This is what we call “Nerdstalgia”.

I’d say somewhere in the Mushroom Kingdom squeezed into a little cartridge called Super Mario Brothers 3.  It’s bright, colorful, pixel perfect palette slaps a stupid childlike grin across my face as the red curtain lifts and the title drops onto the screen. It’s fantastic. And it gets me giddy every time. This is both 50% nostalgia and 50% 80’s Nintendo-can-do-no-wrong magic.

I mentioned on the podcast that growing up even my mother would select Luigi and co-op her way through the worlds of SMB3 with me. Which is to say, ANYONE could play this game. You didn’t need to put them through some lengthy tutorial or watch them fumble hopelessly trying to figure out which button does what. People just knew. People just got it. People just played.

The best. Bring the back, please?

Every bit of this two dimensional wonderland screamed polish. It blew past expectations of what an original NES game could do graphically, rivaling even games on much better 16-bit hardware. Each overworld map was animated and vibrant, laying out a distinct mood to separate itself from the ones before it.

In the levels themselves you’ll find yourself running away from an angry 8-bit swooping sun one minute and then jumping around in a flying green boot the next. The variety of gameplay mechanics and tightness of the controls make the game a simple joy that I love going back to every chance that I get. Sure I love Super Mario 64, the Super Mario Galaxy games, and every bit of Super Mario 3D Land…but there’s something about the retro old school whimsy to Super Mario Bros. 3 that sets it apart from the rest.

This sun is no fun.

Do you have a particular game you go to when you need a little pick-me-up?

-Neil

Twitter: @neilporche