It is now time for us to make everyone who grew up with a Nintendo Entertainment System feel old. Super Mario Bros. 3 was release 30 years ago today, on October 23rd 1988, to Japanese audiences with critical success. The game would later be introduced to American audiences during the 1989 film The Wizard and then on US home consoles on February 12th 1990.
Nintendo created a money making monster with the Mario franchise when the Nintendo Famicom debuted in 1983. Super Mario Bros. 3 was the final game of the franchise on the 8 bit system. It is considered the third best selling Nintendo games of all time, selling over 17 million copies worldwide. The game has had numerous re-releases on SNES, Gameboy Advance, Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U, and The Switch. If you haven’t played this game yet, you have a myriad of choices to play the game today. The game also spawned The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 show that aired in the 90’s.
The game was created by Shigeru Miyamoto as a direct follow-up to Super Mario 2 (The Japanese version. The American version of Mario 2 was a port of a game from Japan called Doki Doki Panic). Koji Kondo returned to score the game. You might be familiar with his music from previous Mario and Legend of Zelda games. Takashi Tezuka also returned to help design the levels that frustrated the crap out of you.
The object of the game is the same as most other Mario adventures, Princess Peach had been kidnapped and it is up to the Mario Brothers to rescue her from the villainous King Bowser. The game itself featured 8 magical worlds that were unique to themselves. In those 8 worlds, players would traverse through multiple stages until they reached the castle at the end of the world. Or, if you were a savvy enough player, located 1 of the 3 warp flutes to transport you further into the game skipping worlds.
The visual styling of the game gave the appearance that the Mario and company was in a play of sorts, with each stage being a different act in the performance. The platforms and backgrounds all looked like they were made of wood. When you complete the level, you would actually exit stage right. The opening of the game even had a curtain rise to show the start of the play.
Super Mario Bros. 3 introduced many elements that have been brought into future Mario games. This was the first game where we see Mario fly and use an over world map to get from stage to stage. This game also introduced the ability to carry suits and items that help you on your quest. Speaking of suits, Tanooki, Super Leaf, and Hammer Bros. all start here. These are just a few of the things that have popped up in other Mario games that got there start in SMB3.
So, on this 30th anniversary, why don’t you dust off your copy of this amazing game and give it another play through? You will be surprised how well this game stands up today.
Happy Anniversary Super Mario 3!
