This review, as well as all of my reviews on this forum, are seriously condensed thanks to the forums text limit as well as the inability for most members to actually fully read all the garbage I type out carelessly anyways. If you want intricacies on battle systems or the backstory, feel free to look up a decent PREVIEW on the net and then come back here and read about the good and bad sides of the game. Anyways, on with the "review"...
Super Mario Advance
Presentation:
Can you say "Blast from the past"? I hope so because that\'s just exactly what this game is. Never have I been overcome with such a feeling of nostalgia until I plopped this game into the system and started rocking the giant enemies. The atmosphere is full of giant green platforms and the menus are filled with lots of digital voice-overs absent from the original game this takes after. Fortunately, all of the additions made to this GBA title are a serious plus and a definite compliment to the original.
The menus are easy to navigate and the save anywhere option is quite nice. The bright and fluffy colors and light-hearted catchy music add loads to the atmosphere entrapping you into the wonderfully silly, albeit cleverly intriguing, imagination of Miyamoto San. Easy to start, easy to save, and easy to navigate menus... what more could you want for a game?
Graphics:
This is a classic Nintendo game redone slightly to show the GBA\'s superior graphics, but unfortunately, it does very little to show that it surpasses the 8-bit Nintendo system. Some characters are super enlarged to add some comic relief to the game, but others are the same classic representations of old. Typically, I\'d shun this type of display, but in this case, it works incredibly well. Besides that, I would have preferred Super Mario World rather then this title as a display of the GBA\'s superiority, but beggars can\'t be choosers and this is classic Mario gaming that just can\'t be ignored.
There are four characters in all fully ready for your own personal use with their own attributes and colorfully articulated animations. Thankfully, these characters are just as colorful and loveable as before and their familiarity factor makes them instantly likeable by just about anyone who plays games.
Sound:
This is where the GBA truly improves upon this classic title. The characters now have digital voices for each of their actions when they get hit, pick up a vegetable or enemy, or strain to pick up a large enemy. Even some bosses have introductory voices showcasing the GBA\'s new sound system. Some sounds are even redone to include those used in Super Mario World. All in all, the sound effects package is truly amazing.
Complementing a tried and true graphics engine and digitally remastered voice work is the classic tunes of the Mario levels of past. These songs will instantly pull you back into the 1980\'s and quickly remain in the deep recesses of your mind for all the days. You\'ll be walking down a hallway with your co-workers or your classmates and suddenly begin busting out in full force with Mario level tunes. Of course that will make you look like a complete buffoon, but that\'s just how catchy those damn tunes are.
I\'d like to make one personal comment about the voices before I complete this section: You\'re either going to love them or hate them. Personally, I enjoyed them enough to continue listening to them constantly while playing through the levels, but others will find them so intolerable that tossing the game into a bottomless pit will not be enough to rear them from the deep recesses of your brain. Let this be your only cautionary tale when picking up the game and listening to its newfound sound library.
Gameplay:
I\'m sure if I say the word \'classic\' one more time, you will all raise your giant vegetables above your heads and rain down harsh, yet fresh, carnage upon my being, but for the sake of all you would-be gamers out there, that\'s just what it is, classic. I use that word as sparingly as I can, honest.
Seriously though, this game is a classic to all those who have played it before, but to those new to the whole Mario in 2D thing, you will never find another game where you can pick up a snake, throw it at another snake, then toss a giant vegetable at the third snake. That\'s right, giant vegetables. In addition to those vegetables are also giant bombs and acorns for stacking. Let\'s also not forget about the GIANT vegetables as well.
So, pick up a giant vegetable, toss it at an enemy; is that all there is to it? Hell no. As I said before, there are four characters in the game and each one has different attributes for the player to master. Mario is of course the most well balanced character. Luigi is a proverbial springboard wuss while Toad is a powerfully fast wussy jumper, but Lets also not forget about the floating Princess Toadstool. Each character’s attributes can greatly benefit in certain levels. For example, large vertical areas benefit best from Luigi\'s jumping ability and super gaps to be leaped over are definitely a job for Princess Toadstool. The list just goes on and on, but it\'s up to you to use each character to their fullest potential.
With an incredibly simple gameplay style and a simple story coupled with a much increased difficulty level, which grabs a bit from previous Zelda games, it\'s easy to see why Mario Advance is as great as it was to the older generation while remaining a great fresh new experience for the next generation.
Lasting Appeal:
Fortunately, since the game has been touched up in the difficulty department, people will have no trouble at all spending hours just beating the assortment of levels. Plus, the ability to play each area differently with another character is quite refreshing, as each level becomes a new challenge. For example, Toad can\'t make certain jumps without the assistance of a "step ladder" of sorts so you must be careful when entering certain areas. With all these additions and this "classic" style of gaming returning to the palm of your hand, you\'re going to be hard-pressed finding yourself hating this title even after hours of consistent play.
Lets also not forget about the 4-player Mario Bros. game included in this concoction. I\'m sure all of you will take full advantage of the single cart performance of the GBA\'s link cable while smashing your friends heads in with a some blunt object. I know I will and that\'s why it\'s worth playing over and over again.
Bottom Line:
It\'s incredibly easy to get lost in the splendor of just about every Mario title, especially one with as much originality as any Mario title released. I\'m sure this was the game that coined the phrase "veg-out" in the first place and it\'s a phrase that this game is definitely deserving of. You\'ll enjoy it every second you play it from it\'s frustratingly outlandish enemies to its upside-down log rides on the waterfalls.[/i]
Final score: 8.5/10
Not an average
