nintendo

[USO36]

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x36vjo_nintendo-conference-fall-2007-movie_videogames

[USO36]

Overall Score
Pros: Brings out entire Mario arsenal in brand new game; 3D graphics shine in side-scrolling context; Lots of mini-games Cons: Not as desperately addictive as its predecessors; Better story would've been nice; Barely utilizes dual and touch-screen Graphics
Sound
Gameplay
Story
Interface
Multiplayer
This true sequel to the Super Mario franchise is ambitious, varied, and clever, but is it the masterpiece we're all expecting?

By: Justin Leeper

New, honest-to-goodness sequels to the greatest platformer series in the history of video games don't come along too often. We tend to get one every console generation, but Nintendo only saw fit to bring remastered classics to its handheld platforms over the last few years -- which we snatched up hungrily and chewed happily, of course. New Super Mario Bros. is just as the name describes; it's a brand-new addition to the side-scrolling platformer series that got the majority of us wild about gaming.

If described in the fewest amount of words possible, you could call this Super Mario Bros. 1: Part 2. It starts with the framework of the original -- relatively straightforward levels culminating in the ol' flag jump -- then hits it with a tornado of additions that you've seen in Mario 3 and Super Mario World, as well as some brand-new elements that Mario has never before experienced.

Listing the new features would take pages and pages, and we'd still probably forget a few. Mario has several new moves to pull off, such as butt bounces and wall jumps. More recent additions like grabbing/throwing shells and sliding down hills are also here. With the exception of the Yoshi elements in Mario World, the game follows the mantra of: If you've done it in a past Mario game, you can do it here. These all extend the gameplay, but levels are designed so you can still play the same way as you did in the original Super Mario Bros. and make it through. It's a fine balance that demonstrates the refined technique of Nintendo's developers.

New power-ups -- like the mega mushroom, mini mushroom, and koopa shell suit -- are an important upgrade. Each one is fun and really changes the way you play through a level, though they feel a little bit gimmicky rather than being necessary inclusions. You could say the same about the big shoe or Hammer Bros. suite in Mario 3, and we still loved them. It's great to see the return of things like the overworld, the ability to backtrack within a level or exit out at will, and storing power-ups. Finding the secret areas will challenge even the most experienced Nintendo fanboy. New Super Mario Bros. really is a complete package.

Graphically, infusing this 2D game with polygonal, 3D graphics was a brilliant move. Everything looks amazing and doesn't skip a beat. New Super Mario Bros. doesn't go overboard with background detail, keeping the focus on the action at hand and letting the smoothness of the animations carry the visual load. Sound-wise, you won't find too many new tunes or effects, but the anthems and classic noises here delight your ears nonetheless.

The game doesn't take much advantage of the DS' unique technology, instead deciding to stay true to the series. The bottom screen shows a graph with your progress through a level, and you can touch your stored power-up to bring it onto the field. That's really about it, save for the minigames -- which feature 18 fun, little diversions that use the stylus exclusively. They also put most of the selections in Mario Party to shame.

The minigames are also a big part of New Super Mario Bros.' multiplayer component. Play them with up to three other friends. Mario vs. Luigi mode has players dashing through looping stages to reach the most stars. Both modes support download play, on the off chance one of your friends neglects to pick up this title.

Only a Super Mario Bros. game could receive this high a rating, and still leave us feeling slightly disappointed. There's no denying that this is a phenomenal game; the problem is you probably won't be as hopelessly addicted as you were with the other 2D Mario titles. Maybe it's that Nintendo tried to do too much, or that it doesn't tap into the nostalgia that carries older titles. Perhaps it doesn't feel like its own game so much as a remix of all Mario games past. Whatever the case, it falls a hair short of living up to the lofty expectations of the series -- while still easily surpassing any side-scrolling platformer in the last 10 years.

The Mario series has a humongous bag of tricks to pull from. For New Super Mario Bros., Nintendo tosses nearly all of them onto the table. The new additions -- in particular the power-ups -- struggle to justify their inclusion, but they also keep the game from feeling like too much of a retread. It's unlikely that anyone will put this at the top of his or her list of favorite Mario games. It does definitely deserve to be called a Mario game, however, and that's more than enough to make it a required purchase for any and all DS owners.