PixlBit

Mario’s 16-bit debut serves as an introduction to Nintendo’s most legendary console and fleeting farewell to 2-D Mario platforming. And Yoshi.

Ports and the Cartoon

Mario World has been re-released on the Wii Virtual Console and the Game Boy Advance. While the VC port is basically the emulated SNES original, the GBA port (Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World) changed some details around. Mario and Luigi are both selectable characters. Luigi is based on his SMB2 USA self with a high flutter jump. If Luigi is riding Yoshi, Yoshi won’t swallow enemies and instead spits them out.

Super Mario Advance 2’s biggest flaws are its graphics and sound. Due to the game being developed before the GBA SP was released, the graphics were brightened with the GBA original’s screen in mind; as such, it looks very washed out. The SNES tracks sound horribly tinny on the GBA’s sound chip.

And just like its previous two forebears in North America, Mario World got a cartoon series from DiC. The problems from the other two series still exist in this one: the character design for Yoshi is beyond horrifying in most episodes and the original caveman character made for the cartoon is extremely annoying and adds nothing to series. On the plus side, at least we don’t have to hear horrible song covers by the Koopalings anymore.