Super Mario Land

"A decent start to the series."

Almost no Nintendo console can get released without some sort of Mario game at its launch. The same also held true for the original Game Boy, which received Super Mario Land. This is one of the most well known games on the GB, and also one of the most popular. Having played it recently, one thing became glaringly obvious: time has not been very kind to this game.

GRAPHICS
The keyword here is small. Everything is tiny. From the famous Italian plumber himself to the power-ups to the enemies to the surroundings. Even the big end-of-level bosses are nothing impressive, being even smaller then most principle characters from other games. Furthermore, there is not much in the way of animation. Mario is nicely animated of course. But his enemies, including the bosses simply lack any real animation. Background graphics are not that impressive either.

To it's credit, the game still manages to give each world a distinct look. And there are of course far more worse looking games on the machine. Of course, one must also take into account that SML was one of the first GB games. As such, it must be given some leniency. But leniency only gets this game so far. The Game Boy was capable of some very nice graphics. This holds true even the for the first batch of games. When compared to other GB games, it's sequels for example, SML looks much to simple. In short, SML is not really ugly, nor an offence to the senses. It simply does what is has to do, with no frills.

SOUND
The sound effects are spot on. At the very least, Mario's jump makes the correct sound, as do the effects of using a mushroom or fire flower. The same also goes to squashing an enemy and hitting blocks. It is all truly very Mario-esque.
Music is also pretty decent. There are some nice melodies, which don't get on the players nerves. On the other hand, they tend to be rather generic. The classic Mario tunes seem to be absent.
All in all, nothing special for a GB game, but not bad either.

GAMEPLAY
SML is a platform game, pure and simple. It is very reminiscent of NES classic Super Mario Bros. Again, Mario must come to the rescue of a princess. This time it is Princess Daisy of Sarasaland, and the perpetrator is an alien named Tatanga. In order to rescue her Mario must travel trough 4 worlds, each containing 3 stages. Each level has a theme (Egyptian, Aquatic, Easter Island and Asian), and Mario also gets to control a submarine and a plane. And when he has finished his adventure, he can do it all over again in an more difficult, unlocked, mode.

At the very least, SML can be characterized as a competent platform game. It can be moderately challenging, with only a hint of the frustration that traditionally accompanies the Mario platform games. Mario himself is also quite responsive, and he has lost none of his basic abilities from the big screen. Variety in enemies and situations is also decent enough. So in essence, this game gets most of the basics right.

And still I can't shake the feeling that SML is not as good is it could have been. Despite featuring very similar gameplay to Super Mario Bros., it does not really feel like an Mario game. It feels rather generic and unspectacular.

Perhaps it are the shooter sections. Simply moving up and down, abusing the missile firing button, will see Mario trough these parts. This strategy also works against the end-of-level guardians that are encountered in this way. End-of-level guardians in general are devoid of anything special. They are easily beaten, not offering any challenge.

Perhaps it is the unimaginativeness if it all. Simply move from the left to the right, occasionally jump on an enemy, or avoid them. True, this characterization can be used for almost all platform games, including the likes of Super Mario World. The difference is that the very best do this with style, flair and imagination. SML doesn't have any of these qualities.

The difficulty setting is in itself not bad, as mentioned before. SML is not precisely an easy game, although the end-of-level bosses tend to be very simple. This game will not be completed on the very first run. This is just as well, seeing as SML is also rather short both on substance and secrets. There is the possibility to go through the whole thing again in a more challenging setting, but this does not make up for the short length. .

FINAL REMARKS
What does the above mean for the appreciation of this game? Tiny, backward graphics and mediocre sound effects, which are backed up by unimaginative gameplay. That doesn't sound to good, does it?

However, SML isn't actually that bad. As a simple platform game it is even quite competent. It is playable and moderately fun. The game's main problem is the fact that it has Mario in it's title. And SML simply doesn't live up to the name. It feels more like a tribute to the first Super Mario Bros. on the NES.

An explanation could be that this game was not developed by Shigeru Miyamoto himself but rather by Gunpei Yokoi and his team. On the other hand the latter are also responsible for wonderful games like Wario Land and Super Metroid.

To return to the subject matter at hand, SML is a decent platform game. Nothing more and nothing less. But its only real distinction, and the reason it must be played by fans of the system or the franchise, is that it was the first Mario platform game on the Game Boy.

OVERALL: an decent 7,0.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/22/08

Game Release: Super Mario Land (EU, 09/28/90)