The original Super Mario Bros. game turns 40 years old this year! It feels like only yesterday that the 35th Super Mario anniversary took place, but now here we are at four decades of everyone’s favorite platforming series. To honor how far the Super Mario franchise has come, we asked a few SmashBoards writers to discuss our favorite aspects of the franchise. The questions we asked were:
- What is your favorite Mario game?
- Who is your favorite Mario character?
- What do you hope to see for the future of the Mario series?
Feel free to also check out our previous retrospectives on the following series:
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Favorite Game
@Champion of Hyrule: Super Mario 64Favorite Game
This isn’t the most original answer but my favorite Mario game is Super Mario 64. What I like about this game is that it feels like one big playground. The primary force driving a playthrough of Super Mario 64 is your curiosity, and your curiosity will often be rewarded handsomely with fun level design, and the satisfying feeling of being one star closer to encountering Bowser after each one you collect.
You run and long jump through levels with such breeziness in this whimsical world that you hardly even notice you’re playing a video game. The level design feels seamless with the set-up of the worlds, even if it’s quite obviously a deliberately designed platforming challenge. To this day, there’s still no other Mario game, or even 3D platformer that’s matched this feeling of whimsy and discovery for me.
Graphically, Super Mario 64 wasn’t the most advanced game for the time; remember that the PlayStation had been out for years and Resident Evil, for example, released just months before Super Mario 64. But this game is excellent at using its graphical imperfections to its advantage. The levels take a small-scale diorama like approach to their aesthetic, and it plays to the strengths of Super Mario 64’s more limited graphics while serving a gameplay function as well. It makes it easy to find secrets, yet still a challenge to fully complete an area and you’ll be well acquainted with every single level in the game by the end of a Super Mario 64 playthrough. Super Mario 64 feels endlessly familiar and nostalgic…even if I only played it for the first time in 2020.
@Sari: Super Mario World
As was my pick back in the 35th Anniversary article, Super Mario World I feel is the best example in highlighting what makes the Mario series a blast. You’ve got some really colorful graphics, levels that can be a fun breeze or a tough challenge even for returning players, and a whole bunch of new features that are regarded as some of the best in the series (the ever versatile cape weapon and of course: Yoshi). The game really does feel like a celebration of what makes the Mario series as a whole so beloved.
My runner up would definitely be Super Mario Galaxy 1. It’s easily one of the most beautiful Mario games to exist. Atmosphere, music, and just overall emotion. That game has it all.
NintenRob
: Super Mario GalaxyI flip flop a lot when it comes to my favourite Mario game, but it's always consistent what kind of Mario game tops my list. I love 3D Mario's: 64, Sunshine, Galaxy and Odyssey. I love collecting Stars, Suns and Moons and I cannot wait for whatever celestial object we collect next. If I had to pick one, probably Super Mario Galaxy. It's just such a complete experience that it's hard to criticize it or find any flaws.
Janx_uwu
: Super Mario OdysseyMy favorite Mario game is Super Mario Odyssey. Words don’t do justice to the hype surrounding the E3 trailer - what with the capture system and the photorealistic dinosaur, and seemingly a return from the more linear 3D platforming of the Galaxy and Land/World games to a more open collectathon. There’s certainly a place for both, but my ADHD brain much prefers running around and getting distracted by this, that and the other.
Undoubtedly my love for this game was not from its incredible music or breathtaking visuals, or even the collectibles, but the movement. He’s got the classic side flip, backflip, triple jump, but now he’s got new stuff too. The dive is now more linear and doesn’t require momentum, but that’s because you can bounce off of Mario’s cap like an extra platform, which you can use in conjunction with wall-jumps, stomp-jumps, and twirls for all kinds of crazy stuff.
Using your toolkit to clear tough challenges, find shortcuts, and make seemingly impossible jumps which the game then explicitly rewards you for with a pile of coins, As someone who wants to explore every nook and cranny, it’s vindicating when there isn’t a single part of the game that’s barren.
My only real gripe with the game is the same complaint I have with Galaxy 1, that the challenge for repeat playthroughs is almost nonexistent. The campaign is more about being magical your first time around, and I’ve never been able to fully replay the game since then for that reason, other than a couple attempts at speedrunning. Still, I hold that first playthrough near and dear to my heart.
Perkilator
: Super Mario OdysseyEver since I first saw the Switch presentation trailer back in 2017, I knew Odyssey was going to be a magical experience like no other. This feeling was reaffirmed when I got a hold of the game in 2019, to which I immediately fell in love with it. Not just because of its hilariously creative gameplay, but also because of the themes of its many kingdoms. Bowser’s Kingdom is my favorite for its Japanese aesthetic, along with having one of the best bosses in the game.
My only real gripe is with the motion controls, which can make some moves unintuitive to use (thank the Lord you can turn them off). That, along with the fact that future spin-offs released after Odyssey only ever used Pauline to represent it and nothing else (not the Broodals or even Cappy). But for as annoying as that can be, it’s not a detriment to the game itself. Super Mario Odyssey is honestly one of my favorite games of all time, and it’s the game that I think of when I think of the Nintendo Switch as a whole.
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Favorite Character
Favorite Character
@Champion of Hyrule: Donkey Kong
My favorite Mario character is Donkey Kong. There’s some reasons for this that come down to my headcanons for the Donkey Kong and Mario universe, but mostly It’s because I just find him funny.
We all know why DK is a Mario mainstay, but even as a kid the fact there was a gorilla character hanging out with the Mario cast has just made me laugh. He’s portrayed more animal-like than say, Bowser, but still human enough to do stuff like drive cars. A lot of the ways he acts and talks still cracks me up. Over the years, I played many games with Donkey Kong in them, and when I was a kid I even drew my own comics about the Mario series where I envisioned DK as a chill ape with an animalistic side that can come out in some funny ways. Over time, my perception of the character just kind of grew from there.
A lot of people get confused when I say Donkey Kong is my favorite Mario character, or don’t get why I always play him in Mario Kart. So I suppose part of my attachment to him comes from a desire to defend my funny ape man a little too.
@Sari: Wario
Ever since I was a kid, there was something always appealing to me about the goofy looking Mario doppelganger known as Wario. Maybe it was his loud and brash attitude that made him standout compared to the other Mario characters, but I always found myself picking Wario and Waluigi in most spinoff titles. Eventually I got into both the Wario Land and WarioWare series, and my love for this charming little gremlin has only amplified since. There’s just a guaranteed amount of hilarity and fun to whatever Wario finds his way into.
NintenRob
: RosalinaThis one is easy: Rosalina and it's not exactly close. I remember being intrigued when I first saw her in the Galaxy manual and loved her ever since. Unlocking her in Mario Kart Wii was mind blowing to me. And then she got into both 3D World AND SMASH!!!? I was blown away. I’m grateful to see how far she’s come in the series as she is now an undisputed mainstay in the series (as well as my main in spinoffs).
Janx_uwu
: BowserI first played as Bowser in Mario Kart Wii. Apart from the undefeatable Flame Runner, there was something about playing as the final boss that was just so cool. I will say, that feeling never got old! I wouldn’t call him my main in Mario Kart or Party, but whenever I do play as him in those games, I feel this overwhelming sense of power with how much space he takes up compared to everyone else, and how physically strong he is.
Now, he’s not my main in those games - but Smash Ultimate is a different story. I know his moveset rework from Smash 4 has its detractors, but I personally am in love with how they made Bowser an absolute beast. He’s extremely fast, has huge hitboxes on moves, and his frame data is like, crazy good for the most part? Like did they forget what character they were designing? I don’t care, I love it. I love doing a double-jump fair that’s totally un-reactable and catching people recovering high, and I especially love spamming Whirling Fortress when someone dares to breath on my shield, or getting free damage (aka Fire Tax) by using Flamethrower as a ledgeguarding measure. He may not feel like Bowser in the traditional sense - he’s not very silly, and he’s missing a lot of his iconic moves like his fireballs and hammers. But he does feel like Bowser with that addictive sense of power I got from Mario Kart.
Oh yeah, did I mention he shakes the screen when he runs? How can you not love playing as him?
Perkilator
: DaisyHonestly, there are a lot of Mario characters that I like for one reason or another. I guess if I had to pick a favorite, it would be Daisy. She became my favorite when I first saw her in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which truly opened my eyes to her personality. Something about the extrovert princess just resonated with me in ways I didn’t think were possible. Then a few years later, she came to Super Mario Bros. Wonder and now I only play as her in that game. Bottom line is: Daisy’s personality is why I adore her so much.
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Hopes for the Future
@Champion of Hyrule: Return of lesser-known characters
To be honest, I don’t think the Mario series needs to do much to become more successful or to make me more happy with its modern state. So, I’ll say a pipe dream of mine which is for them to bring back more obscure/lesser known characters.
Mario games have tons of characters who aren’t as known as the big mainstays, so I think it would be a lot of fun if Nintendo could go back and give them another chance to shine, whether it’s in a spin-off like Mario Kart or an actual mainline entry. There’s lots of potential for older Mario faces to get more fans, or even make future entries more fun with their presence. Also, please bring back Toadsworth already Nintendo.
@Sari: More usage of less popular characters
My wish from the 35th Mario Anniversary article (a new Mario & Luigi title) has since come true, so it’s time to talk about another wish of mine: greater usage of lesser popular characters.
Usually when a Mario game releases, any new characters introduced in said game will just appear in one or two games around that period before rarely making a significant appearance again (no I do not count Smash spirits or brief five second cameos as significant). Of course there’s the occasional exception where a character will become a mainstay (see Rosalina and several enemies), but for every case like that you’ve got about 20 or so cases like Wart, Tatanga, and the Broodals from Mario Odyssey; characters that rarely (if ever) get to have fun after their debut. And this isn’t even getting into spinoff territory where you got characters like Wario Land’s Captain Syrup and the plethora of Kong family members who have been MIA for quite some time.
I would really like it if all of these colorful characters would be able to appear more often. Give me stuff like Prince Peasley in Mario Kart, Vivian in Mario Party, Wanda in Mario Tennis, and Brighton & Twila in Mario Strikers. Crash Team Racing: Nitro-Fueled made great usage of some of the more obscure Crash characters and I would really like to see the Mario series do something similar more often.
NintenRob
: Improvements to spin-offsMy hope is aimed at the spinoffs. Let me unlock things again. I'm tired of these incomplete games that just give you everything in an update. Jamboree was a step in the right direction, but the unlock criteria for Ninja and Pauline was pretty weak. I miss the days of doing ring challenges in Mario Golf or time trials in Mario Kart to unlock characters. Make me earn those characters and give me a reason to play all your modes. And give me more modes! Some of these games feel very bare bones.
Janx_uwu
: The return of Mario Hoops and the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic GamesTwo things, and they’re both spinoff related.
First, I want a new Mario Hoops game. Put in Broozer from New Super Mario Bros. and in more Final Fantasy characters too. I need to see Mario and Luigi alley-oop on Sephiroth.
Second, what happened to the Olympics? You’re telling me they gave the gaming license to some NFT scam instead of the industry’s two mascot giants? Come on now. I want Sega and Nintendo to get those games back, and finally add some Mario enemies (again…we need Broozer). And if that’s not possible because of Olympics people not wanting to play ball, then I want a Mario and Sonic crossover in some other way - a fighting game, a platformer, heck, everyone’s arguing over Mario Kart 9 versus Sonic Racing Crossworlds right now. Why not give them a crossover kart game? That would honestly go so hard.
Perkilator
: More spin-off acknowledgement in mainline gamesMore acknowledgement of the spin-off games in the mainline games, and vice-versa. Mario has such a huge world that it’s disappointing to see such little acknowledgement in 40 years. I know I sound like I’m complaining… and I am, but that’s because I’m a sucker for worldbuilding in a franchise of such scale. Sonic’s embraced that level of worldbuilding by acknowledging its less popular titles in recent times, so I’d love to see Mario do that too.
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Conclusion
@Champion of Hyrule
40 years is a long time, but knowing the immense history and significance of Mario, in some ways it feels short. I look forward to seeing what the series will be like in another 40 years!
NintenRob
Give me Mario 3D All-Stars 2 with Galaxy 2, 64 DS and 3D Land. And put on the GameCube games on NSO.
@Janx
“Nice of Perkilator to invite us to write a collab article, eh Luigi?” “I hope it gets lots of comments down below!”
@Sari
Here’s to many more years of Mario fun (and hopefully a new Wario Land)
Perkilator
Still a better 40th anniversary than Transformers.
We hope you all enjoyed this collaborative article released during an influx of Mario content from Nintendo. Here's to another 40 years of fun Mario memories!
Credits:
Writers: @Champion of Hyrule, @Sari,
Janx_uwu
,
NintenRob
,
Perkilator
Editing: @Sari
Social Media: @Zerp
Thumbnail Graphic: @Zerp
Author’s Note: I’ve been playing at least a handful of Mario games ever since I was a kid, and I’m glad to have been along for the ride towards the 40th anniversary. What is your favorite game, character, and most wanted thing for Mario’s future? As always, let us know in the comments below!
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(slash j i'm happy to contribute)