Pipotchi posted...
The original DS New Super Mario Bros. is kinda an inverse of this in that its a great platformer (arguably a top 5 2D Mario game) but because of how soulless the later games got it feels pretty much forgotten about now; still vividly remember playing the demo at Target.
I feel like this game still holds up for a few reasons personally.
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No stupid ass power ups. 90% of the game is played with fire flower as your only power up.
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Nonlinear worlds and cool secret exits to find them.
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Fun and creative bosses, probably the best in Mario franchise.
The save only after a fortress shit was a dumb decision. Can't really defend it, but it's clear they wanted to make a new 2D while adding a few new modern ideas into it without compromising the feel of the classic SMB they were going for and IMO knocked it out of the park.
All the other games though feel like they were being made out of obligation rather than inspiration.