New Super Mario Bros. Review
So I just got a Nintendo DS. I know I probably should have waited because of the rumors of a new version coming this summer, but my urge to get one and continual nagging from my brother pushed me over the edge. So as I was picking up my black DS from Best Buy, I decided to get New Super Mario Bros. because I’ve heard so many good things about it. And most of those good things were true.
I won’t be doing my normal outline for reviews because this game just isn’t big enough to warrant six different full length sections (unlike Mass Effect). Instead, I will focus on just three sections of the game, visuals, sound, and gameplay, and then add some miscellaneous parts of the game at the end.
Visuals
There’s not much to say here because this game is on a Nintendo DS and while the system has very useful capabilities, graphics is not where it excels. The DS just can’t put out as many pixels as the PSP. But the art style of this game is great. It is reminiscent of the old Super Mario Bros. but does things in a new, different way.
Sound
The music in this game is actually very good. The soundtrack is very well done and the characters react around it. For example, on a very low beat, the goombas will stop for a moment, then continue when the beat has finished. The one problem with this great music is that it is coming out of the DS speakers. They are just too small and low quality to really appreciate it. I suggest getting headphones for this game.
Gameplay
The gameplay of New Super Mario Bros. is definitely the highest point of the game. With this game Nintendo once again proved that they are the dominant species when it comes to platformers, because every level has a unique and very fun design to it. There are innovative little nuances that make this game really stand out in my mind. For example, there is a level in which there are meteors raining from the sky that you must dodge as you traverse the level (yes, it’s as hard as it sounds). This is another game that is just pure fun on the gameplay side.
The Rest
Interestingly, Nintendo took many of the moves from it’s 3-D Mario games and puts them into this game. For example, you can ground pound, wall jump, and triple jump. Also, many of the bosses are references from Super Mario Sunshine like Petey Piranha.
One of my gripes with this game is the way the difficulty scales in it. Worlds 1-7 are relatively easy but then the difficulty jumps up hugely at World 8. There should have been more of a gradual increase.
Another problem with this game is the length. Or is it a problem? The game clocks in at about 6-7 hours, with some replay value. That seems like a very good number, especially for a handheld game. But I still wanted more. God I’m such a greedy bastard.
Rating: 
Random Person Who Loves New Super Mario Bros. Reply:
July 27th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
I love that game! And I have a couple tricks to beating it.
1) If your ever low on lives, or you just want a boost, go to 1-1. There, you will find a question mark box with a giant mushroom in it. Go /behind/ the box, and follow the mushroom to the edge of the cliff. (It should be going right.) Don’t let it fall in the cliff! Get it at the edge of the cliff, and smash through everything, and don’t hesitate. You should be giant through the whole level, and knock down the flag-pole. You will get five 1-Ups. You can do this as many times as you want, but remember, you can only go up to 99 lives!
2) If you want a mini in your storage, go to 1-4, and there is a question mark box with a mini in it. Get the mini, and /don’t die!!!/ Finish the level, then do it again. Get the mini from the box while you are still mini, and it will go into you storage pocket thingy.
3) If you want a giant in your storage, you can go to 1-2. Right after the checkpoint, there should be a green tube with a chomper thing coming out of it. Go down that tube, and you should be in a room full of boxes. Grab all the coins, and then jump on the turtle so he goes into his shell. Kick him onto the ground, and he should start destroying the boxes on the ground. You have to be small to get through the gap, so if you are fire or big, shrink down by getting hit once or twice. (It depends on what you are.) Once the turtle has destroyed all the blocks, you can run through into another room. There should be boxes with a bunch of those evil brown mushroom things walking around. If you run across the room, you will see a question mark box. Jump on top of it, and slam down. A mushroom will begin to rise out of the top, and run left of it before it can get to you. It will start running right, banging against the wall. Then you need to jump on top of the box that the mushroom came out of and jump as high as you can going right. The mushroom will start going left. You need to follow it until it goes under the green tube. Get it there. Because you can’t grow right there, it will go into your pocket. Neat, huh?
Another way is to finish a level with 99, 88, or 77 on the timer, and a orange mushroom house will pop up. Go into it, and hit the box. A giant mushroom will go into you pocket.
4) To unlock world 4, you have to beat the boss for world 2 as mini Mario.
To unlock world 7, you need to beat the boss for world 5 as mini Mario.
5) This isn’t really a cheat, it is just fun. =D While on the screen where you choose which file you are going to play in, hold down the L and R buttons, then choose your file. You will be playing as Luigi!
6) Here are the warp cannons. (:
World 5 Warp #1: Take the secret exit from the World 1 Tower.
World 5 Warp #2: Take the secret exit from Stage 2-A.
World 6 Warp: Take the secret exit from the World 3 Ghost House.
World 7 Warp: Take the secret exit from the World 4 Ghost House.
World 8 Warp: Take the secret exit from the World 5 Ghost House.
7) There is a way to beat the whole game in just 20 levels!
Do Level 1-1.
Do Level 1-2.
Do Level 1-3.
Do Tower (take secret exit)
Cannon to World 5.
Do Level 5-1.
Do Level 5-2. (Take secret passage)
Do Level 5-3.
Do the Haunted House (take secret exit)
Cannon to World 8.
The just do all the levels in world 8!
Complete a level with 44, 55, or 66 on the timer for a life stall.
Complete a level with 77, 88 or 99 on the timer for a Mega Mario Mushroom.
[Reply]
Mark Reply:
July 27th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
Wow, thanks a ton for that information… It’ll help people who haven’t beat the game loads. By the way, I’m just curious, are you interested in writing for the blog? Just wondering…