Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World
Reviewed by Kelvin Chan
I remember I got this game with the "Super NES Mario Set" back in
the summer of 1996 as a present for my middle school graduation.
I had three sets to choose from, the other two sets were the "Donkey
Kong Set" and the "Killer Instinct Set", and I chose this one, because
it has 5 games in one. Without a doubt, I think this is the most
dynamite package for the Super NES.
Graphics: 9 out of 10
It's very nice to see all the old Mario games on the NES with Super NES
quality graphics. I especially like the new, detailed backgrounds and
the new look of Mario. Especially for the original Super Mario Bros and
The Lost Levels, the graphics are much improved from their NES counterparts.
Although I've seen better graphics for the Super NES, these graphics are
still impressive, even years after its release. Super Mario World remained
untouched and the graphics are not disappointing with some nice effects,
most notably, the transparency seen in the ghost house.
Music and Sound: 10 out of 10
Nothing to complain about here. There is new music for the title screens
of Super Mario Bros, The Lost Levels, and Super Mario Bros 3, which is
basically the music heard from the underwater levels of the original Super
Mario Bros with different instruments. All the music had been revamped,
except for Super Mario World, and all of them add to the games themselves.
The dungeon scores for Super Mario Bros and The Lost Levels are the same
except they start out differently to fit Super Mario Bros 3, and that's better.
Otherwise, all the music is basically the same but at the same time improved.
Game Challenge: 9.5 out of 10
All of the games in this cart are challenging, especially The Lost Levels,
which gets super-hard. Super Mario Bros starts out easy, but gets
progressively harder and harder to World 8, which is pretty tough. Then
we have The Lost Levels. This is actually Japan's Super Mario Bros. 2,
previously unreleased because it was said it wouldn't sell in the US and
was thought to be too challenging. It is basically a much more difficult
Super Mario Bros with several new features such as poisonous mushrooms,
flying bloobers, advanced 1-up techniques, red pirahna plants, green
springboards, etc. They add to the game, making it more unique and
challenging than any other Mario game. Mario 2 is different from the other
Mario games in that the princess doesn't get kidnapped, but instead you are
playing in a dream world of Sub-Con to ultimately defeat Wart, the final
boss. This game is actually a reprogrammed Doki Doki Panic, which was
released on the Famicom Disk System back in 1987. The game gets progressively
harder as you go along. Super Mario 3 and Super Mario World are also very
challenging. But the most challenging game in this cartridge is still The
Lost Levels because that game is meant to be hard all the way, unlike the
other Mario games, which all start out easy.
Game Play-Fun: 10 out of 10
It's a Mario game, so it has to be fun. In fact, this is the Mario game where
I had the most fun from, mainly because it's 5-In-1, and there's something
we haven't seen before, The Lost Levels. I have played it before, but most
other Americans out there haven't before the release of Super Mario All-Stars.
I think Nintendo was very generous for giving The Lost Levels as an added
bonus. Thank you Nintendo.
Frustration
All video games have some frustration factors in them mainly because
you can't beat them on your first tries. That's what video games are all
about. They are meant to be a little frustrating, but not too much. It's
not a problem here, because the fun factor outweighs or counterbalances
the frustration factor. I mean, The Lost Levels can get frustrating because
it's so hard to beat, but it's so fun nevertheless. Plus, you get to save your
progress. So it's definitely not a problem.
Replayability: 10 out of 10
One of the most replay able games for the Super NES, simply because there's
so much to do and there are so many secrets.
Overall: 10 out of 10
The best of all compilations. The King of all compilations. This is one of
the best games for the Super NES or even for any system. I am glad I have
"Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World" as a Super NES collection. It's
truly one of the best.