Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2

A pinch of a-Princess?a dash of a-Luigi?stir in a-some a-fresh a-Yoshi a-Eggs?Mama mia! That?s a spicy game!

Through mechanizations most inexplicable, magical beings have managed to cram the original SNES Super Mario World into a GBA cart with enough room left over for a nice assortment of new stuff like special coins and the ability to play any level as Luigi (complete with floaty 2D jumping skills). To make matters even more magical, not one iota of the graphics? clean, colorful quality or tight control has been lost in the translation. And there?s even an enhanced copy of the original Mario Bros. arcade game (though it?s the same as in the first Super Mario Advance game) just for kicks.

Mmmmm?Magic Fungus?.
If you?ve never played Super Mario World, it may seem bizarre to see people getting so worked up over a port of a 10-year-old game?but play it, and you?ll understand. It?s a resounding testament to Mario?s original design?and a lesson for lazy developers who don?t bother thinking through their 3D worlds?that Mario still holds up so well today. Levels have been meticulously laid out to work in perfect harmony with Mario?s abilities, leading to countless secret areas, surprises, and awesome rewards. The challenge level is extremely fine tuned: Nothing feels cheap, nothing feels contrived, and everything is extraordinarily fun. Mario handles like a finely tuned platform-hopping machine, just as he always has?meaning anyone frustrated with swimming or cape-flying controls will be equally frustrated today. If anything suffers (and only marginally), it?s the music?but only because the GBA?s speakers aren?t exactly wonderful?though the sound effects and Mario?s oregano-tinged vocalizations hold up quite nicely.

Tiramisurific!
So this here?s an easy one, folks: Unless you?ve got something against magic mushrooms or lizards with unusually versatile tongues?or, perhaps, if you played the original SNES version so many times that your children will be born with instructions on finding all the Star Road entrances etched into their DNA?then you?d be nuts not to buy this perfect re-creation (and, in a few ways, enhancement) of one of the most extraordinary platform games ever made. Buy it even if you?ve played it (c?mon, it?s only $34.99), think of the potential in a GBA Zelda: A Link to the Past port or the possibilities offered by a new 2D Metroid?and set your saliva glands to permanent drool.

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