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The 33rd Anniversary of Super Mario Bros

As many may already know today marks the 33th anniversary of the original Super Mario Bros game which appeared on the Nintendo Entertainment System back in 1985. The original Super Mario Bros game is one of the most popular video games of all time. Since its on the NES back in the mid 80’s Super Mario Bros has managed to sell over 40 million units worldwide and is seen as one of the few games that helped put the 2D platform genre of gaming on the map. To this day Super Mario Bros is seen as a classic by many people within the gaming world and would be considered a game that has helped shape the landscape of the gaming between the mid 80’s and early 90’s.

Super Mario Bros has spawned a series of 2D sequels such Super Mario Bros 2, 3 for the NES which were all very successful. We also got to seeSuper Mario World for the Super NES which was probably the best selling game console for that system back in the 90’s. Without Super Mario Bros in the mid 80’s it would be hard to imagine what the gaming world would be like today. Its incredible to think that legacy of arguably the most popular video game character of all time started 33 years ago today. Super Mario Bros is still one of the greatest platform titles of all time and without its hard to see where Nintendo would have been without it.

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TMNT (1989) vs Battletoads (1991) which game was more successful?

When it to NES video games Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles along with Battletoads are considered to be among the hardest titles from the 8 bit era of gaming. In terms of which game was more successful overall really depends on how you compare the two games. While Battletoads was more of a beat em up Ninja Turtles felt like a complex platform game.

Even though, Ninja Turtles was arguably at its peak in terms of popularity during the late 80’s-early 90’s the NES game was almost impossible to beat. Battletoads on the other hand had a two player mode which made completing the game in its entirety somewhat possible. While Konami has made various cool games during the late 80’s-early 90’s TMNT for the NES is a game that some would agree could have been much better than it was. In this case many would probably give Battletoads the slight edge over the NES Ninja Turtles game in general.

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Contra’s Jungle Theme (1987) vs Mega Man X Opening Stage (1993) which VGM was better?

When it comes down to classic Nintendo themes we got to hear many cool soundtracks on the NES along with the SNES. While the Contra game for NES had some nice toons during the late 80’s the MegaMan series in general had memorable themes as well. While Jungle theme for the NES Contra game is generally considered one of the best soundtracks in a shooter game Mega Man X had countless songs that were instant classics.

Even the opening theme for Mega Man X was incredible because it set help set the tone for the rest of the game as a awesome adventurous run and gun platform title. In terms of which VGM was better really depends on which series you are more a fan fan of in general. However, since the MegaMan X is on the 16 bit SNES console opposed to the 8 bit NES many would be inclined to give the Opening Stage for the game the edge over Contra’s Jungle Theme.

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Should the Excitebike series make a return?

The original Excitebike game was one of the most well known titles for the Nintendo Entertainment System during the 80’s.  Since the 80’s the only real sequel that we have seen is Excitebike 64 which was released for the Nintendo 64 back in 2000.  When the original Excitebike game was released for the NES many people found it to be exciting yet very challenging.  Even though, Excitebike 64 looked and felt completely different from the original game many people would argue that trying to keep racers on their bikes was just as much of a challenge as ever. There were so many things about Excitebike 64 that added to the replay value of the game itself. 

The inclusion of at least 20 different tracks in season mode along with fun mini games and the ability to design your own custom track made Excitebike 64 over two times better than the original.  Since the development of Excitebike 64 many people have probably wondered why Left Field Productions never made a sequel for the Wii or Wii-U.  When Excitebike was released for the Nintendo 64 it managed to sell at least 2 million units worldwide.  If there was an Excitebike title for the Wii it could have sold at least one million units worldwide if the game developed the right way and was marketed properly.  It might be too late to get an Excitebike game for any Wii consoles but it’s not to late for the series to make a return to the Nintendo Switch.

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Should there have been a Karate Kid game for the SNES?

As we know the movie Karate Kid was very popular back in the 80’s.  The movie had become so popular that a game was made for the Nintendo Entertainment System based on the movie itself.  After this game was developed by Atlus and released for the NES in 1987 many people found the game too be much harder than it actually looked.  This side scrolling 8 bit title only had four levels but issues dealing with stiff controls along with an onslaught of opponents in some parts of the game made Karate Kid seem like it was unbeatable.

The idea of having a remake of the original Karate Kid game with better controls  and graphics along with more levels such as bonus stages would have been really cool.   However, it would have been questionable on what type of numbers Karate Kid would do in terms of sales for the SNES.  The NES version Karate Kid fell below the expectations of many people in terms of sales.  If there was an SNES version of Karate Kid it probably would have done similar numbers in terms of sales.

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Were NES games too hard in the 80’s?

Street Fighter 2010 NES

When it comes down to video games the 80’s had arguably produced some of the most difficult games that anyone could have played.  For the NES we had games that seemed impossible to complete such as Street Fighter 2010, Battletoad, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ninja Gaiden and others.  There were many games for the NES that were unforgiving especially since players generally had three lives to complete them. 

Mega Man 3

 Games like the second and third Mega Man titles for the NES were both long and unforgiving while giving players a limited amount of lives to complete the entire game.  While the 8-bit era was known to have some of the most difficult games of all time games such as Super Mario 1-3 can be seen as exceptions.  


NES titles such as Super Mario Bros 3 may have been difficult but for the most part it was forgiving in comparison to titles such as Street Fighter 2010.  Players could at least save their progress in Super Mario Bros 3 opposed to getting to the last level and losing just to start the entire game all over.    Shortly, after the 16-bit era Nintendo has reduced the difficultly of their games during the late 90’s-early 00’s.   While there are still many games for Nintendo GameCube and Wii are difficult they seem easier than older NES titles.  

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What if the Legend of Zelda remained a 2D side-scroller?

Zelda II The Adventure of Link

When it comes down to the second Legend of Zelda title in the series some people look at it as the black sheep of the original trilogy.  It was the first  game to 2D side scrolling action in the entire Legend of Zelda series.   While the side scrolling concept for The Adventure of Link was interesting the overworld map feature during travel it was something seemed innovative at the time.  In fact the overworld travel looked similar to that of the Pokemon games that would eventually be used during the 90’s.  When it came to actually gameplay the 2D side scrolling parts of the game had felt restrictive  in comparison to the original Zelda title and Link to the Past. Thankfully, Nintendo had decided to ditch the 2D side scrolling gameplay for the Zelda series.

If Nintendo had made Zelda: Link to the Past a 2D side scrolling action adventure game mixed with overworld map travel the game probably would not have obtained the level success that it did during the early 90’s.  In fact, if a majority of the Legend of Zelda games were similar to the second game as a 2D side scrolling title the series could have been easily forgotten overtime.  The Legend of Zelda series was not cut out to be a 2D side scroller despite the Adventure of Link being received positively by fans and critics.  Also, with games like Link’s Awakening and Link to the Past reverting back to the overhead gameplay opposed to 2D side scrolling action  was probably the best choice that Nintendo has made.

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Which decade was the best for platform games?

Super Mario Bros (2).jpgThe platform genre of gaming has been around since the 80’s and since then many people have wondered which decade was the best for that particular genre.   The original Super Mario Bros game is quite possibly the most popular title ever in the platform genre of gaming.  While the 80’s included mostly 8-bit gameplay for various Mario games we eventually got titles like the Sonic the Hedgehog series during the 16-bit era in the of gaming. 

As the Super Mario Bros series was slowly transitioning into the 16-bit Super Nintendo game console the Sonic the Hedgehog series was starting to become increasingly popular for the Sega Genesis.  Not only was the gameplay for both the Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog series impressive but the colorful graphics led and sprites used in most of the titles added to the appeal of those games.

supermario64.jpg

 By the time we reached the mid to late 90’s we got games like Super Mario 64 and Sonic Adventure which introduced players to a whole different style of platform gaming.  The concept of a 3D open world environment was something that many people were amazed by when Super Mario 64 was released.  Instead of simply just running and jumping Mario could utilize various attacks against his enemies.  While Sonic Adventure was similar Sega had decided to Main the fast paced run and jump formula that was popular in the older Sonic games.  

Super Mario Galaxy (2).jpgBy the time we reached the 00’s the platform genre started to improve visually with some games such as Super Mario Galaxy.  The 2000’s was a good decade to be a fan of open world 3D platform gaming despite not being the most popular genre during time.  We got so many classics such as the New Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2 along with others.

Super Mario 3D World.png

  When it came down to platform gaming in the 10’s we began to see more creativity develop in this genre.  Super Mario 3D World for the Wii-U was a great example of this.  The idea of having multiplayer open would gameplay with up to four characters was something that many peopl believed should have happened sooner.  Along with Super Mario 3D World we got Kirby’s Return to Dreamland which had  simultaneous multiplayer gameplay which is something that we might start to see more from platform games in the near future.  While many people argue on which decade is better in relation to the platform genre some would say that things are starting get even better going into the 2020’s. 

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Is Link the best silent protagonist in video game history?

Legend of Zelda majora's mask

When we think about some of greatest video game characters of all time Link from the Legend of Zelda series is one of the first names that comes to mind.  Link has been around since the 1980’s and is considered to be one of the most popular video game protagonists of all time.  One of the things about Link that is special is the fact that he managed retain his popularity for over three decades as one of the key figures in Nintendo along with Mario.   But unlike Mario the role that Link plays in the Legend of Zelda is that of a silent protagonist.  Now when many people think about old school games that feature silent protagonists some titles that comes to mind are Chrono Trigger, Grand Theft Auto III, Bioshock and Halo 3.

Zelda Skyward Sword (2)

Even though, many people may have different opinions on which game has the best silent protagonist many people can acknowledge the fact that Link has to included in the top ten.   When we look at games like The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past, Majora’s Mask, Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword people cannot help but to be impressed by what they see in terms gameplay and storytelling.  One of the most impressive things about the Legend of Zelda series is the overall theme.   The theme about a  kid who grows up to become a legendary hero is something that seemed more common in 80’s and 90’s then what people would see nowadays.   The fact that Nintendo could make the legendary hero theme work in the 10’s and still remain very popular is something that is very impressive.  In fact, if another video game company tried to do the same thing in this day and age with the legendary hero concept it probably would not work since people prefer relatable and edge characters in today’s video games.

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Could Sony have competed with Nintendo during the 80’s?

PS1

When the Nintendo Entertainment System had become very popular in the 80’s it seemed like it had no competition at all.  Towards the later part of the 80’s the 16-bit Sega Genesis had arrived which had forced Nintendo to step their game up with the development of the SNES which was eventually released in the early 90’s.  When it comes down to the 8 & 16 bit eras of gaming Nintendo along with Sega have been battling back and forth since the late 80’s and all throughout the 90’s.   Is Sony had decided to conceive a game console during the 80’s it makes some people wonder how the landscape would have been like.   If Sony had decided to release an 8 or 16 bit console during the 80’s would Nintendo have had as much success as it did?  When Sony had created its first game console known as PlayStation it started of in the mid 90’s as  a 32-bit console.

 

SNES CD

The fact that Sony had started off as a 32-bit console and started to dominate their competition in both Sega and Nintendo was very impressive.  As many people know prior to the development of the PS1 console Sony was expected to collaborate with Nintendo to release a game system entitled the Nintendo PlayStation.   But due to a fallout between Nintendo and PlayStation the game system was never released and both entities ended up competing against each other in the gaming industry.  Some would argue that if Sony could take on Nintendo and Sega during the 90’s and dominate its competition then the 80’s would have been no different.  However, Nintendo was much more popular during the 80’s then it was in any other decade so it would definitely be tough to tell.