When you think about famous video game characters, Mario is probably one of the first that comes to mind. The former Italian plumber has been eating mushrooms and saving princesses for several decades now, and he’s built up quite a collection of games. Of course, none of his newer titles can compare to his first post-arcade release, Super Mario Bros. It was the game that changed everything.
Keeping people interested
If it weren’t for titles like Super Mario Bros., the video games industry as we know it possibly wouldn’t exist. Back in the day, people thought home consoles were just a fad, and they had declining sales to prove it. Thankfully, Super Mario Bros. showed just how exciting video games could be and helped restore interest in them. It’s no wonder sales for this game were so extraordinary. Everyone was buying it to see what the hype was about, and they weren’t regretting their decision.
Show don’t tell
When Super Mario Bros. was released, it gave people a new way to play games. It introduced things like a gradual increase in difficulty, as well as subtle ways of teaching players what to do. Although the levels slowly became more challenging throughout the game, environmental factors and context clues always showed you how to make it past them. It was the definition of showing over telling, and it was hugely inspirational for future games in this series and many others.
Searching for secrets
It’s always exciting finding an easter egg in a video game. They’re typically nods to other titles or, in the case of Super Mario Bros., secrets to excelling in the game. There were several instances in this release where players could find hidden warp pipes that allowed them to access new worlds earlier than intended. These easter eggs prompted people to start searching for secrets in other games with the hope of uncovering something exciting. Unsurprisingly, this kind of thing is now the norm thanks to Super Mario Bros.
A fair challenge
It’s hard to imagine a time when you had to go out to an arcade just to play a video game. However, several decades ago, that’s what people had to do. Super Mario Bros. debuted at a time when this was still the case and helped convince people to buy home consoles. The game was just as challenging as those found in arcades, but you were far more likely to excel at it. After all, your machine wasn’t trying to keep you playing so it could drain the money from your pocket.
Starting a trend
Super Mario Bros. set the basis for what all future titles in the series should look like. Although things have differed more recently, particularly now that Mario’s gone 3D, certain aspects still remain. It’s not just this series that has been inspired by Super Mario Bros. either. So many video games that we know and love have taken ideas from this title and rolled with them.
It looks like there’s a lot we should be thankful to Super Mario Bros. for. This title changed the video game landscape forever, and for that, we’ll always be grateful.
