Super Mario Land is a neat piece of history but unfortunately not much else. It’s definitely cool to see an attempt at replicating the Mario magic on a handheld in 1989. However, the novelty quickly wears off considering it’s now 2024 and you probably aren’t even playing this on a Game Boy. Whilst I very much admire the history behind it, Super Mario Land has aged as pretty much just another mediocre Game Boy platformer except this one was lucky enough to be remembered because it’s a Mario game.

There isn’t really much to say. It’s extremely short and simple, although lacking the tight and precise controls of other 2D Mario games which can sometimes be frustrating. That is without a doubt the biggest thing holding the game back. It just doesn’t feel good. That’s not to say the game has nothing worth remembering though. Despite the extremely limited visuals, Super Mario Land offers unique settings inspired by the real world as well as a large variety of distinct enemies. Vehicle levels were a pretty cool addition too. The soundtrack features some great tunes that have since become classics. Also, this was the game that introduced Daisy so that’s pretty neat. All that in mind, I can at least say that Super Mario Land’s very unique and charming identity is what prevents me from entirely writing it off. While I do consider it to be a poorly aged title who’s novelty holds little meaning all these years later, its charm and historical value at least gives it enough of a leg to stand on.