Game: New Super Mario Bros.
Platform: Nintendo DS
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: EU: 06/30/06, JP: 05/25/06, NA: 05/15/06
Genre: platformer
ESRB: E
Players: 1
Make sure the TV is on channel 3. Insert the cartridge. Remove and blow in cartridge. Repeat ad nauseum, and eventually you are greeted with a familiar tune while Mario and Luigi quest through a world of size-changing mushrooms locale-changine pipes, and a fire-breathing dragon.
The game is Super Mario Bros., and it debuted for the Nintendo Entertainment System in 1985. The video gaming world would never be the same, for they had been introduced to the greatest platform adventure in video game history. Shigeru Miyamoto would go on to create other favorites as well, but he will forever be remembered as the man who gave us Mario.
Now, 21 years after the original was released and 11 years after his last 2-D adventure, Mario is back, in the aptly-named New Super Mario Bros. for the Nintendo DS. New Super Mario Bros. is equal parts remake and sequel. As in the original there are eight distinct worlds to explore and conquer, a variety of levels on which to test your skill (underwater, subterranean, mushroom-platform hopping, ice, etc.), and until the end, the princess is always in another castle. This time, however, it is Bowser Jr. who has kidnapped Princess Peach, and he has assembled quite a team of bosses to protect his hostage. Mario will battle Bowser, a giant pirahna plant, Rocky Wrench, and many more!
Mario has a few tricks up his sleeve. Returning from the original game are the mushroom, fire flower, and star man. The mushroom makes Mario grow to twice his size, the fire flower allows him to hurl fireballs at his foes, and star man makes him invincible for a few seconds. New power-ups this time around are the koopa suit, the mini-mushroom, and the mega-mushroom. The koopa suit allows Mario to slide around in a turtle shell to vanquish Bowser Jr.'s plans, the mini-mushroom shrinks Mario to miniscule proportion and allows him access to previously unreachable areas, and the mega-mushroom makes Mario so large that he is as tall as the DS screen and crushes everything in his path (warp pipes included). And if all else fails, most enemies are easily dispatched by jumping on their head.
In addition to the nostalgia, New Super Mario Bros. adds quite a bit to the traditional gameplay and is worthy of continued play even after clearing the final castle in World 8. First, each level is home to three star coins. Collect enough star coins, and you can open up gates on the world map. These gates usually lead to toad houses or alternate routes through the level. Some levels contain secondary exits that allow the player to progress through the level in a whole new way. Two such exits are the only way to access worlds 4 and 7.
No game is perfect so there's bound to be one thing I don't like about New Super Mario Bros., and that's the save system. Until you clear the final castle you can only save after clearing a tower or castle or unlocking a star coin gate. One, it's a portable game; sometimes I only have 10 minutes to play. Second, save anywhere can and has been implemented in the game after clearing the final castle. Why the developers chose the keep it from us until then, I'm unsure, but I don't like it. That one negative mark aside, if you fondly remember sitting in your basement playing Super Mario Bros. on an old television set or just like platformers then New Super Mario Bros. will definitely make a great addition to your DS library. Pick this one up. You won't regret it.