Why every Mario game is the best AND worst in the series

This little plumber starred in the best games, but which was the bestest?

Words: Henry Gilbert on December 28, 2011

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GAYMER - December 28, 2011 6:05 p.m.

I love these types of articles :D
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WTeen8 - December 28, 2011 6:04 p.m.

I like Sonic 2 more than Super Mario World. Give me your hate! But, yes this is a great article, every reason is sound, and great. Especially with 3D Land. Love the game, but aside from some moemnts where I kept screwing up, it was easy...until world special 1....This is going to be one wild ride. Can't wait to see the special 8 castle...
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Sjoeki - December 28, 2011 5:04 p.m.

I'm not saying new super mario bros. wii is a bad game but everytime I play it, it feels like playing super mario world for the snes with coop. Almost all the other core mario games felt like a big step forward after the last one but that one felt like a big step back.
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BladedFalcon - December 28, 2011 4:50 p.m.

I'm gonna go with Super Mario 3, and Then Yoshi Island, even though I agree it stars dangerously far from a mario game in the sense of the main character and gameplay mechanics. Still, i think the game is the pinnacle in terms of visuals, charm, challenge and variety. Not to mention I believe that game has some of the best boss fights of the series. And super mario 3? not gonna lie, Nostalgia has to do a lot with it, since I remember some of the best days of my childhood taking turns with my cousins trying to beat the game, and it was always a blast, even when i played it later on my own and older, still holds up really damn well though, and I kinda find the level design and style more appealing that SMW, as awesome as that game is in itself.
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Nap1400 - December 28, 2011 4:16 p.m.

"We’d say every single game from the PSOne/Saturn/N64 generation has aged horribly" AHEM! Tell that to Kirby 64 and F-Zero X. Those games have actually aged surprisingly well. Other than that little tidbit, good article. Now as a Kirby fan, I would ask that you do one of these things for the Kirby series. Every game is different enough that you could compare them like these articles. I know Kirby isn't as big a series as, say, Zelda or Final Fantasy, but I'd still like to see it.
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Thequestion 121 - December 28, 2011 3:53 p.m.

Super Mario World, Yoshi's Island, and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are my favorites of the series. I never did get to play the original Paper Mario or its sequel, but I did play Super Paper Mario. But those 3 games aren't core Mario games, in my opinion.
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titleofusername98 - December 28, 2011 3:45 p.m.

i dunno. i'm ready for a change in these games. Yes, Nintendo has a winning formula. But they do have to realize that at some point, this is all the same game, no matter how many different things you add to it. It's getting stale.
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masterjoe123 - December 28, 2011 3:30 p.m.

What about All-Stars? I know it didn't have any new content, but 4 great games in one with graphical updates has to count for something.
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kurtissmejkal - December 28, 2011 3:28 p.m.

My problem with an article like this is that you literally leave out so many other titles. I get that the article needs focus, but as many people point out; Paper Mario isn't on here. Mario Party isn't on here. Good old Hank here probably just read the Mario release timeline on Wikipedia and just wrote on each. For the main entries, this article does a decent job -- but there are so many other Mario games left out and I really don't think that this covers everything.
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BladedFalcon - December 28, 2011 4:34 p.m.

And the article never pretended to cover ALL mario games. Here, if you had bothered to properly read the beginning, you'd have found this: "We'll look at both sides of the argument, listing pros and cons for every mainline, non-remake, core Mario game in the series history. " Hank didn't just "read the wikipedia" on Mario. That was always the focus of the article in the first place. the problem isn't with the article or the writer at all. the problem is with all the idiot people asking for games that were never meant to fit in the article in the first place.
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ThatGamerDude - December 28, 2011 2:56 p.m.

No love for Super Mario RPG? Oh well.
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BladedFalcon - December 28, 2011 3:42 p.m.

*sighs* What part of "core" game didn't stick with you? Super Mario RPG is a spin-off, the "RPG" in the title and the drastic change of genre should have tipped you off.
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ThatGamerDude - December 28, 2011 6:35 p.m.

Im not referring to the article, I'm referring to mario games in general.
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BladedFalcon - December 28, 2011 7:26 p.m.

And why do you do this in an article that was obviously not focusing on Mario games in general, just the core platforming ones? Don't get me wrong. I LOVE the super mario RPG games, both the SNES one, the paper marios, and the Mario & Luigi series. in some respects, I probably like some of them more than any core mario games. But that is NOT what this article is about, and well.. there ARE comments regarding to the article...
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austincharlesbond - December 28, 2011 2:43 p.m.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is definitely my favourite
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EwoksTasteLikeChicken - December 28, 2011 2:19 p.m.

Only one missing was Paper Mario.
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Japanaman - December 28, 2011 7:41 p.m.

You left out Mario Bros. Mario Clash, Wrecking Crew, Wrecking '94, Mario Missing Missing, Mario's Time Machine, Paper Mario Series, Super Mario RPG, and Mario's Cement Factory.
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Ultimadrago - December 28, 2011 2:17 p.m.

As for Marios, Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario World share 1st place. Galaxy 1 is the original idea and the initial shock just couldn't be beat by its sequel. That's why I prefer it (also the hub is better). Super Mario World is the last Mario to have difficulty that didn't insult toddlers' intelligence, also Star World.
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gondarpwns - December 28, 2011 1:29 p.m.

Do a zelda.....
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talleyXIV - December 28, 2011 2:05 p.m.

They already did.
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