in the heavy hitter with Super Mario World! Mario and Luigi head to Dinosaur Land to take a well deserved vacation. Princess Toadstool goes missing once again. As they hike through the forest in an attempt to find her, they come across an enormous egg and before they know it hatches a dinosaur named Yoshi! Monstrous turtles have kidnapped Yoshi’s friends, leading to the brothers realizing that Bowser is back. It’s up to you to find your way to Bowser’s lair and get the Princess back again!
I sat down with Gert Mack for a session of the very first Super Nintendo game we come across. And what an adventure it is! Mario’s in 16-bit! Look at the detail… the coloring… the mustache! With more buttons comes a bit more possibility, but all this extra power isn’t necessarily the leap we may have expected. Sure, Mario and Luigi can do a spin jump with the A Button along with the standard jumping and running. Blocks and shells can be thrown into the air to hit blocks and enemies. Most levels are still your standard run to the right and reach a goal while avoiding enemies, obstacles, and pits. There are special levels in the form of Ghost Houses, Fortresses, and Castles, that can provide a bit more of a challenge.
Mario has two main powerups, the returning Fire Flower and the new Cape Feather. Becoming Caped Mario allows you to run and take off to the skies. To stay flying, you need to time your button press backward to get some lift. You can also descend more slowly to save yourself from death when falling. The big new gimmick is the introduction of Yoshi. The iconic dinosaur is introduced and becomes an important companion. You can jump on his back and ride him around while he eats enemies that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to kill. He allows you to walk on terrain that would be the death of you. You can even sacrifice him to avoid falling down pits by jumping off his back to safety. Different colored Koopa shells even give Yoshi different powers, such as red blowing fireballs, yellow stomping the ground when you land, and blue allowing you to fly for a limited amount of time. Later on, special colored Yoshis will let you take advantage of these powers any time.
Can I stop for a moment and say how cool I thought the fence in the first castle was when I first saw it as a kid? Changing from the foreground to the background blew my six year old mind and as I play again, I feel like that gimmick was too lightly used and could have been a bigger part of gameplay. Staying on the fence and coming down on Koopas also are a quick way to make lots of lives. In fact, there are lots of ways to gain free lives. Find a starman and run through as many enemies as possible. Find the block minigame and pick the right order to get lives. Find the five dragon coins in each level. Why aren’t they called Dinosaur coins? We’re in Dinosaur Land… Collect 100 stars from the goal at the end of each level. Collect a Yoshi block when you already have a Yoshi… and more! You should never have the problem of running out of lives.
Some levels have a second exit that you can find to unlock a different path forward. When you enter a red colored dot on the world map, keep your eyes open for something a bit different. This could be some blocks leading to seemingly nowhere. It could be colored blocks that are turned on by hitting a special switch palace. It could be anything out of the ordinary, really. Finding the right ones unlock Star Road which allows you to teleport across the map more quickly. Star Road also unlocks the diabolical Special Stages. These will test your resolve. I dropped dozens of lives between Tubular and Outrageous, but completing the Special Stages permanently changed the look of Dinosaur Land and many of the enemies swapped their sprites to something different. I ended up doing this early, changing the landscape before I got through the third area. There are 96 exits you need to find in all to truly beat Super Mario World and finding the last couple are the real challenge, because it certainly isn’t killing the Koopalings or their father. Once again, they are pushovers once you learn how to defeat them.
Graphics: 3.5
The increase in colors is really a huge improvement overall and there are lots of neat effects displaying the capabilities of the SNES.
Sound: 4.0
Koji Kondo rarely disappoints and there are a lot of new iconic themes and sounds for us to enjoy.
Gameplay: 3.5
Mario moves buttery smooth, but he has less abilities to play around with than in Mario’s past.
Difficulty: 4.0
Extra lives are abundant and if you have trouble platforming through a level, then just fly through or find a blue Yoshi to ride.
Fun Factor: 4.0
There are few games that give the same visceral enjoyment than a Mario game and this is no different.
Overall Rating: 3.8
Super Mario World earns an A! Of course Nintendo comes out of the gates with what we can all agree is a true classic game, even if I like Super Mario Bros. 3 better.