The “Super Mario” series is Nintendo’s flagship franchise, defining and refining the platforming gameplay that endeared the company to millions worldwide. Since their debut in 1985, the “Super Mario” games have maintained their classic sensibilities while evolving with the times. Though the series made the jump to 3D in 1996, it still routinely puts out side-scrolling titles too, keeping its entries varied and fresh. We’re looking at the games across the series’ 40+ year history that we keep coming back to the most.
To be clear, we’re not necessarily the best “Super Mario” games of all time, though there is considerable overlap on that score. Instead, these are the ones that are worth the most fun to return to, offering familiar comforts and secrets to uncover. More than just nostalgia, going back and replaying these games offers their own joys that exemplify what Nintendo’s long-running series is all about.
Here are the five “Super Mario” games with the most replay value ranked, each well worth revisiting over and over again.
5. Super Mario Land
The first “Super Mario” title for the Game Boy, 1989’s “Super Mario Land” is also the shortest game in the series to beat. That really just lends to its appeal and replayability, along with just how different the experience is from its home console-based counterparts at the time. The game has Mario travel to Sarasaland to rescue Princess Daisy from the extraterrestrial villain Tatanga. In addition to the usual platforming action that the series is known for, there are levels where Mario pilots vehicles, blasting through waves of enemies.
If you have about 30 minutes and want to blitz through an entire “Super Mario” title, “Super Mario Land” has got you covered. This is the most straightforward gameplay experience on this list, but given its brevity, that doesn’t feel like a hindrance. Instead, this is the perfect “Super Mario” game to take on the game and complete in its entirety, both with a breezy difficulty and truncated length. “Super Mario Land” is engaging enough to stay entertaining but great to just go on autopilot for a while as you traverse Sarasaland and save the day.
4. Super Mario Bros. 3
This is where the games that we’re starting to mention here get as deep as they are fun to play, at least in terms of the “Super Mario” series. Nintendo put a capper to the original “Super Mario Bros.” trilogy for the Nintendo Entertainment System with 1989’s “Super Mario Bros. 3.” The game doubles down significantly on the amount of secrets packed into the game and the variance in level design. Whether you’re playing through all eight worlds from top to bottom or using the warp whistle to jump ahead, the game is still a joy to proceed through.
Whether you’re lounging around the house looking for a classic NES game to revisit on a weekend or lock in on platforming action, “Super Mario Bros. 3” delivers. The gameplay is smooth and intuitive, while there is an underlying warmth that keeps the experience cozy. Producer Shigeru Miyamoto admitted to being embarrassed by “Super Mario Bros. 3,” but we think the game has aged beautifully. As expansive as players want it to be while still maintaining its overall sense of fun, “Super Mario Bros. 3” closes out the series’ classic era in style.
3. Super Mario World
Arguably the best 2D “Super Mario” game, 1990’s “Super Mario World” took the series into a 16-bit presentation on the Super Nintendo. The game heightens the amount of secrets from “Super Mario Bros. 3,” while offering its own side-scrolling platforming thrills. From Star Road to the switch palaces hidden around Dinosaur Land, there is a lot for players to discover. With all of its shortcuts and alternate routes, the game brings quite a bit of depth to the typical 2D platforming experience.
“Super Mario World” is one of those games that defined 16-bit gaming, and that appeal is maintained decades later. Compared to “Super Mario Bros. 3,” the 1990 title feels like an incredible upgrade, even released just two years after its predecessor. Like many titles on this list, the two-person multiplayer offers alternating fun, along with the ability to replay stages unlike its predecessors. Offering both breadth and depth, “Super Mario World” offers tons of fun with each playthrough.
2. Super Mario 64
I wouldn’t go as far as to say that “Super Mario 64” is the best 3D “Super Mario” game, but it’s easily the one that I go back to the most. The amount of different moves that Mario can do in his first 3D adventure are still impressive, and the level design remains as varied and engaging as ever. The game’s also loaded with secrets and a rewarding 100% completion. Only 70 out of 120 stars are needed to finish the story, but hardcore fans will go the distance. Whenever Nintendo remasters and remakes the game, these instances have only ever been additive, not messing with the mechanics and presentation of the experience.
Even decades after that initial wow factor has worn off, “Super Mario 64” continues to excite gamers. Subsequent 3D titles like “Super Mario Galaxy” and “Super Mario Odyssey” bring their own enjoyably fresh takes, but we’re not as inclined to revisit them as the 1996 classic. Nintendo put a lot of care into taking its marquee franchise into 3D, and that hard work is still paying off 30 years later. The best-selling N64 game of all time, “Super Mario 64” encapsulates the charm of an entire console generation that we’re still celebrating decades later.
1. Super Mario Bros.
The original “Super Mario Bros.” ticks a lot of the boxes that we mentioned for prior entries on this list. It’s a relatively simple and straightforward adventure that fans can breeze through in anywhere from a handful of hours or a matter of minutes, depending on how they play. That variance comes down to the game’s introduction of secrets and shortcuts, here only lightly integrated but still making it possible to beat the game in less than an hour. The game also offers two-person multiplayer, letting players swap between levels and lives to see how they compare in progressing through the adventure.
There’s a reason why Nintendo themselves constantly return to the template they created with “Super Mario Bros.” for newer titles like “Super Mario Bros. Wonder.” The gameplay formula is as purely enjoyable and timeless as they come, a distinction that remains true over 40 years later. The game is so easy to pick up and play, yet it still comes with that full-fledged sense of reward every time you beat a level. A retro game that everyone needs to play at least once, “Super Mario Bros.” still provides a tremendous amount of fun every time we boot it up.
