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What do you think is the best early (1985 - 1995) Mario game?

What do you think is the best early (1985 - 1995) Mario game?

  • Super Mario Bros

    Votes: 31 4.9%

  • Super Mario Bros. 2

    Votes: 29 4.6%

  • .Super Mario Bros. 3

    Votes: 269 42.6%

  • .Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels

    Votes: 9 1.4%

  • .Super Mario World

    Votes: 359 56.9%

  • Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

    Votes: 127 20.1%

  • Other (Leave a comment)

    Votes: 6 1.0%
  • Total voters
    631
oni-link

oni-link

tag reference no one gets
Member
Oct 25, 2017
16,176
UK
Multiple votes allowed, so pick all the ones you think are best if you think it's a tie between several games

I'm mainly curious as to where some of the less critical regarded games fall

Personally, I think 3 and Yoshi's Island are the best, though I'd like to replay World as I've not played it for a good while, but as a kid I always liked 3 more than World

What do you think, Era?
 
Last edited:
Samb

Samb

Member
Oct 28, 2017
59
Mario World is imo the best classic Mario game. But Yoshi's Island is a better game overall.
 
Skittzo

Skittzo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
41,037
SMB3 of course.

Which also happens to be like the second best Mario game overall, not just early.
 
OP
OP
oni-link

oni-link

tag reference no one gets
Member
Oct 25, 2017
16,176
UK
Samb said:
Mario World is imo the best classic Mario game. But Yoshi's Island is a better game overall.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I grew up with the original trilogy on NES but only ever borrowed a SNES which had Yoshi's Island. Island is a masterpiece, and when I replayed it a few years ago I thought the same

I also played World around the same time but thought it wasn't as good, but I've only beaten World by getting to Bowser only, not doing a lot of the exits, so I need to give it another go really
 

Deleted member 51848

Jan 10, 2019
1,408
Super Mario World is the pinnacle of video games and 30 years later I believe this is still true.
 

TGB86

Member
Jan 27, 2021
1,176
SMB3. But Lost Levels is deeply underrated. Playing through that for the first time with my roommate in college was one of the best gaming experiences of my life.
 
JudgmentJay

JudgmentJay

Member
Nov 14, 2017
5,286
Texas
Yoshi's Island for me. I replayed Super Mario World 1 and 2 fairly recently and I liked Super Mario World slightly less than I remembered (like a 9/10 instead of 9.5/10) while Yoshi's Island was still a 10/10. It just has so many fun ideas and unique boss fights. To be fair I haven't played the others in a long time, but I know my answer wouldn't change.
 

Deleted member 3017

User requested account closure
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Oct 25, 2017
17,653
Voted SMB3. It's one of the few video games I'd classify as near-perfect.

I love every game on this list, except for Yoshi's Island, which I genuinely hate.
 

Mr. Virus

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,715
I'm SNES > NES because lol, didn't have a NES growing up.

But Yoshi's Island is just amazing.
 
QisTopTier

QisTopTier

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,756
2, 3, world, yoshi are all equally good in different ways and if I could only pick three of them I'd remove world
 

Deleted member 36578

Dec 21, 2017
26,561
Any given day I'll pick 3 or World. Just depends on my mood I think. They're both so freaking incredible. Today, I pick World.
 
Dark Mantonio

Dark Mantonio

Member
Nov 1, 2017
1,783
As much as I love SMB3, Super Mario World had the best of everything.

I don't consider Yoshi's Island to be a Mario game the same way I don't consider Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 to be a Mario game.
 
greenbird

greenbird

"This guy are sick"
Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,100
Always preferred SMB3 between the two*, and it's the one I've went back to the most. The different world themes are fun and help change things up. They're also just more memorable to me than the levels in SMW, which all just seem to blend together. World does a lot of cool things, and while Mario games aren't known for their difficulty, I always disliked how incredibly easy it was overall. It felt like a step forward in some ways and a step back in others.

*I know the thread is comparing all the games, but 3 and World are the main contenders for me.
 
rpm

rpm

Into the Woods
The Fallen
Oct 25, 2017
12,382
Parts Unknown
Gonna be in a small minority when I say: SMB1.

I like all the games on that list though, to some degree
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,454
Mario 3 and World are neck and neck for me.

I gotta go with Mario 3's tight level design and amazing pacing.
 
Goldenroad

Goldenroad

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Banned
Nov 2, 2017
9,475
Since I got to vote for multiple, 1-3 and World, assuming 2 is Super Mario USA.
 

Deleted member 91227

Feb 4, 2021
5,002
Super Mario World by a long shot for me. I grew up on NES and SNES games, and that's the one Mario game I do a replay every few years. SMB3 is very good as well. The others I rarely touch. Yoshi's Island is solid as hell gameplay wise, but the art style never really clicked for me and the crying babies drive me nuts.
 

ThreePi

Member
Dec 7, 2017
4,806
Mechanically World is the best, but there's something about SMB3 that makes me look back on it more fondly.
 
Vivian-Pogo

Vivian-Pogo

Member
Jan 9, 2018
2,047
Yoshi's Island is easily my favorite but I view it as more of a Yoshi game than a Mario game.

In terms of pure Mario games, I give it to 3. I never really loved World. I enjoyed it and I could eat the credits theme for breakfast, but I just don't want to replay it much.
 
B00T

B00T

One Winged Slayer
Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,650
Toss up between SMB3 and World for me, I still play both of them fairly regularly when I'm bored.
 
Leo

Leo

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,589
Yoshi's Island is the only answer, but few will be brave enough to say it.
 
TheKid

TheKid

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,573
Bay Area
As classic as world and 3 are, I just feel right at home with smb. I always got so bored of yoshis island, to this day I have never beat that game or smb2 USA
 
Aaron

Aaron

I’m seeing double here!
Member
Oct 25, 2017
18,077
Minneapolis
Mario World is my pick.

I think Mario 3 is better in many key ways but Mario World just feels homier to me. I think the save functionality helps a lot even though it's not really relevant at this point (given the quick save/load features in basically any official emulated version).
 
zombiejames

zombiejames

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,105
Super Mario Bros. 3 for me. Nothing else really comes close. The best Mario game ever made and one the best games of all time.
 
Wood Man

Wood Man

Member
Oct 30, 2017
5,449
It's close between Mario 3 & Mario World.

But I'll give the edge to Mario World just because I played that game a ton.
 
Red Liquorice

Red Liquorice

Member
Oct 27, 2017
9,131
UK
It's a tough choice between SMB3 and SMW. I have way more nostalgia for the SNES, so there's that but both are really stellar games, it is a tough call.
 
raangz

raangz

Member
Oct 30, 2017
107
Yoshi's Island squad babyyyyyyyyyyyyy

I feel like games like Celeste beat classic Marios at their own game; makes it hard for me to go back to them. Yoshi's isle is totally unique and has this fucking BOP:
 
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