There are few things I know better than super mario bros 3. I’ve replayed the game on basically every Nintendo platform over the past few decades, exploring its levels over and over again, looking for every secret. But there was one thing I never paid attention to: timers. I always take a slow and methodical approach to games, ignoring the tiny countdown. this changed Nintendo World Championship: NES Edition, a collection of NES classics chopped to pieces for sheer speed. It showed me a new side of a game I thought I was familiar with.
Named after Nintendo’s occasional live esports tournaments, the series takes 13 of the company’s most iconic games and divides them into more than 150 different challenges. However, instead of playing the entire game in its entirety, you experience brief moments with the goal of completing them as quickly as possible. This is a speedrun for beginners. It makes a familiar game faster and more engaging.
It starts simple. The first challenge I played in single player mode was getting the mushrooms in the first level of the original super mario bros.. Afterwards, as Kirby, I swallowed an enemy and ran towards the first ladder Donkey Kongand collect the Morph Balls metroid vanguard. The earliest pieces were like tutorials on the basics of how to play each game. Most last only a few seconds. You can even watch a short gameplay video before you start so you know exactly what your goals are.
After completing a level, you’ll earn points based on your speed, as well as some in-game currency that can be used to unlock more challenges. It’s a fairly steady progression: you start with the basics and then move on to completing entire levels or defeating bosses. Eventually, things became real hard. And the structure is very open, so you can tackle the games in the order they’re given, or jump around if you want. I found myself initially sticking with old favorites, e.g. metroid vanguard and mario Before you brave a clunky title like this Balloon fight or ice climber.
However, even when doing challenges for a game I’ve played many times before, I found myself playing differently, obviously because the goal here is all about speed, but I had a hard time getting really competitive with myself. The speed surprised – even me. When playing solo, the screen is divided into two parts: your current game progress on the left, and your current fastest time on the right. I’m not usually a perfectionist, but I’ve been playing challenges over and over just to save a few tenths of a second and get that coveted S rating. Part of that is because everything is so straightforward; it only takes a second to restart the challenge and do it again.
For a game like this super mario bros 3, which forced me to give up my old habits. There’s no point in wasting time collecting unnecessary energy or defeating enemies. Instead, I have to find the cleanest route through the level, which usually means avoiding almost everything and making sure I can successfully jump. Also, repetition has helped me appreciate other games that I didn’t have much patience for before.
I’ve been struggling with twitching sword fights Link’s AdventureFor example, the challenges surrounding combat are daunting. But it’s like banging your head against a wall ring of fire Boss, I found myself slowly learning how and when to attack, and I actually got better at the game. This series didn’t change my opinion on everything, though. In fact, I’d probably hate it Balloon fight Even more so after trying some of the “Master” challenges.
This structure makes for a great party experience. You can play with up to eight people locally, and things can get chaotic with everyone’s gameplay shown on screen at the same time. This adds to the difficulty of focusing solely on your own gameplay amid everything happening on screen, not to mention the inevitable yelling in real life. There is also an online component. In one mode I was able to test, there will be five challenges per week that you can replay as many times as you want to earn a spot on the leaderboard. I don’t find this mode as fun as playing alone or with others, but it’s eye-opening to see how good some of the players are.
As much as I enjoy playing the role of a speedrunner, this collection is probably best paired with an actual NES or a subscription to Switch Online and its retro games. It gave me a strong urge to revisit these classics and instilled in me a new confidence: now, I might finally be able to beat Link’s Adventure and its skeleton knights, or super mario bros.‘ A cunning sequel with poisonous mushrooms. But most of all, I’m excited to have a new excuse to play super mario bros 3 Again – one eye on the timer.
Nintendo World Championship: NES Edition It will be released on Nintendo Switch on July 18th.
