simplecoffee
1990
Boy, when the card drop animation hits, it hits.
This compilation was my first experience of all these Mario games.
SMB1: delightful remaster, fixed a lot of the janky controls of the original, BUT it fucked up the underground theme by adding a backbeat.
SMB2: game of the year every year. First Mario game I remember beating - first with save states, then without. The remastered artwork is absolutely gorgeous, especially in World 4. This is my go-to game when I want to do some Stress Platforming™.
SMB3: absolutely fantastic in every way. I may have beaten this a few years before beating SMB2, but I only have vague memories of the later stages and Bowser fight so I can't say that for certain. I especially love the mazes. It took me until 2022 (when I finally beat SMB1 for the first time) to realize the mazes are a time-honoured Mario tradition.
SMW: fun and bright and always rewarding. Beat this for the first time in 2013, using a guide for some of the harder-to-find secrets.
Lost Levels: couldn't have beaten this without save states in a hundred years. MUCH easier as Luigi. Chad behaviour from Luigi to be honest
SMB1: delightful remaster, fixed a lot of the janky controls of the original, BUT it fucked up the underground theme by adding a backbeat.
SMB2: game of the year every year. First Mario game I remember beating - first with save states, then without. The remastered artwork is absolutely gorgeous, especially in World 4. This is my go-to game when I want to do some Stress Platforming™.
SMB3: absolutely fantastic in every way. I may have beaten this a few years before beating SMB2, but I only have vague memories of the later stages and Bowser fight so I can't say that for certain. I especially love the mazes. It took me until 2022 (when I finally beat SMB1 for the first time) to realize the mazes are a time-honoured Mario tradition.
SMW: fun and bright and always rewarding. Beat this for the first time in 2013, using a guide for some of the harder-to-find secrets.
Lost Levels: couldn't have beaten this without save states in a hundred years. MUCH easier as Luigi. Chad behaviour from Luigi to be honest
2000
Snake II babey
Replaying the first game on my own on Android, while also watching girlfriend play it on Windows PC. This thing is SO GOOD. So fucking bizarre and so fucking good.
This review contains spoilers
Sir, are you aware that you're a cat?
Played in 2008-09. Needed a guide to finish it, but was so much fun. Used to be a big Neopets player but lost my account a few years ago.
1988
My go-to stress platformer. I've beaten this in-browser several times in a couple of hours max. The artwork is better in the All-Stars version, but the gameplay still rules in this one. Peach main.
Fuck Yeah to literally everything about this. Plot, gameplay, voice acting, soundtrack, everything is next fucking level. I've played through it twice in its entirety and will no doubt do so again in the future.
Fucking legendary. The artwork! The boss battles! The weirdly haunting soundtrack! The deeply frustrating but also mind-expanding difficulty! Played it almost a full decade after first beating SMW1 (which I still love!), and was pleasantly surprised at how grown-up this game feels by comparison.
Game devs: this is such a queer and delightfully positive dating sim <3
Actual game: slutshames you on one path AND promotes a hetero 'family values~' ending on another
Actual game: slutshames you on one path AND promotes a hetero 'family values~' ending on another
2018
This is the only Mario Party that will let me main Bowser, so obviously it's the best one. I also prefer it to Superstars in terms of gameplay (with the caveat, of course, that I'm not a big console gamer in general, having grown up on MS-DOS and emulation, and struggle with the z-axis at the best of times). Using one Joy-Con is great and the vibration/tilt-control games are stupid fun. A thorough joy. And also - it bears repeating - I can main Bowser. What's not to love?
1992
Played on MS-DOS in the 90s and early 00s. Changed my brain chemistry in a fundamental way. The sound design, level design and sprite design are all a pure delight. Replayed via DOS emulator in late 2013; completed the full game during that playthrough. Have since logged multiple hours on the HD Steam rerelease.
2018
Delightfully creepy. Wonderfully constructed. A little too dark and overwhelming for me, but that's on me. I didn't replay to get the true ending, though I tried via the catch-up tool and a guide a couple times.
2016
Main character seems to love the uwu bishonen catboy cats, but is so fucking mean to their own lil regular cat. Hate that!
Carmen Sandiego was one of my first crushes. Femme fatale Carmen with the yellow dress under the trenchcoat, please - accept no substitutes!
Played on CD-ROM as "Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego?" - presumably this was the international release, as I'm not American.
Played on CD-ROM as "Where in Time is Carmen Sandiego?" - presumably this was the international release, as I'm not American.