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Friday 25 January, 2008
[Entry 2]
Gameplay:
The second session was very different than the first, instead of playing with a friend I played on my own. The experience was very immersive. My focus was set completely on Mario and reaching the end of each level. As I played longer my proficiency skyrocketed. I was running through each level at top speed, hitting enemies on their heads and getting all sorts of power-ups.
Super Mario World was and still is a very creative and in many respects revolutionary game. The main map of all the levels gives you the feeling that you are playing in a very large area when in fact you are not. Each level consists of basically the same elements. One generally has to get from the beginning of the level on the left, to the end on the right. It’s amazing how the creators of this game were able keep the player interested in a game where the basic goal is almost always identical to the last. Some of the techniques that made this possible were things such as the different mushrooms, power-ups, the ability to hold shells and shoot them too, and even bonus and secret levels.
Design:
Although I love this game, there is something I though that could have used some improvement. At the end of each ‘sub-world’ there is a boss in his castle. This was completely fine with me, but the actual boss battles left something to be desired. Each time, Mario only has to hit the boss three times to defeat him! I don’t know what the thinking is on this; possibly to keep it easy enough so that the player can progress, or maybe to place less emphasis on each boss. Whatever the reason, I thought that the boss battles should have demanded more from the player than merely jumping on someone’s head three times.
Overall I had a lot of fun playing Super Mario World. It may be about 18 years old now, but it still can compete with current games, which is a very rare thing. I am glad to still own a copy and recommend it to anyone who has never played.
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