Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 Review

It shocked me as I was looking through reviews on the site that this game, which earned awards in our Game Freaks 365 – Video Game Awards 2003, but didn’t have a review up for it. I have decided to remedy that situation, even though I am technically the GCN reviewer and am stepping out of my domain to do so. I am just going to make the disclaimer that I am reviewing this game based on how it executes on a Game Boy Player since I hardly ever play games on my GBA.

Super Mario Advance 4 is a remake of Super Mario Brothers 3 based on the version that appeared on Super Mario All-Stars for the SNES. As a result, much of the game is like the version on Super Mario All-Stars. I am therefore going to keep this review brief based on the presupposition that you have all played that version.

The graphics are exactly like the Super Mario All-Stars version, with possibly a few minor and barely noticeable improvements; enough said.

The sound effects that have carried over are exactly the same as they were on the All-Stars version, but some more simplified Mario sayings appear on this game for both Mario and Luigi. They don’t add anything to the game, but they don’t detract anything major either.

So far as gameplay goes, it plays like the All-Stars version, except Nintendo saw the need to simplify some areas of the game to make it appeal to gamers who weren’t used to the original difficulty. Give me a break! The original wasn’t that difficult. Either way, this game is about medium difficulty for those who haven’t played it before.

As replay goes, it just depends on how much you want to go through the same levels over and over again. With a game like this, such a thing will happen, unlike the traditional 30+ hour game that is released now.

Now, none of the above is taking E-reader bonuses into account. The demo cards are each fun to watch once or twice and the item cards only make the game easier, although they give the option of using items you aren’t supposed to have in earlier levels. The level cards are what make the E-reader packs really worth purchasing. They are generally more challenging than many of the levels of the actual game, and there are things to collect in them to increase the replay value.

I suggest anybody with a GBA get this game, unless you have one of the other two versions and aren’t interested in having a portable version. If you do get it, I also suggest trying to find a used E-reader (or buy a new one) and getting at least the E-reader level cards.