Super Mario Land

"How action games on Game Boy were born!"

Super Mario Land. Those three words bring back so many memories. This was Mario's first adventure on the Game Boy and as such, into the portable world of gaming. This game is very similar to Super Mario Bros., but the story is a bit different though similar in concept. Basically, you traverse four worlds each with four levels to rescue the Princess, or Daisy as she is known in this one I think.

Story 7/10: The storyline in this one is pretty much a tried and tested breed. Of course when SML came out, there weren't nearly as many games out then as now. The ''Save the Princess'' formula had only been used a few times.

Graphics 7/10: The graphics are nothing special. They aren't bad. I mean you can see what you need to see, but they aren't exactly what the Game Boy, even the original one, was capable of. Of course this was one of the very first games for it. Graphically, it looks very similar to Super Mario Bros. for the NES.

Sound 7/10: The sound is nothing special, but like the graphics, you find out what you need to know through it. The music does go well with the levels I think. The sound effects for some of the enemies is neat too.

Control 10/10: Perfect controls. This game was made back when the eight button layout was the norm, at least for Nintendo's products. A D-pad, two action buttons, and then start and select. Everything works right and Mario repsonds well to your inputs on the buttons.

Gameplay 9/10: What can I say? This game is fun. It follows the classic formula. If you liked the original Super Mario Bros., you will have to like this game. There is no reason not to. Wide variety of levels. LOTS of different enemies, each of which requires different tactics to defend against. Some very interesting bosses await you as well. One difference from the Super Mario Bros. formula is that after the last level, 4-4 in this case, you aren't through. You fight the boss in 4-4 (a guy hidden in a cloud...not Lakitu) and then the level goes on to see Tatanga (I think that's right) appear. Once you defeat him, the game is over. You save the princess and everything is hunky dory. If you beat the game and then go through it again without turning the power off, you will play the hard mode. The difference is that there are even more enemies. Other than that, all is normal.

Overall 8/10: Classic formula, classic looks, classic everything. If you are a Game Boy owner (any type...keep that in mind) and you don't have this game, I suggest at least taking a look for it. It is well worth what you could get for it today, and it belongs in every Game Boy owners collection. This game is truly a collectors item.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/13/02, Updated 01/13/02