Super Mario Bros. Deluxe

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with this classic port"

As of today, we all know Super Mario Bros. is in instant classic and saved the video game world. This game has also been ported to the GameBoy Color, and it's still the same Super Mario Bros. we all know, but with a ton of additional features to keep you on this game for a long time to come.

Story
There was an attack on the Mushroom Kingdom, with Bowser attacking several people and turning them into evil mushrooms called Goombas and also put a spell onto the Mushroom Kingdom. There was only one person who could break this spell, named Princess Peach. Bowser, knowing this, kidnapped the Princess and her seven Toad assistants. Now it is up to the Mario Brothers, Mario and Luigi, to rescue the princess and restore peace to the Mushroom Kingdom.

Graphics: 8/10
These are the same old graphics copied from the Nintendo, as the GameBoy Color is considered a portable NES by many, and these were considered top of the line breakout graphics in their day. Still, they are acceptable and pretty much flawless. But the backgrounds could've been touched up, as it's just a blank blue sky with a few clouds here and there. Enemies, items, and everything else are all recognizable, and you shouldn't have any problems with these graphics.

Gameplay: 10/10
If not for the extra features and all that, this game would've just been an ordinary port just made for another system. Sure, you do have your 8 worlds, fighting Bowser 8 times, bashing through enemies and going through warp pipes. Even with Super Mario Bros. on this game, Super Mario Bros. Lost Levels is featured in this game and can be unlocked. The game is similar to Super Mario Bros., but the exception is that is much more difficult, with additional enemies and items, and some of the gaps are much harder to get across, along with puzzles and several obstacles in your way.

Aside from that, one of my personal favorite additions of this game is the album. When you accomplish certain tasks, pictures and such get added to the album. Some are relatively easy to get, and some can be quite difficult. These can also be printed out by using a Game Boy printer so you can do whatever you want with them. Another great addition is also the "Challenge" feature, in which you can play any level, and try to find a Yoshi egg, achieve a certain score, and collect five red coins. It is easy on some levels, yet difficult on others. This really adds a lot more fun towards the game and it can keep you playing for quite a bit.

Another cool added feature is the "You vs. Boo" challenge, where you can race Boo to get to one end of the level, with several obstacles in the way, including switches that alter the level. You can also increase the difficulty the more often you beat Boo. This came is also multiplayer compatible with a link cable, so you and a friend can have fun racing in this game.

Also, I love the ability to customize your game, such as the backgrounds at the beginning, including personal messages at the beginning. You can also do other pointless stuff with the Toy Box such as fortune telling (which can earn you five lives if you get lucky).

Audio
With this being a game from 1985, there's nothing much to talk about here. The music is still classic, with the original Mario theme as well as all of the music included in Super Mario Bros. With all of these new features, there is also new music (such as a remix of the Special World from Super Mario World). The sound effects are just your standard NES sound effects, with the beeps and the boops for jumping, getting an item, or knocking out an enemy. Even if these sounds are still old and outdated, they continue to be popular in the Nintendo world, with several of these sound effects still being heard in the video games today.

Replayability: 8/10
Since this game has so much stuff in it, you won't be bored with it for a while. Even after beating the game, you can still do several other things, such as play the Lost Levels, get everything in your album, or even replay Super Mario Bros. with the enhanced difficulty. It will take a lot to beat this game 100%.

Final Recommendation
If you enjoyed the original Super Mario Bros. and have at least a GameBoy Color, GBA, or GBASP on you, then by all means go for it. You can still find it cheap at Gamestop, with GameBoy Color games still around. It's just Super Mario Bros. with a lot more things to do, and that's never a bad thing.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 10/09/03, Updated 07/11/07