Customer Reviews

Super Mario Bros. / Duck Hunt

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is where it all began, folks. Many of us who grew up in the 80's remember this game fondly, because back then, we didn't have as big of a gaming selection as we do today. We only had a few games, and Super Mario Bros. was one of them.

You know what though? People seem to think we must have had it rough back then, only having a few games available for the NES in the mid 80's. Not much in the way of variety. But the truth (the HONEST truth) is this- the smaller choices we had, the more we appreciated the few games we had, unlike today where games seem to be designed with the intention of sucking out as much storyline elements as possible and quickly moving on to the next game to find out about the conclusion of said storyline.

Back in the day we didn't play games like that. We'd wait patiently for a new groundbreaking gaming experience to take us by surprise. Oh and trust me- the new innovations back then *were* incredible. Unlike anything we'd seen previously. It seemed like a few new amazing things happened every year. This really helped the replay value shoot through the roof.

Really, do people even care as much about video games today? It's not like new, groundbreaking features are coming along anymore (except for the Wii and that amazing Nintendo controller, but nothing revolutionary concerning the GAMES themselves are being made anymore).

No, back in the mid 80's, small platform games laid the foundation for what was soon to come. Every single year sparked a new innovation. The first Super Mario Bros. was popular, fun, and playable for just about anyone, and THAT is what matters most of all. It mattered back then, and it matters now.

The object is to just blow through the short levels collecting mushrooms and coins, jumping across platforms, and finding the best way to deal with the amazing enemies throughout the levels. That's it. Simple genius I like to call it.

The fact that the game features water and castle levels shows that Nintendo was really onto something huge back then, and they would continue to make one quality Mario game after another while building and expanding on the water and castle levels for future games. Not just Mario games either- how many games these days have water and castle themes? That's right- literally *thousands*.

Sometimes the first is extremely important, and this game is a perfect example of that. Experience brilliance.

I've had an NES since before I can remember, and I still prefer it over the newer systems. Mario is always a classic, and Duck Hunt is fun for challenging others. Yay Nintendo!

Super Mario Bros. Is the greatest NES Game! It featured great graphics (for 1985) and outstanding game play. If you don't like Platform (pitfall) styled games, this game is not for you. Super Mario Bros. is an outstanding game, where the Mario Bros. go out and try to save Princess Peach Toadstool, and rescue her and her Mushroom Kingdom. If you have a NES, GET THIS GAME!

EXTRA FEATURE! This version also includes Duck hunt, but you need the zapper gun (not sold on amazon, but is in the NES section of www.atariace.com) But normaly this 2 Game Cart., is cheaper than plain Super Mario Bros. Duck hunt is also a great shooting game ( Non gory and is also family freindly) these together are a great combo!


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I got this game for a great anniversary present...my husband loved it....thank-you for prompt service.....

After receiving my first Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991, I instantly became hooked on one game in particular: Super Mario Brothers. It's relatively new style of play (side-scrolling) in combination with an original story and the perfect difficulty arc (anyone can beat the beginning levels, but it takes a true pro to complete the game) made it the game that I played over and over again. Whether it was screaming in frustration due to the Hammer Brothers, hearing in disbelief that the Princess "was in another castle", or the sheer joy of beating that next castle, I played the game over and over again. Of course, being such a young child, I was never quite talented enough to complete the complicated jump moves or decipher the complex mazes (towards the end) well enough to actually beat the game. Yet, I still had a heck of a time trying!

Flash forward (LOST-style) 10-12 years later: Having been introduced to the NES at such a young age, I continued by brand loyalty to Nintendo by playing the Super Nintendo, Nintendo '64, Gamecube, and Wii. I had a lot of good times with those machines, but one day I got the urge to fire up the old NES again, for old times sake. Within moments (well, not exactly moments, as it took some blowing on the connectors and jiggling the game up and down) I was instantly transformed back into that excited six year old kid who couldn't wait to come home from school and play Mario. This time around, with a little practice, I was able to conquer even the final Bowser.

While playing the game at that older age, though, I was amazed at the purity of it. It was original (which can't be said about most SNES games), it was straight-forward (not like Donkey Kong '64, for example), it's difficulty arc progresses in a logical fashion (not like GCN, where in many games you have to be a master gamer to step right in), and the game's internal bugs are cute and looked forward too, not annoying and troublesome as is sometimes the case on the Wii.

Thus, taking all those things into consideration, Super Mario Brothers for the NES is, at least in my opinion, perhaps the closest thing to a "perfect video game" as has ever been created. Not only did it practically save the entire gaming industry, but it also gave hours of entertainment to people across the world. To me, only The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (for the '64) can challenge Mario Bros. in terms of overall game quality.

So, if you are a nostalgic video gamer (like myself) who is a bit frazzled by the current obsessions and skill levels, I would highly recommend dusting of the old NES box and popping in Super Mario Brothers (it often comes on the same cartridge as Duck Hunt). After a few moments of dickering, a few tries to re-master the old skill-sets, you will NOT be disappointed.

My dad had this game on the nes before he gave it to me. He said that this was his favorite out of the three. So i decided to try it. It is the most easy one of the three to me. I have beaten this game but not the other two. However i have gotten to the last world on them. It is my 2nd favorite game for the nes. This game originally came with the system so it is the oldest and it still works. Now this is what made nintendo and mario popular. That is why mario is still around today. Now you probably know the story but mario and his younger bro, Luigi are plumbers but they got sent out on a job to rescue the princess peach from the evil turtle bowser. You beat all of the worlds and defeat him at the end and rescue the princess.... Now duck hunt is fun but i would not buy it by itself. It is hard and the dog is very annoying. I cant play it now because the gun does not work. But entertaining if you are bored and can be fun.

SUper Mario Bros don't need introduction. All I wanted to comment on is buying from other sellers, and it worked great with this game. Of course, shipping cost 4 times more than the game - about $4 - but one can hardly avoid that. I much prefer Amazon sellers to eBay, since Amazon guarantee stands behind them. The game itself was just like the seller described, shipped media mail - got it in a week's time. As much as I don't like dealing with private sellers, it feels quite safe with Amazon sellers.

I'm trying to rebuild my old gaming collection all the way back to Atari 5200 and Super Mario/Duck Hunt was one of the games I decided to re-buy for my NES. I've been playing Super Mario 2, 3, and Super Mario World lately and I think they're tougher than some of the video games that are made these days.

A Note on Duck Hunt

This review focuses more on "Super Mario Bros." This particular version of the game is a dual game cart and includes Duck Hunt, where you hunt ducks with the Zapper Gun (awesome!) and if you miss too many times the b-st-rd dog will laugh at you for sucking so bad at a mere child's game. Now, one thing to be aware of is due to the technology used, Duck Hunt DOES NOT WORK on new televisions such as HD TVs. You'll need an old CRT television. Overall a fun game but the type of title that now aways would be an Internet or phone title rather than a full blown main stream release. How far we have come since the NES days! This is the last you'll hear of Duck Hunt in this review.

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The Review Proper:
Arguably the single most important videogame in history, SUPER MARIO BROTHERS, along with the Nintendo Entertainment System (hereafter referred to as the NES) singlehandedly resurrected the video game industry after the historic crash of 1983-1984. Rather than reviewing the game itself, which has been done many times, I think many people may find the history how of this revolutionary title came to the videogame industry's rescue very interesting; I know I do. I draw much of this information from various websites, one very good one in particular; unfortunately, I can't really plug them due to Amazon's policies. Email me if you want the websites.

By 1983, the gaming industry, in existence for a mere twelve years, had risen to an astonishing 3.2 billion dollar industry. Atari spearheaded the industry, which introduced its first console in 1977 (Atari Video Computer System), and since had grown to hold two thirds of the entire market. However, in 1984 all this would end with a thunderous crash. This concise overview will show you the history of the home consol crash and how SUPER MARIO BROTHERS came to the rescue.

In 1976, Warner Communications bought Atari for $28 million from the company's founder, Nolan Bushnell. Over the next two years, Atari, suffering major production problems and Bushnell's bizarre management, lost Warner millions. Bushnell and Warner's CEO fought, and in 1978 Bushnell was forced to leave. Warner totally revamped the working style, and in 1979-1980, produced twelve new titles. However, Atari was still dragging down Warner's stock. Struggling to gain the market share, Atari made the smartest move they possible could have; in 1980, they began licensing arcade games, the first being SPACE INVADERS. Over the next two years, Atari overtook the market, bringing in over half of Warner's overall profits.

However, very significant problems would totally destroy the infant industry. In 1981, Atari released PAC MAN on the VCS, and, because it was such a huge arcade hit, quickly became a bestseller. Unfortunately, the quality was very low. This was a major blow to the company's image, with fans and critics alike extremely disappointed.

Another major stumble was one of video games' most infamous games, ET. Warner bought the rights from Spielberg for twenty one million dollars. Atari, expecting the game to be as big a hit as the movie, which was the highest grossing film at that point, purportedly made more ET cartridges than there were consoles themselves. ET proved to be a huge flop, nearly breaking Atari.

By 1983, Atari was in serious trouble. Suing Activision (which was disgruntled Atari employees who broke off and formed their own company) and Imagic, the two leading third party developers, Atari tried to gain control over its software catalogue. Atari lost the suits. Third party developers began popping up overnight, and the industry becomes saturated with very low-quality products. (One of the most controversial is CUSTER'S REVENGE by Mystique, where the goal is to rape a Native American woman while avoiding being shot by arrows.) The third-party developers went bankrupt; these cartridges were heavily discounted, and the major companies couldn't compete. Another factor is the home computer market, that was just starting to come alive in 1984. With an increasing amount of computer games and low prices, people started buying these over the consoles.

All these factors lead to the crash of 1984. In 1983 alone, Atari lost $356 million. Warner sold Atari to Jack Tramiel, former head of Commodore. The video game industry died, with no major American corporation coming anywhere near it. Enter Nintendo.

A little history here will be highly illuminating as well. What many people don't realise is Nintendo is a very old company, founded in 1889 (yes, you read that right) as a playing card company. It became Japan's largest playing card company, and was very successful. In the 1960s, they moved away from the cards and got into the game and toy markets. (A very interesting sidenote: during that same decade, Nintendo's president opened up a `special hotel' rented `by the hour.' Supposedly, the married president was one of the hotel's top customers). In the 1970s and early 1980s, the company scored significant points with big arcade hits and the Game and Watch product line. In 1983, Nintendo released the Famicom (Family Computer). It was a massive hit in Japan. In 1983, Nintendo went to Atari because they wanted to release the Famicon to the American market. Do to complications I won't go into, the deal fail through. In 1984 they were looking to broaden their market share.

1985, Nintendo announced the release of the Nintendo Entertainment System. They release SUPER MARIO BROTHERS in Japan, scoring a huge hit. In 1986, the NES comes full throttle into the American market, quickly becoming the biggest selling console ever, largely because of this title. The NES owes much of its success to SUPER MARIO BROTHERS. Coming prepacked with the console, there are an estimated 40 million copies of SMB in existence, making it the highest selling video game ever.

Unparalleled, SMB blew open the doors to the videogaming world. With rich palettes of colour, eight four level worlds, spot-on play control, and expert level design, SMB was a much longer game than most of Atari's products and was a game unlike any other at that time. SMB also had the benefit of being very simple to grasp; run, jump, and fire. It was also the first side-sroller as we know it, though Atari's PITFALL set up the concept. Also, it's one of the best. Without SMB, NES wouldn't have been nearly as big a hit.

In the end, Nintendo came at the industry's key moment. With a powerful new console and a very well-designed game, Nintendo resurrected video gaming. With its phenomenal success of the NES and this game, the video game industry once again took off, becoming one of the world's most significant economical contributors.

And we very largely have this game to thank for it

Not the one I bought recently, but this was the first nintendo game I had received when I was a kid.