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Mama Robotnik · Aug 7, 2011

Lets look at the two games, and consider them on their individual merits. This isn't a thread to compare their influence or impact on the industry, or to praise based on nostalgia.

Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Land

Which do you consider to be the better game, and why?

The WHY is important, I want you to give reason(s) in your answer rather than just naming the game. No "name of the game only" answers please.

You might want to consider things like level design, diversity of gameplay experience, features, visuals, clarity, control and replayability in your answer, but its up to you how you justify your choice. Screenshots and video links are welcome if they help illustrate or support your written opinion.

I'll post my answer later, so not to detract the OP from the question being posed. Go.

ThatObviousUser · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. is probably the better game but it's hard to judge because Land came out later and had the foundation at the start.

It's been a while but I believe the difficulty curve and level design were better in Bros.

Land had a lot more variation in graphics and enemy design, but a lot of it felt a little weird. That added to its charm but made it less of a Mario game in my opinion.

To completely clarify my opinion, I think Land 2 is much better than either game.

slick7rick · Aug 7, 2011

land

i always liked the levels and the enemies better. being portable helped its enjoyability.

Rekubot · Aug 7, 2011

Land is the superior game for me because of its portability and kickass level music. Bros's music is still awesome but I can't really appreciate it anymore after hearing it so many times.

The lack of koopa shell physics is a real bummer though.

ThatObviousUser · Aug 7, 2011

For comparison (not using this to justify any position), here's the level designs for the first level of the second world for each game:

plasticpassion · Aug 7, 2011

I liked SMB better. SML felt a little floaty for some reason

ThatObviousUser · Aug 7, 2011

Also seems like Land only had four worlds to Bros.'s eight, which hurts it a bit in my eyes.

Amalthea · Aug 7, 2011

Bros. might be the better game but Land has such its uniqueness in the franchise that makes it more memorable.

lunchwithyuzo · Aug 7, 2011

Land had better music. Dat ending credits.

Perfect Blue · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. for me is superior to Land simply because it doesn't have any of the wonky physics that are very prevalent in Land.

Super Mario Land 3 over all though.

dallow_bg · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Land is terrible and feels like a TI calculator game.
So the answer is easy.

ZeroGravity · Aug 7, 2011

dallow_bg said:
Super Mario Land is terrible and feels like a TI calculator game.
So the answer is easy.

Pretty much. I've never felt that Land was really that good a game. Certainly doesn't feel much like a Mario game.

PigSpeakers · Aug 7, 2011

Bros simply because Land has some awful physics that barely work. Either that or I'm so used to SMB physics that I can't deal with that game's jumps and running.

Now, SML2... that's a different story.

Mama Robotnik · Aug 7, 2011

dallow_bg said:
Super Mario Land is terrible and feels like a TI calculator game.

Can you elaborate on this?

Super Mario Land has a number of strengths, its got a more diverse series of landscapes and enemies, and a number of different ways to play the game are scattered throughout. The physics are limited and different to the NES, but entirely consistent throughout the game. There's more music and the bosses are far better than Bros' repeated Bowser fights with more hammers.

I'm not saying your opinion is wrong, but its so minimally explained I'm struggling to see your perspective.

Nemo · Aug 7, 2011

Land wins

Biggest reasons is how Mario handled, much better in Land. Plus the amazing underwater level (with the fuckawesome music) versus the awful water level in Bros.

Xander51 · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. is the better game, but Super Mario Land has the better music.

I don't like the controls in Land as much, and even though I love the side-scrolling shooter bits, the overall vibe of the game feels a little off from the rest of the mainline Mario titles. Really, the tightness of the controls is my main issue with Land. I remember thinking they were okay back when I played it on the original Gameboy, but playing it now on 3DS it kind of feels awful to me.

entremet · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Brothers easily.

Land was fun, but I hated the physics and uninspired shooting levels.

TreIII · Aug 7, 2011

SMB just felt like a much more "solid" game overall, even if Land had more interesting enemies and boss fights. There was just a few things, physics wise, that I never did care for in Land.

For example, I hated the fact that even though "Super Balls" were a much more versatile weapon (and could collect coins for you), you could only have ONE on the screen at a time. Very bad thing to take into account if you miss what you're aiming for, and a ball takes forever to disappear because it's rebounding off a wall, then a pipe, then the ceiling, etc., etc.! :lol

Now, SML2? That's easily one of the most solid games in the series, and I'd easily put that right alongside the likes of 3 and World.

Extra Sauce · Aug 7, 2011

People who answer Land have played Super Mario Bros. too much and enjoyed Super Mario Land too recently.

Nuclear Muffin · Aug 7, 2011

SMB is the better game by far. The physics/controls are more satisfying in SMB, the level design is much more interesting with more varied designs and challenges and with many more secrets to find (all without having to resort to changing the style of gameplay like SML's shmup levels), the game is twice as long and the game is generally balanced better.

That being said, SML is a very different game from SMB and is well worth playing.

Jigsaw · Aug 7, 2011

bros

land 1 physics sucked,so the game sucked

land 2 was great,land 3 was fantastic (my favourite out of all 2d marios)

ThatObviousUser · Aug 7, 2011

TreIII said:
Now, SML2? That's easily one of the most solid games in the series, and I'd easily put that right alongside the likes of 3 and World.

High five!

SML2 was awesome. The only parts about it that weren't (framerate, large sprites leading to decreased field of view) were due to the limits of the GameBoy.

SML2 as a 3D Classic? Yes please.

imthemaid · Aug 7, 2011

Xander51 said:
Super Mario Bros. is the better game, but Super Mario Land has the better music.

I don't like the controls in Land as much, and even though I love the side-scrolling shooter bits, the overall vibe of the game feels a little off from the rest of the mainline Mario titles. Really, the tightness of the controls is my main issue with Land. I remember thinking they were okay back when I played it on the original Gameboy, but playing it now on 3DS it kind of feels awful to me.

What do you mean by tightness exactly?

Eusis · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. It's a more solid feeling game that'll last you longer, whereas Super Mario Land's physics feel off and thus make it feel like a cheap knockoff, and the game's half or less the length. I do appreciate the different flavor from Mario standard, but I can probably thank that on coming early enough before it really gelled, Super Mario 3D being renamed Super Mario 3DLand is begging for comparisons between then and now for how the franchise is treated.

RockmanWhore · Aug 7, 2011

SMB because of the better controls/physics, so better gameplay. SML is more varied though, each world looks differents and there are two nice shmup levels, the boss are different from each other too. But SMB's core gameplay is better so it's the better game.

Parallax Scroll · Aug 7, 2011

super mario bros cause it's in color

Betta Lines · Aug 7, 2011

I think the physics argument boils down to which one you played first. SML was the first Mario game I ever played, so it feels great to me. When I first tried SMB, I thought the physics were really weird in comparison.

SMB is the better game overall in terms of length and difficulty curve.

SML is special to me though as it was my first Mario and my first GB game. And has been mentioned before... dat ending music.

SML2 is horrible though. The sprites take up far too much of the screen. It feels totally out of proportion.

SkylineRKR · Aug 7, 2011

I think I like Bros better. But Land wasn't bad either, although it was really short.

I loved SML2, was very epic and big for a handheld game. Its Wario Land 1 that I completely hated.

LQX · Aug 7, 2011

You get a submarine and airplane in Super Mario Land...it wins by default in that it's better designed but I rather replay Super Mario Bros.

Roto13 · Aug 7, 2011

I like Super Mario Land, but come on. The physics are weird (if you walk off a ledge you immediately start falling at top speed), the sprites are tiny and mostly pretty undetailed, and it's only 12 levels long, and most of those levels feel almost like they're looping. (You'll run through several nearly-identical sections in a row.) The only things it has going for it above Super Mario Bros. are the diversity of the bosses (ie: there's more than one), the music, and the fact that there's a hard mode after you finish the game (which I didn't even know about until I played the 3DS version because the original version didn't save, so I'd just finish the game and stop playing).

Nemo · Aug 7, 2011

LQX said:
You get a submarine and airplane in Super Mario Land...it wins by default in that it's better designed but I rather replay Super Mario Bros.

The artwork for the gameboy games was amazing. The boxart for both Mario Lands was truly something to look at

shuri · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Land didnt even start its life as a Mario game.. It was a tech demo for another franchise if I recall well..

Anth0ny · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. with ease.

Land had some terrible graphics and physics. And it was short. Overall not very fun, especially compared to SMB.

aaaaaa · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. by a large margin. The motion blur of the original Gameboy made SML very hard to play. It wasn't designed with this blur in mind. Also it was set in a boring desert that didn't have the cartoony enemies of SMB2.

MaddenNFL64 · Aug 7, 2011

The SML music is fucking awesome, but Bros. is a better play.

Azure J · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. takes this and I love Land's quirkiness a ton. Now if this was about Land 2

SMB3=Galaxy1/2=Land 2 >>NSMBWii>>>> all others

SonicMegaDrive · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Bros. is still one of the greatest games ever made.

Super Mario land is more of a nice one-shot side-story that is usually overlooked in a series filled with classic games.

I personally wouldn't put Land above any of the console iterations. Though, I do prefer it to Mario Land 2, whatever that's worth.

sixteen-bit · Aug 7, 2011

Bros was a more enjoyable experience for me.

Betta Lines · Aug 7, 2011

aaaaaa said:
The motion blur of the original Gameboy made SML very hard to play. It wasn't designed with this blur in mind.

Whaaat. The blurry screen was never a problem for me. Sure, it sucked, but it was responsive enough.

low-G · Aug 7, 2011

Pazuzu9 said:
Whaaat. The blurry screen was never a problem for me. Sure, it sucked, but it was responsive enough.

I definitely had a LOT of blur playing SML on the original Gameboy.

SMB is better because of level design, bigger characters, and better physics. But SML's submarine stage is pretty rad...

revolverjgw · Aug 7, 2011

SML just doesn't feel right, lame physics. SMB still feels tight as hell.

Dynedom · Aug 7, 2011

God I really want to replay Super Mario Land 2 now. I wish I still had my Gameboy.

edit: I still love the music from SML though. Muda = <3 music

Xellos · Aug 7, 2011

SMB because Mario's movement factored in inertia. In SML he can stop on a dime, while in SMB he skids a little ways before changing direction (the skid animation is in SML but Mario stops immediately). It's the same reason Genesis Sonic is better than Sonic 4.

loosus · Aug 7, 2011

I'm shocked by the amount of Super Mario Land responses. Super Mario Bros. had far better controls, and that alone outweighs any of the other advantages that Super Mario Land had, in my opinion.

I did think that Super Mario Land was much more varied, though. It was fun for a trip with the family, but there is no way I would have ever wanted it instead of Super Mario Bros. Even when I was young, I saw Super Mario Land as the Mario game that was simply the best that could be done on the Game Boy.

I always thought an NES port of Super Mario Land, with either Super Mario Bros. or Super Mario Bros. 3 type controls, would have been great, though.

Nocturnowl · Aug 7, 2011

LQX said:
You get a submarine and airplane in Super Mario Land...it wins by default in that it's better designed but I rather replay Super Mario Bros.

Mario looks like he's about to rage in that submarine, must be an undersea traffic jam.

To the question at hand: I'd have to go with SMB, the game has a more fast and fluid feel to it whereas SML has some wonky physics that can really make the jumping awkward at time. Now if SML had slightly better jumping I would probably give it the nod, it has some funky music and interesting levels (Moai statue stages being the best, side note: power flower is horrible). Not to leave SMB in the lurch, I pretty much love all stage 3 mushroom platform levels, those alternate stage 3's in worlds 2 and 7 with the bloody fish on the other hand....urrgh.

Chojin · Aug 7, 2011

Andrex said:
Super Mario Bros. is probably the better game but it's hard to judge because Land came out later and had the foundation at the start.

It's been a while but I believe the difficulty curve and level design were better in Bros.

Land had a lot more variation in graphics and enemy design, but a lot of it felt a little weird. That added to its charm but made it less of a Mario game in my opinion.

To completely clarify my opinion, I think Land 2 is much better than either game.

Pretty much what Andrex said.

Plus, SMB3 > Land 2

Übermatik · Aug 7, 2011

Super Mario Land is my favourite of the 2... the physics seem far more responsive and appropriate... dunno, difficult to describe, but mario bounces more in Mario Land. I also love the weirder, more unique character and enemy design. And the locations too - Easter Island etc.

But Super Mario World will always be my fave.

Chojin · Aug 7, 2011

Ubermatik said:
Super Mario Land is my favourite of the 2... the physics seem far more responsive and appropriate... dunno, difficult to describe, but mario bounces more in Mario Land. I also love the weirder, more unique character and enemy design. And the locations too - Easter Island etc.

But Super Mario World will always be my fave.

Something that annoyed me in Mario Land was the physics of Mario plummeting at terminal velocity as soon as he fell off a platform rather than jumping. Sorta like how it works in Castlevania 1 and 3. I wonder why the characters do that. Hell doesn't the same thing happen to megaman in megaman 1?

Barrel Cannon · Aug 7, 2011

Chojin said:
Something that annoyed me in Mario Land was the physics of Mario plummeting at terminal velocity as soon as he fell off a platform rather than jumping. Sorta like how it works in Castlevania 1 and 3. I wonder why the characters do that. Hell doesn't the same thing happen to megaman in megaman 1?

I guess it's gaming's early attempts of mimicing realistic physics, not that it was good or anything

The Technomancer · Aug 7, 2011

Chojin said:
Something that annoyed me in Mario Land was the physics of Mario plummeting at terminal velocity as soon as he fell off a platform rather than jumping. Sorta like how it works in Castlevania 1 and 3. I wonder why the characters do that. Hell doesn't the same thing happen to megaman in megaman 1?

I don't quite follow. Is there an acceleration period when you step off a ledge in Bros?

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