The all-time classic is back with an all new homebrew adventure!
As everyone on the planet knows, Super Mario Bros 3 on Nintendo's 8-bit NES console is one of the greatest - if not the greatest - platform games of all time. It blew gamers away back in 1990 (or earlier if you were in Japan) and still remains as enjoyable as ever thanks to the expertly crafted platforming mechanics, exciting and varied worlds to explore and the multitude of different power-ups - one of which, the Tanuki suit, was brought back by popular demand in the recent 3DS outing, Super Mario 3D Land. If, like me, you have played Super Mario Bros 3 so many times over the years that it's impossible to keep count, you will be delighted to hear about this new ROM hack which is now freely available online. Three years in the making, Super Mario Bros 3Mix is the work of one man, 'Southbird', whose previous work includes Sonic Epoch, a homebrew love letter to the Sonic Saturday morning cartoon from the early 1990's.
Unlike most ROM hacks, which simply change certain graphics or mess with level layouts, Super Mario Bros 3Mix is a completely new adventure featuring new stages, characters, powerups, music and mechanics lifted straight from other Mario games, both old and new. In a nod to Super Mario Bros 2, you can choose to play as either Mario, Luigi or Toad (but no Princess Peach, who is being held captive as usual) and, even better, Yoshi is here in full Super Mario World ridable mode! There are classic stages, enemies and boss encounters from both Super Mario Bros 1, 2 and 3 as well as the sublime 16-bit offering, Super Mario World. While on a more recent tip, the three star coins in each stage that appeared in New Super Mario Bros and it's sequels are added - encouraging you to explore every inch of each stage - along with the bonus card matching game from New Super Mario Bros Wii.
Power-ups have always been one of SMB3's finest assets, and they are now joined by some new additions. Fans of the excellent Super Mario Land 2 will be delighted to hear that the bunny ears are back, while fans of the Wii 2D Mario game will enjoy the inclusion of the Penguin suit - a powerup which grants the player the ability to freeze enemies in their tracks.
As we are all busy these days, you will be pleased to hear that, unlike the original SMB3 cart, 3Mix comes with the ability to save your progress! There are also half-way checkpoints in each stage, which lessens the frustration without making the game too easy - these new levels are no pushover!
It all adds up to create one spectacular game, all held together by the perfect platforming that SMB3 has always offered. The new levels are varied, interesting, and a joy to explore, while seeing familiar elements or hearing remixed music from other Super Mario titles will send shivers of nostalgic glee through any retro Mario fan. Seriously though, if you like SMB3 then 3Mix is utterly essential. I take my hat off to guys like Southbird, as they manage to take a classic game and add a new lick of paint and inject new ideas in order to provide a fresh experience for fans. The only dampener on proceedings was the regular slowdown that I experienced via emulation on PC, PSP and my original Xbox, but it wasn't enough to ruin the experience. Maybe playing it via the physical cartridge version, or via a NES flash cart, on the original hardware will eliminate this, but I am unable to test this theory.
Anyway, enough chat.. go download it from Southbird's page right this instant!
Download link : Super Mario Bros 3Mix
Power-ups have always been one of SMB3's finest assets, and they are now joined by some new additions. Fans of the excellent Super Mario Land 2 will be delighted to hear that the bunny ears are back, while fans of the Wii 2D Mario game will enjoy the inclusion of the Penguin suit - a powerup which grants the player the ability to freeze enemies in their tracks.
As we are all busy these days, you will be pleased to hear that, unlike the original SMB3 cart, 3Mix comes with the ability to save your progress! There are also half-way checkpoints in each stage, which lessens the frustration without making the game too easy - these new levels are no pushover!
It all adds up to create one spectacular game, all held together by the perfect platforming that SMB3 has always offered. The new levels are varied, interesting, and a joy to explore, while seeing familiar elements or hearing remixed music from other Super Mario titles will send shivers of nostalgic glee through any retro Mario fan. Seriously though, if you like SMB3 then 3Mix is utterly essential. I take my hat off to guys like Southbird, as they manage to take a classic game and add a new lick of paint and inject new ideas in order to provide a fresh experience for fans. The only dampener on proceedings was the regular slowdown that I experienced via emulation on PC, PSP and my original Xbox, but it wasn't enough to ruin the experience. Maybe playing it via the physical cartridge version, or via a NES flash cart, on the original hardware will eliminate this, but I am unable to test this theory.
Anyway, enough chat.. go download it from Southbird's page right this instant!
Download link : Super Mario Bros 3Mix
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