Super Mario Land Review: A short yet sweet experience

Super Mario Land was the first handheld Mario experience, and its transition to a portable system came with some... downgrades. However, many people still love this game, while others hail it as the weakest Mario platformer we've ever gotten. Where does RPG Ranked stand on this dilemma? That's a good question because that's what we will be tackling in today's review: Super Mario Land Review: A short yet sweet experience.

Level Design - 6

While the very minimal level design and lack of quantity in the levels hold this game back, I can't help but love these silly cute little levels. This game did a fantastic job with making every level feel totally unique, which some 2D Mario games have certainly struggled with. The two best parts of this game's level design are 1) the incredibly unique enemies that are completely distinct from any other Mario levels and 2) the absolutely peak submarine and spaceship levels... please bring this back way more often, Nintendo! Overall, while the platforming is super basic and the quantity of levels here is almost embarrassing for how expensive the game was at the time, the game still has lovely, cute levels.

Art & Graphics - 2.5

This game's graphics, while cute in their own way, were quite terrible. While I understand it was one of the first games developed for the system and forgive the game for its bad graphics, there's just no denying that Mario looks completely ridiculous in this game. Everything just looks so scrunched up and uncanny, which is so silly. Honestly, I can't hate on the art here, but I'm also not gonna praise it either when so many games on this system look so much better. If you've played this game before (or even just looked at the graphics), I know you completely understand.

Music - 6.5

Taking the immense file size and technical limitations into account, this game has got a pretty banger soundtrack—definitely one of the better ones on the Game Boy. There's just an adorable, nostalgic vibe for this soundtrack that's really just not present in a lot of games. While it's not impressive in today's terms, hence the lower score, it was perfect for the Game Boy, and the catchy tunes are just so lovable.

Combat - 3

While the combat in this game is not very great at all, it's absolutely a step-up form the original Super Mario Bros and The Lost Levels. I really enjoy the Super Ball power-up and the enemies! And the boss fights were actually incredibly epic. The final boss is still my second favorite in the 2D Mario subseries, only being eclipsed by the legendary New Super Mario Bros Wii final boss.

Platforming - 2

Sadly, this game simply doesn't have any standout platforming sections that really elevate the game. In fact, the platforming is so basic I almost would've preferred the whole game to be side-scrolling like the spaceship and submarine levels. The best platformers have those segments that you discuss with friends, or those parts that take so many attempts but are so satisfying at their conclusion. However, as-is, this game doesn't satisfy either of those critical criteria.

Theming - 5

Where the original Super Mario Bros destroys this game in some regards, Super Mario Land has far better level theming. Sarasaland simply absolutely wrecks the original Super Mario Bros titles in the way the world looks and feels. No other Mario game really revisits the world and vibes of this game, making for a zany different feel here. The theming of this game really made it a one-of-a-kind experience. However, with the fact that later Mario games do it all a whole lot more interestingly, sadly, this game can't get too high of a score here.

Story - 2

The fact that this game has a unique setting among the Mario series is the only reason it even gets any more than a single point. Sarasaland is great, but we all know that Mario's stories are usually pretty bad. And, yes, I am expecting platformers to try with their stories because they are completely capable of doing so. I judge less harshly with platformers because you don't wanna break up levels, but you can still try harder than this.

Controls - 2

This game's controls are, sadly, a decent step-down from the NES games. The platforming and way Mario moves just is completely jank and one of the least entertaining Mario platformers to control. Not much else to say.

Quality of Life - 10

I can't think of anything about this game that has significant problems that decreased my enjoyment of the game. Sure, the controls and feel of Mario aren't the best, but that's its own category for a reason because that's really integral for platformers. Honestly, this game's proper balanced. Ain't bad at all.

The Verdict

Fun Factor - 4
Overall Score - 43%
Letter Rating - D

While I love the cute worlds, enemies, and levels that Super Mario Land has to offer, it simply is a pretty weak platforming experience as a whole. I can't do anything but give this a lower score with its lack of content and its weak status compared to the rest of the games in the series. It's a good enough game, but not an outstanding game. Yet, with how short this game is, I can't help but recommend this game to everyone. It's a brief enough, good enough experience to wholeheartedly do so.

Primary Version: Super Mario Land (Game Boy)