New Super Mario Bros, in short, is basically a Nintendo plat forming nirvana. Released on May 19, 2006, it reminded us of the glory days. An excruciating wait of fourteen years for the next side scrolling Mario plat former was enough to make some gamers forget about a glorious past of stomping goombas, kicking Koopa shells and shooting fireballs. When this game, however, was released on store shelves, it grabbed memories of the NES and SNES days from the back of our heads, and completely filled our minds with these memories, while at the same time, adding fresh and invigorating ideas to the already formidable Mario Bros. formula.
Story: The story of New Super Mario Bros. may or may not be an upset to gamers. It completely stays with the classic “Bowser kidnapped the Princess and Mario goes to rescue her” idea. There are some minor twists, however to keep you playing a game you were still going to finish anyway. While it is actually Bowser Jr. who kidnaps the Princess, it provides the idea of the game being a sort of a sequel to Super Mario Sunshine. I don’t think this was the original plan, but it does keep things a little thought provoking. The rest is basic Mario, go through a bunch of worlds, taking down some bosses along the way, and finally fighting the big cheese, Bowser himself. There is also a bit of a twist involving a second Bowser form, but I’ll stay away from that to prevent spoilers. The story is not bad itself, it’s just been reused so many times, and it would have been nice to see Nintendo take a wild shot and try something different.
Game play: Not very much to say here, as you’ve done it a million times before. You move with the D-pad, jump with A, and hold B to run, and shoot fireballs. You stop on goomba’s heads and turtles backs to defeat them, and avoid piranha plants, holes, spikes and the like to stay up and running. There are some spiked enemies, which attempt to trick you, but ultimately fail, as every gamer knows that spikes in a side scrolling game are a no-no. You fight various bosses, ranging from Bowser Jr. to a plethora of original minions that King Koopa has to throw at you. The control is virtually spotless, buttons are responsive and visuals are crisp enough to recognize anything. There is also a few new mechanics introduced in the game. There are three new items included in the game; the koopa shell, the giant mushroom and the mini mushroom. The koopa shell lets you spin mindlessly in a blue shell, bulldozing any enemy in your path. The giant mushroom is similar; it grows you to tremendous size, as you lay waste to anything you see. Your destruction is also rewarded; cause lots of carnage, and get rewarded with 1-ups.The mini mushroom shrinks Mario down to microscopic size, allowing him to squeak through narrow areas, and leap high in the air. Another mechanic is the inclusion of large star coins. There are three in each level, and collecting them allows you to purchase backgrounds for your touch screen, and alternate routes leading to new levels. The third mechanic is the ability to store a specific item you’ve collected along the way. At any time; you can use an item by tapping it on the icon on the lower right corner. They help contribute sorely needed new ideas to the game, but they add to the games only problem. It is far too easy. I don’t believe the game itself is too easy, its just that seasoned players have done it so many times before, it comes natural do perform many of the games challenges. True gamers will blitz through the game in 3-4 hours, maybe less. But it doesn’t hamper the experience too much, and most won’t mind, as it’s the first time they’ve done this for a while.
Graphics: Simply put, this may be one of the best looking games on the DS. Animations are completely fluid, and characters look crisp. There are many unique backgrounds, and it’s hard to find any problem with the art style. There is virtually no choppiness, slowdown or lag at all.
Sound: The music in the game are mostly completely new tracks, but are accompanied by remixes of classic Mario tunes. The sound effects are great, and Mario pipes something up at the beginning and end of each level. Animations match the sound flawlessly, and it boasts an amazing soundtrack.
Fun Factor: Clearly the most fun single player game on the Ds, or if not, it’s definitely up in the top somewhere. There is a large selection of minigames to play, but most are recycled ones from Super Mario 64 Ds. However, these minigames are all fun, and can be played in single card multiplayer. There is also a two player versus mode where each competitor (Mario or Luigi) compete to see who can grab the most stars.
Lasting Appeal: While the game may be a bit on the short side, it won’t matter as you’ll find yourself going through numerous runs through the game. There are also many alternate stages to play, purchased by acquiring Star Coins. The minigames and versus mode help lengthen the time this game will stay in your DS.
Story- B+
Game play- A
Graphics- A+
Sound- A+
Fun Factor- A+
Lasting Appeal- A+
Overall (not an average) A+