Super Mario All-Stars

[ColecoFan1981]

What did you think of Super Mario All-Stars (known in Japan as Super Mario Collection) when it was originally released in 1993? It was very briefly re-packaged with Super Mario World a year later, as Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World.

It consisted of the three NES Super Mario releases known to man in the USA/Europe: Super Mario Bros. (1985), Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988; as based on Doki Doki Panic, and later released in Japan as Super Mario USA), and Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990). The fourth game was Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, which of course was just a re-branding (for the USA and Europe) of Japan's Super Mario Bros. 2 (1986).

Curiously, on the Japanese release that is Super Mario Collection (SMC), their SMB2 is given the subtitle For Super Players, which would reappear within the SMB2LL bonus game within Super Mario Bros. Deluxe for Game Boy Color (1999), which is accessible (by clicking on the Luigi icon on the menu screen) after you win the regular SMB.

The reason the Japanese SMB2 wasn't available domestically initially was because of the fact it was not only harder than the original SMB, but it also seemed to be a continuation of the original game as well, employing the same graphics.

~Ben

[JakeM]

I dont like the new skins, the original 8bit graphics were so good, the 16bit ones look too cartoony.

[kainemaxwell]

Don't forget the re-release of it Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World.

[ColecoFan1981]

Don't forget the re-release of it Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World.
Right... that is the 1994 repackaging that I mentioned.

~Ben

[rkotm]

I had just gotten an SNES in 1993-never had an NES, and was always wanting to play the original 3. I saw the Nintendo Power Super Mario All Stars issue (first one i got) and thought that was pretty awesome, the magazine and the game. So, my family subscribed for me and my brother. We had no idea, but subscribers to NP got the game for free, minus the box but came with the manual. It came in the mail in December 1993, and i flipped through the manual, it looked awesome, with the cartoon drawings of mario performing different moves, and popped the game in-never having played the originals, it was a fantastic game, from the graphics to the music-my brother beat Mario 2 and then we decided to put the game under the tree and save it for christmas. I'll never forget those days playing it, and me and my brother getting frusterated with Mario 3's later levels (me being 8 and him 12)-endless replay value for years, and with 4 games. They don't make them like that anymore
/old person rant

[Aussie2B]

I had just gotten an SNES in 1993-never had an NES, and was always wanting to play the original 3. I saw the Nintendo Power Super Mario All Stars issue (first one i got) and thought that was pretty awesome, the magazine and the game. So, my family subscribed for me and my brother. We had no idea, but subscribers to NP got the game for free, minus the box but came with the manual. It came in the mail in December 1993

You must be confused with the Dragon Warrior promotion, which was indeed a Nintendo Power subscription bonus. The Super Mario All-Stars promotion had nothing to do with Nintendo Power. Instead, you had to have recently bought a SNES, and if you mailed your proof of purchase and $3.50 to cover shipping to Nintendo of America, they'd send the game for free. It was a pretty big deal back then, being advertised in commercials on TV and all.

That's how I got Super Mario All-Stars myself. I loved the Mario games I played on NES, but they technically belonged to my brother and he chose to sell all of his NES stuff off around '91 or '92. It was a real bummer being without video games at all, so when I heard about the Mario All-Stars promotion in '93, it was as if it was heaven-sent. I never really got an allowance as a kid so it was tough to scrape together the 100 or so bucks I needed for the bare model at the age of 11, but I managed to pull if off and send away for my free game. It was perfect because not only did I really want to play those Mario games I loved again but I also wouldn't have been able to afford BOTH the cost of a system and a game. I remember they had one of those long delivery estimates, like 2-4 weeks, or maybe it was even 4-8 weeks, but I calmly waited it out. In retrospect, it's amazing that I had the kind of patience to own a brand new video game system but absolutely nothing to play on it for a month or so. Kids these days would probably lose their minds if they couldn't rip into a new game the second they bring home a new video game system. But, man, I was SOOOO excited when that package finally arrived. :)

[Parodius Duh!]

What did you think of Super Mario All-Stars (known in Japan as Super Mario Collection) when it was originally released in 1993? It was very briefly re-packaged with Super Mario World a year later, as Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World.

It consisted of the three NES Super Mario releases known to man in the USA/Europe: Super Mario Bros. (1985), Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988; as based on Doki Doki Panic, and later released in Japan as Super Mario USA), and Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990). The fourth game was Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels, which of course was just a re-branding (for the USA and Europe) of Japan's Super Mario Bros. 2 (1986).

Curiously, on the Japanese release that is Super Mario Collection (SMC), their SMB2 is given the subtitle For Super Players, which would reappear within the SMB2LL bonus game within Super Mario Bros. Deluxe for Game Boy Color (1999), which is accessible (by clicking on the Luigi icon on the menu screen) after you win the regular SMB.

The reason the Japanese SMB2 wasn't available domestically initially was because of the fact it was not only harder than the original SMB, but it also seemed to be a continuation of the original game as well, employing the same graphics.

~Ben

I prefer to play the original 8 Bit versions over the SNES updates. I also like playing Doki Doki Panic in its original form over the Americanized "SMB2" any day.

The original SMB2 was made for the Japanese market due to the public demanding a challenging version of Super Mario. It is not a sequel in story and takes place as part of the first game. Dimwitted American 80s kids couldnt handle it.

[TheRetroVideoGameAddict]

I remember mailing away for this game back in 1993, they were running a special where if you bought the SNES then you could get Super Mario All-Stars for free when I came out and I took advantage of that. I remember being excited when it came in but then being partially disappointed because it was just SMB 1-3 with better graphics and "The Lost Levels", which was the main reason I played the All-Stars cart to begin with. I just wanted to experience the "real" SMB2.

[BlastProcessing402]

All Stars is the only version of SMB1 that I've ever been able to beat. There's one jump in the NES version I just never have been able to manage, but I did on All Stars.

I was also super hyped at the time to be getting the "real" SMB2, but in hindsight I like the "USA" SMB2 better.

These days, I'd probably play the GBA versions of 2 and 3 over the All Stars versions.

[ColecoFan1981]

All Stars is the only version of SMB1 that I've ever been able to beat. There's one jump in the NES version I just never have been able to manage, but I did on All Stars.

I was also super hyped at the time to be getting the "real" SMB2, but in hindsight I like the "USA" SMB2 better.

These days, I'd probably play the GBA versions of 2 and 3 over the All Stars versions.
Have you figured out which World X-X stage it was that you're trying to make that jump?

~Ben

[CastlevaniaDude]

To be honest, I didn't think much of it at the time. I remember not caring whatsoever. I had no idea that retro collecting would ever be a "thing," and therefore, never cared about rereleases of games that, at the time, I could've pretty much got for free anywhere.

I didn't care about the graphical upgrade, because for some reason, it just didn't strike me as important at the time. I was about ten, so my attitude was "Same old boring games, give me something new and original."

Basically, this was a throwaway pack in title for me.

It was about a year later when they packaged A Link to the Past with the SNES when I got my first one. I remember being at an Ames store and my grandmother surprised me, just out of the blue, was like, do you want a Super Nintendo? I don't remember really wanting one or expecting it, but I'll never forget it. So cool of her, even though it was probably on megaclearance to make room for Playstation, etc.

It would be years and years before I fully appreciated that machine, and believe me, I do.

[Polygon]

I'm not a huge fan of the upgrades to the original three US releases. I did like the fact that it had the Japanese version of Mario 2. However, I'm considering getting a Japanese release.

[CelticJobber]

I remember when it came out, Nintendo had an offer where you could get a free copy if you sent in the UPC code from your SNES box and a receipt showing you bought a SNES within a certain 3 month period.

I had gotten my SNES in early 1992, so I wasn't eligible. But I had only recently bought a Sega Genesis.

On the receipt it just said "video game system", so I used a Genesis receipt to get a free copy of All Stars. And it worked.

[Aussie2B]

Haha, very clever. Did the Genesis and SNES have an identical price point back then, or did Nintendo just figure the store had some sort of sale/markup?

[treismac]

I remember when it came out, Nintendo had an offer where you could get a free copy if you sent in the UPC code from your SNES box and a receipt showing you bought a SNES within a certain 3 month period.

I had gotten my SNES in early 1992, so I wasn't eligible. But I had only recently bought a Sega Genesis.

On the receipt it just said "video game system", so I used a Genesis receipt to get a free copy of All Stars. And it worked.


Sweet. :)

[Zing]

At the time, Toys R Us had a demo kiosk running the game. I tried it and was very unimpressed. To this day, I still can't stand how the music tone was changed, and the excessive reverb drives me crazy.

[SparTonberry]

I remember when it came out, Nintendo had an offer where you could get a free copy if you sent in the UPC code from your SNES box and a receipt showing you bought a SNES within a certain 3 month period.

I had gotten my SNES in early 1992, so I wasn't eligible. But I had only recently bought a Sega Genesis.

On the receipt it just said "video game system", so I used a Genesis receipt to get a free copy of All Stars. And it worked.

You'd think Nintendo would train the redemption staff to recognize valid UPCs (or at least to recognize that the first half of a UPC is a manufacturer code, so tell if it's at least from a Nintendo product).
Then again, maybe whoever handled it just didn't care? :D

[ProjectCamaro]

I always prefered this version over the orginials. I always hated how you couldn't save the other games so if you didn't have the time to play them completely through they weren't fun.

[fahlim003]

Didn't Post cereal also have some sort of mail-in offer too? Maybe I'm confusing that with the actual Nintendo promotion. Either way, I remember hearing about some mail-away to get the game heavily discounted and I was quite interested. Only trouble was a had recently gotten a Genesis so finances towards getting another system so soon was off the books.

Naturally, the idea of having all 3 original Mario games together and with "better" graphics was all I needed to know that is was a game I wanted to play. I would say ultimately I am most satisfied with SMB3 and SMB2. I never took much issue with the look of Mario in SMB1/LL but it was changed a bit. Not to mention, there is the issue with the blocks/impact on blocks which I didn't notice until long after, which thankfully has been fixed: http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/167/

Otherwise, I say All-Stars is superb and among the best compilations ever made.

[XYXZYZ]

There's one jump in the NES version I just never have been able to manage, but I did on All Stars.


Would that be the jump with the pipe, the two small bits of floor and the big hole in 8-2? That's the one that gave me more trouble than any other part of the game.

[BlastProcessing402]

Have you figured out which World X-X stage it was that you're trying to make that jump?

~Ben

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7jRGT7_JPk

The jump is at around 1:15 in that video.

[kupomogli]

I don't have an issue with either the SNES or the NES versions. Since they're the exact same as far as gameplay, I'd rather play the SNES version because of the better graphics, but I've played the NES versions in the past year or two so I'll go back to either version.

[XYXZYZ]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7jRGT7_JPk

The jump is at around 1:15 in that video.

The way I clear that jump is to slow down jump form the edge, without holding the B button. Your normal jump is just long enough to land you on the small bit of floor every time.

[thegamezmaster]

I have the nes versions that I love and love the snes version of All Stars also. Liked the updated graphics and the lost levels game included. Bought mine and still have it CIB. Just recently a friend game me a copy of Super Mario All-Stars/Super Mario World. Like that too, having them all on one cart.

[BlastProcessing402]

The way I clear that jump is to slow down jump form the edge, without holding the B button. Your normal jump is just long enough to land you on the small bit of floor every time.

Thanks for the tip, but I'm sure plenty of other spots would trip me up these days. My mad skilz have really atrophied.

[Eternal Champion]

Overall I still like All-Stars but I miss the NES "feel" and especially the music. It just isn't the same.
I can't speak for gameplay as I haven't the originals since probably 1990.
One thing I don't like is in 2, in the slot machine - pressing the button gives a delay, rather than the instant stop of the original (if I remember correctly). I do much worse on the All-Stars version.

[AMG]

I thought it was a nice update to the first three games and getting the Lost Levels was a nice bonus. I still have the game.