"As if Super Mario Bros. isn't good enough, it came on the same game cartridge as DUCK HUNT. That's like a double barreled shotgun blast of rad gaming. And it came with the NES. That's like having your cake, and knocking everyone else around you, and eating theirs too." These are arguably the best words that ever came out of Mark's mouth. CGRHD is awesome.
And two official multi-cart releases: Super Mario Bros./Duck Hunt/World Class Track Meet (late 1988, packaged with the NES Power Set with the Zapper and Power Pad accessories) Super Mario Bros./Tetris/Nintendo World Cup (1988, EU version of Sports Set)
I still play this game when I can, it just never gets old. It is so amazing just how important this game is and was to the video game industry and the world because without it, many great video games today would not be here or even have been possible.
The music from this game is truly iconic. During Milwaukee Brewers baseball games when the team gets the third out, sometimes they will play the Super Mario fanfare like they just completed a level.
Zac That’s right! The video game industry was in jeopardy after the public lost all interest in Atari’s video game consoles like the 2600, caused by travesties of video game titles, such as the headache-inducing port of “Pac-Man” and the critically and commercially panned “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial” video game.
This game blew my mind when I was a kid. I had a sega genesis, and was obsessed with sonic because of the whole "speed" thing. My cousin's on the other hand had a super nintendo and the original nintendo. After watching my cousin beat this game in 10 minutes I was hooked on Mario. I still am. It doesn't matter which one I play I found my self staring up at the clock timing myself for each game. Sonic was fast... he was just missing the warp tunnels, and star road x]
I had no idea when did I play this game for the very first time, I was really young back then... never had a chance to beat it til several years later.
I actually remember playing this game for the first time. It was on arcade, before it even came out on Nintendo. I was VERY young at the time. May have been the first video game I ever saw. Either this or pac-man/Galaga at the laundromat. lol
I remember getting this game with my NES for my birthday in second grade, my parents still have pictures of me and my friends sitting on the floor in front of the tv playing super mario for the first time :) Hehe, everyone is just staring into the tv screen :)
I didn't get a Nintendo until Christmas of 88. Greatest present I had ever got at the time. Immediately opened the box and hooked it up to the TV. I think I played this game all night long.
Me 2 But sum ( Retro games ) will run by using it's original devices only. I'm looking for an emulator of Symbian OS. Do U know any Symbian Emulator for pc?
Wonderful review, it was awesome to be there during the Atari - Nintendo era. Lots of these younger gamers these days are really missing out on how exciting it really was when the NES came out. CGR Forever!!
I never owned a snes as a kid, only a nes. I have missed Yoshi as a kid :(. but played mario world at friends. The time all stars came out, nobody card that much about the other games, it was all about super mario world.
I remember playin this game in '91 on my PEGASUS (eastern european famicom clone) god.. I'm a hardcore gamer right now but I dont remember any other game that made me feel so excited.. LONG LIVE 8 BIT!!! games were actually cool&fun back then.. miss those days..
When I made it to the underwater level when I was little I got so pissed when Mario wouldn't jump because he was underwater,(I didn't know what was going on) and I'm like "WHAT THE HELL!!!",then I thought of keep pressing the button because I was so mad then when Mario started swimming, I'm like "Ohhhhhhhh....", I must've been so dumb when I was little XD.
i still play this game for hours on end. this was one of the first games i ever played. i started with an NES from my parents and an Atari 2600 from my grandmother when i was 7. that got me started into classic games before the nostalga craze of today. i have the PS1 & 2, N64, and other systems but nothing beats an NES or Atari 2600.
My brother and i grew up with this game together when we were kids and we are still playing the games :) Super Mario Bros is a fantastic old school game :)
I remember all the spleep overs I had at my cousins house will all my other cousins playing this game non stop trying to beat it... Ive never really owned one and this was always in the back of my mind as one the the systems to start collecting for... and now I finally OWN it simply awesome...
Mark, you said you weren't going to go up against more sophisticated reviews or thesis about this game, but honestly, your review is probably the best, well rounded and thoughtful pieces I've seen on Super Mario Bros. Don't sell yourself short here. Your focus on the cultural impact of the game and on you personally was an amazing insight into gaming history. I was surprised that you didn't review the game so far, but given the quality of the review, I guess it was well worth the wait.
Ah, Super Mario Bros. I have such fond memories of that game. I see it as the game that breathed life back into video games. The NES came out just after the video game crash of the mid 1980s. Many thought that video games were just a fad. But the NES proved them wrong. I am eternally grateful to Nintendo for saving video games from the grave.
This is the game that started my love for video games, the first game I ever remember playing in my friends house.. I could'nt afford an NES Although I played arcade machines also, SMB was a different type of game and it captivated me like no other game Awesome memories!!!
I got my NES before Super Mario Bros. was released and was quite happy with games like Gyromite, Duck Hunt, & Donkey Kong, but when Super Mario Bros. came out I knew I'd be a gamer for life!
Super Mario Bros was the first time I ever knew really what a video game was. I was probably 4 when this came out. You made me feel (a bit) young, fanx :)
I miss the arcades of 1983. Two of my favorite games to play back then were Dragon's Lair and Mario Brothers. Best location in my town was Chuck E Cheeses. They had both games and more...and pizza! Good times.
I grew up with an NES. It was my first console. I remember playing Top Gun and just.... not getting it. If you were good enough at that game to actually enjoy it... My hat is off to you, sir. Well done.
Man! I wish I could live in '80s. It would have been awesome. Just to avoid confusion, yes I was born in the '90s. I love this review. And the game too!
My friends and I used to get totally "baked" then we'd raid the local 7-11 for nachos,hot dogs and big gulp and then go over to friends house and sit and play this game all friggin night. Good times. Good times.
I had an NES from the time is came out and didn't get a new system until the Nintendo 64. I was so young when I had the NES I didn't even know that they had made an SNES. I just played that NES practically everyday with my brothers growing up, until that one Christmas morning when my brother and I got the N64 with Mario Kart. That was probably the peak of my family and friend gaming experience. I miss when people would come over to the house to play games, not just sit online.
The year was 1987 , I was seven at the time and as soon as I tried this game, I was hooked! My dad hooked up this Grey box to the T.V and and that was it. Before I ever played NES I had never seen a NES commercial.THIS GAME IS FUCKING AWESOME!! I really like the review and how you were talking about the 7800. I was a little young for the Atari but I love hearing about the history. Thanks for taking me back for a few mins, I really enjoyed it.
I remember my NES came with the Duck Hunt/Gyromite package. Super Mario Bros was the first game that I "had" to have/play. Others have included Street Fighter 2, Goldeneye64, and Oblivion. ;-)
i started gaming Atari was out and Nintendo was just about to come out. this game changed everything for me. Kids don't know how it was before we could save games.
Thanks for the vid, it does take you back to 1985/6. Like you, I got the 7800 before the NES and clearly remember ,after starting SMB, saying to my Dad (who always liked games back then) that it was like playing a cartoon. (For the younger folks: back in the day we said "cartoon" instead of "Animated Series") Still, it didn't keep me from loving my 7800 and racking up thousands of hours playing it over the years.
brings back memories, super mario bros was the game that got me into game, in fact it's a fact that most gamers are what they are because of super mario bros. :)
Our NES was the Deluxe Set with R.O.B., the Zapper, Gyromite, and Duck Hunt (1986). I remember desperately trying to find the Super Mario Bros. game pak EVERYWHERE. My Dad took us to Toys R Us, Kaybee, K-Mart, etc. But everyone was SOLD OUT!! My brother and I finally had to settle for KUNG FU as our first game. Then we found SMB at Toys R Us a couple weeks later and we were SO happy!! Still one of the best games EVER!! And I still have my NES Deluxe Set and all my games!!
Speaking of the Mario Bros. arcade game, the first version of that game that I ever played was the Game Boy Advance remake that was included in the “Super Mario Advance” series and “Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.” That version reused Mario’s physics and abilities from “Super Mario Bros. 2” (a.k.a. “Super Mario USA”).
I had a 2600 well past it's life...toys are us had them for cheap...I was only able to get a gameboy (within the first year it was released), then the NES well after the SNES came out. I enjoyed TMNT, SMB 2 + 3 at a friends house but never owned one when it was new..I think funcoland was a new store back then...the commercials were so bad that I thought it was local to my area..never knew it was a chain.
Was also an Atari kid who asked for the 7800 since it could play 2600 games. Which my parents were familiar with. One Christmas, I got that 7800 with Pole Position II and Ball Blazer. Later I picked up Joust, Astroids and Xevious. And while I played those games a ton, I saw the writing on the wall. Except my parents weren't going to buy me another video game console. So, I bought my own NES with SMB/Duck Hunt and the Zapper with the money I earned as a paperboy. It was the first large purchase I ever made. Like Mark, I was never very good at Super Mario Bros. I only beat it because for about of a month it and Duck Hunt were the only games I had for the NES. Even today, I'm awful at Mario games.
