20 Years of Super Mario World

[badinsults]

It might shock some people, and probably be missed out in the wake of the 25th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., but November 21, 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the release of the Super Famicom, along with its flagship title, Super Mario World. This game served as the main selling point for the system when it was released, and is still regarded as one of the greatest SNES games. I have written an article about this wonderful game, including a close look at the extensive list of Super Mario World hacks.


Click Here for article (http://www.snescentral.com/article.php?id=0000)

[ShinobiMan]

As a kid, the excitment for this game coming out was unlike any other. I remember reading (what little I could at age 5) every issue of Nintendo Power that came in the mail. I even remember seeing a picture of an early build of the overworld map screen and a regular stage screenshot. I believe these were the ones:

http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20080816233816/nintendo/en/images/7/74/MarioWorldBeta.jpg http://www.unseen64.net/wp-content/gallery/mario-world/marioworldbeta01.jpg

When I saw those pics in the magazine, I was blown away. I remember telling my friends that "Super Mario Bros. 4 was coming out!" Oh man... those were the days!

[Sothy]

At the time it came out I just got my NES hehe

[Blanka789]

Great article OP. Super Mario World is still my favorite Mario game, and it's a shame that it's being overlooked. Still, I'm sure they'll make a big deal when it's the 25th anniversary for SMW.

[Rob2600]

I got the SNES the first Christmas it was out in the U.S., 1991. I was in 8th grade at the time. It came with Super Mario World which I loved, and I also received Contra III: The Alien Wars, F-Zero, Final Fight, and SimCity. That was one of many awesome Christmases! :)

Super Mario World is a masterpiece. Fantastic level designs, great pace, catchy music, lots of fun. Plus, nice technological touches like real-time reverb inside caves, and sprite scaling and transparency.

Of course, the sequel is another masterpiece.

[exit]

I remember my parents getting the SNES for both my brother and me (it eventually became just mine) around the time it came out, I was in 3rd grade at the time and had to go to open house the night we got it. I was able to play Super Mario World for what felt like 10 minutes before we left. Needless to say, I was pissed.

Ah, memories.

[BocoDragon]

I guess it's been about 20 years since the 6 year old me wandered past a game store and saw their import Super Famicom on display. I couldn't believe my eyes. I remember being shocked by the cape Mario was wearing, the spin jump, the giant Bullet Bill, and the way that the ? blocks would turn into brown angry faces after you hit them!

I also thought it was radically foreign and Japanese looking at the time. It looked like such an import back then! That feeling's long since gone, given the amount of time I played my domestic copy... Now it's "just" Mario World. But back then... a strange foreign delight from the future, at a time when SMB3 was ruling the land.

[Baloo]

Great article Evan! While I don't care for Super Mario World as much as some of the other 2D Mario games, and I may not have as many fond memories (Didn't get a SNES until the Early-2000s), it's one of the few 2D Marios I've played all the way through to the end, although the save feature is largely to account for that. Never really could justify sitting through an entire game of SMB3, it's just too long.

I have the Super Mario World + All-Stars cart, and I had no idea they even changed Luigi's sprite from a pallette swap to a newer sprite that looks much more like Luigi. Nice observation.

I also wish that there was a prototype possibly of the very early Super Mario World featured in Nintendo Power, those screenshots look drastically different and really fun to play. I also like the different look of the map.

[Steven]

Yep, 20 years this Sunday for Super Famicom. Crazy how fast time flies. Nice piece Evan. I got into SMW late, but when I finally did, was I ever glad.

One of the best on SNES

[CYBRSOLDR]

I still remember buying the SNES on launch day. I still have it and the box it came in.

[Rob2600]

Click Here for article (http://www.snescentral.com/article.php?id=0000)

You wrote in your article:

"Concepts like Mario riding a dinosaur were considered during the development of the NES games, though it was not technically possible to implement."

The main character in several NES games, including Adventure Island II and Adventure Island III, can ride different animals...so it seems like it *was* technically possible to implement after all.

[Gentlegamer]

ShinobiMan, I remember those screens too! It was around that time my fervent desire turned away from getting Genesis to getting the SNES when it came out. Up until then, I had bought into the "Genesis Does What Nintendon't" campaign and 'arcade perfect' graphics of Genesis (I was in the beginning stages of what might have become Sega Fanboyism).

I ended up getting SNES the day it launched in North America. What a joy!

[peeingas]

I have the Super Mario World + All-Stars cart, and I had no idea they even changed Luigi's sprite from a pallette swap to a newer sprite that looks much more like Luigi. Nice observation.
.

They did change that, though if you beat the game as Luigi, it still says "Thank you Mario!"

[Cobra Commander]

I've always wondered why they dropped the Super Mario Bros 4 in the US.

[SpaceHarrier]

I remember walking into Target's electronics area one day with my family and the Super NES was just there, set up on a small tv at the camera counter with a line of kids arguing over the controller. Remember how things used to sneak out to store shelves back in the day?

Anyway, though I loved my Genesis and Sonic was my favorite game at the time, one look at the new Mario and I was begging my parents for one. We left that day with a Super NES Super Mario World pack in-tow.

I believe I promised to do chores or something to pay it off.

I still owe them $215.49 to this day.

[DDCecil]

Nice to see my hack mentioned! Thanks, Evan!

I still can't believe it's been ~6 years since I first started working on that monstrosity. One of these days I'll get back to it and fix some of the problems it still has (Timer balance being the major one, I believe.)

[retroman]

where does the time go..

[Jorpho]

You wrote in your article:

"Concepts like Mario riding a dinosaur were considered during the development of the NES games, though it was not technically possible to implement."

The main character in several NES games, including Adventure Island II and Adventure Island III, can ride different animals...so it seems like it *was* technically possible to implement after all.The official line from Miyamoto is indeed that it was not technically possible. It has been speculated that Adventure Island II and III did come out after SMB3's Japanese release, so it could be argued that technical skill in Famicom programming simply had not evolved sufficiently at that point.

[Rob2600]

The official line from Miyamoto is indeed that it was not technically possible. It has been speculated that Adventure Island II and III did come out after SMB3's Japanese release, so it could be argued that technical skill in Famicom programming simply had not evolved sufficiently at that point.

Yeah, I thought about that, but still...the fact that Hudson was able to accomplish something on the NES that Nintendo/EAD couldn't is surprising.

EDIT: By the way, I just read that as of December 2000, Konami owns Hudson. I had no idea.

[MachineGex]

Great article, I read your site all the time. Funny how the DKC Returns comes out on the 20 years after the release.(11-21-10)

[JohnnyBlaze]

20 years?! Someone get me my walker! I'm officially old. But, then again, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Megadeth are now considered "Classic Rock" and play on those stations. Anyways, I remember this fondly. "Reading" Nintendo Power(I was four) and seeing the shots of it, then a family friend importing the Super Famicom and watching her play for hours. I got the chance to see the game before most Americans, and to this day, it remains one of my all time favorites.

I can STILL beat the game 100% and I know all the secret exits and how to unlock them like the back of my hand. A great game, even years later.

[Rob2600]

I can STILL beat the game 100% and I know all the secret exits and how to unlock them like the back of my hand.

Same here. :) There are a bunch of video games that I still have everything memorized, even though I haven't played them in more than a decade.

[ccovell]

Wow, 10 years have gone by fast! Only 10 years ago, in November 2000, I wrote a small tribute to the SFC's 10th anniversary, and now it's 20... ^^;



And then... what? Where were all the great, souped-up versions of the NES games that we so dearly loved? Where were the Bionic Commandos, the Mega Mans, the Contras, the Duck Tales, the Little Nemos, the Striders, the Batmans, the Blaster Masters, the Ninja Gaidens of the 16-bit era? The conversions and updates trickled out, but it was not what we had expected, was it? We had to be happy with the different type of games that the SNES had. We were no longer playing a 16-bit NES system; it was something different.

Take a look at my comments here; they're still how I feel today: http://www.disgruntleddesigner.com/chrisc/Archive/snes.html

[Leo_A]

The official line from Miyamoto is indeed that it was not technically possible. It has been speculated that Adventure Island II and III did come out after SMB3's Japanese release, so it could be argued that technical skill in Famicom programming simply had not evolved sufficiently at that point.

I highly doubt they meant the hardware couldn't handle having Mario riding on something.

I suspect they meant it wasn't technically possible on the NES within the constraints of the other goals they wanted to accomplish in the game. They'd of had to make sacrifices in such things as how many enemies were present at any one time, the amount of colors, etc. And since they were unwilling to make such sacrifices, there wasn't enough power to create their visions of Yoshi in SMB3.

At least that makes more sense to me.

[buzz_n64]

I highly doubt they meant the hardware couldn't handle having Mario riding on something.

I suspect they meant it wasn't technically possible on the NES within the constraints of the other goals they wanted to accomplish in the game. They'd of had to make sacrifices in such things as how many enemies were present at any one time, the amount of colors, etc. And since they were unwilling to make such sacrifices, there wasn't enough power to create their visions of Yoshi in SMB3.

At least that makes more sense to me.

Yup. They did later have Yoshi in a "Mario" game. Mario is Missing, and a pirate company made a version of SMW for the NES that is almost a solid game.

[JSoup]

Man, I remember getting my SNES with Super Mario World back when it was new. That was an interesting Christmas. I didn't read much in magazines back in those days, the entire game came as a surprise to me.

[Leo_A]

Not too far away from the 25th anniversary now.

Anyways, I've replayed this over the past week via its Wii Virtual Console download. Going through and reaching all 96 exits is something I've probably done at least once a year for two decades now in one form or another and it never gets old. Great game as always and it once again held my attention from start to finish over the span of several evenings.

If there's a perfect Nintendo game, it's this one. I can't think of much I'd actually change if given the opportunity. A star exit on Chocolate Island would perhaps come in handy when wanting to make the trek all the way back to the Top Secret level to refresh your powerups in the later stages of the game. And there's a touch of slowdown at busy moments, but that's about it. And I like the GBA port turning the Dragon Coins into collectibles like NSMB's Star Coins rather than just items that contribute to your score and life count.

Someone here at DP once wished that they'd remake Super Mario All-Stars + World with the NSMB engine. I derided it at the time, but I'd love to see them do such a thing on the Wii U. Super Mario World's timeless 2D graphics will always be superior, but a respectful remake like Super Mario All-Stars was with today's NSMBU engine would offer an interesting variation on a beloved classic.

[Eternal Champion]

Yep, right out of the gate SNES had an instant classic. I still play it today, and I still suck at it. I had Yoshi's Island for a long time, sold it, got it again - good followup, different.
Sigh...good times.

[RoleyDre]

super mario 3,and super mario world are my 2 fav mario games ever,super mario 3 now when i play it is so hard,it takes me like an hour to get use to playing with him,haha i use to be able to fly thru the stages and get lots of coins,now im just tryin not to die,haha oh to be young again

[Eternal Champion]

super mario 3,and super mario world are my 2 fav mario games ever,super mario 3 now when i play it is so hard,it takes me like an hour to get use to playing with him,haha i use to be able to fly thru the stages and get lots of coins,now im just tryin not to die,haha oh to be young again
Exactly - even New Super Mario Bros on Wii kicks my ass.