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Super Mario Bros. Deluxe (GB)
by illogicology
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe for the Gameboy Colour is essentially a port of the original Super Mario Bros on the original Nintendo Entertainment System home console. It was one of the earlier titles available for the Gameboy Colour and offered some of the best Mario gameplay on the system. It was also one of the few ports of the original ... Mario Bros. at the time and introduced the game to a new generation along with a raft of extras.
Super Mario Bros. should be a familiar story by now. Mario and Luigi must travel through a series of intricate, well designed platform levels, defeating nasty mushrooms and evil turtles as they go. Their mission is to rescue Princess Peach who has been abducted by a giant turtle named Bowser. The plot is paper thin in this first instalment and is little more than a kick start for the game. Back in the 1999 when this came out I was still only twelve, this was the first version of the original game I had the pleasure of owning. It surprised me even then just how well this game, originally released the year before I was born, stood up to more recent platformers.
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe contains almost identical graphics and gameplay to the original game. To compensate for the original's now drab colours and the lack of backlight on the Gameboy Colour, the shades are pumped up a bit here and Super Mario Bros has never looked quite so rich. It has inherited a few limitations from the hardware, mainly that the resolution of the Gameboy screen is a fair bit smaller than that of a TV, as such the view is tightened in around the player. Pressing up or down will pan the camera and allow the player to get a look around but this isn't the most convenient option and I forgot it was there so often I just muddled through without it. It does make the game a little trickier, being killed by something the level designers expected you to be able to see is very frustrating but thankfully it doesn't crop up too often. The basics of the game are still fun and it's nice to revisit them.
Of course, Super Mario Bros. Deluxe wouldn't be Deluxe without some swanky extras. It has quit a few and they're all worth the purchase. Firstly, some of the better levels from the original Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2 are included. This was released as "The Lost Levels" in America many years ago but has never seen a European release. These are essentially variations on some of the better levels from the original game but the difficulty has been tooled up to make them a real challenge for even expert players. It also includes some options for the Gameboy printer, you can print off some Mario themed stickers or other bits. I did not own a Gameboy printer, nor did I really want one so I never tried this. I'm sure it was a blast.
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe is not in the same category as the Super Mario Advance series. That is, there are no graphical upgrades or tweaks to be found here. It's a pity. While the Gameboy wasn't that much more powerful than the NES, its own Super Mario Land 2 offered graphics much more akin to Super Mario World than this. Instead this is a plain and simple port that packs in extras rather than upgrades. It's still a better buy than Super Mario Bros: Nes Classic Series on the Gameboy Advance which offered nothing new but it's still not that necessary. If you're one of the few who have never played the original Super Mario Bros, own a Gameboy and happen to see this at a good price then it's worth it. It's not worth going out of your way for though. In the years since this was released the Wii has arrived with its virtual console, the Super Mario Advance series has offered enhanced remakes of all the other entries in the series. Nintendo, the Mario series and even gamers have moved on. Nintend offered that nice first step towards releasing their old archives with this title but these days it just doesn't offer enough.
Gameboy and Gameboy color games are getting a bit rare now. This however was a very well selling game and often surfaces on eBay or Amazon for less than Ł5. It will run in any Gameboy or Gameboy advance console. Unfortunately this cartridge will not play in any version of the Nintendo DS.
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The Legend of Zelda - Link's Awakening (GB)
by illogicology
Link's Awakening of the original Gameboy was the first Zelda title released for a handheld device and only the fourth in the series. Developed at a time when the series was still working through unfamiliar territory, it doesn't have any of the cliche's inherited from Ocarina of Time on the N64 and remains a remarkably solid adventure. ...
The story is a direct sequel to the Super Nintendo game, A Link to the Past. Our hero Link is shipwrecked on a the small Koholint island and discovers that all is not well. Monsters are roaming the island and Link is trapped, to escape he must wake the Wind Fish that is supposed to watch over the island. In typical Zelda fashion this means working through a series of puzzle laden dungeons and retrieving some powerful artefacts. In this case, eight magical instruments.
The plot develops in a surprisingly intricate fashion and unfortunately the story has developed a reputation for having an "it was all a dream" twist ending. A reputation that is more than a little inaccurate. As Link explores the island, he discovers more about its nature. Things become a little surreal as questions are raised as to the Island's reality and more importantly, the role the Wind Fish plays in all this. As Link completes more dungeons he becomes embroiled in sentient nightmares trying to stop him from waking the Wind Fish. It's a surprisingly sophisticated narrative that one would not expect to find on a Gameboy title and is probably the best RPG to ever see release on the system.
Gameplay is very simple, taking its cues from the original Legend of Zelda on the NES and A Link to the Past. The player controls Link from an overhead perspective and is equipped with a sword and shield. Most monsters are relatively simple to defeat but large in number with some challenging boss battles scattered throughout. The game is challenging when it comes to puzzles but keeps combat manageable, the focus here is the adventure as a whole and the game rarely disappoints.
Graphically, Link's Awakening is a gem. The Gameboy's power was in the same region as the original NES but this title is so much more stylish that the original Zelda that you would think the hardware were worlds apart. Developed in a very similar style to A Link to the Past it really fits as a sequel and looks absolutely beautiful.
Links Awakening has been released only twice to date. The original Gameboy version was followed by a Gameboy Colour release that added a few new dungeons and some nice use of colour. Both are largely the same though both are also quite difficult to find. If you want to play this, and I would recommend it to anyone, then you're probably going to have to look to eBay. Prices are going to vary depending on the seller but I wouldn't be surprised if you paid the same as some modern games.
Links Awakening was developed for the original Gameboy system, both the Gameboy and Gameboy Colour versions will play in any Gameboy, Gameboy Pocket, Gameboy Colour, Gameboy Advance or Gameboy Advance SP. They will not play in any Nintendo DS console despite fitting into the GBA slot.
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Pokemon Pinball (GB)
by dramaxxqueenxx05
I bought this because I had a huge addiction to pokemon games and then the pinball version came out, so I thought this game was a huge hit!
However I do believe that this game is more harder than the original pokemon games and catching the pokemon is actually harder than you think it is. Cause this can take up to three ... attempts to catch one pokemon - which is a pain! The time I had this game I caught about five pokemon, so this game is a huge dissapointment for some, especially those who thought that this could be a bit more easier than playing the original pokemon game!
However there isn't much to do with this game except play the game just like normal pinball, but you can the few chances to practice your skills to gain points, level, etc.
And the other thing all you can do on this game is that you can look up words and change the level of the game.
But the good thing about this game is the graphics which are pretty awesome and the music pretty jazzy too.
Personally, this is a game not to buy if you think this game will be easier than other pokemon games, cause seriously it's not! And to be honest I don't have much to say about this game, cause it doesn't have much and so there's not much to say. Sadly i'm going to give this a low rating, but if the game was better i would give this a higher rating.
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