“Friday Old Games” is a series of articles in which we review a game from the older generations of consoles, share why we picked it, and whether or not it holds up with time.

When the Game Boy hit North America in 1989, it brought with it a new Mario game. The first Mario game that was portable (outside of Game & Watch devices, that is).

Originally, the Game Boy was going to be sold with Super Mario Land. But as the legend goes, Henk Rogers was able to convince Nintendo that packaging the system with Tetris, which he had the license to, would give their new handheld a wider appeal and sell to a larger demographic. With the wild success of the platform, you can’t really argue that he was wrong.

Still, Super Mario Land was available at launch in both Japan and North America. Even though it was a bit of a departure for the series, it sold incredibly well.

Unlike the regular games in the series, SML takes place in Sarasaland (which I think technically is supposed to be part of the Mushroom Kingdom). The cast of characters is also changed up. Instead of Princess Peach, we are introduced to Princess Daisy. Rather than having Bowser get up to his old tricks, there is a crazy alien named Tatanga. But the rest of the plot is what you would expect. The princess is kidnapped by the bad guy and Mario has to save her.

Sarasaland is broken up into four worlds (instead of the eight from the original Super Mario Bros.), each of which has its own theme. In addition to the platforming, there are also two vehicle levels that continuously scroll to the right. Other bizarre differences include turtles that explode when you stomp them, “superballs” instead of fireballs (which bounce off of surfaces at a 45 degree angle and can collect coins for you), and gameplay that doesn’t pause when you get hit or collect a power-up.

"Moai: Not just for Gradius Anymore!"

Why did I pick this game?

Nintendo just launched their Virtual Console service for the 3DS. The three titles that came out the night of launch were Super Mario Land, Alleyway, and Radar Mission. I wanted to try out the service, and even though I remembered Super Mario Land as a fairly mediocre game, I bit the bullet and purchased it.

If I had held out until the next day, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX hit the shop.

How does it hold up with time?

Unlike its NES big brothers, Super Mario Land does not hold up well. Everything feels off, and I’m not talking about the plot and setting (Super Mario Bros. 2 being a series favorite of mine). The running and jumping aren’t right. The speed at which you and items you are trying to collect fall is way too fast. The level design seems simplistic and uninteresting.

When I think of Mario games, I think of them controlling a very specific way. Super Mario Land doesn’t control the way it should. The tight control and interesting level design of other Mario games is what makes them stand out from the crowd.

It is also incredibly short. There are only a total of twelve levels, many of which are short themselves. Once the game is complete, you unlock a hard mode, but I had absolutely no motivation to try it out.

Strangely enough, the two scrolling vehicle levels were the most interesting thing in the game. They play like a simple SHMUP, and are actually pretty fun. I haven’t played SML since the early 90′s, so I had forgotten that the final boss was also fought in one of the vehicles.

Super Mario Land is a very forgettable entry in the pantheon of Mario titles. Fortunately, it was followed up with the far superior Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. Also, was it just me or was Chai Land super-racist?

Tags: 3DS Virtual Console, FOG, Friday Old Games, Game Boy, Mario, Nintendo, Super Mario Land, virtual console

This entry was posted on Friday, June 10th, 2011 at 5:00 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.